1. wild wedge-back
   hot hatch
2. mini miler
   top chop

The UK show "Top Gear" frequently refers to "hot hatches" or "hot hatchbacks." You'll hear this term less in North America.

1. 1949
   1955
2. 1967
   1970

This seems surprisingly early to those who associate the Beetle with the 1960s. In fact, the Beetle was briefly marketed as a "Victory Wagon" (VW, get it?) to take the taint off its being a German car. WWII hadn't been over for very long, after all.

1. England
   Germany
2. Italy
   Yugoslavia

Fiat stands for "Fabbrica Italiani Automobili Torino," the Turin-based company founded by Giovanni Agnelli. When the Fiat 500 was re-styled for a new generation, TV commercials in America showed the little car emerging from the Atlantic Ocean onto a beach in America.

1. the 1940s
   the 1950s
2. the 1960s
   the 1970s

The first 500 was released in 1949. But it is most associated with the 1950s and 1960s, a colorful, swinging era in Europe in general, and Italy in particular.

1. 1999
   2001
2. 2004
   2007

The Fiat 500 was unveiled with great fanfare in 2007. It became wildly popular in the United States, surprising given that the US was the land of the SUV.

1. Reservoir Dogs
   The Italian Job
2. The Thomas Crown Affair
   Rififi

This movie boasted two things that were classically English: actor Michael Caine, and the three lively Minis that lead police on a wild chase through Turin. It also ends in one of cinema's greatest literal cliffhangers.

1. front-wheel drive
   automatic transmission
2. a mid-engine construction
   turbocharging

The Mini's unusual transverse-engine, front-wheel drive system was so rare it led to a popular prank: asking a mechanic to work on the rear differential. A front-wheel drive car has no rear differential.

1. Germany
   France
2. Belgium
   Bulgaria

A number of Citroen cars are light and compact. The company also ventured into "microcar" making with its Prototype C cars in the 1950s.

1. Dacia
   Toyota
2. smart
   Volkswagen

The "Golf" is a long-running product for Volkswagen. At times, it has been badged as the "Rabbit" or "Jetta" in North America, before being sold under the "Golf" name.

1. Golf
   Morris
2. Squareback
   Thing

Morris is a British car. It's another name for the Mini.

1. Austin
   Morris
2. Powers
   both #1 and #3

Perhaps it's appropriate that this car has several aliases. After all, it was a star player in a classic heist movie!

1. Karmann Ghia
   Morris Mini
2. Dacia Sandero
   Lancia

The Karmann Ghia sports car was a joint project between VW and the independent carmaker Karmann. It's a classic symbol of the European "dolce vita" lifestyle of the mid-20th century.

1. big cat
   star
2. tree
   wind

A scirocco is an southeastern wind in North Africa and southern Europe. The car used the VW Golf chassis, but had much sleeker body styling.

1. the Audi A1
   the VW Karmann Ghia
2. the VW Rabbit
   the Smart Car

The Rabbit replaced the Beetle in the US market. Although never as iconic, it was omnipresent in the '70s and '80s -- affordable and reliable.

1. Del Sol
   Fit
2. 500
   Mini

To introduce the Honda Fit, the carmaker did a series of commercials modeled on Japanese anime, with bright, flashing colors. The slogan was simply "The Fit is Go!"

1. New Beetle
   Golf
2. Squareback
   Thing

The name is a mashup of "ragtop" and "speedster." This concept car was introduced in 2005.

1. 1999
   2002
2. 2008
   2011

The modern Beetle had a good long run, from 1997 to 2011. You can still see plenty of them on the streets.

1. the Dacia
   the Renault
2. the Yugo
   both #1 and #3

Dacia is the major carmaker of formerly communist Romania, and Yugo was, of course, from Yugoslavia. The brand marketed as "Yugo" in the US is more commonly known as "Zastava" in Europe, and is based in Serbia (since the breakup of Yugoslavia).

1. the gears
   the seats
2. the roof
   the wheels

A "cabriolet" is a car with a fold-down roof. Several small cars in this quiz, like the VW Beetle, have cabriolet models.

