Forgotten Cars of the 1990s

An automatic five-speed was available which was based on Porsche’s Tiptronic. Eventually, the Galant was dropped in favor of the Lancer Evolution series.

Lotus Elan M100

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Elan M100s have climbed slightly in popularity, but for a long while they remained a bygone. In its short production run, from 1989 to 1995, Lotus made just 4700 Elans over two series: the SE and S2. A feisty 162bhp turbocharged 1.6-litre sat up front, driving the front wheels, while the chassis was rigid which minimised body roll.

A naturally aspirated 1.6-litre was also available. It was classed as one of the quickest point-to-point cars available. People simply couldn’t see past the idea of a front-wheel drive Lotus sports car, never mind a front-wheel drive Lotus, and while sales and interest started strong, they eventually divebombed. Lotus sold the rights to Kia, who sold the car in South Korea bearing that badge for a couple of years.

Honda Del Sol

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The CR-X was gone, and Honda needed to replace it with something just as sporty — enter the Del Sol. It shared its underpinnings with the Civic and the name Del Sol, which means ‘of the sun’ in Spanish, was a perfect fit as it was a convertible. When the Del Sol is brought up in conversation, it’s often remembered for its party trick — the TransTop. At the click of a button, the trunk lid would rise and two arms would extend to collect the 11kg hardtop. 

The driver would lock the lid to the arms, the arms would then retract, and the trunk lid would lower. Of course, if you didn’t like showing off, you could opt for the manual hardtop. The Mazda MX-5, however, delivered better thrills and people bought it instead.

Citroen AX GTI

AXs could be spotted zinging about town centers all over the UK during the ‘80s and ‘90s, they were small, cheap and largely popular. The UK saw the arrival of the hot GTI guise in 1992. What you got was a sub-800kg car with a hungry 99bhp 1.4-litre. 

This meant that, off the mark, the little AX GTI could rival bigger, more powerful cars up to 60mph from a standstill (8.5sec); it pirouetted around bends as it cocked its wheels and, if it had enough room, it would eventually hit 120mph. As the Saxo was introduced, Citroen had to cut their range and the AX was axed.