Best cars of the 1990s
The nineties were a golden age for car dynamics, engineering and design. Here are our team’s top picks of the era
The 1990s is fondly regarded by many as one of the greatest decades, and the motoring world had no shortage of trendsetters, groundbreakers and outright legends during these action–packed years. This means there’s no shortage of options when picking the best cars of the 1990s, but our expert road testers have chosen their very favourites right here.
The cars on our list are a notably varied bunch, too, ranging from sensible family hatchbacks right through to record-breaking supercars. This is because we think it’s very important to appreciate the mainstream innovators as well as the multi-million pound trailblazers. We've taken into account how positively these cars are remembered but also our recent drives in them, including our 1990s performance car megatest and our icon road tests.
So, without further ado, it’s time to find out the top 10 best cars of the 1990s. Don’t forget, if your favourite 90s car isn’t on our list, you can add your pick in the comments section at the bottom of the page.
Audi TT (Mk1)
By Tom Jervis
- Price new: From £24,045
- Price now: £1,000-£13,000
- Engine: 1.8-litre, four-cylinder turbo petrol
- Gearbox: Six-speed manual
- Power/torque: 222bhp/320Nm
- 0-60mph: 5.7 seconds
- Top speed: 155mph
It’s not uncommon nowadays for production cars to look like the concepts on which they’re based; the rise of EVs has opened up so many avenues in terms of car design. Yet back when the Audi TT first appeared, the fact it looked so much like the show car that spawned it was truly exciting. Whether it be the integrated bumpers, flared arches or swooping lines, the TT manages to feel contemporary over 25 years later.
Base models couldn’t be described as rapid (they used a 178bhp version of the 1.8 turbo engine, and the range-topper had 222bhp), this was a good thing given that early cars without rear spoilers were known to lose control at high speeds. At launch, all had quattro 4WD, although later a 148bhp front-drive base model appeared
BMW 3 Series (E46)
- Price new: From £17,000
- Price now: £500-£15,000+
- Engine: 2.8-litre six-cylinder petrol
- Gearbox: Five-speed manual
- Power/torque: 190bhp/280Nm
- 0-60mph: 7.5 seconds
- Top speed: 149mph
I’m cheating a tiny bit by having the E46-generation BMW 3 Series here because it arrived right at the end of the nineties, with most engines borrowed from its E36 predecessor - the iconic E46 M3 even came after the turn of the millennium, as did the excellent 330i. I think we can overlook this because the E46 was magnificent from the get-go.
The early four-cylinders are nice in their own way, but the magic started with the straight-sixes, in the 320i, 323i and 328i. It was 55kg heavier than the E36, but the E46’s balance is legendary, as is the feelgood factor.
Ford Focus (Mk1)
By Paul Barker
- Price new: From £12,315
- Price now: From £600
- Engine: 1.6-litre, four-cylinder petrol
- Gearbox: Five-speed manual
- Power/torque: 98bhp/145Nm
- 0-60mph: 10.9 seconds
- Top speed: 115mph
What might seem a humble hatchback today was a revelation in 1998. The Escort had grown to be a bloated and lethargic bore, and the Ford Focus was a complete reset.
Either the head-turning New Edge styling – astonishing for a family hatchback of the time – or the hugely impressive driving experience would have been enough to make the Focus a success.
But nailing both at a time when the Vauxhall Astra Mk4 wasn’t setting pulses racing, the VW Golf was dependable and durable but not pushing boundaries, and Nissan was still selling the Almera, the fab Ford was something else. It may have been aimed at the mass market, but the Focus was one of the best-handling cars ever.
Lotus Elise (S1)
By Steve Walker
- Price new: From £18,950
- Price now: £16,000-25,000
- Engine: 1.8-litre, four-cylinder petrol
- Gearbox: Five-speed manual
- Power/torque: 118bhp/165Nm
- 0-60mph: 5.8 seconds
- Top speed: 126mph
Had Lotus not come up with the Elise back in 1996, the company may not still be in existence today. That’s how crucial the little two-seater roadster was and it’s no exaggeration to say the company could do with a similar injection of product-development genius today.
The Norfolk firm may have pivoted towards heavy and complex premium EVs in recent years under its new and complicated ownership structure, but the Elise was old-school Lotus purity fashioned in fibreglass.
The ethos behind the car was true to the vision of Lotus founder Colin Chapman: simplify, then add lightness. It had an aluminium chassis that was the perfect rigid base for its suspension, while the body helped keep the weight below 750kg.
The Elise would be sold from 1996 through to 2021 with sympathetic upgrades brought in over three different generations. Even as the curtain came down, the bulging curves of the bodywork still looked fresh and nothing had significantly surpassed the little Lotus in terms of the experience behind the wheel.
