Four decades on
In this year, 2026, cars introduced back in 1986 are now reaching the age of 40, and are no doubt either reflecting on a splendid youth, or questioning their earlier life choices.
As is often the way when we look at an anniversary year, the class of 1986 is an impressively varied one, in terms of price, performance, attractiveness and, in fact, almost any other metric you could think of.
It might be hard to believe that 1986 was four decades ago, but that means we’re sure many of you will have memories – fond or otherwise – of lots of the cars from that year.
We’ve chosen 25 of them, and they’re arranged here in alphabetical order.
1. Aston Martin V8 Zagato
This grand-touring coupé is related to the Aston Martin V8 Vantage, which dates back to 1977, but looks very different, because (as the name suggests) its body was designed by Italian coachbuilder Zagato.
It was powered by the familiar 5.3-litre Aston Martin V8 engine, whose carburettors took up so much space that a power bulge had to be added to the bonnet.
In 1987, Aston introduced a convertible version called the V8 Zagato Volante, which was styled quite differently at the front and didn’t have a bonnet bulge because the carburettors had been replaced by a fuel-injection system.
Fuel injection reduced the V8’s power output by more than 100bhp, prompting some buyers to request the Vantage-spec engine and have the coupé’s front end fitted.
2. BMW 7 Series
The BMW 7 Series entered its second generation in 1986, the first large saloon with that name having been in production for nine years.
Codenamed E32, the car was about the same size as the previous E23 in standard form, but there was also a long-wheelbase version with significantly more legroom for rear passengers.
At first, the only available engine was a straight-six, measuring either 3 or 3.5 litres, but in 1987 BMW added a 5-litre V12, the first motor of this layout it had ever designed for a car rather than an aeroplane.
These units were later joined by BMW’s first V8s since the early 1960s, with capacities of 3 and 4 litres.
3. BMW M3
The ultimate variant of the second-generation BMW 3 Series was a homologation special created to allow modified versions to compete in international motorsport, which they did with great success.
The high-revving engine, measuring either 2.3 or 2.5 litres (and reduced to 2 litres for the Super Touring racing class), was the only four-cylinder unit ever used in an M3, all later versions having either straight-sixes or V8s.
The rest of the car was so far removed from the standard model that, according to BMW, little more than the original doors and roof were retained.
In 1988, BMW introduced an M3 convertible, but only 786 examples of this were ever built, compared with more than 16,000 saloons.
4. Citroën AX
The Citroën AX was nominally the replacement for both the 2CV and the Visa, but things didn’t exactly work out that way, since both of the earlier models remained in production for a little longer.
Far more modern and less quirky than its predecessors, the AX was nevertheless notable for being both very light and impressively aerodynamic.
The less-powerful versions such as the 1-litre petrol and the 1.4-litre diesel were therefore eye-openingly economical, while the more exciting Sport, GT (pictured) and GTI performed extremely well.
Citroën itself stopped building the car in 1998, but it survived for two more years as the Proton Tiara.
5. Daewoo LeMans
Although production of the LeMans began in South Korea in 1986, it wasn’t entirely new, being a local version of the model sold mostly as the sixth-generation Opel Kadett but in the UK as the second-generation Vauxhall Astra.
Daewoo itself used several model names in addition to LeMans, and the car was also marketed in North America by other brands.
In the US, for example, it was for a time the smallest model to wear a Pontiac badge.
In Canada, it was one of the few cars sold by two very short-lived GM brands, Passport and Asüna, who respectively used the model names Optima and either SE or GT.
6. Dodge Dakota
The Dodge Dakota occupied an unusual position in the mid-1980s North American market as a mid-sized pick-up truck, with more carrying capacity than the compact models from Chevrolet, Ford and GMC, but occupying less road space than, say, the contemporary Ford F-150.
Its engine range was notably wide, extending from a 2.2-litre ‘four’ to a 5.2-litre version of the mighty Chrysler LA V8.
