Are there any cars that could be considered "Lost Media" or just "Lost"
Posted by RipOwn7911@reddit | Autos | View on Reddit | 144 comments
So I have been on a huge Lost Media video binge recently and it got me weirdly thinking.. are there cars that have just simply been lost to time? Let's just say for example if the only proof we had of the Ferrari F40 was old pictures or old commercial posters of it... and no one exactly knew if they still existed/where still driven today?
I know this is a really silly question as most cars are very well documented but It's been in the back of my head for a couple of days now so I am just really curious.
Competitive-Yam9137@reddit
I've been alive 43 years and noticing weird cars for about 40 of them and i've never seen a Fiat Strada/Ritmo.
scirrgeorge@reddit
Fiat strada like the little pickup? There where a lot in Mexico a few years ago, rarer to see this days, I suppose they were unreliable because literally you could spot multiple every day.
Competitive-Yam9137@reddit
nah it's a little hatchback from the 80s
fernblatt2@reddit
In the 70s and 80s I had several Datsun F-10s. I've never seen one since I got rid of the last one in 1982
scirrgeorge@reddit
At least two still running in Cd. Juárez, were these rare?
nathan1319@reddit
I remember when I was a kid (late 90s) seeing a Gurgel Itaipu. It was always at the same spot tho, almost like no one could drive it. Decades later I realized that it was one of those concepts that just didn’t work at the time. Electric car in the 80s? That’s just crazy. Wonder if there’s still any out there in Brazil or anywhere else in the world.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gurgel_Itaipu
scirrgeorge@reddit
At least two still running in Cd. Juárez, were these rare?
MerkinMuffley1@reddit
Jim Morrison had a 67 shelby gt350 that was one of seven being dark blue with parchment seats. A lot of people have tried to find it and allegedly if you call the company that was once his management firm they are aware of the vehicle being registered to their former company and wont say anything about it. Some think its in their hands, others say it was crushed after one of his many impaired driving induced accidents, or that someone stole it.
scirrgeorge@reddit
The car was in Cd. Juárez, crushed in the 70s after a bad crash.
boxjohn@reddit
it would be almost impossible to track down, but I'd love to know what is the highest production car with zero survivors.
ungolfzburator@reddit
I'd say this one.
http://www.automobileromanesti.ro/Rocar/TV_4/
They were everywhere in communist Romania, and were also exported (although in limited numbers). Production numbers were at least in the tens of thousands. Absolutely none are left today.
Axipixel@reddit
I honestly didn't believe you and spent like an hour and a half scouring the net.
I honestly think you're right. Only TV 41/TV 51. I can't find a single picture of a TV 4 or TV 5 taken after the 80s. Not even a rusting hulk. Just nothing. Found some pictures of very early TV-41s in Prague, Czechia and Yerevan, Armena that's it.
Alexandervici@reddit
old topic, but I think I spotted one here (check pic 11)
https://www.reddit.com/r/UrbexRo/s/BNebknpv70
ungolfzburator@reddit
Honestly it is kinda hard providing sources for this one, since Rocar is rather poorly documented on the internet. However, I am into classic Romanian cars (and own one myself) and I hang out with a lot of collectors and people who are generally knowledgeable on the topic.
There were a couple of guys 2 years back who were trying to find one all around the country, but came up empty handed. For all intents and purposes, this car is absolutely gone.
You can still find later Rocar vans, although those are getting extemely rare as well. Rare as in "maybe you see one or two a year".
And this isn't even the only extinct Romanian vehicle. Not counting prototypes, the other one that comes to mind is this one. http://www.automobileromanesti.ro/Roman/SR_7_BA-1/ - A version of the (much more popular) SR Bucegi truck.
There are also other cases such as the Dacia 1320/1325, of which there are probably less than 20-30 still up and running. Or the Dacia 500, with probably less than 15 in working order (and none of those in the "wild").
zosteria@reddit
There’s an Armenian version that looks exactly like it. Rare but not extant
Axipixel@reddit
I remember seeing someone go nuts about finding one in a picture someone took in Yerevan, Armenia in 2023. Didn't know it's because they were supposed to not exist at all.
