Eight perfect cars for the jogger, sprinter and marathon runner

DAF 55/66 Marathon

Better known today as a maker of heavy trucks rather than lightweight passengers cars, Dutch vehicle producer DAF launched its first car in 1958 (the 600), a small family saloon equipped with an innovative ‘Variomatic’ CVT (Constantly Variable Transmission) automatic gearbox.

In 1966 DAF introduced its second, larger model, the 44, with the more powerful 55 added one year later, fitted with a 1.1-litre Renault-sourced engine. The 55 soon proved to be capable in competition, an example winning the 1968 Alpine Rally. That same year, Rob Slotemaker finished 17^th out of 100 contestants in the grueling 10,000-mile-plus (16,500km) London-Sydney Marathon rally.

Inspired by the success of its small 55 in the London-Sydney Marathon, DAF introduced a 'Marathon' pack dealer-fit option with alloy wheels, uprated suspension and parts to upgrade the engine to 65PS. In 1971 DAF introduced this pack as a new factory-built model derivative (the 63PS 55 Marathon) with wider steel wheels, exterior striping and a brake servo, available as a saloon or a coupe.

In late 1972 the DAF 55 Marathon was replaced by the new 66 model, sharing much of the 55’s bodywork from the A-pillar backwards, and with a 1300 Marathon 66 sporting derivative added in 1973. In late 1975 the DAF-branded 66 morphed into a Volvo when the Swedish firm took over DAF’s car operations, although Volvo resisted the opportunity to rebrand the Marathon as ‘Snickers’!

If you fancy a laugh, you need to watch DAF reverse racing immediately…

Volvo 262C

Is if to prove that Volvo had a sense of humour, in 1977 the Swedish company introduced one of the greatest ‘what on earth were they thinking?’ cars of all time, the hilarious 262C. Aimed ‘squarely’ (pun intended) at the North American market, the 262C was a two-door ‘personal coupe’ version of Volvo’s V6-powered 264 saloon.

Made for Volvo by Bertone in Turin, the chop-top 262C was built like a tank, and looked like one, only missing the option of a swiveling gun turret! Hand-made and expensive (costing as much as an elegant BMW 6 Series or Lancia Gamma Coupe), this ill-advised Volvo somehow managed to tempt a staggering 6,622 buyers, many of which probably regretting their decision once they’d driven the first 2.62 miles in this claustrophobic barge!

Toyota 4Runner

Originally based on Toyota’s best-selling Hi-Lux pick-up truck, and first launched onto the domestic Japanese market as the Hi-Lux Surf in 1983, this mid-size 4x4 was introduced into selected exports markets (including the UK and Europe briefly), rebadged as the 4Runner.

Although soon withdrawn from European markets due to weak sales, the 4Runner has remained a popular SUV in some overseas markets, especially the USA, Australia and South American, with the model now carrying through to its fifth-generation.

Marathon Corsair

Resembling an early Porsche 356 that’s been shrunk on a boil wash, the Corsair was a small rear-engined coupe, powered by a Panhard two-cylinder boxer engine, and built in low volumes between 1953-55 by the French firm Automobiles Marathon just west of Paris.

Conceived by German amphibious vehicle obsessive Hans Tripple (the creator of the 1960s Amphicar) directly after he had been released from war-related imprisonment in 1949, the Corsair (and its Marathon Pirate soft-top sister model) was built in a high-tech (for the time) polyester material, making the model light and lively, capable of around 95mph from the Panhard’s small 850cc motor.

Renault 4 Jogging

Possibly inspired by French rival Citroën’s basketball shoe 2CV ‘concept’ five years earlier, in May 1981 Renault released a limited edition model of its popular R4 (the best-selling French car ever made more than 8 million examples built), called Jogging.

The Jogging celebrated the R4’s 20^th anniversary with 5,000 examples built for sale in France and the Benelux. The Jogging was aimed at younger buyers with white coachwork and rainbow stripes (carried over into the interior’s blue denim-style seats, with a matching sports bag in the same trim) with blue bumpers, a large 2CV-style canvas sunroof, colourful ‘Jogging’ stickers and 13-inch steel wheels borrowed from the Renault 5.

Checker Marathon

The Checker Marathon is as synonymous with New York as a yellow cab as an Austin FX4 is with London as a black taxi, both taxi cabs appearing on thousands of cliché posters and post cards around the world.  

Introduced in 1960, primarily for taxi use, the Marathon was actually the ‘regular’ passenger car version of the famous Checker cab, which continued in production largely unchanged cosmetically until Kalamazoo-based Checker went out of business in 1982. Marathon ‘civilian’ derivatives included a luxury VIP sedan and stretched nine-door ‘Aerobus’ airport delivery station wagon.

Triumph Dolomite Sprint

Sprint has been a name applied to the sportier performance derivatives of a number of cars for many years, one of the first being the acclaimed Bertone-designed 101-Series Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint coupe of 1954.

In the UK, however, say Sprint and the first car to spring to mind will invariably be the 16-valve performance derivative of the 1970s Triumph Dolomite sporting executive saloon. Released in mid-1973, the Triumph Dolomite Sprint was not only the first British mass-production car to feature a 16-valve cylinder head, but also the first with alloy wheels as standard fitment (well, you learn something every day!).

Originally planned to be called the Dolomite 135 (to reflect Leyland’s desired 135PS), the model’s nomenclature was changed to Sprint at the last moment as this name was felt more fitting for the lively BMW-beating nature of the 16V Triumph. To help distinguish the model from lesser Triumph 1500 and Dolomite HL derivatives, the Sprint also received a unique cheese-cutter grille, black vinyl roof, dual side stripes, front lip spoiler and the distinctive black multi-spoke polished alloy wheels.   

Citroën 2CV Marcatelo ‘Sports Shoe’

In 1976, a professor at the Camando French design school tasked his students to personalise a mass-marketed consumer good, choosing to use a Citroën 2CV.

Citroën became involved, picking Claire Pagniez’s ‘basket’ sports shoe design out of 60-plus proposals. Citroën built two examples – one for the right foot, one for the left foot – and displayed them in its Champs-Élysées showroom to assess the publics’ reaction.

Citroën’s Spanish division heard of the project and revised the design in 1982 when it launched the 2CV Marcatelo, a limited edition of 300 cars designed to celebrate the 1982 Football World Cup. Pagniez’s basic sports show idea was carried over to the Marcatelo, but it featured several modifications including orange graphics and a simpler design.