10 Awesome Cars That Never Got A Sequel – CarBuzz

Sometimes, automotive companies create a vehicle so special, that it lives on for generations, garnering acclaim and fans around the world. Other times, they don’t. Other times, a vehicle is made with all the right intentions and a great mix of performance and, despite its potential, it never reaches it. It fizzles out after one short life, never to be seen or heard from again, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t leave a mark on automotive culture. These are the cars we want to celebrate. Before you comment on why the Honda S2000 is on this list, we’re still crossing our fingers that it might happen.

1 Chrysler Crossfire SRT6 (2005-2006)

Back when Mercedes-Benz and Chrysler were linked as one in a “merger or equals”, Chrysler believed it was time to unveil a halo sports car that would alter the perception of the American brand. The result, dubbed the Crossfire, was a bold two-seat sports car that shared most of its mechanical components with the Mercedes SLK Roadster, including its chassis, suspension, engines, and more. This gave the vehicle solid reflexes, but the base Mercedes V6 engine left a little to be desired in terms of performance, thanks to packing only 215 horsepower.

The standard car was a dreadful sports car, but Chrysler really upped the game with the SRT-6, which is one of the most underrated cars made in the 2000s.

Add CarBuzz to your Google News feed.

The Crossfire SRT-6 is a high-performance coupe with 330 horsepower courtesy of the Supercharged M112 AMG V6. It also received stiffer suspension, larger brakes, Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 summer tires, and a host of visual upgrades to give it the performance character that the car was begging for in the first place. Overall, the SRT-6 was a success, but sales were poor due to its high price, and less than 5,000 were ever made over its short run. Once Daimler-Chrysler went the way of the dinosaurs, any hope for a successor went with it.

2 Mercedes-Benz R63 AMG (2007)

Introduced in 2006, the brand believed there was a hold in the market for what essentially boils down to a luxury minivan without sliding rear doors. It certainly looked better than our crop of minivans at the time, with a sleek silhouette that sloped down towards the rear, giving it a sporty appearance. To match this appearance, the model was coupled with a myriad of V6 and V8 powertrains, but it turns out Mercedes had an ace up its sleeve courtesy of AMG.

For 2007, the company unveiled the fire-breathing R63 AMG, a minivan with a massive 6.2-liter naturally aspirated V8 under the hood that it shared with the ML63 AMG and GL63 AMG. All of this performance was coupled with a quick-shifting AMG Speedshift 7G-TRONIC transmission and AWD, which could rocket your kids to soccer practice in record time. It was meant to be a statement piece more than anything, with only 200 ever built, but even the existence of a halo minivan wasn’t enough to drive customers to the dealership. It disappeared after only one year, and after a relatively long run, the R-Class finally bowed out in 2013.

Related

The Most Underrated Mercedes-AMG Ever Made Is…

The world didn’t need a go-faster minivan in 2007, but we want one right now.

3 Kia Stinger GT(2018-2023)

Probably the most recent entry to this list is the Kia Stinger, and as much as it pains us to admit, if another generation happens, it won’t be like we hope. Introduced as a testament to the brand’s performance potential, this fastback sedan debuted with aggressive styling and loads of standard features, but the real appeal was the GT version, which came with 368 horsepower courtesy of a twin-turbo V6 engine. The brand wasn’t messing around, as it was developed with the help of Albert Biermann, formerly of BMW’s M division, who knows a thing or two about turning a sedate sedan into a missile.

Related

10 Things We Want From A New Kia Stinger

Here’s our wishlist of ten things we want from a new Kia Stinger.

Coupled with AWD, the vehicle posted performance numbers that genuinely rivaled the European sports sedans of the past few years, but it had the added benefit of much better pricing. Unfortunately, the Kia Stinger was never going to be a volume seller, and declining sales and the brand’s desire to focus further on its electric offerings and crossovers meant it’s now another sorely missed gem.

4 BMW Z1 (1989-1991)

We never received the Z1 here in the US, but that doesn’t mean we don’t miss what was one of the most unique production roadsters ever made. BMW had a bright idea in the late 80s: create a crack team of the best engineers and designers the company had, and give them free rein to create a vehicle employing some of the most cutting-edge techniques and technology the industry had to offer. The result was the BMW Z1, the brand’s first new roadster in 30 years.

Related

10 Facts Every BMW Fan Should Know

There’s a ton of gold in here.

The vehicle featured a self-supporting monocoque with incredible doors that slid up and down vertically for easy entry. Thermoplastic body panels were used on the exterior for easy repair in case of an accident, but this also meant the vehicle could be completely stripped down to the chassis and still fully functional, leading to some incredible pictures. Customers loved it and flocked to purchase the model, with 8,000 produced during its life. Overall, it was seen as a success, but the company decided that more traditional roadsters like the Z3 and the Z4 were more in line with its future.

5 Mitsubishi 3000GT VR4 (1990-2000)

Before you say anything, we understand that the lines are blurred between whether the 3000GT had different generations or received two distinct facelifts over its life. Our vote is for the latter, simply because we don’t think the changes were comprehensive enough to be classified as an entirely new generation from one to another, but feel free to disagree with us. What I don’t think any of us will disagree on is the fact that the 3000GT is one of the most impressive cars of the 1990s, with the twin-turbo VR4 models being its absolute peak.

Related

Weekly Treasure: 1995 Mitsubishi 3000GT VR-4 Spyder

Examples like this are almost unheard of.

