9 Cars That Will Die In 2026

Every car has to die. It’s just how the industry works. Even the R35 Nissan GT-R, which we had assumed had somehow managed to attain some kind of automotive immortality, was shuffled out of production in 2025.

2026 will be no different, with various significant cars all set to meet their end over the coming 12 months. Here are nine that you won’t be able to buy this time next year.

Alpine A110

Even though we’ve known about it for a while, this one’s going to hurt. It was confirmed back in February 2025 that production of the brilliant little Alpine A110 would be coming to an end in 2026.

Launched in 2017 to spearhead Renault’s revival of the Alpine brand, it was an instant smash, the poster child for modern lightweight sports cars. As rivals have died off or become bigger and heavier, its appeal has only grown, and the sad likelihood is that unless the industry and regulations undergo a significant change, we’ll probably never see anything like it again. An all-electric replacement is coming in 2027, although rumour suggests that Alpine is also investigating the possibility of giving it hybrid power.

BMW Z4

The A110 isn’t the only sports car disappearing this year. After returning from a brief hiatus in 2018, the BMW Z4 will once again be saying goodbye, this time most likely for good. BMW confirmed as much a few weeks ago with the reveal of the rather understated Final Edition, with production set to wrap up in the spring.

Never quite the sharpest sports car around, it nevertheless appealed for its old school recipe of a meaty six-cylinder up front (although a four-pot was available too), two seats in the middle and drive to the back. It was improved vastly, too, by the arrival of 2024’s Handschalter pack, which, while sounding like something slightly dirty in German, actually marked the long-awaited arrival of a manual gearbox. With BMW now seemingly out of the pure sports car game, it’s unlikely it’ll get a direct replacement.

BMW 8 Series

Another BMW name that returned after a hiatus in 2018 – albeit a much longer one this time – but won’t make it past 2026, the modern-day 8 Series never quite felt at home anywhere. Pitched as more upmarket than the 6 Series it effectively replaced but never quite posh enough to play in the Bentley/Maserati/Aston leagues, it was always somewhat lost in an awkward middle ground.

Nevertheless, it offered plenty of appeal, especially in M8 guise, and offered three body styles – coupe, convertible, and the low-slung four-door Gran Coupe, which may well hold the dubious honour of being the most recent good-looking BMW to be launched. Again, beyond some vague chatter about the 6 Series once again taking its place, it’ll likely get no direct successor.

Volvo V60

Volvo has already killed off the bigger of its estate cars, the V90, and the handsome V60 is set to follow in 2026. With no successor on the horizon, and Volvo unwilling to commit to an electric estate given what it says is a shrinking market for the body style, we’re staring down the very real possibility of a world where Volvo doesn’t build estates. Yikes.

That’ll bring to an end over 70 years of continuous Volvo wagon production, as the brand abandons the kind of car it’s best known and loved for in favour of – yes – more SUVs. Look, we know car companies have to adapt to the realities of the market, but that thought still makes us incredibly sad. Excuse us while we go browse old V70s.

Audi RS7

Fans of big, bruising V8-powered Autobahn expresses, prepare to pour one out. One of the last of its kind to be unsaddled by hybrid assistance, the Audi RS7, won’t make it past 2026. In fact, it’s already been dropped in the UK, but it’s still available in the States for now.

Both generations of A7 have always felt like a niche too far in some respects, but there’s been an undeniable appeal to the RS versions, with their handsome but menacing vibe and V8 soundtrack. With Audi moving away from fastbacks like this and instead fitting its new generation of saloons with similar liftback tailgate arrangements, the RS7 won’t get a direct successor. However, there will be another RS6, most likely a V8 plug-in hybrid, and spy shots indicate that for the first time in over 15 years, it’ll come as a saloon as well as an estate, so will essentially pick back up where the RS7 left off.

Ferrari 296

We’re not completely certain the Ferrari 296 will die in 2026, but we have reason to think it will. Why? Firstly, Ferrari lifecycles are just getting shorter and shorter, and with its fifth birthday approaching, the 296 is positively ancient by modern Fezza standards. Secondly, the hardcore 296 Speciale appeared in 2025, and these lighter, harder limited edition Ferraris tend to appear towards the end of a model’s lifespan.

Thirdly, the world’s car spy snappers have papped what looks like a camouflaged prototype of its successor out and about. Since the 296 was an all-new car, that replacement will likely be essentially a heavily facelifted version, using an evolution of the same V6 plug-in hybrid powertrain.

Mercedes-AMG C63

Um, yeah, is anyone actually going to be sad about this one? When Mercedes’ compact super saloon made the switch from V8 to plug-in hybrid four-cylinder power in 2023, it’s fair to say the move was about as welcome as the thought of being stuck in a lift with someone who’d just polished off a plate of leftover sprouts. We can’t recall ever seeing a single one on the road, nor its SUV cousin, the GLC 63.

2026 is likely to see the duo discontinued after just three years, but not for the reason you think. Reports emerged in late 2025 that, due to incoming noise regulations in the EU, certain models powered by AMG’s four-cylinder, including C63 and GLC 63, will be dropped by the summer. We can’t help but feel the ice cold reception to both has a role to play too, though. Various rumours of a replacement with either straight-six or V8 power, have circulated, but nothing’s been made official by Mercedes yet.

Porsche Macan ICE

It’s hard to believe the first-generation Porsche Macan will be celebrating its 12th birthday in 2026, but that really is how long the car that’s become Porsche’s best-selling model has been with us. 2026 will also be its final year, though. It’s already been axed in the EU due to not meeting new cybersecurity rules, but given it’s been such a cash cow for the company, Porsche’s understandably kept it around where it’s been able to – including the UK – for as long as possible.

The second-gen electric model, which has been sold alongside the combustion-powered first-gen car for the last couple of years, was originally intended to be an outright replacement, but due to uncertainty around the EV market, Porsche has reversed course. It’s now working on a petrol-powered replacement too, which we’ll likely see in 2028.

Jeep Wrangler (in Europe)

The Jeep Wrangler has long been a leftfield choice in Europe for those seeking out a properly capable off-roader, but its time in the market is coming to an end. That's because, as confirmed to Auto Express in the autumn, there's a whole host of incoming European regulations that the Wrangler won't meet.

As such, those looking for a proper body-on-frame 4x4 in Europe next year will be limited to the Mercedes G-Class, Ineos Grenadier and Toyota Land Cruiser. Meanwhile, the Wrangler's effective Euro-market successor will be the all-electric Recon.