90 FORD ESCORT COSWORTH
Everything that was good about the Sierra Cossie condensed into a more compact, agile and accelerative all-drive package. Straight-line speed isn’t a match for today’s Focus RS but turbo-massaged torque and all-drive traction still endow it with formidable cross-country pace. Chassis balance on the limit is superb and there’s no torque steer, however hard you stamp on the throttle.

Layout: Front-engine, 4wd Engine: In-line 4-cyl, 1993cc, turbo Power: 227bhp Top speed: 143mph 0-60: 5.8sec Years: 1992-96

89 VW GOLF GTI (MK1 & 2)
The mk1 GTI changed our world in the late-70s, and the mk2 of 1984 simply refined the concept (alas, the lardier mk3 rather lost the plot). It’s not really quick, but it’s a perfectly judged package: punchy, rev-happy 16-valve engine; a chassis that blends keenness and agility with a degree of suppleness, and all wrapped up in a timeless and perfectly proportioned hatchback body. The definitive GTI.

Layout: Front-engine, front-drive Engine: In-line 4-cyl, 1781cc Power: 112bhp Top speed: 112mph 0-60: 8.1sec Years: 1979-84

88 JAGUAR XJ220
Jaguar’s only supercar was briefly the world’s fastest, and its raw-sounding but awesomely potent twin-turbo V6 still delivers an absolute haymaker of accelerative punch. Okay, it’s too wide for threading down your average back-road, but then most supercars are. Find the right road, however, and the XJ220 rewards with precise steering and a benignly adjustable handling balance.

Layout: Mid-engine, rear-drive Engine:  V6, 3498cc, twin-turbo Power: 542bhp Top speed: 213mph 0-60: 3.7sec Years: 1992-94

87 VAUXHALL VX220
The VX220 has never quite had the same cachet as its Lotus siblings-under-the-skin, partly due to its slightly workaday Ecotec four-pot motor, but it fully deserves its own entry in our evo 100. It’s that broad-tracked chassis’ fluent, fussless way of stringing together combinations of bends. And in turbocharged form it really can convince you that you’re driving a junior supercar.

Layout: Mid-engine, rear-drive Engine: In-line 4-cyl, 2198cc Power: 145bhp Top speed: 136mph 0-60: 5.6sec Years: 2000-04

86 NISSAN 350Z
The 350Z – and its 370Z successor – is a genuine character, and a bit of a throwback. A thumping great normally aspirated V6 engine, manual gearbox, two seats and rear-wheel drive. Not the last word in refinement, but that’s kind of the point. It’s a hairy-arsed drivers’ car in the best possible way, with a real propensity for power-induced oversteer – rare qualities these days, more’s the pity. 370Z brings Synchro Rev Control to the party – perfectly timed throttle-blips when you downshift. You can turn it off…

Layout: Front-engine, rear-drive Engine: V6 3498cc Power: 276bhp Top speed: 155mph 0-60: 6.1sec Years: 2003-06

85 AUDI QUATTRO
The Ur-Quattro’s combo of four-wheel drive and turbocharging might seem old hat today, but in 1980 it was a sensation, and the years have done little to diminish its powers, especially if you drive one of the later 20v cars (or even better, a Sport). The engine’s got real soul, and of course there’s bags of all-weather traction, while the pace of the thing feels barely dimmed. A true original.

Layout: Front-engine, 4wd Engine: In-line 5-cyl, 2226cc, turbo Power: 220bhp Top speed: 143mph 0-60: 6.2sec Years: 1980-91

84 LANCIA INTEGRALE
The car that eclipsed the Quattro, both on the road and WRC stage, the Integrale is the five-door hatchback with supercar levels of charisma. Power delivery is conspicuously turbocharged – real lag followed by a sweet rush of force-fed hurry-up – while the chassis, pliant and almost soft by today’s standards, manages to combine tiptoe agility with prodigious four-square grip. Still so desirable.

Layout: Front-engine, 4wd Engine: In-line 4-cyl, 1995cc, turbo Power: 215bhp Top speed: 137mph 0-60: 6.4sec Years: 1988-93

83 ASTON V8 VANTAGE N400
The pert V8 Vantage is one of our favourite Astons and in limited-edition N400 form (to celebrate success in the Ring 24hrs) it fully realises its potential. It’s taut, tight, precision-damped; a touch more responsive, the feedback more detailed. The robotised paddle-shift manual feels intuitive, and the bigger hit from the mildly reworked 4.3-litre V8 is accompanied by the full Brian Blessed. Glorious.

Layout: Front-engine, rear-drive Engine: V8, 4281cc Power: 400bhp Top speed: 177mph 0-60: 4.9sec Years: 2007-08

82 BMW E34 M5
A handsome, sharply cut saloon from an era when BMW M-cars were truly made of the right stuff. Few four-doors have ever offered such wonderfully pure interaction – every move telegraphed, beautifully balanced and supremely indulgent. Honestly, just how many luxury four-seaters give you the option of exiting a roundabout with 30 yards of opposite lock, straight-six howling?

Layout: Mid-engine, rear-drive Engine: In-line 6-cyl, 3795cc Power: 340bhp Top speed: 155mph 0-60: 5.9sec Years: 1992-95

81 BUGATTI VEYRON
Awesome speed, awesome grip, awesome composure (in the dry, at least. Veyrons don’t like the wet). And it's all so absurdly accessible, in a way you'd never dream possible from looking at the bare stats. For a car that weighs 2022kg it feels unfathomably manageable, gripping, changing direction and stopping with a sense of unlimited resolve that gives you a huge shot of confidence.

So why doesn’t it finish higher? Because beyond the speed and the crushing ability, it lacks the kind of detailed interaction that fully engages the senses and slowly gets right under your skin. That doesn’t make it any less of an event. It’s just that you tend to remember the car rather than the drive…

Layout: Mid-engine, 4wd Engine: W16, 7993cc, quad-turbo Power: 1000bhp Top speed: 253mph 0-60: 2.8sec Years: 2005-

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