RE: Help us judge the best car of the last 25 years
RE: Help us judge the best car of the last 25 years
Sunday 1st January 2023

Help us judge the best car of the last 25 years

Want to be an integral part of the PH25 birthday celebrations? Here's how...


Happy new year everyone! PistonHeads turns 25 in 2023, and it goes without saying that we’re going to make quite a big song and dance of it. Since arriving fresh-faced in 1998, we've seen it all - save for a new TVR Griffith, of course. You hardly need us to tell you that in that time we've become by some distance the largest motoring community in the UK, and, with a hat tip to our colleagues at CarGurus.com, the nation's leading marketplace to buy and sell performance and collectable cars. And Sheds, obviously. 

But we'd be a pointless patch of grass without you lot; it is PHers and the mighty forums that provide all the frozen sausages. And it is in that spirit of togetherness that we call on you now to leave your indelible mark on the PH25 celebrations. Over the coming months, we'll seek to declare the best cars from the last 25 years in five crucial categories: sports cars, track cars, hot hatches, saloons and estates, and, of course, supercars. We'll narrow each segment down to a workable shortlist, and then ask you, the enthusiasts' enthusiast, to vote for a winner. And then from the five finalists, we'll whittle it down to one - which will be declared PistonHeads' Best Performance Car of the Last Quarter Century (we'll work on that). 

The first round of polling will open soon, so please be sure to sign up for our newsletter here to find out when voting begins. We’ll announce the vote winner of each category in turn, before naming the overall PH25 champions' champion on August 12th at a fabulous 25th-anniversary event at Bicester Heritage - so get that date in your calendar immediately. And prepare yourself for a banger. 


Author
Discussion

Torqu3steer

Original Poster:

164 posts

113 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
quotequote all
Opening the bidding with the Clio 182 Trophy

andrew

10,361 posts

222 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
quotequote all
closing it with the mighty 330d

David87

7,032 posts

242 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
quotequote all
So many good cars since 1998. Gonna lay down my cards now and say the winner will be a Porsche GT something. I’ll go 996 GT3 RS.

Tough task though! Personally I’d go with something a bit more down to Earth.

Hongkongfooi

644 posts

277 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
quotequote all
got to be a gt3 of any of the generations since inception

jp-sr71

126 posts

215 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
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Tesla!

georgejoshington

423 posts

192 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
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BMW iX must be in with a shout tbh, pretty much perfect

Zilla

72 posts

133 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
quotequote all
R35 GTR. Redefined the affordable supercar. Set the benchmark for a decade after it's introduction.

Baldchap

9,629 posts

122 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
quotequote all
Best depends on what it needs to do.

If it's nipping to the supermarket over speed humps it isn't a supercar, but if it's lapping the 'Ring it probably is.

If it's tazzing down a B road it could be an Elise or GR Yaris, but I wouldn't want to drive either to Spain and back with a dog in the boot.

So the best car in the last 25 years is therefore 'it depends', probably followed by something really bland like a Corolla hybrid with a ten year warranty, which is all the car any of us really ever need - just ask your local friendly taxi driver.

finlo

4,453 posts

233 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
quotequote all
Mondeo!

Jamescrs

6,461 posts

95 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
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E39 BMW M5.

Still stands up well by modern standards

Steve-9gcjy

4 posts

47 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
quotequote all
GR Yaris

aterribleusername

702 posts

93 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
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A mk1 Focus.

Does the daily driver bit well.
Fun to thrash, even in the base spec.
Comfy enough for long distance cruising.
Cheap to run.
Looks good, even now!

And that's from someone who doesn't like Ford's!

andrew

10,361 posts

222 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
quotequote all
finlo said:
Mondeo!
agreed !
it, probably more than any other, freed the masses from repmobiles/family barges and into decent handling, enjoyable, quality cars

Baldchap

9,629 posts

122 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
quotequote all
I'm going with the following from my own made up categories:

Hatchback: GR Yaris (obviously)
Small Sports Car: Elise Cup
Supercar: Very tough one. 765LT perhaps? Not driven that many of them so can't really comment here.
Normal Every Day Car: 5 series
Convertible: MX5 (NA too old so ND)
GT Car: Bentley Continental Supersport
Most Overrated Car: 992 911
SUV: Who cares? laugh (I'm kidding, I'm kidding!!! Probably a FFRR)
Leccy Car: Not a Tesla is all I can say from personal experience.

Japveesix

4,576 posts

198 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
quotequote all
God knows but here are some possibilities...

R35 GTR
McLaren P1
Focus RS mk1
Mégane R26-R
C63 AMG
360 CS
E60 M5
Lexus LFA



Don Roque

18,291 posts

189 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
quotequote all
R35 GTR is not a bad shout. Given the passage of time you could almost forget just how much it upset the market when it arrived and how it had supercar manufacturers running for cover.

Pflanzgarten

7,657 posts

55 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
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Mazda MX5

Baldchap

9,629 posts

122 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
quotequote all
Japveesix said:
God knows but here are some possibilities...

R35 GTR
McLaren P1
Focus RS mk1
Mégane R26-R
C63 AMG
360 CS
E60 M5
Lexus LFA
Ooh, forgot the LFA... Good shout.

bearman68

4,941 posts

162 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
quotequote all
Haha, you lot are lacking imagination. How do you define 'best' car.

Clearly one that is durable, reliable, frugal, and decent to drive.

I'd hold a shout for the Mk1 Focus, but for me it has to be the mighty Toyota Yaris 1.3 4 door petrol.

Best car in the world by far. If you want to get somewhere with limited resource, this car cuts the mustard in pretty much any part of the world, and has proven itself time and time again.

Much less so the nice to drive in but very limited Porsche GTX 994567 available with a 3 year waiting list starting at 78 gazillion pounds. How can that be considered the 'best' car of all time is completely beyond me. Especially as it's going to break down 15 times before it gets to 100k miles. rofl

But I don't think this view will get much support somehow. smile


Rob747

231 posts

206 months

Sunday 1st January 2023
quotequote all
Any manual 997