Axipixel@reddit
Someone randomly happened to snap a pic of one on the streets of Yerevan, Armenia in 2023
Axipixel@reddit
I'd wager something by a pre-WW2 central European nation.
Polish CWS T-1, they made a little over 800 of them, and none are known to survive. Though there are two or three modern-made replicas.
whosthatcarguy@reddit
The EV1 is another contender. They’re still around, but to my knowledge none of the survivors can ever run again. They were all bricked. Around 1,100 made.
Swimming_Average_561@reddit
Most likely a lot of cars from the late 1800s and early 1900s, just as automobiles were beginning to gain traction. There were a ton of small-scale manufacturers who tried their hand at the automotive industry, and ended up either going out of business or getting bought out. Many of these early automobiles had small production numbers and weren't documented all that well.
VeterinarianThese846@reddit
Jean buggatis personal buggati type 57 s/c Atlantic dubbed “la voiture noire” aka the black car and Mercedes c204 amg c63 black series press car debuting the black series c63 and in solar beam yellow it’s since been missing ever since its last press conference in about 2011-2012 and it was the only one painted that colour no customer could get it but now if you pay around $98k usd Mercedes will take it back to Germany and paint your car solar beam yellow
Equal_Lunch6409@reddit
horche, silver arrow, pierce arrow, delahay, plymounth some people know, i have others but i cant remember them rn
AssumptionFearless68@reddit
I went through every comment and saw no mention of
Ford Probe concept that burned after leaving pebble Beach 2024 if I'm not mistaken the owner does plan to have it restored though
Messala which was nicknamed matrix cl-2 and was completely unknown except for 2 pictures from an autoshow until someone on reddit solved it and proved it was a wooden sculpture but could've been a very cool car there also was the cl-3 which i don't think was ever even made because there is one single picture that looks like a 3d render
Jeep cj-4 which was a concept that had 2 made during ww2 i believe and then they both just vanished and are likely destroyed or privately owned by a important jeep member
Mazda rx7 245i which was a group b endurance race car that races a couple times then vanished and was rediscovered in mazdas private heritage collection
Koenigsegg cc xp002 which was the second version of the cc prototype which is completely vanished aswell as cc xp003 which was the crash test for the cc8s but it's crashed body has since vanished and was likely scrapped xp001 is still around and is owned by @numerounocollection on Instagram there is also xp003 static model know as 7xx1 is at the koenigsegg factory i believe
Koenigsegg cc12 which may have been the cc850 before it was unveiled
Koenigsegg Quant which was unveiled at Geneva in 2009 and was a collab with NLV and has since vanished
Amati 1000 amati was a luxury company made by mazda that failed and they made 3 cars 2 of which became mazdas the other the 1000 vanished
Amc amx/2 concept a few prototypes were made in 1968 and then vanished
The Nissan bevel concept which was missing for 15 years unveiled in 2007 and rediscovered in 2022 at a scrapyard
Mazdaspeed rx-8 which is in video games like forza completely vanished after only a few were made
A lot of this info came from a series on tiktok called the most mysterious cars in history which are posted by @car.content.myg
auximines_minotaur@reddit
Doubt very many Bricklins are still out their torturing the roads
AssumptionFearless68@reddit
I know of 1 real and 1 replica in calgary alberta I've seen the replica one
MercuryMan664@reddit
Hey that's one of my favorites! I've always wanted one despite their issues!
auximines_minotaur@reddit
Isn’t that the one with the gullwing doors that could take a man’s arm off?
MercuryMan664@reddit
I'm sure it could if you weren't careful, it used a hydraulic opening and closing system from factory. You can upgrade them with air systems now. I suppose if you were not careful you could take your arm off.
auximines_minotaur@reddit
Right on. Yeah I think I remember reading about that!
