The Greatest ’90s Performance Legends for Under £5000 – And The Powerflex Parts You Should Fit To Them
Ah, the ’90s! A decade which gave us suspect curtain hairstyles, ‘challenging’ football strips and thousands of dead Tamagotchi, but also some of the most interesting performance cars ever produced. The 1990s represented an interesting point in the history of the car, certainly as far as tuned models are concerned. See, the performance cars we bought two decades ago managed (however unintentionally) to strike the optimum balance between technological sophistication (namely primitive but effective electronic systems, plentiful forced induction setups and trick 16v heads) and old school, analogue reliability – meaning you didn’t have to possess a masters in automotive engineering to be able to work on them yourself!
With this in mind, and to celebrate a decade rich in stunning automotive offerings, we’ve put together the following list, the greatest 90s performance icons, all available for £5000 or less and with a link to the advert in question. We’ve also included a link to a Powerflex component we think it’s worth buying at the same time.
We thought we’d kick-start this list with a car that looks as distinctive today as it did at launch, well over two decades ago now, the Fiat Coupe Turbo. Whether or not you think it represents the high watermark of ’90s automotive styling or the nadir is totally down to personal taste of course, but we can’t help thinking that those Chris Bangle-penned swoops and creases have aged very well indeed. It’s a similar story with the Turbo’s ‘trump card,’ a five-pot 20v turbocharged engine making 220hp and 229lb ft of torque, all routed through a Viscodrive limited-slip differential.
https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C957683
The front-wheel-drive Coupe Turbo always did ask a lot of its front suspension and engine mounts, and this will only be acuter now that they’re getting on in years, hence why we’d suggest one of our Upper Right Engine Mount kits -
https://www.powerflex.co.uk/road-series/product-details/Upper+Right+Engine+Mount+Bush+/12714.html
Another ’90s coupe sending its power to the front axle, albeit wrapped up in a more conventionally attractive body shell – the VW Corrado. Prices of decent Corrado have been on the rise for years now, with the likes of the VR6 and the one shown here, the G60, is the most sought after. The latter is well worth a shout, as though it lacks the out-and-out, brute force shove of its six-pot relation, it can call upon a hefty surge from its supercharged four-pot. Tempting, very tempting…
https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C919274
Much like the Coupe covered above, the VW Corrado is a car that lives or dies on its handling, and hence why it’s well worth uprating the front wishbone bushes:
https://www.powerflex.co.uk/road-series/products/Corrado+%281989+-+1995%29-937/1.html
The early portion of the 1990s was a golden era for that most beguiling of cars, the French hot hatch. Gallic offerings from this period tended to be flimsy in the extreme, often held together by little more than hopes and dreams, but what they lacked in safety and build quality they more than made up for in lightweight and ‘chuck-ability.’ The 106 Rallye is a brilliant example of this, a car which manages to be massively entertaining despite not being very fast (by both ’90s and modern-day standards) thanks to its ‘fag paper’ like build. We’d grab one while they’re still about.
https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C868434
There can only be one choice for the 106 Rallye in terms of the Powerflex range, an uprated Rear Beam Mount:
https://www.powerflex.co.uk/road-series/product-details/Rear+Beam+Mount+/1288.html
4) Mk3 Golf GTI Anniversary Edition
You could make a solid case for the third generation Golf GTI being the most underwhelming to date, certainly when compared to the models which preceded it. The Mk2 was a very tough act to follow though, and besides, we think that time has been rather kind to the Mk3 and its simple, curvaceous styling. This car is especially tempting seeing as it’s a special edition, an anniversary model built to celebrate the Golf GTIs 20th birthday.
https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C914868
Handling was never the Mk3 GTIs strong suit so upgrading the front end with some Powerflex bushes is a very good idea indeed.
https://www.powerflex.co.uk/road-series/products/Golf+MK3+2WD+%281992+-+1998%29-1537/1.html
Another French hot hatch, yet one lent greater kudos by an association with one of the most successful F1 teams of them all, Williams. The Clio Williams caused a stir at launch, with many reviewers blown away by the power generated by its large (for the time, even more so when you consider the size of the car it was bolted into) 2.0 16v engine, not to mention that essential French hot hatch attribute, excellent handling.
