There are hundreds of automakers around the world throughout history that have made some truly great cars, though haven’t ascended to the station of household name. At the point it made the all-conquering F1 supercar speed machine, McLaren was arguably an obscure brand, though it has since become a much more known entity. Knock that one off the table, and what are you left with? What’s the best car to ever be made by a brand that would only be known by the cognoscenti? I’ve got a few answers rolling around in my head.
At the moment, I think I’d make a pretty solid case for Fields Auto Works being a truly obscure brand making a truly great car. The somewhat oddly-shaped Cardinal sports car is among the coolest things on four wheels right now, even if you have to do the final assembly yourself in order to register it under kit car rules. The Columbus, Ohio-based Fields makes the Cardinal as a more accessible track day special. Not only is it much cheaper than, say, a Ferrari XX program car (at $49,999) but it puts a focus on light weight and inexpensive componentry.
This little machine is about the size of a Miata, weighs just 1800 pounds, and when powered by an optional 300-horsepower Ford Ecoboost engine, it’ll cut a pretty damn quick lap time. I love this little monster, as it isn’t just the plaything of billionaires. Your average Corvette owner could buy one of these for a track toy, and go quite a bit quicker than most at your next track day. It’s a throwback cool track monster with modern horsepower, what’s not to like?
Anyway, that’s what I’m throwing into the ring. Can you beat it? What’s a car that totally rules from a brand that didn’t make it, or hasn’t made it yet? Sound off in the comments below and we’ll compile the results later this week.