KeeganY_SR-UVB76@reddit
r/whatisthiscar makes you think otherwise...
sdood@reddit
There's a couple that owns his and hers Bricklins that they bought new, I saw them at the Greenwich Concours years ago
drfsrich@reddit
Not very many but that's the kind of car that would have a small cult following and will probably last.
chaznooget@reddit
Guy i work with has a lime green one but its only ever out of the garage for shows/parades. So theres at least one still running example out there. Weird seeing it in person. Until you’re told what it is it looks like it could be 5 different cars with a body kit.
auximines_minotaur@reddit
There’s some super fun dystopian 70s sci fi with an evil computer that takes over, and one of the characters drives a bricklin. Demon Seed maybe?
Or perhaps it was a Cold War espionage flick?
ZephyrStudios686@reddit
That one Lotus Carlton thar went on one of the most successful crime sprees and then disappeared, with the criminals never being found.
Civil_Worldliness973@reddit
You might want to watch this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cuPNiGwSwEs
idecentminecrafter@reddit
the weird thing about that to me is if you check the uk gov website and look up 40RA’s plate, it’s not taxed but it has got its MOT, so whoever owns it has been taking it out to get its MOT but barely driving it.
OllieBonugli@reddit
The plate was on the original owner’s wife’s Hyundai for years, but he’s now got another Carlton and has put 40 RA back on it. The owner is active in the Lotus Carlton Facebook groups, he goes by Ricardo Austini
Reefstorm@reddit
"40RA" car was so fast the police didn't stand a chance in their Rover Metros, rumour was it even outrun the police helicopter!
RipOwn7911@reddit (OP)
Ah what an iconic story man.
Ducktail_27@reddit
This is probably the biggest one - no one’s been able to definitively identify the blue car in the bottom right, not for a lack of trying.
The best known “lost car” story that I can think of is about one of the four highly sought after (and unbelievably valuable) Bugatti Type 57 Atlantics - story about that here
Forthias@reddit
That looks like a Saab Sonett III lol
thrashatron@reddit
deutsch bonnet le mans with the hard top on?
PlaceboKoyote@reddit
The car looks like a Saab Sonett 2 with a modified rear Window/ closed off rear quater Window.
Minirig355@reddit
The door line over the rear fender is entirely different which is a pretty serious modification if it was a Sonett 2, also leads me to believe it’s a different length too
KeeganY_SR-UVB76@reddit
Close, but not quite. It looks a lot like one, but the entire body is off. The headlight buckets are at an angle, while the Saab is vertical. The door is further back, with the seats just in front of the rear axle, which is probably why it has (what appear to be) gullwing doors. The entire windshield is different, with a dome-like shape. The rear end is different, with the roofline sloping below the square top corner of the fenders, reminding me of the Triumph GT6.
fishsupper@reddit
Been staring at that damn windshield for way too long. It’s gotta be the woman’s hair causing an optical illusion, or lens distortion.
KeeganY_SR-UVB76@reddit
I don't think there's any way around it, that windshield is round as hell.
TheseDrugsSmellNice@reddit
It kinda almost looks like it could be the rear window from something else
grishnackh@reddit
Modified front bumper too.
Thefocker@reddit
Mystery over 🤣
Bamres@reddit
Wow never saw that first image! That's an interesting mystery especially with direct photo evidence.
RedeemedWeeb@reddit
Chrysler Norseman.
A concept car that sunk on the Andrea Doria. Last time divers went down there they said it had already rusted away.
ProfessionalCoat8512@reddit
It was a Chrysler it probably dissolved like cotton candy in water.
Unlucky_Contract8729@reddit
There are a lot of such cars, mostly really damaged race cars(think chassis 001,002,003 mercedes benz clr-s and their future development cars
tripleriser@reddit
When was the last time you saw a clean Dodge Stratus?
ResearcherCurrent101@reddit
im living in brazil. Here, its a collectible car, the majority of cars you seen there is a well trated car. a
Timmytheimploder@reddit
It's easy for a one off to go missing once someone loses interest, e.g. the first Benz, land speed record attempt BABS being left and buried under Pendine sands for years after a fatal accident, but it happens with production cars too as they are sometimes seen as mundane and not worth saving.
