The most popular was MGB, which was modest in technology but very reliable. It had many variants, including a 2+2 hard top version called MGB GT, a 3.5 V8 version simply called MGB GT V8 and a six-cylinder version called MGC.

MGC, although sounds like another car, was actually modified from MGB. It was planned to replace the well-known Healey 3000 of the same group as a mid-price sports car, but eventually failed to please customers because of the competition from Datsun 240Z.

In the 50s, 60s and early 70s, British sports cars had their glorious days. MGA and MGB dominated the low-price sports car segment all over the world, while Austin Healey found success in the middle-price sector and Jaguar did the same in the higher price segment. Only the rarer and more exotic Porsche and Ferrari were not threatened. Entered the 70s, Datsun (Nissan of then) suddenly launched a sports car, 240Z. It was not only cheap but faster and more beautiful than the old MGs. Then other Japanese sports cars emerged and led to the death of MG. The British sports car marque didn’t went back to business until the mid-90s.

Model T had great influence, but that was the production method rather than the car itself. Citroen DS was extremely advanced, but few cars followed its trend. Volkswagen Beetle once covered all over the world, but you can hardly see an air-cooled rear-engined family car in today. Mini was rather different. Its 1959 design exactly foresaw the shape and layout of city cars of the 80s, 90s and even the 21st century.

Mini was designed by nearly entirely one man, Sir Alexander Issigonis. After having success with his Morris Minor small sedan, Issigonis squeezed out all his talents to create a revolutionary new small car for BMC (British Motor Corporation, which owned Leyland, Triumph, Land Rover, MG, Austin Healey etc). This car, in his mind, should be much smaller than any rivals so that it would be more fuel efficient and cheaper to build, but it should also offer the same usable space. To achieve that he suggested a transverse engine whose sump incorporated with the transmission, then drove directly the front wheels. As a result, volume of the engine compartment could be dramatically reduced. Furthermore, with the application of small wheels and rubber suspension (to compensate the roughness of small tyres), and by pushing the wheels to each corner, cabin room could be maximised without enlarging the body.

That was his most ambitious dream, which might achieve great success but could also turn out to be a complete disaster. However, given the support from the management, he hesitated nothing to realise his dream. As a result, in 1959, a 848 c.c., 10ft long small car called "Mini" launched in Britain. Mini immediately attracted the attention all over the world because of not only its innovative engineering but also its pretty look which once again proved "small is beautiful".

In 1963, racing specialists John Cooper helped BMC to develop a hot version of Mini, which employed bigger engine, tweaked suspensions and wider tyres. This car, called "Mini Cooper", won the heart of many racing fans and also found success in winning a hat-trick of Monte Carlo Rally.

Production of Mini continued throughout 4 decades until Sep 2000 and was seen as a miracle. However, since the 80s, most people bought Mini for its historical status and yuppie image. They’d rather pay higher price to secure an outdated, impractical mini instead of any modern superminis. A total of 5.3 million Minis were sold during its 41 years of presence.

Nissan rewrote the record by introducing 240Z in 1969. Unlike previous Japanese sports cars including the first Fairlady, it was designed to meet the requirements of Western markets, especially the United States. Development was difficult, since engineers had to start from drawing board. On one hand, German Albrecht Goertz (previously designed the BMW 507) was employed to design a beautiful 2-seat body. On the other hand, engineers in Japan were working hard to develop all-wheel independent suspensions, 5-speed transmission and straight-6 engine.

The outcome amazed automotive journalists all over the world with its attractive look, crisp and near neutral steering, sparkling performance and high standard of finish. As a result, it became the most popular sports car in the US market and also established high reputation in Europe.

In 1973, 240Z was upgraded into a 2+2 sports car called 260Z (as indicated by its name, a 2.6-litre engine was
used). Then continued evolving to 280ZX and 300ZX. These successors, all belonged to the so-called "Fairlady" series, were more civilised and practical but hardly comparable with the original in terms of handling and beauty. It was not until the third generation of 300ZX that a comparable fairlady was made.

Apart from performance, 300ZX had many other good things to be remembered. Its styling, for example, was
handsome and imaginative. It had a highly ergonomic and comfortable cabin. Handling was only second to
Porsche. It was very well made. It had an optional 4-wheel steering. It was competitively priced ...

R32 (1989-1994)

Skyline was a long existing label in Japan, but the first time it caught the attention of the world was in 1989, when Nissan developed the GT-R version from its newly launched R32 Skyline series. From the first day, the GT-R was designed to be a secret weapon in Group A touring car racing. To outpower its rivals, Nissan developed a 2.6-litre straight-six engine called RB26DETT, with 24 valves and twin turbochargers. In production form, it was tuned to a modest 280hp to meet the voluntary upper limit in Japan. However, the engine was constructed so robust that it could be easily tuned to a reliable 500hp by using bigger turbo and improved cooling. Even in the standard form, it was already capable of reaching 250km/h and accelerate from 0-60mph in 4.8 seconds.

In motor racing, Skyline GT-R stormed the Japanese Touring Car series in its first 4 years, winning 29 races out of 29 races!! in Macau, the famous street circuit in Southern China shore, the GT-R blasted Ford Sierra RS500 away, leading a distance I had never seen. The car was said as capable of 700 horsepower and even more in qualifying or overtaking. So shocking that next year the organizer was forced to modify the regulations and added weight penalty to the Skyline.

