The hero cars of the 1980s

Here’s the selection that we think firmly holds the hero car medal from the memorable decade that was the 1980s: 

The 924 was an important car in Porsche’s yesteryear with the company selling over 150,000 cars between 1976 and 1986 - an admirable figure for what was a small firm at that time. It was well-built and an affordable way into Porsche ownership without having to fork out for the flagship 911. In 1982, Porsche’s fourth model came to the market, the 944, and although there were visual similarities to the 924, it had more business-like mannerisms and was a more driver-focused machine. 

Porsche offered it in an array of guises such as the 944 2.5, 944 S, 944 2.7, 944 S2 and S2 cabriolet, and the range-topping Turbo. All cars got pop-up headlights, a rear glass lid with a black spoiler, body-coloured bumpers and a 2+2 layout. Throughout its production run between 1982 and 1991, Porsche trumped the 924’s sales figures by selling 173,238 944s.

Before the times of twin-turbocharged six-cylinder cars with a superfluity of onboard tech, M3s of old were basic, but fast, 2+2 coupes. The E30 M3 had a 200bhp 2.3-litre four-cylinder tied to a dog-leg five-speed transmission that drove power to the rear wheels. And, while it isn’t considered fast by modern standards, it could crack the 0-62mph dash in 7.0sec and climb to 146mph; it also weighed just 1200kg which meant easy and fast cornering. 

Setting it aside from its regular siblings, was the go faster M division bodywork. It was covered in M3 badging, muscular rear arches engulfed the 16in cross-spoke alloys and a prominent rear spoiler completed the racer look. The E30 M3 developed a large cult following with its design alone and remains on many petrolheads’ bucket lists today.

Like with many songs or movies, there are few words needed to identify some of the world’s most famous cars. In 1976, Audi engineers decided to stick a four-wheel drive layout in a family car, but the idea was met with resistance as most off-roaders were industrial and robust. The engineers, however, continued the Quattro project which became a Frankenstein between the body of an Audi 80 and the drivetrain from a Volkswagen Iltis 4x4 military vehicle. 

This led to the famous mud-throwing Audi Quattro rally car winning 23 world championships, and the road-going Audi Quattro. While the sleek Ferrari 308GTB of the same era could achieve the 0-62mph sprint in 6.5sec, the boxy production Quattro was timed at just 6.3sec.

Amidst a generation of Porsche 928s and Jaguar XJR-S, the 205 GTi would still be classed by people today as one of the top cars of the 1980s. A tuned engine in a lightweight package with understated bodywork resulted in large success. In 1984, the 205 GTi was powered by a 1.6-litre 103bhp powerplant but just two years later in 1986, the 1.6-litre was revised and the power was upped to 113bhp. 

In the same year, the winning 1.9-litre GTi was launched with a punchy 128bhp. Because of its 875kg weight, 0-62mph was dealt with in just under 8sec and 127mph was achievable. Its finely tuned chassis allowed it to duck and dive around corners and even entice lift-off oversteer on some occasions. The 205 GTi was a perfect reminder that you didn’t need a lot of visual aero to have fun, whichever side of the 1.6 v 1.9 debate you’re on.

Amid the fame of the Mk1 Golf GTi and Peugeot 205 GTi, the GT Turbo was getting ready to strike. The 115bhp GT Turbo had the 205 GTi 1.6 outgunned, and with the amount of tunability on offer, a lot of cars ended up in the wrong hands and were written off. A 1986 TV ad showed Griff Rhys Jones barreling up the Santa Pad drag strip to show off its performance where it achieved 0-62mph in 7.5sec, which meant it also outperformed the 205 1.9GTi and the Mk2 Golf GTI 8v. 

The price of a new Renault 5 GT Turbo in 1985 was £7000 (around £20,000 today), making it £1445 cheaper than the equivalent 205 GTi 1.9 that was released a year later.

Our list of heroic cars wouldn’t be complete without the Golf GTI Mk2. Although there were faster and more appealing cars, the Golf GTI still had the small, fun hot hatchback heritage behind it. After the Mk1 GTI’s success, Volkswagen gave us the Mk2 GTI which retained the iconic twin-headlight look but it had more bulbous bodywork and a choice between a 1.8-litre 8v or 16v engine. 

