Any eager corner carver will be in for a treat in this segment of our countdown.
70. Honda Civic 3 door 1500
100 PS | 815 kg | 123 PS/t
Here is the very generation which, in Si guise, laid the foundations for the boy-racer image of the Civic (for better or for worse). Complete with the quality running-gear Honda cars are rightfully associated with, one could describe this as a watershed model; although water caused it to turn a different shade of red.
69. Lancia Coupé Volumex VX
135 PS | 1095 kg | 123 PS/t
With the iconic Delta HF taking baby steps, this was the fastest new Lancia at the time. Note the past tense as, much like the previously featured HPE, this car owed its construction from the Beta; best described as construction in name only. At least these cars lived an eager, supercharged life while they lasted.
68. Peugeot 205 GTI
105 PS | 850 kg | 124 PS/t
If the Golf GTI codified the hot hatch, the 205 GTI tuned the formula to perfection, with early models like these achieving such with a mere 1580cc. The forward-thinking design held a timeless quantity, often tested to compare with hot hatches of today, and an alter ego forever immortalised on the rally stage.
67. Chrysler LeBaron 2.2 Turbo
144 PS | 1164 kg | 124 PS/t
“The door is ajar!”, quipped the talking dashboard. “It’s not a jar, it’s a door.”, replied Dad. Brainchild of Lee Iacocca, the downsized Chrysler K-car offered: acres of fake wood, fake hubcabs and fake convertible roofs. At the same time, it saved the company from financial ruin, paving for turbo experiments like these.
66. Ford Escort 1.6 Turbo
122 PS | 966 kg | 126 PS/t
Perplexing indeed. The neutered American Escort defeated the European XR3i, its arch-nemesis from Wolfsburg and the de facto champion by Peugeot in our rankings. Unfortunately, it is yet to triumph over corrosion and turbo lag. Mind you, this makes surviving cars all the more endearing, but equally uncommon.
65. Renault Fuego Turbo
132 PS | 1045 kg | 126 PS/t
The Renault Fuego was a sports car in the same way a pencil sharper is a saw mill. Since racing stripes and fog-lamps were not enough to cut it, good old-fashioned turbo lag was sent in to save the day. All in all, it led to an interesting product. But whatever the case, do not confuse it with the anaemic Turbo Diesel.
64. Fiat Spidereuropa Volumex Pininfarina
135 PS | 1060 kg | 127 PS/t
Beneath the confusing badges lay a Fiat 124 Spider. Much like the Alfa Spider it competed against, the design can be traced back to 1966; a time before the Moon landing or the Elvis Comeback Special. Some could argue it was now on life support, yet like the Lancias from earlier, it waved a supercharged goodbye.
63. Rover Vitesse
196 PS | 1525 kg | 129 PS/t
Few cars have achieved such success in Motorsport, far fewer had the virtue of playing a part in saving a life. The final in-house Rover design held such a feat. In 1987, a liver required an urgent 35 minute transportation across 27 miles of hectic London traffic. Sheer bravery and V8 power let the patient live on today.
62. Ford Capri 2.8i
160 PS | 1230 kg | 130 PS/t
Continuing the theme, this was another star of the touring car scene. However, it became nothing short of notorious. Any stereotypes about Mustang owners could be applied tenfold, leaving few surviving examples. In the hot hatch craze, Europe’s coupé of choice eventually faced the curtain with a fuel-injected bow.
61. Alfa Romeo GTV 6/2.5
158 PS | 1210 kg | 131 PS/t
Our touring car trifecta ends here. Until the later debut of the BMW M3, this Alfa Romeo lacked any opposition in its ETCC displacement class. Moreover, it served as the face of the company throughout the first half of the new decade. Even James Bond found it good enough to steal, Alfisti approved V6 and all.
Be prepared for a few surprises next time, some big names may be approaching.
All photos sourced from WheelsAge.org.