Mazda MX-5 (Mk1)
By Ryan Birch
- Price new: From 13,000
- Price now: £1,500-£12,000+
- Engine: 1.8-litre, four-cylinder petrol
- Gearbox: Five-speed manual
- Power/torque: 128bhp/155Nm
- 0-60mph: 8.0 seconds
- Top speed: 126mph
Inspired by the original Lotus Elan, the humble Mazda MX-5 has withstood the test of time, and being one of the world's best-selling two-seater sports cars, you don’t have to look far to see its impact.
With its instantly recognisable happy face and pop-up lights, the MX-5 was designed to be simple. Inside, you’ll find few mod-cons, because Mazda focused on the driving experience. Weighing in at 995kg, the MX-5 is agile and light, the steering is precise and the short and snappy gearlever makes changing a real treat. The MX-5 is a true driver’s car.
McLaren F1
By Ellis Hyde
- Price new: £634,500
- Price now: £15,000,000
- Engine: 6.1-litre V12 petrol
- Gearbox: Six-speed manual
- Power/torque: 627bhp/649Nm
- 0-62mph: 3.2 seconds
- Top speed: 240mph
The fastest production car in the world at the time and for some time afterwards, winner of the 24 hours of Le Mans, and revered as possibly the greatest car ever: the McLaren F1 was the first road car the wizards in Woking created, and boy did they nail it.
It was the brainchild of F1 car designer and engineer Gordon Murray, whose vision was to create the ultimate driver’s car. Hence, unassisted steering, a six-speed manual gearbox and a central driving position to give the feel of a single-seat racer. The added advantage was visibility, to help hit the apex of a corner.
Murray tried to convince Honda, who made the engines for McLaren’s racers, to design the powerplant for the F1, but failed. The job eventually fell to BMW's M division and it delivered a masterpiece in the form of the S70/2. The naturally aspirated, all-aluminium 6.1-litre V12 produced 627bhp and a raw, utterly glorious symphony on the way to its 7,500rpm redline.
Mercedes A-Class (Mk1)
- Price new: From £13,200
- Price now: £500-£4,000
- Engine: 1.6-litre, four-cylinder petrol
- Gearbox: Five-speed manual
- Power/torque: 102bhp/150Nm
- 0-60mph: 10.5 seconds
- Top speed: 114mph
The original Mercedes A-Class was decades ahead of its time. Its compact proportions hid a spacious interior, while downsized, fuel-efficient engines ensured it was better suited to the city than any Mercedes that had gone before it.
While it was plagued by an incident in Swedish magazine Teknikens Värld’s infamous ‘Elk Test’, it set the blueprint that premium small cars like the Audi A2 and MINI would follow. Even the BMW i3 had a whiff of it in its form and function. Such brilliance is due a return.
Peugeot 406
By Alex Ingram
- Price new: From £14,500
- Price now: from £1,000
- Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol
- Gearbox: Five-speed manual
- Power/torque: 137bhp/190Nm
- 0-60mph: 9.7 seconds
- Top speed: 126mph
Throughout the nineties, the repmobile ruled Britain’s motorways. For a time, it was the Ford Mondeo that stood head and shoulders above the rest of the competition.
Until 1995, at least. That’s when Peugeot, in the form of its life at that point, released the 406, and it blew away the car that had blown away the rest of the competition. Indeed, it’s looking back on this era that we realise just how good sales reps had it. In terms of ride and handling, the 406 is genuinely superb; there’s very little on the modern-day family car market can put a smile on your face through the turns and relax its occupants so comfortably on a long motorway slog.
Porsche Boxster (Mk1)
- Price new: From £38,188
- Price now: From £5,000
- Engine: 2.5-litre flat-six petrol
- Gearbox: Five-speed manual
- Power/torque: 201bhp/245Nm
- 0-60mph: 6.7 seconds
- Top speed: 149mph
The Porsche Boxster arrived in 1996 at exactly the right moment. Porsche needed a car that could sell in volume without losing its soul, and the Boxster achieved that. Its mid-engined layout gave it the balance of a sports car, yet it was priced competitively enough to tempt people away from rival models.
Its performance was modest, but the joy was in the way it handled. The steering was precise and the car reacted predictably, giving confidence without feeling dull.
Volkswagen Golf (Mk4)
- Price new: From £10,500
- Price now: £500-£20,000
- Engine: 1.6-litre petrol
- Gearbox: Five-speed manual
- Power/torque: 104bhp/148Nm
- 0-60mph: 10.4 seconds
- Top speed: 119mph
The Mk4 Volkswagen Golf was easy to overlook in the nineties’ automotive landscape. It wasn’t as nice to drive as a Ford Focus or as innovative as a Peugeot 306, but 35 years later, what family hatchback from the era do you still see most? Yep, the Mk4 Golf, and the reason is simple. It’s a monolith.
Designed and engineered while VW was under the leadership of Ferdinand Piech, the Mk4 was designed to be the best it could possibly be, regardless of cost. It was built like a tank, and for the most part is reliable to a tee. It also used great interior materials and introduced a wave of big-car tech to the class. The number of survivors plays testimony to just how good it was.
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