Top 10: Endangered cars from the 1990s
Cast your mind back to the 1990s, a time when Ant and Dec were still called PJ and Duncan, Chris Evans was far too down with the kids to be associated with Radio 2 and some people were wearing those odd Global Hypercolour t-shirts.
It was also a time when you could still buy a Rover, an MG and if you really wanted, a Daewoo. That'll be the Daewoo. Sadly (or perhaps not) many cars from that era are fast disappearing, so which are the most endangered?
Fiat Croma
15 still registered in the UK - 3 licenced, 12 SORN
The Croma was Fiat's large saloon based on the same platform as the Alfa Romeo 164, the Lancia Thema and the Saab 9000. Spacious, comfortable and capable, it had plenty of appeal, but as seems to be the case with big cars from Fiat, it did not prove popular. Especially at a time when up-and-coming young professionals wanted a BMW or Mercedes-Benz.
Still, Fiat did soldier on with the Croma, giving it a facelift in 1991, but diesel models were never sold here. Instead Fiat focussed on the sporty aspect of the Croma with a 2.0-litre Turbo model producing 153bhp that was quick but did struggle somewhat to transfer all that power to the front wheels. It was finally discontinued in 1996, yet now there are only a handful left in the UK.
hipfar on 7 June 2016
Just a question, there are only 6 Mazda 626 2.5gt V6 abs left in the uk, how come these are not listed? lovely car, superb to drive, very reliable, spacious but never mentioned!
john444 on 24 March 2017
I know Maestros were rubbish and hated by everyone at the time, but I judge as is, not as the herd tells me to judge. Mine was superb, great performance against its contemporaries, beautiful interior, and great road holding. You probably think I'm insane if you've read this far, but having been a petrol head all my life, and having owned many great cars (including three Elans, two BMW's etc.) I stand by the evidence of my own experience.paul jenkins on 12 June 2017
we used a diesel maestro as a taxi it was noisy but incredibly economical on fuelon 15 January 2019
l had a lovely red MG Maestro 2.0 Efi..... It was great for leaving behind BMW's & other so called fast cars at the lights...Only real problem was the plastic panel parts inside....Frederik Moorman van Kappen on 29 February 2020
In the Netherlands I once owned a blue Maestro Mayfair, I loved the plastic wood door cappings, luxurious upholstery and matte metal door mirrors. Compared to contemporary VW Golf cars, I noticed how cavernous they were and how little passenger space they offered. I had the 1600 s engine which had adequate grunt. After losing this car in a traffic accident I looked for another one and came across a white mg maestro 1600. What a delightful car: gurgling webers, close ratio gearbox, excellent sports seats. And, let's not forget the digital dashboard and speaking board computer.I still miss it and if I ever come across a LHD example, it will be mine!
So quit the Maestro bashing, compared to a VW Golf I couldn't find one point in which the VW was better than the Maestro.
Thank you British Leyland.
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