Although the Mk2 GTI was 10% heavier than the Mk1, the 112bhp from the 8v was enough to shove all of its 950kgs along smoothly. The introduction of the 139bhp 16v was Volkswagen’s answer to Ford and Vauxhall closing the gap in performance and it pushed the Mk2 into top-tier hot hatch territory.

If a model was lucky enough to have Ford’s RS badging, it meant it had made it into the company’s most driver-focused road car range. The Escort RS Turbo was one of the quickest hot hatchbacks of its era thanks to the turbocharged 132bhp that lived under the bonnet, and it was the first front-wheel drive car to get a limited-slip differential. 

Inside, there were front Recaro seats with blue stitching to match the RS decals on the outside. What then propelled the car’s popularity even more, was that Princess Diana obtained one; her car – the only one ever built in black - sold in 2022 for £722,500.

In 1987, Ruf released their promo video of a driver wearing no helmet, or gloves, in the new Ruf CTR Yellow Bird and lapping the Nurburgring in just 8.05mins. And, while cars like the Ferrari 288 GTO and Lamborghini Countach could both reach 190mph, the CTR Yellow Bird could sail past the Italians with its 211mph top speed. 

These numbers were achieved due to the twin-turbo 3.4-litre that sat at the rear which produced 463bhp; this was also aided by its 1150kg weight. Only 29 cars were ever produced.

The F40 was built to celebrate the firm’s 40th anniversary, and out of all the Ferraris produced over the years, it still holds the gauntlet for one of the world’s most influential supercars. Power comes from a twin-turbocharged V8, positioned behind the front seats; it produces 478bhp at 7000rpm and the F40 weighed just a touch more than a hot hatchback from the same-era. 

All 478bhp was fed through the rear wheels and a five-speed manual gearbox, allowing the F40 to propel itself to 62mph from a standstill in 4.1sec and onto 201mph if given enough room. F40s sold for £193,000 when released in 1987, today prices sit at around £1 million. 

What once held the crown for the fastest production car in 1986 with its 190mph-plus top speed, is now an automotive icon. The 959 was ahead of its time with its four-wheel drive system, variable torque split and adaptive damping technology, combined with its use of space-age materials such as Nomex and Kevlar. Its 2.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six produced 444bhp and could smash the 0-62mph sprint in 3.7sec. 

In its production run from 1987 to 1988, only 292 examples were made with one being written off on its way to auction where it still sold for £388,988 ($467,500). A well-cherished car that accrued 16,660 miles since 1987 sold for £1.1m in 2021 at auction.

Although the Sierra RS Cosworth was produced to push Ford back to the front of the touring car racing championship, it ended up becoming homologated road car that would contend with some of the world’s finest supercars. A turbocharged 2.0-litre engine sat upfront and fed 204bhp through a limited-slip differential to the rear wheels which meant 0-62mph in 6.2sec and a 143mph top speed. The Sierra RS sat on 15in multi-spoke alloy wheels, it had a signature whale-tail spoiler, bloated bodywork and bonnet vents to disperse any warm air. 

By 1987, Ford wanted to improve the Sierra RS and the rules around racing allowed for this, as long as 500 road cars were built; with this, Ford introduced the more powerful RS500. This was later followed by the more civilized Sapphire Cosworth, which was produced in Genk, Belgium.

Fiat would see over 4.5 million Pandas produced in its 1980 to 2003 production stint. Originally, the Panda was meant to be nicknamed ‘Rustica’ but was called Panda in the 11th hour and it was intended to be a low-cost production car that was frugal for the public. Although it was originally supplied with a four-cylinder 903cc engine, the Panda range would grow as the years moved forward when various special editions became available such as the Panda Habitat and the Panda Italia 90 which was in celebration of the 1990 FIFA World Cup that Italy hosted. 

Cars came equipped with four-speed manual transmissions, but these were changed to five-speeds in 1983. One trim level that had great public admiration was the 4x4 variant which was capable due to the Panda’s lightweight body.

While the Delta Integrale could be driven daily, it would be a special event to drive. The interior had boxy plastic, its 2.0-litre turbocharged inline-four rumbled through the cabin and the eight-dial analogue dashboard showed everything from the revs to the turbo boost pressure. HF variants were originally released in 1983 and turbocharged HF four-wheel drive cars followed in 1986. 