Toyotas first car the AA was an actual production car - over 1000 were made, no original examples survived. The cars in the Toyota museum are replicas that had to be recreated from drawings and photos, even the original tooling would have been long gone.
Even cars from the 80s of which thousands have been produced often only survive in single digit numbers. Sports/Luxury cars tend to survive because people value them from new, while econoboxes disappear quite rapidly. You would be hard pressed to find a surviving example of a car like the Citroen LNA for example, there's probably single/low double digit numbers left in any country they were sold, while far more older 2CVs survive due to their cult following.
Ashamed-Guava4880@reddit
There are a couple LNAs for sale in France but apparently the rocar tv4 a popular van I Romania have disappeared with no examples having been found
Jaded_Hurry8117@reddit
A really interesting lost car is the Chrysler Norseman, only one produced as a prototype and it was lost in the sinking of the ocean liner Andrea Doria
Derp-321@reddit
I'd wager lots of obscure pre WW1 cars are lost nowadays especially since there were hundreds of small companies back then that failed quickly
superluke@reddit
There was a manufacturer in my home town (London, Ontario) called London Motors, none of their cars are known to exist today.
boxjohn@reddit
neat, as a fellow Ontarian I didn't know about London Motors at all. I really need to do a deep dive into the Ontario car industry in general, nearly forgotten history.
ijustbrushalot@reddit
Visit the Canadian Automotive Museum in Oshawa
Main-Bowler-3681@reddit
The Ford museum in Detroit also has a really nice collection of obscure cars and other things.
tjdux@reddit
I used tonwork for a company that often shipped this to London Ontario and it just said London on the sheet the first time I seen it (am from usa) and I was pretty excited we were shipping across the ocean, then learned it wasn't quite that far but still international.
richbiatches@reddit
Hey! Does the minor league team London Werewolves still exist??
superluke@reddit
Don't think so, I'd forgotten about that!
SpaceAgePotatoCakes@reddit
Similarly most custom coach built stuff too.
cbelt3@reddit
You may find examples… there are loyal and rabid restoration communities… I have a colleague who restored a 1912 Renault. And spend 25 years restoring a Locomobile… it’s gorgeous.
austinmiles@reddit
I worked for Local Motors and we built the Rally Fighter. We had a ton of press and it is in a ton of media. Transformers 3, Fast 8, numerous videos games including GTA 5 (in the way that they do)
The the reality is they were all hand built and only like 100 made. Most are overseas and only a handful exist in the US. They’ve already been mostly forgotten. But we’re a fun car.
lol_whats_homework@reddit
I was dropping my little brother off in this nice neighborhood in San Diego (think G-wagens parked on the street) and I actually spotted one in the driveway of one of the houses! I didn't know that they were even street legal haha. Super cool looking car
BaconJacobs@reddit
I drove one for about 10 minutes, fairly slowly around a grass field as a charity fundraiser.
It was super unique. Sounded like you were riding in a filing cabinet haha.
I bet that was a neat job.
austinmiles@reddit
I always said it was…unrefined.
It was also impossible to see out of so changing lanes felt like a risk every time. It almost forced you to drive like an asshole.
BaconJacobs@reddit
Haha for sure! It needed some generational updates, but it didn't get the time.
Yeah the visibility... WOOF. I was a nervous wreck driving it and I was in a wide open space.
lolwhatmufflers@reddit
I consider myself very lucky to have seen two separate examples in the wild then, one in New York and one in Las Vegas!
austinmiles@reddit
Thats super cool. I remember seeing one at SXSW in 2010 I think and it was the coolest thing.
I really wanted to get into the automotive industry and consider myself super lucky to have worked there. I managed a lot of the brand and stuff post rally fighter but got to borrow the ones we had a few times which was fantastic. It was a stupid vehicle but so much fun.
RipOwn7911@reddit (OP)
daamn interesting as hell..
xqk13@reddit
There’s probably a few late 80s early 90s Chinese domestic/copy cars that are pretty much completely lost. There’s one photo of a hatchback that even experts on Chinacar history.com couldn’t figure out.
