Unsung heroes

Below is a list of 20 unique vehicles that may not be instantly recognisable but have been very successful within the specific markets for which they were designed.

Select the links to find these vehicles on a timetable

	Renault 4 - 1961 France Five door economy car that remained in production until 1993. It was the most successful French car of all time and over 8 million were built.
	Dennis F series fire engine - 1960s UK Dennis has been synonymous with building fire engines since 1908
	SD P series refuse truck - 1980s UK Shelvoke and Drewry was synonymous with building refuse collection trucks from 1923
	Invacar P70 - 1972 UK Started in 1948, Invacar specialised in providing transport for people with physical mobility disabilities. They designed three wheel vehicles in association with the UK's Ministry of Health. The last model, the P70, featured a fibre glass body and a 600cc engine. It was built between 1972 and 1977.
	Electricar H75 milk float - 1919 UK One of the first companies to design and manufacture electric delivery vehicles, Electricar are best known for building milk floats.
	Scammell Scarab - 1949 UK Scammell launched the Mechanical Horse in 1933. It was a three-wheeled truck used for towing Scammell's patent automatic coupling trailers. It was later improved and renamed the Scarab in 1949 and the Townsman in 1964.
	Wayne Lifeguard bus - 1972 USA Wayne Corporation is best known for its Lifeguard school bus which improved crash safety by using continuous longitudal panels of steel for its interior and exterior. Available with engines and chassis by various companies including Ford and GMC the Lifeguard became the archetypal yellow school bus.
	Suzuki Carry - 1992 Japan Suzuki began building very small vans in the 1960s with under floor engines to maximise load space. Their fuel economy and compact dimensions have made them invaluable in the world's cities and the 'Carry' version is one of the best selling commercial vehicles ever built.
	VW Transporter - 1950 Germany The Transporter is the world's best selling series of vans. Originally it had a rear engine and provided the basis for the famous Microbus 'camper' van. It moved to a front wheel engine layout in the 1980s.
	Sentinel - 1920s UK Sentinel built influential, powerful and successful steam trucks using vertical boilers to maximise load space until vehicle weight legislation made them obsolete in the 1930s.
	Ford F Series - 1948 The F series is the world's best selling series of pick up trucks and is consistently the best selling vehicle in the USA.
	LTI TX2 - 2001 The TX2 dominates the London taxi market. It was designed to provide access and accommodation for wheelchair users.
	Mercedes-Benz Citaro - 1997 Germany Citaro buses have completely flat floors and provide wheelchair and pushchair access. They are available in different lengths including articulated models and the 19.5 metre long Capa City that can carry 193 passengers.
	Leyland National - 1972 UK These single-decker buses were built between 1972 and 1985. The bus was designed with particular attention to crash safety, passenger access, driver ergonomics and heating.
	Morris J-type - 1949 UK This compact panel van was designed with forward control arrangement and an offset engine to maximise load space. Its layout and curvaceous pressed steel body panels made it a popular van in the UK, not least amongst ice cream sellers, and it remained in production until 1961.
	Fiat 500 - 1936 Italy Successful and influential series of small cars. The original 'Topolino' (the name given to Mickey Mouse in Italy) had a diminutive four cylinder engine at the front and introduced many refinements over all previous small cars. Its 1955 successor had a rear engine and became a design icon. It was rebodied in 1972 and renamed '126', remaining in production until 1993.
	Austin Seven - 1922 UK The first successful economy car built in Britain, the Seven remained in production until 1938 by which time over 300,000 had been built.
	Toyota Corolla - 1965 Japan The world's best selling series of cars: 32 million have been sold in 9 generations
	Bedford CA - 1952 UK The CA became the blueprint for all subsequent panel vans. It featured semi forward control layout which maximised load space, sliding doors to assist access and independent front suspension. Over 350,000 units were sold during its 17 year production run. It also became a popular vehicle for mobile home conversions, most famously with Martin Walter Ltd ‘Dormobile’ bodies.
	Neoplan coach - 1953 Germany Neoplan have a history of producing pioneering coaches for long distance travel. It was an early adopter of low floor technology for airport buses, unitary construction and articulated buses. The world's largest bus, the 144 seat Jumbocruiser, was launched in 1975 incorporating many of these advances.