The early HF Integrale 8v had 182bhp, permanent four-wheel drive and a five-speed manual gearbox and while some cars made it to the UK, they were left-hand drive only. This later changed in 1989 when a newer 197bhp car was released with right-hand drive. In 1980, the Delta won European Car of the Year and from 1987-1992, the Delta 8v rally car brought six World Rally wins in a row.

Back in the day, some cars might have had fuel injection or four-wheel drive badging, but there were few that had Turbo badges. The 900 Turbo was released in 1978 with sleek bodywork, a fastback appearance, 602 litres of boot space and 145bhp. This was then revised in 1985 with an improved 16v engine which offered 175bhp, allowing for a 0-62mph dash of just 6.9sec; even by today's standards this isn’t considered slow. 

Cars from 1981 had a three-speed automatic transmission and later cars had Automatic Performance Control which allowed different fuel grades to be used without any engine damage. And, in 1983, Saab introduced asbestos-free brakes which was an industry first. In its 20-year production, 908,817 900s were manufactured, around a quarter of which were turbos.

In 1989, Autocar attended a race track for the day and tested a plethora of fast cars in an attempt to find ‘Britain’s Best Handling Car’. Those on the list were the Ferrari 328 GTB, Lancia Delta Integrale, Porsche 944 S2, Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3-16 and the Toyota MR2. And, while the Porsche 944 was crowned victorious, it had a difficult time shaking the MR2 to the chequered flag. Toyota had opted to build a fuel-sipping sportscar amid the 1970s oil crises – the Toyota MR2. 

The Mk1 MR2 had a 122bhp 1.6-litre engine that would rev to 7600rpm, engine speeds that only Ferraris had seen. It had Toyota AE86-esque front-end styling with its pop-up headlights, and around the back were Ferrari-like C-Pillars and bonnet vents.

Audi’s Quattro was dominating the World Rally with Walter Rohrl at the wheel in 1982. But just one year later, Lancia would snatch back the title with a two-wheel drive car, famously known as the 037. Till this day, it remains the only two-wheel drive to hold the record of beating a four-wheel drive car in rally history. 

Just 207 homologated examples were built using reinforced glassfibre kevlar, allowing the 037 to weigh just 1170kg. A mid-mounted supercharged 2.0-litre engine produced 255bhp while the rally variants were closer to 325bhp. In 2019, a 037 Group B rally car sold for just over £1m.

The Jalpa was Lamborghini’s entry-level car, competing against the Ferrari 308 and Porsche 911 SC and was based on Lamborghini’s Silhouette which flopped with only 53 units ever being sold. During the 70s Lamborghini tried and failed to win a supply contract with the US Army with its Cheetah military vehicle; things began to look unpromising for the firm. In the late 70s, the order to rework the Silhouette was then given, which would see the birth of the 1980’s Jalpa. 

With over 400 Jalpas finding homes, Lamborghini was quickly saved from their financial crisis and the money was then used to update the Countach line. In 1988, Jalpa production was seized as Lamborghini wasn’t selling enough.

Although there were more aesthetically pleasing cars of the era, the CRX was Honda’s idea to give the consumer all they could need: a small minimalistic car with two seats and decent fuel economy. When released in 1984, it came with a 1.3-litre 58bhp engine in economy guise, a sportier 1.5-litre was also released with 76bhp and was available with both a five-speed manual or three-speed automatic. A 2+2 variant was later introduced in 1988 which also saw the introduction of the 148bhp 1.6-litre VTEC with its 8200rpm redline. 

The 100bhp variant was praised for its mix of both performance and economy as it could deliver up to 50mpg, which was rather uncommon. Honda’s CRX would see three generations and gain a large cult following for years to come, ending with the Del Sol model with its interesting electric convertible roof in the 90s.

It’s a well-known fact that the Elise is Lotus’s most popular car, whilst the Esprit had James Bond at the helm which increased its popularity. The original Elan, however, was a well-balanced rear-wheel drive machine. When Britain's answer to Mazda’s MX-5 came along in 1989, the M100 Elan, people sniffed at its oddball styling and front-wheel drive layout and while the MX-5 sold over 400,000 units, Lotus only had a 4700 production volume for the Elan M100. 

When previously tested by Autocar, it was said to be “the quickest point-to-point car available”, and thanks to its rigid chassis and minimal roll through the corners, it behaved more like a rear-wheel drive car, minus the unpredictability.