STLSi@reddit
Link?
xqk13@reddit
I saw it either on r/whatisthiscar or their website, it’s an unassuming red hatchback with no badge.
kowalski71@reddit
The 1938 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic is one of the rarest and possibly most desirable cars ever made, with only three being produced. It's known for it's distinctive Art Deco aircraft like ridged and riveted body, since it was built from magnesium before reliable magnesium welding was available.
But for decades there have been rumors about a fourth Atlantic. Actually, a zeroth since it would have been produced before the surviving three. It's reported to be the Atlantic that was shown at the Paris auto show and since it was painted black it was called La Voiture Noire. Bugatti Volkswagen did a special edition Chiron with the name a few years ago, this is where they got the idea.
Within Bugatti circles it's mostly assumed that the car was either parted into the three produced Bugattis since it was effectively a showcar or crushed/destroyed during WW2. But until somewhat recently, prewar French cars were still being found hidden in France. Prior to the Nazi occupation valuables of all kinds were stashed and cars were no exception. Disassembled Bugattis sealed in behind false walls in barns and the like. The idea that this fourth Atlantic would resurface in the same way has been a tantalizing myth for decades.
Giallo_Fly@reddit
Question, how much do you know about the 57S Atlantic coupes? It is not my area of expertise, but when I worked for a well-known american restoration company circa 2019, there was a bare metal body in the corner that looked tantalizingly like a Bugatti Type 57, complete with a "fin" seam. I didn't realize the significance of it and so never really got a good look at it.
STLSi@reddit
I've heard about this. Do you have pictures?
Giallo_Fly@reddit
What have you heard? No pictures to speak of but I'll take a look later.
STLSi@reddit
It was referenced in an article
kowalski71@reddit
Are you referring to this car? It's known and almost certainly a replica. Statistically but also the pictures of the construction doesn't look like the originals, most notably that the fin is not riveted. Due to the desirability of the originals there have been a handful of replicas made through the years. And there were other finned cars made in the era, like the Type 51 Dubos coupes and I think some Voisins.
Giallo_Fly@reddit
That looks to be about right! I figured it was a replica.
computerhater@reddit
A lot of cars swallowed up via demo derby. There are still a lot out there, but mopar c bodies are almost never seen at local car shows. Chrysler imperials are only ever driven by derby guys. If you see one at a car show it’s a safe bet the driver has probably crashed at least 5 of them. Same is currently happening with gm clamshell wagons, 80s full frame gm and ford, Cadillac fleetwoods, Chevy caprice, ford crown vics, Chevy lumina and cavalier, Hondas from the 90s. The one car I really would like to see which are almost impossible to find now is a mercury turnpike cruiser. Built as tough as an Edsel, but didn’t hurt your eyes when you looked at it
wipedcamlob@reddit
I own a mopar C body but it waa going to be derbied if i didnr buy it
computerhater@reddit
I also own a c body, but I’m a derby guy with a heart for the classics
wipedcamlob@reddit
What do you got ive a 74 newport 4 door
computerhater@reddit
66 New Yorker with the glass c pillar
wipedcamlob@reddit
Nice id like to find a 69 newport in nice shape. I was also tempted to buy a 75 newport with frameless window but i decided i didnt need two newports
Drzhivago138@reddit
Or if they are, they're Monacos with the Bluesmobile treatment.
newoldschool@reddit
Sard mc8
v10 NSX
Honda V8 legend
any vector
DeLorean concept
gnomesvh@reddit
Purple F1 = the George Harrison car? If so far from lost, car was at Retromobile a few years ago
newoldschool@reddit
there was a second one not George Harrison
gnomesvh@reddit
The only "lost" F1s I can think of are either the Brunei cars (very well documented so not lost) or 039 "lost" but informally agreed to be decided not to be found by current owners
eagledog@reddit
The cartel F1 is pretty much lost at this point
DylanFucksTurkeys@reddit
Sard MC8 appeared one day on an Instagram page a few years ago. They post quite frequently now.
https://www.instagram.com/mc8_channel?igsh=NW03MHhucTBoZTB0
Bamres@reddit
I think we know the whereabouts of most of these in company archives or private hands/
njroma@reddit
Look up the story of the Tucker 48 chassis number 57 codenamed Vera.
