What it lacked in UK sales clout, the Polestar 1 made up for by generating column inches in the motoring press. It spearheaded Polestar’s reinvention as a standalone brand (it was previously a race team and Volvo’s performance sub-brand), and did so with an attention-grabbing two-door body that’s the spitting image of the gorgeous 2013 Volvo Concept Coupe. 

While contemporary rivals, including the BMW M8 and Bentley Continental GT, propelled themselves with snarling V8s, the 1 had a much less exotic 2.0-litre, four-cylinder engine borrowed from cars like the aforementioned S90. It had a rather large helping hand, though, from a plug-in hybrid system packing a whopping 34kWh battery pack and potent electric motor to power the rear wheels.

The result is 601bhp and 1,000Nm, although the weight penalty of that battery made for a somewhat underwhelming 0-62mph time of 4.2 seconds. The high cell count does get you an impressive 77 miles of electric-only running, though.

One of the lesser-known Skoda models on our shores, the 1000 MB is a big deal in the Czech manufacturer’s history, with nearly 450,000 made between 1964 and 1969. The 1000 MB also marked a move from front-engined cars to rear-engined, which would remain a hallmark of Skoda’s cars for years to come. 

Skoda did actually sell the 1000 MB in the UK as a cheaper alternative to cars like the Ford Anglia, which it looks quite similar to, and the also rear-engined Renault Dauphine. Whether or not the sole survivor here is an official UK car, we can’t be sure. 

1000 referred to the displacement of the 1.0-litre four-cylinder engine, which develops about 40bhp. There was also an 1100 MB, displacing - you guessed it - 1.1 litres. The ‘MB’ bit, meanwhile, is a reference to Mladá Boleslav, where the car was made, and where Skoda models are still manufactured today. 

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