19881980s

Boxy sedans. Carburetors. Leaded petrol.

533
Variants this year
105 hp
Average power
8.2 L
Avg consumption
12.9s
Avg 0–100 km/h
Sedan
Top body · 36%
01 — Body mix

What shape dominated.

Distribution of 533 1988 variants by body type.

sedan36%
hatchback36%
wagon18%
Sedan
35.6%
Hatchback
35.5%
Wagon
17.8%
Suv
3.9%
Coupe
3.6%
Mpv
2.1%
Cabriolet
1.5%
02 — Fuel mix

What moved them.

Petrol still dominates in absolute volume in 1988, but the share is sliding to electric and hybrid year over year.

petrol79%
diesel21%
Petrol
79.4%
Diesel
20.6%
03 — Top picks

The standouts of 1988.

Quickest, most powerful, most efficient — from variants documented with a 1988 model year.

In context · 1980s

Boxy sedans. Carburetors. Leaded petrol.

Before catalytic converters were mandatory. Before electronic fuel injection became universal. The 1980s belonged to the wedge, the three-box sedan, the steel bumper. The Audi 100 broke aero records at 0.30 Cd in 1982; almost nobody else cared yet. The hot hatch arrived (Golf GTI, Peugeot 205 GTI, Renault 5 Turbo), and so did the European turbo diesel.

Audi 100 C3BMW 3 Series E30Volkswagen Golf Mk2Peugeot 205
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