By the 1990s the everyday family car had been transformed. Improvements had been made in the unsung areas of car development, such as soundproofing, windproofing, heating, and ventilation. Electronics to make engines start instantly and run smoothly through a wide rev band were also introduced....
In the 1970s and 80s, other than a few notable exceptions, North American car design seemed to lag behind Europe. U.S. car manufacturers were mildly updating their over-large, slab-like sedans, while smaller Japanese cars picked away at U.S. market share. Finally, in the 1990s U.S....
This was the decade of technology, as manufacturers strove to achieve more performance than ever before. Restricted by regulations, they designed to reduce speeds and danger. Active suspension, active differentials, traction control, and semi-automatic transmissions were among the developments aimed at helping drivers get the...
With 7.8 million cars and trucks rolling off the production line in 2009, Toyota is the world's largest vehicle producer. A pioneer of hybrid technology, this Japanese marque prides itself on quality and innovation. Its range extends from tiny economy cars through state-of-the-art sports and...
The original MX-5 of 1989, also called the Miata, was a smart mix of all that was best in the classic 1960s sports cars. The difference was that it used cutting-edge technology, from its all-wishbone suspension to its fuel-injected, 16-valve, twin-cam engine. The MX-5 was...
The 1990s saw the resurgence of sports cars, as fears that legislation would ban open cars receded. Manufacturers were divided on whether the best sporting solution was the traditional front-engine rear-drive, mid-engine rear-drive, or front-engine front-drive. Rounded styling returned, along with the arrival of retro—and...
It was fitting that the F40 was the final model commissioned by Enzo Ferrari before his death in 1988. Launched in 1987 to commemorate the marque's 40th anniversary, this was a supercar that, true to the spirit of II Commendatore himself, incorporated racetrack technology in...
The 1980s was the decade of young, upwardly mobile professionals, or "yuppies," whose fun cars gave rise to a rich heritage of roadsters and coupes. Each had its own flavor at a time when, in retrospect, their manufacturers were generally untroubled by the demands of...
The poster boy for the 1970s supercar boom, this rare and exotic road machine was first revealed as a prototype in the spring of 1971. The 25th Anniversary edition, to celebrate Lamborghini's dawn in 1962, was fundamentally the same car, but by 1988 it possessed...
Porsche's first sports car, the 356, utilized many components from the Volkswagen, including its flat-four engine. When an all-new power plant was needed for the replacement 911, Porsche kept the horizontally opposed layout and air-cooling but upped the cylinder count to six. The result was...