Top 5 smallest production cars
Parking is a breeze. It brings new meaning to the words ‘fuel economy’ and you’ll never be asked to do the school run if you own one. Welcome to my five favourite small, and perfectly formed, production cars.
BMW Isetta
The Isetta was known as the bubble car. Photo: BMW
This is where it all began, with the Isetta. Produced under license by the Bayerische Motoren Werke (BMW) from 1955 to 1965, the car was based on a design by an Italian company Iso Rivolta and known as the bubble car. It had a door at the front and single cylinder four-stroke engine in the back. For years Germans would pack the Isetta and head away for holidays. I saw one in BMW’s museum in Munich and it was so tiny I could have snuck it out in my handbag (nearly) plus it made me appreciate that my parents had a Hillman Hunter station wagon for our holidays.
Peel P50
It you wanted to go into reverse in the Peel P50 you had to get out and use the handle at the rear. Photo: Supplied
This was listed in the 2010 Guinness World Records as the smallest production car ever made, at 1.372 metres long (short?). It was a three-wheeled microcar originally made from 1962 to 1965 by the Peel Engineering Company on the Isle of Man. It had no reverse gear, but a handle at the rear allowed the very lightweight car to be manoeuvred physically when required.
Designed as a city cart, it was advertised in the 1960s as capable of seating "one adult and a shopping bag". That’s my kind of car. The vehicle's only door was on its left side and equipment included a single windscreen wiper and one headlight.
Goggomobil Dart
When you think Aussie cars, you don’t think about this little convertible. Photo: Shannons
At 1.8m long, this microcar was a fiberglass-body convertible that was produced in Australia by Buckle Motors from 1959. The Dart was based on the chassis and mechanical components of the German Goggomobil microcar. It was powered by a rear-mounted twin-cylinder two-stroke motor available in both 300 cc and 400 cc variants.
Renault Twizy
The Twizy started life as a concept car but is now a popular EV. Photo: Renault
This is technically a ‘heavy quadricycle' and was originally built as a concept car in 2009. The 2.32m all-electric Twizy went into production in 2012 and is still for sale in Europe. Its 6.1 kWh lithium-ion battery provides the tiny vehicle with a range of 100km on a full charge. During its first year of production, it was the top-selling electric car of 2012.
Fiat 500
It’s a Kiwi-Italian favourite with a mighty little motor and great memories for many. Photo: Winger
There’s a Kiwi angle to the original Fiat 500 as it was assembled from 1959 in Otahuhu, Auckland with Torino Motors building and launching the ‘Bambina’ as it was known in New Zealand. The local name arose because the advertising agency thought that bambino (Italian for baby boy) and the name used elsewhere in the world, might be confused for the baby Jesus. So ‘bambina’, the Italian for baby girl, was adopted.
It was just 2.97m long and ran on a 479 cc two-cylinder engine that was air-cooled. More than 5000 ‘Bambina’ Fiat 500s were assembled in New Zealand, with that number bolstered by personal imports.
A friend’s mother had one when I was a teen, and we’d drive it around with the canvas roof rolled back, of course. Now excuse me while I go on Trademe to check for listings of the Bambina.