The values of Clio Williams have well and truly skyrocketed in recent years, which is why this is the only example in budget. Track ready and a little tatty it might be, but there’s no bettering the Clio Williams for ‘smiles per hour.’
https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C935993
Proper camber control can have a big impact on overall handling, which is probably why our camber alignment kits are so popular:
No, we’re not going to pretend that an automatic V6 Alfa Romeo will be the most fuel efficient, reliable or even the sharpest of cars to drive, but there can be no denying its road presence and ‘waft factor.’ There’s also the small matter of the 166’s engine, the 24v ‘Busso.’ It’s a motor which could stake a claim to being among the most charismatic mass produced engines ever signed off, able to provide billowing wafts of power as and when required. This particular car looks to have led a pampered existence having only been serviced by Alfa specialists, making it a very tempting looking proposition.
https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C934684
The 166 is a heavy, front-wheel drive car with a relatively heavy engine up front, so all the more reason to invest in our Engine Mount/Stabiliser Bush kit:
The near-constant rise of ‘classic’ Impreza values means that our £5000 budget doesn’t get you much choice, but the good news is that what is there tends to be pretty tempting, none more so than this Impreza Turbo. It’s the right shape (perfect for living out all your McRae & Burns gravel-chucking fantasies), looks to be in good working order and has been owned from new by the seller – not bad for a 19-year-old car.
https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C945590
We’re able to supply a wide selection of parts for this generation of Impreza, most of them designed to rid it of one of its less than ideal traits – understeer! Click through to check out the full range:
Whether or not you consider a Mk3 Cavalier worthy of the term ‘iconic’ rather depends on when you grew up and your opinions about Luton’s finest, but there’s a lot to recommend about the GSI variant if you’re willing to look beyond the badge. The days of Turbos for under 5K are long gone, making the GSI the most potent Cavalier within budget. What it lacks in boosted it appeal it makes up for with old school, naturally aspirated shove, especially if you’re willing to tune the engine, Vauxhall’s legendary, Cosworth designed C20XE – the ‘Redtop.’
https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C910500
It’s likely that any Mk3 Cavalier still roaming the UK’s road network could benefit from some new suspension bushes, but we’d be inclined to treat this example to some Powerflex inner wishbone bushes:
9) Volvo 850R
This is a car that will forever be associated with 1990s motorsport, specifically the 1994 British Touring Car season. That was the year in which Volvo set paddock tongues wagging by turning up at the season-opening round at Brands Hatch with a pair of Volvo 850 estates, machines that looked wholly out of place when compared to the traditional, three-box saloon competition. The car shown here, the 850R, is the road going version of the TWR-prepared cars run in the BTCC, but it’s still a hugely promising car, pulled along by a 5-pot turbo making a handy 250bhp.
https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C948954
In line with many of the front-wheel-drive performance offerings shown here, the 850R has a tendency to consume OEM bushings and mounts thanks to its ample power, hence why we’d recommend the Powerflex Front Sub-Frame Mount Kit:
https://www.powerflex.co.uk/road-series/product-details/Front+Sub+frame+Mount+Insert/12217.html
10) Mercedes-Benz 600SEL
Five grand won’t buy you much in the way of a brand new, box-fresh car, but it will get you plenty if you’re willing to step back in time to the early ’90s! How much we hear you ask? Well, how about this, a massive slab of Merc from an era when the ‘pointed star’ was shorthand for faultlessly reliable automotive luxury, pushed along by a naturally aspirated V12. Of course, it’ll guzzle fuel, the ad lists some electronic niggles and if it goes wrong it’ll likely bankrupt you, but all of these will pale into insignificance when the time comes to drive it. It’s a wildcard, so wild that it isn’t even included in the Powerflex range, but it’s undeniably cool!
https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C957853