The V8 was used in one of two unusual derivatives, a high-performance version developed by Shelby American and sold only in the 1989 model year.
The Sport Convertible became available in the same year and lasted for another two, but drop-top pick-ups didn’t seem to be what customers wanted, and sales were low.
7. Ford F-Series
The eighth F-Series truck, which went into production in 1986 for the 1987 model year, looked considerably more modern than the seventh, although in fact the two vehicles were mechanically similar.
There were many types of truck grouped together under the general F-Series title, from the F-150, with its maximum permitted Gross Vehicle Weight Rating of 6250lb (2835kg), to the F-Super Duty, whose GVWR was 14,500lb (6577kg).
The choice of petrol engines started with a 4.9-litre straight-six and also included small- and big-block V8s, the largest having a capacity of 7.5 litres.
A diesel V8 (supplied by the former International Harvester, which had recently renamed itself Navistar) started out at 6.9 litres and would soon be enlarged to 7.3.
8. Ford Sierra RS Cosworth
Although it was unveiled at the Geneva show in early 1985, the ‘Cossie’ did not go into full-scale production (at the Genk plant in Belgium) until the following year.
Bodywork changes made in the interests of cooling and aerodynamic efficiency immediately made it clear that this was no ordinary Ford Sierra.
It was powered by a turbocharged, 2-litre, 16-valve engine, and while a development of this unit in the 1987 RS 500 provided only slightly more power as standard, it was far more easy to tune.
The point of the exercise, of course, was to give Ford a contender in international motorsport, and the Cosworth was indeed enormously successful in top-level circuit racing, though less so in rallying.
9. Holden Commodore
GM’s Australian arm often made major changes to its Commodore model without doing much to the basic structure, so while it’s reasonable to describe the VL of 1986 as a new car, it was in fact part of a generation which had been introduced back in 1978.
It was based on a platform which was widely used throughout the General Motors empire, notably in large Opels and their Vauxhall equivalents.
This was evident in the early Commodores, but for the VL Holden made a point of reducing the resemblance to Opel.
Engines were mostly straight-sixes, but in an effort to satisfy Australian V8 enthusiasts Holden also offered a 5-litre unit of that type.
10. Jaguar XJ
The new-for-1986 Jaguar XJ, codenamed XJ40, looked broadly similar to all XJs that had been produced over the previous 18 years, but had most of the elegant curves removed – a policy which was later reversed.
All early versions were powered by the AJ straight-six, available in a variety of capacities, but a V12-engined XJ12 was added to the line-up in due course.
On the peripheries of the range, there were high-performance XJR models, along with long-wheelbase versions known as Majestic.
A more luxurious (and expensive) variant of the V12 was marketed as the Daimler Double Six.
11. Jeep Wrangler
The Wrangler was the successor to a long line of CJ models (the initials standing for ‘Civilian Jeep’) derived from the vehicle developed for military use during the Second World War.
Still very basic by most standards, the Jeep Wrangler was intended to be slightly more comfortable and suitable for everyday road use.
It was powered by either a 2.5-litre, four-cylinder engine, or a straight-six of 4 or 4.2 litres depending on model year, and was the first Jeep of its type to have rectangular headlights, although round units made a comeback after a few years.
Several generations later, the Wrangler was still in production in its 40th-anniversary year, very much developed but still recognisably influenced by the wartime model.
12. Lamborghini LM002
In the first two decades of the 21st century, the idea of a manufacturer of luxury or high-performance cars producing an SUV has become so familiar as to be hardly worth discussing.
But back in 1986, it was almost shocking, yet that was the year in which Lamborghini introduced its mighty LM002 off-roader.
The development process had been long, and during it the company decided to abandon early ideas of a rear-engined layout, choosing instead to fit a 5.2-litre version of its own V12 engine (as used in the Countach) up front, where it drove all four wheels.
Production lasted for seven years, and there would be no other remotely comparable Lamborghini until the arrival of the Urus in 2018.