When it first arrived in 1990, it offered AWD with 4-wheel steering, electronically controlled suspension, and an adjustable exhaust, but all of this was done away with by 1997 to cut down on costs. Performance only increased, however, with the model boasting 320 horsepower after 1994 coupled with a 6-speed manual. Despite how impressive it was, its higher price always made it an underdog, and after 10 years on sale, Mitsubishi did away with the model with no successor in sight.

6 Buick GNX (1987)

Back in the 1980s, cars with genuine performance were hard to come by unless they were highly expensive and most likely Italian, but Buick was the one American brand that dared to stand in their way. The company, which even then was known for its comfortable and luxurious vehicles, decided to take the Regal and put it through the performance ringer, releasing a slate of models like the T-Type, Turbo-T, and most famously, the Grand National. All of these cars were awesome, but the company knew it had more in the tank, and for the last model year of the Grand National, the company unveiled the holy grail: the Buick Grand National Experimental (GNX).

Created in partnership with McLaren Performance Technologies/ASC, it was the ultimate expression of the Grand National. The 3.8-liter V6 was overhauled with a larger Garret turbocharger and bigger intercooler, and a low-restriction exhaust was thrown on so it could breathe. Power was now rated at 276 horsepower and 360 lb-ft of torque, but everyone knew Buick underrated the engine. Along with a host of other mechanical upgrades and more menacing looks, it destroyed nearly everything else on the road, including the Ferrari F40 and Porsche 930 in the quarter mile. It was the period of the Grand National legacy, and it’s a shame the company never truly tried to regain this glory.

7 Subaru SVX (1992-1996)

The SVX was Subaru’s attempt at punching higher in the car world. After having much success in the 1980s (like many Japanese companies at the time), the company wanted to create a halo model that would attract a new type of customer to the brand. It conceived an AWD grand tourer with a healthy amount of power and gorgeous looks, so it reached out to legendary designer Giorgetto Giugiaro to get to work, and the result was a futuristic-looking coupe with some of the craziest windows we’ve ever seen.

Of course, a flat engine was under the hood, and this 3.3-liter unit produced a healthy 230 horsepower and 228 lb-ft of torque. As this was meant to be a cruising grand tourer, the only available transmissions were automatic units, which definitely left a little performance to be desired, but the car was anything but slow. Subaru was expecting it to be a hit, but the sales never came, peaking at a little more than 5,000 in 1992. This is the type of top-tier model we’d love to see the brand make today, especially because the WRX just isn’t what it used to be.

8 Pontiac Solstice GXP (2006-2010) / Saturn Sky Redline (2007-2010)

GM’s Kappa platform twins are often forgotten about, but we have no problem reminding you just how cool they were. Executive Bob Lutz did a lot of good at GM when he was there in the early 2000s, and one of the very best was spearheading an effort for the company to create a small roadster akin to the Mazda Miata or BMW Z4 at the time. The company’s engineers and designers went to work, and they came up with two models for the US: the Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky. They were two different flavors of the same thing, but the base four-cylinder engine was mediocre. Fortunately, the company thought up hotter versions of each.

Related

How The Great Recession Changed The American Automotive Industry Forever

It opened the door for the industry we have today.

The GXP and Redline featured a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine making an incredible 130 horsepower and lb-ft of torque per cylinder. You could pair it with either a 5-speed manual or automatic, and this gave the cars just enough power to be exciting. The company even released a coupe version of the Solstice in GXP form, and we think it’s one of the best-looking cars of the 2000s, but unfortunately, the Great Recession was waiting in the wings to ruin everything, and it took the Kappa platform twins with it.

9 Isuzu VehiCROSS (1999-2001 In US)

The Isuzu VehiCROSS is the oddest vehicle on this list. Back when Isuzu was still a name in the US passenger car industry, the brand was known for its tough SUVs, and it had a wild idea for a bold off-roader. It wanted to make a two-door SUV that was more capable, and weirder looking, than anything else on sale. An international design team came up with its wild looks, which kind of make it look like a cute but tough warthog. Underneath was an advanced 4WD system that utilized Torque on Demand (TOD) to send power to whichever wheel had the most traction, a potent V6, monotube shocks, and body-on-frame construction to take abuse.

What’s more interesting is that the company decided to use new stampings and tooling to make the body panels, tooling that had a shelf life. With each pressing made, the stampings became more worn out. Once the stampings were gone, production stopped, and given the brand’s decline, no plans were ever made for a successor, leaving the VehiCross as a unique part of automotive history.

10 Cadillac XLR-V (2005-2009)

The Cadillac XLR was a bold attempt by Cadillac to try to absorb some of the Corvette’s success. GM felt that Cadillac needed a bold, flagship convertible in its stable at the time to draw in customers, so it grabbed the Y platform from the Corvette and stole some room on the Bowling Green production line. It wasn’t just going to badge-engineer a model, however, so the brand gave it the edgy styling the brand was running with at the time, a unique interior, suspension, a retractable hard top, and even a Northstar V8 to set it apart.

The base model was sporty, but the company knew it could do better, so it cooked up a V performance variant with a supercharged Northstar V8. Now the car made nearly 450 horsepower and was given a stiffer suspension, larger brakes, and a revised transmission to handle the power. It was quick, sleek, and powerful, but it was also mightily expensive. Sales were never stellar, and thanks again to the Great Recession, there wasn’t a chance a successor was going to happen.