AlphaMarux@reddit
Took me far too long to find someone mentioning Tucker in general.
Rocko3legs@reddit
In 1963, the last foreign car, outside of the current Toyota involvement, to compete in the NASCAR Cup series was an MG driven by Smokey Cook at Bowman Gray Stadium. To this day no photograph has ever surfaced of that car. Even Fox commentator Mike Joy was looking for it, asking about it on air back in 2007, and posting on MG forums looking for photos of Cook's car to no avail.
Giallo_Fly@reddit
I live 15 min from Bowman Gray and have met Mike Joy a few times (he's a local). I'll have to ask him if he he's got any update to this story the next time I see him.
-henryf@reddit
The Mazda Furai concept car was a one-off which was destroyed after it caught fire during a photoshoot for Top Gear. Now it only exists in photos, videos and a few video games.
Fine-Huckleberry4165@reddit
The 1991 BMW E1 small electric car concept was also destroyed by fire.
The 1997 Daewoo Shiraz concept had to be destroyed after the interior went extremely mouldy during shipping back to the UK after having been displayed at a motorshow somewhere in Asia (I can't remember which show. It did return safely after its appearance in Seoul).
ya_yeety@reddit
There still is at least two E1s. One is in the BMW Museum in Munich and the other in the (not open to the public) collection of BMW Klassik also in Munich
Fine-Huckleberry4165@reddit
Those are the later E1, from I think 1993.
ya_yeety@reddit
I didn't even know there were two! You learn something new everyday i guess
rwdstickshiftfanboy@reddit
Is it just me or the shiraz is a rebadged lancia thesis?
geoff1036@reddit
Still insane how much they nailed 2020's supercar stylings in 2007.
RipOwn7911@reddit (OP)
Yeah this is exactly what sprang to mind while watching those videos.
mortpo@reddit
I have not seen a Plymouth cricket for sale in a very long time.
Drzhivago138@reddit
Was that the little car brought over from Chrysler's European operations, right before they started rebadging Mitsubishis?
juwyro@reddit
There are cars that have been lost and brought back. They either existed in only plans/photos then were recreated or they were cars that were built, taken apart, and someone has tracked down parts to rebuild the car, or were a regular car built for an event and people have rebuilt tributes of that car.
One of my favorite cars is the Beast of Turin. Which was a car that 3(?) were built and taken apart. Then someone tracked down parts and built one.
Wulf_Cola@reddit
I was lucky enough to see the S76 being driven, it's a sight to behold! Astonishing thing
ThrindellOblinity@reddit
There was also the BMW Garmisch concept car from 1970 which disappeared, then was recreated from scratch in 2019
https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a27583107/bmw-reproduces-1970-garmisch-concept-car/
mini4x@reddit
That car looks so Italian in design, nothing like anything BWM was actually building in the 70s, that C pillar was right off the Fiat X1/9 Designer: Marcello Gandini - makes sense that guy designed almost everything remotely cool form that era.
dr_strangeland@reddit
I wonder how much this old design had to do with their new grille shape. It can't be a coincidence that they spent so much effort and money to recreate this concept.
I like the description. "Oddly angular". Damning with faint praise.
It's a stunning concept car, but what a legacy. I wish they had stolen literally any other of the styling elements.
Nib-q@reddit
Definitely the brown Mclaren F1.
It was bought new by a cartel general working under el chapo and after his death has not been found. There are lots of theories ranging from a repaint and in plain sight, under a tarp in rural Mexico still, or taken to Europe quietly. As far as I’ve heard it’s still not definitively located. Functional or at least even complete it’s a 8 figure car.
nlabodin@reddit
A lot of early Checkers are fully gone
eatsrottenflesh@reddit
I saw a Chivette today.
Educated_idiot302@reddit
Jump on YouTube and look up donut media ford thunder. A lightning powered ford expedition with little documentation but definitely existed.
canamreplica@reddit
Plenty. Wrecked, lost, etc.
a-pretty-alright-dad@reddit
The Chrysler Norseman!
