![]() ![]() The Mk1 was a four-door saloon based on the Honda Ballade, while the second generation (1989-95) also spawned three-door hatchback, coupe and convertible (pictured) versions. Originally launched in 1984, the Rover 200 was a product of the British company’s relationship with Honda. By the time production ceased in 1995, more than 1.6 million Cavaliers had found owners, making it the fifth best-selling car ever sold in Britain. The Mk3 was also the most successful of them all, scoring its best sales in 1992 when it was the most popular new car in Britain after the Ford Escort.Īfter 20 years, Vauxhall decided to replace the ageing Cavalier with the Vectra. Originally launched in 1975, by 1990 it was a couple of years into its third and final generation. The 1990s saw the Vauxhall Cavalier reach its sales peak. The car is even credited with helping Tony Blair win the 1997 election, when he targeted the voter he called “Mondeo Man”. Now in its fourth generation, the Mondeo has become something of an automotive institution. A facelift kept it looking fresh in 1996 before the Mk3 was launched in 2000. Safety was a high priority for the all-new Ford Mondeo, helping it win the European Car of the Year title in 1994. Ford Mondeoīy the early 1990s, sales of Ford’s best-selling Sierra family hatchback were starting to decline, so a replacement was designed for the world market and launched in 1993. Now in its seventh generation, the Astra is better than ever and hanging in there, though by 2017 it had slipped to sixth position overall in the UK. It soldiered on until 1998 when it was relieved by the Mk4. The Mk3 (pictured) spanned most of the decade (1991-98) and was one of the first mainstream cars to include twin side impact bars, a toughened safety cage, a safely-designed steering wheel with a collapsible column and 'body-lock' mechanical front seat-belt pre-tensioners. Launched in 1979 and built in Britain at Vauxhall’s Ellesmere Port plant, the Astra was a family favourite and a popular company car during the 1990s. The fourth, fifth and sixth generation Escorts (1986-2004) spanned the 1990s, but in 2004 Ford decided to retire the Escort and launch a new car for the new century – the Focus.īy the end of its life a massive 4,105,961 had been sold, making it the most popular car in Britain ever until it was overtaken by the Fiesta in 2014. The Ford Escort ended the 1980s as Britain's most popular car, but it couldn't hold off the challenge of its smaller sibling, the Fiesta, over the next decade – superminis were all the rage. In fact, in 2014 it overtook the Escort to become Britain's best-selling car ever with sales of more than 4.5 million. Now in its seventh-generation, the Fiesta has been Britain's best-selling car every year since 2009 and has become a national treasure. Ford Fiestaįord's first supermini was originally launched in 1976 and it finished the 1980s as the UK's third most popular car, behind the Vauxhall Cavalier and Ford Escort (No 1).īy the end of the 1990s, the Fiesta was the most popular car in the UK, thanks to the Mk3 version which launched in 1989. ![]() We've taken a look at the UK's top 10 best-selling cars of the 1990s to give you a flavour of the automotive decade. The Renault Scenic (launched in 1996) is credited as the car that kick-started the boom. The new company's highlights of the 1990s included the launch of the MG F in 1995 and the Rover 75 in 1998.Īrguably the biggest automotive trend of the 1990s was the rise of the compact MPV, or people carrier. ![]() This meant the relationship with Honda ended, though the Honda-derived cars, including the 200, 400, 600 and 800, continued. In the automotive world, the Rover Group (owned by British Aerospace, BAe, since 1988) was sold to BMW in 1994. The biggest movies of the 1990s were Titanic, Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace and Jurassic Park while the most watched British TV show of the decade was the Christmas 1996 edition of Only Fools and Horses with 24.35 million viewers on BBC1. 'Britpop' bands like Blur, Pulp and Oasis dominated the charts along with the Spice Girls, but the best-selling single was Elton John's Candle in the Wind – a tribute to Princess Diana who tragically died in 1997. The 1990s saw the fall of Margaret Thatcher and the rise of New Labour and Tony Blair. ![]()
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