While the rally-bred RS200 fell short of success during the WRC, the road cars that Ford had built were looking near-identical to the rally versions. This meant that the large fog lights, air intakes, ducktail spoiler and mid-engine all remained. 

Inside, the rally heritage continued with the deep bucket seats, raised transmission tunnel and a surplus of gauges. Road cars developed 246bhp from the turbocharged 1.8-litre engine which meant the RS200 could rocket to 62mph in just over 5sec; rally cars produced 444bhp. In 2019, a 1988 RS200 sold for £292,500 at Silverstone Auctions.

We’ve seen five generations of Supra so far - the MK4 being amidst the most popular cars to ever emerge from Japan, with the Mk3 hiding in its shadow. The rather advanced rear-wheel drive four-seat coupe was launched in 1986 and seized production in 1993. 

Choices of engines were vast and included a 3.0-litre naturally aspirated and turbocharged variant which could get the Supra to 62mph from rest in just 6.1sec. Although Supras of old were based on the Celica, the Mk3 was the first Supra to break away from the Celica family tree and stand on its own two feet.

BMW’s Z series cars, the Z3, Z4 and Z8, all have a large following and both the Z3 and Z4 have been the go-to sports car for many. And, it all started with the Z1. Released in 1989, its praised innovative design meant that the doors retracted vertically down inside the car with the help of electric motors, and although illegal in some countries, it saw many people driving with the doors retracted. 

The Z1’s bodywork could be undone by a few bolts and changed in just 40min if you had a change of heart concerning your original colour choice. Due to the manufacturing costs involved, the Z1 saw a small two-year production stint where only 8000 cars were produced.

With the C3 Corvette having a more muscle car-like design, chunky tyres, long bonnet, and in some instances, a side-exit exhaust, the C4 was the first in the Corvette line-up to change the game and challenge the Porsche 928 in both performance and looks. When released in 1983, Chevrolet boldly claimed that the C4 Corvette could out-corner any European sportscar, generating 0.95g while cornering, thanks to its uni-directional tyres developed by Goodyear. 

Initially, the C4 was launched with a 205bhp 5.7-litre powerplant, this was then updated in 1985 to produce between 230 and 250bhp and in 1990 the desired ZR-1 was released with 375bhp. 

Those three letters, GTO, stand for Gran Turismo Omologato and have not only been seen on the 288 but also the 250 GTO – a car that was considered one of Ferrari’s greatest cars. The 288 GTO was designed as a homologation requirement for the Group B circuit racing series, which required 200 road variants of the car to be produced before it could enter. 

But unfortunately, various driver deaths and accidents would cause the event’s popularity to plummet. Launched in 1984, the 288 GTO had a twin-turbocharged 2.8-litre V8 that produced 400bhp and would barrel on to 189mph. 272 Ferrari GTOs were ever built and one sold at auction in 2017 for £1.8m.

Today, the AE86 is massively popular with the drift community, thanks to its low weight (970kg), 50:50 weight distribution and the 125bhp from the naturally aspirated 7800rpm 1.6-litre twin-cam, which was enough to send it sideways. 

Aside from drifting, the AE86 snapped the trophy from the hands of the Mercedes 190E Cosworth and BMW E30 M3 in the European Touring Car Championship and it later found success in the British Touring Car Championship. Cars today usually fetch over £20,000 in exemplary condition.

Quite commonly known as ‘Godzilla’, the R32 GT-R earned its title from the Australians after it dominated the national racing scene in Japan between 1989 and 1993, winning all of the 79 races it participated in. In celebration of its winnings, the GT-R was given a special V-Spec edition (V standing for victory) and cars were given 17in alloys, Brembo brakes and a refined four-wheel drive system. 

The twin-turbocharged 2.6-litre straight-six produced 276bhp and became increasingly popular globally because of its 1000bhp – plus tuning potential. Throughout the years, the R32 GT-R cult following grew larger with the car being featured in videogames such as Gran Turismo alongside various popular Japanese automotive cartoons.

Battling the Countach for a spot on a child's bedroom wall in the 80s was the Testarossa. Released in 1984 with production ending in 1991, it saw two model revisions: the 512 TR, also available in a Spider form, and the F512 M. The original Testarossa was built not only to nip at the heels of Lamborghini but to provide Ferrari customers with a wider and bigger car than the Berlinetta Boxer supercars. 