There was one, it was a concept car by Chrysler, designed by Carrozzeria Ghia. It sank to the bottom of the ocean on the Andrea Dora.
SootyFreak666@reddit
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BET_500
Only one image seems to exist and it’s in this Wikipedia page, I doubt any actual cars exist now in Greece.
There is also a Ford Tourneo (transit, based on a mk5 so a 1990s model) taxi with a weird boot and roof. I remember coming across images of it and never finding any real info aside from some images and and a model some railway modeller made. I tried finding them again but couldn’t find it, I have the image saved somewhere…don’t know where though.
LetsNarratorPremium@reddit
The Toyota AA would be a pretty close one. It was the company's first passenger car of which they built a little over 1000 examples in the late 30s/early 40s.
One was found in Russia a few years ago and now sits at the Louwman museum in Netherlands. And that's the only real one I know of.
Even the Toyota Automobile Museum themselves don't own a real AA. The only two they have are replicas.
kingofthecornflakes@reddit
There are only 101 First Gen Renault Espaces known in Germany. I'm in a Club with mine, we have 30 members. When they were new, they sold really well, but were absolutely abused as family cars.
KeeganY_SR-UVB76@reddit
The Toyota AA... Kind of, sort of. It was believed to no longer exist, so Toyota made a replica with the few (albeit inaccurate) plans they could find. It was used as a display car for Toyota's 50th anniversary in 1987.
However, in 2008, an example of a very poor-condition AA was found in Russia, near the city of Vladivostok. This one has a chassis from a GAZ truck.
OriginalFaCough@reddit
The GM EV1...
KeeganY_SR-UVB76@reddit
Not accurate. There are multiple EV1s that still exist, all but one being decommissioned. The only functional one is at the American History museum in Washington, D.C.
OriginalFaCough@reddit
Interesting. I was under the impression that they had all been destroyed by GM. I'll have to check it out.
KeeganY_SR-UVB76@reddit
Almost all of them were. The few examples that weren't crushed were spared with the sole intent to send them to museums.
ungolfzburator@reddit
Yes!
The Rocar TV 4, built in communist Romania during the 60s and 70s. There is absolutely none left, running or otherwise. It is completely extinct. And it was not a low production van either, these things were everywhere, but it became "lost" due to the aggressive metal scrapping incentives of the 80s.
http://www.automobileromanesti.ro/Rocar/TV_4/
Also, a lot of chinese cars built before the 1980s.
mofapilot@reddit
I can only think of movie cars. The Interceptor from Mad Max was a lost car. The Herkimer Battle Jitney from Mystery Men is still lost, for example
Important-Ad3820@reddit
Some guy bought the Herkimer and is restoring it on Youtube.
mofapilot@reddit
Oh, didn't knew that! Did that happen recently?
Broduski@reddit
https://www.hemmings.com/stories/2021/10/06/the-herkimer-battle-jitney-lives-and-the-new-owner-plans-a-full-restoration
Important-Ad3820@reddit
Probably in the last six months. Let me dig a little and i’ll find it.
Quay-Z@reddit
There was a concept car called the Golden Rocket, from Oldsmobile. It was featured in a short film called Design for Dreaming.
Here's the "lost" part from the Wiki article:
Wiki
brainshatterer@reddit
I got one. Pimp My Ride with Xzibit had 73 episodes. 72 cars and one where are they now episode. Now during the first season with WCC Jay Leno had Xzibit and the crew build up John Melendez's Jeep. I have that episode but it was extremely hard to locate. Now for the first season with GAS when they changed shops. Jimmy Kimmel had them build Guillermo's Pontiac Torrent. I have yet to even see a single photo of it and I do a documentary follow up series on the cars. I got my wife on the show and we still have her car. Anyone who can help me with that Jimmy Kimmel episode would be epic.
PAdogooder@reddit
I assume so. There are definitely motorcycles made between the turn of the century and World War II by very small and young makers that don’t survive and don’t have much or any historical record.