Apparently, horsepower alone could not make a winner. Skyline GT-R was so successful because it introduced some advanced technologies to handle its tremendous power. The first one was the ATTESA E-TS computer-controlled all-wheel-drive system. Unlike many contemporary 4WD systems, it did not introduce the undesired understeer or corruption of steering feel. Instead, the GT-R cornered with RWD car's throttle adjustability and neutrality to inspire its driver. On the other hand, whenever necessary, the Skyline produced 4WD car's level of maximum grip in corners. How could it manage that? Skyline employed a computer-controlled multi-plate clutch to vary the torque split between front and rear wheels. In normal condition, the GT-R was basically rear-wheel-drive. Only when it need extra grip to corner, the multi-plate clutch would transfer torque towards the front wheels. The amount of torque to the front wheels was calculated by computer. The software setting was the outcome of extensive testing in Nurburgring circuit of Germany, no wonder the 4WD system worked so good with the car.

Another high-tech feature was the Super-HICAS 4-wheel-steering system. Again, it was controlled by computer and was benefited by the Nurburgring testing. Rear-wheel steer helped sharpening its steering response and kept powerslide in under control. No wonder the GT-R cornered like a much smaller and lighter sports car.

Thanks to its supercar handling and performance, the GT-R immediately won admiration from European and American journalists. Many described it as the best production performance car in the world. By Japanese norm, the GT-R was never cheap - around half the price of a 911 Turbo, but it actually provided more ability and driving fun than any production Porsche and Ferrari then. Only some limited edition supercars could beat it on race tracks or super-smooth highway, but then again how many of those supercars could match the GT-R's speed in real world driving? (probably none). How many people could afford those supercars? in contrast, the R32 Skyline GT-R sold an astonishing 44,000 units in 5 years. Calling it "poor man's supercar" might not sounds good, but it is very true.

R33 (1995-1998)

As the Skyline family evolved into new generation R33, the GT-R was also renewed. Many people regarded the R33 as the least driver-focused among the 3 generations, this is because its body was grown in size and weight was up by 40kg. Also, the suspensions were tuned to be more compliance. In fact, by today’s standard, the R33 is perhaps better than its predecessor. Its chassis was more rigid, build quality higher, had more space and comfort inside, controls were more refined, rode less harsh... however, I never loved its civilized exterior design.

The R33 kept its winning formula largely unchanged. The RB26DETT engine was modified to produce more torque. Once again, maximum power was said to be 280hp, but actual figure was believed to be around 300hp. However, performance was slightly deteriorated due to the extra weight, taking 5.0 seconds for 0-60mph.

Anyway, the reputation of Skyline continued to grow overseas. The R33 GT-R was finally exported to UK. As a result, more and more Western car lovers started changing their view about Japanese sports cars. 911 was no longer the ultimate choice.

Nismo 400R (1996)

This was a limited edition prepared by Nissan's racing department, Nismo. Only 99 cars were built and sold at a very high price. The name 400R implies its maximum power of 400hp. This was achieved by enlarging the engine to 2771 cc, increased boost pressure, upgrading pistons, con-rods, crankshaft, clutch etc. In the chassis, wider tracks and wider tyres improved handling, so was the 30mm lower ride height, Bilstein gas dampers and bigger brakes.

The 400R was of course not for everyone's taste. It was for the most demanding drivers with healthy backbones.

R34 (1999-2002)

The third generation modern GT-R was born in 1999 accompanied with the new Skyline R34. Having listened to criticism from fans, Nissan made this car compact again. A diet (using aluminum bonnet, carbon fiber undertray, forged alloy wheels and suspension control arms) cancelled most of the weight gain (stronger bodyshell, larger Brembo brakes, among others) and resulted in just 20kg increase over its predecessor. The hard-edge design of R34 also looked handsomer than R33.

The RB26DETT remained mostly unchanged, but it got larger intercoolers and ball-bearing turbines. Official power was again limited to 280hp, but engineers revealed the actual number was 330hp. Torque increased from 271 to 293 lbft. Moreover, gearbox was upgraded from 5-speed to 6-speed, therefore 0-60mph was shortened to 4.6 seconds. 0-100mph improved even more - from 13.0 to 10.8 seconds.

However, by then GT-R had lost somewhat its brightness, because over the years there was no major changes to its engine, 4WD and 4WS system. In contrast, Porsche progressed much quicker with each iteration of 911 Carrera and Turbo. Simultaneously, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo and Subaru Impreza STi gave the GT-R more pressure from the lower end of the market. These rally specials were almost as quick while being much cheaper. Problem was, Nissan was deep in financial trouble thus could not invest more money. In the end, Nissan decided that it was no longer financially viable to develop a new engine to replace the RB26DETT in order to comply with new emission regulations to be effective on the 1st Aug 2002 in Japan. Therefore the Skyline GT-R came to an end that day.

Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn promised there will be an all-new generation GT-R in 3-years time. However, that will be another story.

However, the radical decision to adopt Wankel rotary engine turned out to be wrong and fatal. Not only being too thirsty, it suffered from excessive wear of the rotor tip seals, which led to combustion chamber leakage. As a result, power loss and fuel consumption gradually deteriorated so that the whole engine must be rebuilt or even replaced as early as 30,000 miles !

Continuous reliability and durability problems led to the huge warranty expenses, while poor image drove customers towards rivals Mercedes and BMW instead (Ro80 was seen as a premium car). It eventually cost the independence of the company - Volkswagen took over NSU in 1969 to form Audi-NSU division. The car
itself survived until 1977, then the factory was converted to assemble Porsche 924.

No matter how brilliant it was, Ro80 was killed by its troublesome rotary engine. However, Wankel engine did not died yet. It appeared as soon as next year (1978) in Mazda RX7. After spending a lot of effort, the Japanese finally cured the reliability problem and made it practical. What a pity NSU and Dr. Wankel did not do that.

Related article : The rise and fall of rotary engine