13. Mazda 121
Mazda first used the 121 nameplate for a piston-engined version of the normally rotary-powered Cosmo (also known as the RX-5), but later transferred that name to a small, front-wheel-drive, four-cylinder-engined hatchback launched 40 years ago, in 1986.
This model was created at the request of Ford, which was a major shareholder of Mazda at the time, and it was sold initially as the Ford Festiva.
Kia then began manufacturing the same car under licence as the Pride, and this South Korean version was exported from 1987 to the USA where, once again, it was badged as a Ford Festiva.
14. Mitsubishi Debonair
The original Debonair, Mitsubishi’s first executive-class car, was launched in 1964 and produced for 22 years, achieving average annual sales of around 1000.
It was finally replaced in 1986, and this was one of the first models to be fitted with Mitsubishi’s new V6 engine, available as a naturally aspirated, 3-litre unit, or a supercharged, 2-litre motor.
Unlike the 1964 version, this ’80s one was front-wheel drive, a layout carried over to the replacement model which appeared in 1992.
With different engines, the same car was also produced in South Korea as the first-generation Hyundai Grandeur.
15. Mitsubishi Delica
According to Mitsubishi, Delica is short for ‘delivery car’, and the original model introduced in 1968 was almost entirely intended for commercial purposes.
The second-generation version, which arrived in 1979, was more of a leisure vehicle.
And then 40 years ago, in 1986, Mitsubishi took that idea a step further by using unibody rather than body-on-frame construction for the third iteration.
At that point, the Delica became renowned as a leisure vehicle, although it was still available in truck form for customers who required something of that nature.
16. Nissan Pintara
The seventh-generation Nissan Skyline was the first in the series to be assembled (in slightly altered form) by Nissan Motors Australia.
While Japanese Skylines of the period were powered by a variety of engines, the Australian version was only ever available with a straight-six.
From 1986, however, equivalents of the Australian Skylines were offered with a 2-litre, four-cylinder motor, and these were given the nameplate Pintara.
It was only moderately successful, and the same applied to the next Pintara (again with a four-cylinder engine, and based on the Bluebird) which replaced it in 1989.
17. Opel Omega
The first Opel Omega, a replacement for the Rekord, was a large family car available as either a saloon or an estate, and was sold in the UK as the second Vauxhall Carlton.
Media response to the new model was enthusiastic and, in 1987, its first full year on sale, it was named Car of the Year by European journalists, beating the Audi 80 and BMW 7 Series into second and third places respectively.
The wide range of engines included a modest 1.8-litre four-cylinder and a rather more purposeful 3-litre straight-six, the latter being available with either two or four valves per cylinder.
The Lotus Omega/Carlton (pictured), so fast that there were calls for it to be banned in the UK, left the Opel factory in Rüsselsheim as a 3.0 GSI 24v and was sent to Norfolk, where Lotus raised the engine capacity to 3.6 litres, added twin turbos and thoroughly revised the suspension, among many other developments.
18. Plymouth Sundance
The Sundance was a compact, coupé-styled hatchback and the second front-wheel-drive Plymouth after the earlier Horizon, a US-market adaptation of a design created by Chrysler Europe, though in fact both models were in production together for a few years.
The Sundance was initially powered by four-cylinder engines, either turbocharged or naturally aspirated.
In 1992, a Mitsubishi 3-litre V6 was added to the range, but this didn’t hang around for long because by that time the Sundance was close to being discontinued.
Dodge, another Chrysler-owned brand, produced a companion model known as the Shadow.
19. Porsche 959
In dramatic fashion, Porsche describes the unveiling of the roadgoing 959 at the 1985 Frankfurt motor show, as a 1986 model, as ‘the moment when the future becomes the present’.
Designed along the same lines as the 911, the 959 had a twin-turbocharged, 2.8-litre, flat-six engine, four-wheel drive and a top speed of close to 200mph.