Underneath, it shared the same 4.9-litre flat-12 heart, which produced 390bhp, giving a 180mph top speed. From the pointed nose, fluted side intakes and the mismatched A pillar wing mirror, the Testarossa remains one of the world’s most attractive cars in automotive history.

Today, the Ford Capri is one of the most sought-after classic cars with concourse examples fetching as high as £44,000. After the Mustang’s success in the US in 1964, the German and British Ford divisions wanted to create a smaller-but-similar car for Europe. The Capri project, known as Project Colt, began in 1965 where gubbins from the Cortina were used such as the floorpan and suspension. Over the years, the model range expanded with attractive guises and the Capri became an increasingly popular coupe, eventually branching out to South Africa, America and Australia. 

By 1977, Ford began work on a Capri II update - cars received sleeker bodywork tracing back to its Mustang beginnings, and a choice of more powerful engines such as a 160bhp 2.8-litre and a flagship X-pack 185bhp 3.0-litre V6. The Capri would go on to sell nearly 1.9m units over its entire production run.

There are 2926 of Mercedes’ once vastly popular 190E still on Britain's roads today. During its 1982 to 1993 production run, almost 2 million cars were sold globally. When launched, there was a mix of both petrol and diesel engines available with the petrol variants starting with a naturally aspirated 90bhp 2.0-litre and stretching up to the more powerful 2.3 and 2.5-litre 16v Cosworth units; the E stood for Einspritzung (fuel injection). 

In 1984, Ayrton Senna won the Nurburgring Race of Champions in the 235bhp 190E 2.3-16 Evolution against 19 other drivers.

From 5.0-litre V10s to twin-turbo V8s, the M5 started in life as a redesigned E28 535i with various mechanical changes such as an updated engine that was once used in the M1 sports car. The E28 M5 never did snatch the headlines, but it placed a firm benchmark and gave us the super saloon M5 of today. 

Launched in 1984, the M5’s 3.0-litre straight-six M88 powerplant produced 278bhp, which was more than an equivalent Ferrari 328 of the same era, allowing it to launch to 62mph in 6.2sec and if given enough space, it would see 151mph. Only 2191 M5s were produced from 1984 to 1988. 

Alfa produced the first GTV in 1973, based on their Alfetta saloon, which would target the Ford Capri and Datsun 240Z. In the early 1980s, the GTV was gifted a facelift which saw Alfa shoehorn a 2.5-litre V6 from the 6 saloon shifting the opposition and firmly putting the Mazda RX-7 and Porsche 924 in its sights. In its short production life from just 1981 to 1987, Alfa made about 22,000 GTV-6s - about a third of the coupe’s sales, with less than 5000 making it overseas to the US. 

What hastened its popularity was when James Bond drove one with vigor around the streets of rural Germany in 1983’s Octopussy.

Volvo’s 240 wasn’t fast, nor did it excel at handling, but one thing they did well was survival. Its brick-like physique, large boot and solidity gave those who were looking at a Saab 900 food for thought. Cars that were marketed as the 144 had a four-cylinder engine whereas 164 variants had an extended frontend to accommodate a larger six-cylinder. 

The 240 was the first car in the world to be fitted with a catalytic converter and an oxygen sensor. During its 19-year production, Volvo built over 2.8m 240s.

In the 80s, defence firm Vickers owned Bentley and they were ready to drop the marque as Rolls-Royce was more enticing. Bentley then released its “sporty” Mulsanne Turbo to put a good deal of distance between it and Rolls, featuring a 6.75-litre V8 and a Garrett T3 blower. And although it was released as a sporty alternative, it cornered rather poorly. Bentley then revised the car by reworking the suspension and gave it Turbo R badging (R standing for road-holding). 

In 1988, it received a facelift and was given four circular headlamps which created a look that became famous. In 1982, Bentley had only contributed 1.6% to sales, but by 1990 the Turbo R had pushed the brand’s contribution to 50%.

Revealed in 1971, the Countach would see five different forms with almost 2000 being built in a 16-year period, today Lamborghini’s dramatic supercar is just over 50 years old. The name Countach has no direct translation but is instead used as an exclamation of amazement. Although it was already striking, in 1978 it was time for a refresh and LP400S was released. It had a heavily modified chassis, better air-con and various aerodynamic tweaks. 

