Retro car design is having a moment. Again.
Massive around the turn of the millennium, few endure today from back then (namely BMW’s Mini and the Fiat 500), as most (including the Volkswagen New Beetle, Chrysler PT Cruiser and Toyota FJ Cruiser) enjoyed only fleeting success at best, before fading away.
Today, we’re lucky enough to experience the overtly nostalgic Nissan Z and Ineos Grenadier, but there are others that we may never see.
Here, then, is a list of desirable retro vehicles available overseas that could make it big in Australia if given a chance.
Mahindra Thar Roxx
Blocked from sale in Australia by Jeep owner Stellantis, the Thar is a descendent of the original Willys Jeep, dating back to 1947 when Mahindra started manufacturing it under licence.
While the styling leans heavily into that ancestry, the current iteration, launched as a two-door hardtop in India in 2020, is a stylish body-on-frame recreational vehicle, offering four-cylinder turbo petrol or turbodiesel choices, modern comfort/convenience features and serious 4x4 off-roader capabilities. Just like its American doppelganger.
Based on the Scorpio 4WD’s underpinnings, the four-door Roxx wagon offshoot, meanwhile, only debuted in July last year, and is considerably more practical, as well as civilised.
Both versions would undercut their Wrangler OG cousin by tens of thousands of dollars, underscoring Stellantis’ desire to keep Mahindra’s ‘jeep’ out of Australia.
Ford Bronco
We understand that an evolved version of today’s U725-series Bronco that broke loose in North America in 2021 is set for an Australian debut sometime in the future. The question is when.
Ford’s global CEO, Jim Farley, recently confirmed right-hand-drive production for the T6 Ranger/Everest-based off-roader, which is a handsome and well-proportioned reimagining of the crisp 1966 original.

Fun fact: the nameplate managed to evade Australia until the F-150-based Bronco III was actually assembled here in the 1980s, using Falcon engines.
With China a nearby sourcing opportunity thanks to partner Jiangling Ford Auto, Ford locally would have a serious weapon against the coming, formidable BYD Denza B5 and much-rumoured Toyota LandCruiser FJ-style 4WD wagon.
Bring the Bronco on.
Renault 4 E-Tech
You might be surprised to learn that, like the earlier Bronco, the world’s first mass-produced hatchback, the original Renault 4 (1961-1994), was also built in Australia for a brief period.
It was ultimately too kooky and utilitarian for our tastes back in the 1960s, but the eight-million-selling French front-drive family car germinated the seed for what we know as the modern small SUV today.

The reinvented R4 for 2025 retains its beloved namesake’s upright stance, friendly face, chunky detailing, slanting rear doors and interior versatility, but with modern SUV proportions clothing an advanced all-electric architecture shared with the closely-related (but more diminutive) R5 E-Tech expected in Australia at some point.
That the latter nabbed the most recent European Car of the Year gong bodes well for the 21st Century R4.
Mitsuoka Rock Star
Despite a long production run that saw it topple the Ford Mustang in the US at one point, the 2008-2023 Dodge Challenger never made it to Australia due to being left-hand-drive only.
A pity, but some consolation could come in the unlikely event of specialist Japanese manufacturer Mitsuoka breaking completely from tradition by exporting one of its magnificent creations, the M55.

No, not a motorway, but a current-gen Honda Civic with a Challenger nose and a Datsun C110/240K-esque posterior. Preposterous… or the automotive lovechild you never knew you pined for?
Unconvinced? Then keep in mind that today’s Civic remains one of our favourite small cars on the planet, period, so at least the M55 would drive brilliantly. Especially as it uses a turbo/manual powertrain combination.
Mitsuoka Buddy
The strange and wonderful wizards at Mitsuoka strike again with the Buddy, a current RAV4 topped and tailed by a ‘70s Chevrolet Blazer-inspired bodywork.

Available in hybrid powertrains, the modifications meld uncannily well with the venerable Toyota SUV’s mid-section, especially when the retro wheel covers and period-evoking colour palette options are selected.
Narrowly missing out being our bestselling vehicle outright in 2024, today’s fifth-gen RAV4 is popular enough to justify Mitsuoka importing the Buddy to Australia.