Porsche 959s finished first and second in the 1986 Paris-Dakar Rally, with René Metge and Dominique Lemoine ahead of Jacky Ickx and Claude Brasseur.
In the same year, Metge and Claude Ballot-Léna took a 961, the racing version of the car, to seventh overall and first in class in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
To make the motorsport campaigns possible, Porsche had to sell 959s to the general public, and these were hailed as among the finest supercars of their time.
20. Renault 21
The Renault 21 is difficult to describe in a few words because it came in so many varieties.
It was available as a saloon, a hatchback and a very roomy estate, and the petrol and diesel engines might be mounted either transversely or longitudinally, contrary to the usual practice of using one layout for every version.
The most exciting variant, with a 173bhp, 2-litre, turbocharged, petrol engine, was the most powerful production Renault to date (exceeding even the mid-engined 5 Turbo in its standard form) and could be specified with either front- or four-wheel drive.
A slightly altered 21 was briefly sold in North America as the Eagle Medallion.
21. Rover 800
Co-developed with Honda, the 800 series was Rover’s replacement for the SD1, and its first executive car with a transverse engine and front-wheel drive.
There was never a single car called Rover 800. Instead, individual examples were usually badged 820, 825 or 827, according to the size of their engine (2-litre four-cylinder and 2.5- or 2.7-litre V6 respectively).
Some of the more upmarket versions were known as Sterling, and this was also used as the brand name for cars sold in the US and Canada.
In 1990, an only slightly modified 827 driven by Tony Pond became the first car to lap the Isle of Man TT course at an average of more than 100mph, setting a time which was not beaten until 21 years later.
22. Seat Marbella
The story of the Marbella actually begins in 1980, when Seat, following a tradition established nearly 30 years before, started to manufacture the Fiat Panda under licence in Spain.
In 1986, after the relationship with Fiat had fallen apart, Seat altered the car’s styling and renamed it Marbella, making this the third Seat, after the Ibiza and the Malaga, to be named after a Spanish location.
What didn’t change was the reliance on Fiat technology, including the 100-series engine which dated back to 1955.
Seat also created the Terra, a Marbella variant which, like the very similar Trans it replaced, had an extraordinarily high roofline behind the B pillars.
23. Shelby Omni GLH-S
Produced only in 1986, the GLH-S was a high-performance derivative of the Dodge Omni which, like the Plymouth Horizon, was a North American version of the Chrysler Horizon.
Shelby American was already producing the Omni GLH, whose 2.2-litre, four-cylinder engine produced 110bhp in standard form or 146bhp if turbocharged.
The GLH-S, of which only 500 were ever built, was significantly more potent, since the output had been raised to 174bhp.
24. Vauxhall Belmont
In the 1980s, several European manufacturers gave saloon cars different names than their hatchback equivalents, examples including Ford, Renault and Volkswagen (the last of these persevering with the idea for several decades).
Opel did not do this with its sixth-generation Kadett, but Vauxhall did with its badge-altered equivalent of the same car, the second-generation Astra.
In 1986, more than a year after the Astra’s introduction, the saloon arrived, and was marketed under the model name Belmont.
Vauxhall abandoned this policy in the early 1990s, reverting to the Astra name for all body styles, but before that happened the Belmont briefly became involved in high-level motorsport when Jeff Wilson drove his race-prepared version in several rounds of the British Touring Car Championship.
25. Volvo 480
The Volvo 480 was a startling introduction to the range of cars produced by a manufacturer best known at the time for its four-square bodies. It made its public debut at 1986’s Geneva motor show.
The shape of this new Volvo, conceived by Dutch designer John de Vries, was something like a cross between a coupé and an estate, and featured pop-up headlights.
This was also the Swedish car maker’s first series-production, front-wheel-drive model, whose Renault engines were mounted transversely.
Production ended in September 1995, by which time 76,375 examples had been built at Volvo’s factory in Born, in The Netherlands.
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