Podcast: Autosport@70 - choosing the greatest rally car of all time

The first issue of Autosport magazine appeared on 25 August 1950 and as part of our celebrations we have taken on the task of picking out the greatest competition cars from each of the major international categories.

Our panel of experts has already debated the greatest grand prix cars and sportscars, and the third episode covers rally machines. Later podcasts will cover touring cars, Indycars and junior single-seaters, and the winner from each episode will progress to a grand final, where we will select Autosport's greatest competition car of all time.

In this episode Chief Editor and host Kevin Turner is joined by rally guru, journalist and author Nick Garton to run through the best and most legendary rally designs.

Comparing competitors across different eras is always a tricky task, but the main judging criteria is the level of success each of the cars enjoyed, how far they changed motorsport with their innovations, and how exciting they were on the stage.

We start with an iconic machine that made its mark all around the globe even before the World Rally Championship began in 1973, then moves through 1970s rivals such as the Lancia Stratos and Ford Escort to the Group B monsters of the 1980s and the cars of Colin McRae's era in the 1990s, all the way to the best cars of the 21st century.

There are some superb machines that have missed out, but we've tried to put together a spread of cars that have had the biggest impact on rallying, both in terms of success and exciting the fans.

As well as the podcast mini-series, we are also celebrating our birthday with features from the Autosport magazine archive, covering seven decades of incredible motorsport moments and interviews, on Autosport.com.

An Autosport 70 special magazine, featuring the greatest cars, drivers and competitions from motorsport history, is set to be released later in the year.