Eighties supercar posters: can we afford these cars now?
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Petrol heads of a certain age will undoubtedly have had their bedroom walls covered with pictures of ‘80s supercars and sports cars. Snow white Lamborghinis, gleaming red Ferraris and Porsches with massive rear wings shared wall space with educational maps of the solar system and that tennis playing lady scratching her bum.
Most young kids would one-day dream of owning these supercars and now that most are in their 40s perhaps the day to make that dream a reality has come.
But what do these ‘80s supercars cost today, have they spent the intervening years slowly appreciating out of reach or are there some great deals out there ready to be snapped up by the family man or woman who has been waiting patiently all these years?
We assess the most popular cars from this era to see whether the time has come to turn that dog-eared old poster into an actual car parked in your garage.
Ferrari 288 GTO 1983
The 288 GTO was based on a modified 308 chassis but its 400bhp 2.9-litre twin-turbo engine gave it the performance to become a serious Group B racing car.
The series never happened and instead we got 272 amazing road cars.
Values today are around £2,000,000, hmm, perhaps we should keep searching for those bargains.
Ferrari F40 1987
The F40 was a development of the 288 GTO and it boosted power levels to 470bhp and could top 200mph. By exactly 1mph.
It is arguably the most beautifully styled modern-era Ferrari and owning one of the 1311 produced would surely make many peoples dreams come true.
At prices hovering around £1,000,000 that dream may have to wait for a little while longer.
Ferrari Testarossa 1984
Not many cars are more instantly recognisable than the side-straked Testarossa. Those wide cheese-grater side strakes were a necessary design feature to funnel cooling air to the mid-mounted engine.
Thanks to some further promotion on the Miami Vice TV series, the Testarossa was massively popular.
After going through the usual dip in pricing most supercars experience, they are now worth between £100,000 and £250,000. Ouch.
Porsche 959 1986
The 959 was the most technologically advanced car of the 1980s, it was intended to compete in the doomed Group B racing series but instead we got 330-odd road cars that re-wrote motoring history.
Featuring 4WD, Kevlar body, a 444bhp 2.9-litre twin-turbo engine and the world’s first tyre pressure monitoring system, the 959 was a true icon of its era.
It cost approximately £150,000 back in 1987, today they sell for up to £900,000.
Lamborghini Countach 1974
If the Testarossa and F40 were the most popular offerings from the prancing horse, the Lamborghini Countach challenged them both for pride of place on many bedroom walls.
The original Countach was actually revealed in 1974 as the LP 400, it was a smooth and unadorned design that looked space-age compared to just about everything else.
The ones that became so popular in the ‘80s were the updated LP500 models, many were fitted with outlandish bodykits and huge rear wings which gave them aggressive jet-fighter looks to go with their powerful V12s.
Original LP400s go for up to £1,500,000 while the later LP500 Anniversary edition models are a veritable bargain at £250,000.
Porsche 930 1975
The 911 shape hadn’t changed much since the ‘70s but that didn’t stop people from buying them in their thousands.
The 930 turbocharged versions offered serious performance and in the ‘80s the 3.3-litre versions were the top of the pile.
Adding a 5-speed gearbox, intercooler and an additional 40bhp over the original 3.0-litre car made the 80s version a far more rounded offering and that huge whale tail was so popular that it became an option on every 911.
You will pay up to £200,000 for a good one so hopefully that savings account your parents opened for you in the ‘80s has been earning a whole lot of interest.
Porsche 928 1977
The 928 was never quite as popular as the 911 and despite some notable appearances in movies like Risky Business, it remained in the rear-engined cars shadow.
It was a superb technical feat though and the ’80s versions were quick and polished GT cars.
The good news is that you can find decent ones from as little as £10,000, the best cars are around £50,000.
DeLorean DMC-12 1981
The DeLorean DMC-12 may not have offered much in the way of performance or handling but that mattered little when it had gullwing doors and unpainted stainless-steel body panels.
A mere 9000 were built before the company folded in 1983 and even though it was immortalised in the Back to the Future trilogy, they remained largely unloved until relatively recently.
Even the best ones won’t cost you more than £35,000 today.
Lotus Esprit 1976
The wedge-shaped Esprit snapped heads back in its day and the S3 variant which arrived in 1981 added serious performance to go with those stunning looks.
The 2.2-litre turbocharged motor produced over 200bhp and thanks to Colin Chapman’s obsession with lightness, could race to 60mph in under 5-seconds.
A decent S3 can be yours for around £25,000. Now that does seem far more achievable.
Chevrolet Corvette C4 1983
The Corvette C4 was one of the most desirable American sports cars of the ‘80s, the massive 5.7-litre V8 under its bonnet gave it the power to take on the Europeans and despite the usual stereotypes, it could go around corners and was available with a manual transmission too.
Used examples can be quite a bargain and you can find a great one for under £25,000.
Audi Quattro 1983
Not every poster was a supercar though and perhaps we can find some bargains lower down the pecking order.
The rally champion of the early ‘80s was the revolutionary AWD Audi Quattro. The roadgoing version had quite a following too and while it didn’t have the looks of a Testarossa or Countach, along a wet and winding road it is the Quattro that would come out on top.
Prices are not quite as low as you might expect, budget for around £50,000 for a mint one. Still quite pricey.
BMW M3 1985
The very first M3 was also one of the best balanced, featuring a revvy motorsport inspired 2.3-litre inline-four engine, the E30 M3 has become a superb modern classic.
In racing form, the M3 won more titles than just about any other homologated saloon and in roadgoing form it remains a great drive.
Sadly, they are now up to £100,000 although a less than pristine example can still be found less than half that amount, not exactly cheap but more attainable than that 288 GTO…