When Ferrari astonished the world with the Testarossa, Lamborghini responded with the Countach QV which had 461bhp. By 1988, the Countach was given a final hurrah. The last iteration celebrated Lamborghini’s 25th birthday where buyers were given redesigned bumpers and rear scoops, extra cooling vents and the option of a large rear wing – only 657 examples were made.

While the luxury car market lay in the hands of both Mercedes and BMW during the 80s, Japan hit the bullseye with their production start in 1989, the Lexus LS400, and although the brand was new, it was snug by having the backing of Toyota. Under the bonnet was a 4.0-litre V8, producing 241bhp, that fed power through the rear wheels and it was mated to a four-speed automatic gearbox.

The car was defined as “faultless” to many motoring magazines because of its calm ride quality, and Lexus put in the utmost effort to receive positive feedback; the prop shaft was designed to give zero vibration and the wipers could change their angle at higher speeds to reduce noise. 

Overall, the LS400 boasted a 58dB reduction over its BMW 735i and Mercedes 420SE rivals. Its development involved 60 designers, 1400 engineers, 2300 technicians and 200 support staff to ensure their first flagship model succeeded.

What was once Britain's best-selling diesel car for several years in a row, now has only 255 registered examples left in the UK today. Designed by Marcello Gandini of Bertone, the BX was regarded as the family car that saved Citroen from bankruptcy as it went on to sell 2.5m units worldwide. Officially launched in 1982, with a UK launch following the year after, the BX was sold with both a 1.4-litre or 1.6-litre engine. 

It was praised for its economy and low running costs thanks to the lightweight plastic panels used for the bonnet, bumpers and boot lid. While earlier cars had a drum speedometer and a strip rev counter, these were swapped out in 1986 for more modern equipment.

After the success of the submersible James Bond Esprit in 1977, Lotus was brought in once again to supply 007’s transportation for the 1981 film Your Eyes Only, in which it would see a pair of skis mounted to the back to complete the Cortina ski resort scene. While the Esprit Turbo had supercar-sculpted bodywork, the 2.2-litre engine produced a modest 215bhp which made it a bit lower than that of its rivals, the Porsche 944 Turbo and Ferrari 328. 

Like a true Lotus, however, the car weighed just 1147kg; this allowed for, what was then, supercar performance with 0-62mph in sub-5sec and a 154mph top speed – if the conditions were right. Lotus made a total of 10,675 Esprits over a 28-year period, 2274 of those were Turbos.

The GTA is the chisel-nosed supercar that time, somewhat, forgot. In France, the GTA was known as the Alpine A610, but this was changed for the UK market. 

Under the sleek glassfibre bodywork was a steel backbone chassis which kept the car at 1140kg. Buyers could either have a 158bhp 2.9-litre or a 197bhp 2.5-litre Turbo, both of which were mounted at the rear – in 1991 a 247bhp 3.0-litre was released. Only 649 derivatives of the GTA were made between 1984 and 1991.

Also known to many in Britain as the TVR wedge, the Tasmin was released in 1980 and showcased just how TVR was performing. A 160bhp 2.8-litre V6 engine from the Capri hid under its iconic stooping bonnet which was enough to propel its 1074kg weight to 62mph from a standstill in 7.8sec. The Tasmin was the first TVR that was offered with an automatic transmission. 

Its glassfibre body sat on top of a tubular space-frame chassis which was powdercoated in a bid to fight off corrosion. In 1983, the 350i V8 arrived which was followed by the 390SE in 1984 and the 420SE and SEAC in 1986. The 420SE produced 325bhp and was quickly named the ‘widowmaker’.

Before the Lotus Carlton, Vauxhall’s hero was the straight-edged Carlton 3000 GSi. While BMW and Mercedes owned the market for fast saloon cars, the Carlton was the car that showed those German marques that things didn’t stop with them. 

The GSi had a 3.0-litre 12v straight-six that produced 177bhp allowing the rear-wheel drive to hit 62mph in 8sec; this wasn’t quite enough, so the car was revised in 1989 and was given a further 12 valves, pushing the new 24-valve GSi 3000 to just north of 200bhp.