1. Germany
   Ireland
2. Bulgaria
   Ukraine

Germany has quite a history of making microcars. Many didn't catch on, but the smart car did. And yes, the "s" is supposed to be lowercased. Really, smart, are you too cool to captialize?

1. Karmann
   Fiat
2. Dacia
   smart

The name stands for "Swatch Mercedes Art." Naturally -- it couldn't just mean "smart" in the usual sense. Honestly, smart, can't you do anything straightforwardly?

1. Fiat
   Honda
2. Renault
   Toyota

The Honda CRX was a "hot hatch" two-seater. Its HF model (for "high fuel efficiency") could, given proper tire inflation and regular filter changes, achieve highway mileage of 60 mph or more. Consumer advocate David Horowitz didn't believe this, and tested it -- getting an astounding 65 mph.

1. the Accord
   the Del Sol
2. the Insight
   the Fit

Compared to the CRX, the Del Sol was not well received. Its semi-convertible, removable-hardtop design gave it a reputation as -- well, the term "Malibu Barbie car" comes to mind. Production ceased in 1997.

1. Alec Issigonis
   Charles Spencer King
2. Kingdom Brunel
   Gian Paolo Dallara

Not to be confused with Alec Guinness, Issigonis was a Greek-British designer of cars. He was knighted in the late 1960s.

1. red
   black
2. green
   white

It later became popular to release fuel-efficient hatchbacks in bright green to underscore their eco-friendliness, but the CRX preceded that trend. They mostly came in black, red, white and silver, with a few models in bright yellow or a metallic aquamarine.

1. 1963
   1969
2. 1974
   1986

The last Karmann Ghias rolled off the line in 1974. Despite this, you occasionally see a vintage Karmann Ghia, well cared for, on the street.

1. Honda Del Sol
   Honda Insight
2. Toyota Prius
   smart fortwo

Some people might guess the Prius based on its runaway popularity -- but the Insight beat the Prius to the market. It never became a huge success because it had only two seats.

1. just 2001
   2001 - 2002
2. 2001 - 2004
   it was always a hatchback

The small-sedan-with-trunk model was sold in North America in 2001 and 2002. After that, Toyota switched to the better-looking hatchback design that now throngs California's highways like bison used to throng the Great Plains.

1. Dacia
   Renault
2. smart
   Volkswagen

We're embarrassed to admit how long we looked at the "fortwo" and thought it was pronounced "fort woe." Frankly, "forfour" looks like a sexy Gallic word, as well.

1. yes
2. no

They sure do! Consider the PeelP50, a three-wheeler so small that Jeremy Clarkson drove it around the halls of the BBC Television Centre. There's also the German "bubble car," the Toyota iRoad, and more. (We advise not taking corners very fast, though).

1. its seating capacity
   its horsepower
2. its gas-tank capacity
   its price

Yup, the lowest-powered model was "deux chevaux," or two horsepower. Why not just go back to a cart with two horses, in that case?

1. the 501
   the 505
2. the 126
   the giallo

The 126 simply wasn't as popular. It did hang on through the 1990s in eastern Europe, though, where there was less choice in cars.

1. Ireland
   India
2. Japan
   Poland

With some of the world's most densely-populated cities, Japan has good reason to value small size in a car. There are tax benefits to driving a "kei car," just like California offered special access to carpool lanes for hybrid cars in the 2000s.

1. the Corrado
   the Jetta
2. the Squareback
   the Thing

The Corrado can be mistaken for the Scirocco by the uninitiated, but it has sleeker styling and a small rear spoiler. Fewer than 100,000 were produced, and it's still a favorite of car buffs.

1. Dodge Darts
   Fiat 500s
2. VW Beetles
   none of these

According to IMDB.com, both Pitt and Norton disliked the idea of Volkswagen repackaging a 1960s classic with 1990s gloss for a new generation -- in other words, spoon-feeding a whole generation Boomer nostalgia. (Pitt has apparently changed his mind about the Beetle, however).