Its name may have been a moniker for 'fast, cheerful and lively', but the Austin Allegro has been declared 'Britain's Worst Car' in a new poll.

The online poll, completed by over 4000 people, sought to find the worst ever product of Britain's once powerful car manufacturing industry ahead of the 2008 British International Motor Show.

The Allegro received 24 percent of the votes on digital motoring magazine site, iMotormag.co.uk, against nine other widely disliked UK manufactured models, including the Morris Ital, Hillman Imp and the Rover 200.

Despite being labelled the "All-aggro" due to its poor build quality and the ability for its rear window to 'pop out', the 1970s British Leyland model played starring roles in British TV classics like 'Doctor Who', 'The New Avengers', and more recently, 'Little Britain'.

Even with all the negative publicity, the rust-prone Allegro still became an icon of '70s motoring. During its 10 years of production it sold 642 350 units, of which 657 were used by the Police, and at its peak was the fifth best selling car in Britain.

Fierce rivalry for the 'Britain's Worst Car' accolade came from the Morris Ital, a "gormless car" that unbelievably boasts style roots to the original VW Golf and De Lorean DMC-12; the Rover 200, famed as the car used by Hyacinth Bucket's long-suffering husband in BBC comedy 'Keeping Up Appearances'; and the pug-faced Hillman Imp, built as a rival to the Austin Mini — but price, build quality and reliability let this over-engineered car down.

Despite being 25 years since the last Allegro rolled off the now defunct British Leyland production line, the latest DVLA figures report there are still more than 1000 Allegros registered in the UK.

Britain's Ten Worst Cars

Austin Allegro (24.3% of votes)
Early Allegros sported a 'quartic' (square) steering wheel supposedly making steering easier and providing extra room for the driver's legs. It was quickly dropped.

Morris Ital (23.4%)
Named after Italdesign, a company responsible for sculpting some of the most iconic cars, like the VW Golf and De Lorean DMC-12. Must have been an off day.

Talbot Sunbeam (11.5%)
Originally the Chrysler Sunbeam until the cash-strapped company sold its European divisions to Peugeot. Despite Rally success, the re-branded Talbot was a sales flop.

Austin Princess (10.7%)
Nicknamed the 'Wedge', at one stage these cars were confusingly built under three brand names: Austin, Morris and Wolseley.

Hillman Imp (10.6%)
Built as a rival to the Austin Mini, price, build quality and reliability let this over-engineered car down. At least it won races.

Rover 200 (5.8%)
Not a lot to say for itself except that it was Hyacinth Bucket's car in BBC’s 'Keeping up Appearances'.

Triumph Acclaim (4.4%)
Last car to be produced under the Triumph marque. Possibly for the best.

Rover 800 (3.7%)
The keystone of the British government's car fleet throughout its lifetime.

Triumph TR7 (3%)
The TR7 featured in the American TV series 'CHiPS'. The UK launch was delayed at least twice because of high demand for the vehicle in the US.

Morris 1800 (2.6%)
Amazingly, it was voted European Car of the Year for 1965.