1980s

The Land Rover Defender ran from 1983 to 2016, the coil-sprung successor to the Series that became one of the most recognisable shapes on earth. A guide to the One Ten, Ninety and 130, the engines from the Tdi to the Td5 and Puma, what to look for when buying (including chassis rot and theft), and what they are worth now.

The Land Rover Series III was the most numerous Series of all, recognised by its plastic grille and the first all-synchromesh gearbox. A guide to the 88 and 109 inch cars, the engines including the Stage 1 V8, the Lightweight, what to look for when buying, and why it is the most affordable way into a Series Land Rover.

The original Range Rover, now called the Range Rover Classic, was not the luxury car it became but a more comfortable, road-capable companion to the working Land Rover. A guide to the two-door and four-door cars, the Rover V8 and the diesels, the Vogue and CSK, what to look for when buying, and what they are worth.

The classic Ford Capri was Europe's answer to the Mustang, an affordable fastback coupe that sold nearly two million and became a 1970s and 80s icon. A guide to the Mk1, Mk2 and Mk3, the V6 cars, the 2.8 Injection and the RS models, how it differs from the new electric Capri, what to look for, and what they are worth.

The Ford Escort XR3i was the fuel-injected hot hatch that outsold every rival and defined performance motoring for a generation of British drivers. A guide to the XR3 and XR3i, the Mk3 and Mk4 cars and the cabriolet, how it compares to the Golf GTI, what to look for, and what they are worth now.

The classic Ford Escort ran across six generations from 1968 to 2000, from the rear-drive rally cars to the front-drive hot hatches and the mighty RS Cosworth. A guide to the Mk1 to Mk6, how the generations differ, the everyman saloons and the celebrated fast Escorts, what to look for, and what they are worth.

The Ford Granada was Ford's big executive saloon and coupe for over two decades, from the Mk1 made famous by The Sweeney to the aerodynamic, Car-of-the-Year Mk3 and its 24-valve Cosworth flagship. A guide to the three generations, the Granada and Scorpio names, what to look for, and what they are worth.

The Ford Sierra RS Cosworth turned an ordinary family Ford into a Group A touring-car weapon, with a turbocharged Cosworth engine, a whale-tail wing and, in RS500 form, near-unbeatable race performance. A guide to the three-door, the RS500, the Sapphire and the 4x4, what to look for, and why values have soared.

The blue Leyland tractors grew straight out of the orange Nuffields in 1969 and were built at Bathgate in Scotland until 1982. A guide to the old Leyland tractors worth knowing, from the compact 154 to the synchro models and the big 2100, the British Leyland story, what to look for when buying, and what a vintage Leyland is worth.

Dutton was reckoned the most prolific kit-car maker in the world, building cheap glass-fibre sports cars and estates on Triumph and then Ford Escort running gear, and once beat Ford in the High Court for the right to keep calling one of its cars the Sierra. A guide to the models, the famous lawsuit, what to look for when buying, and what they are worth.

The XJS was never meant to be an E-Type, and the long, controversial grand tourer divided opinion at launch before time turned it into a sought-after classic. The V12 and the six, the cabriolet and the convertible, the TWR racing cars, and what to look for when buying one now.

Ford called it the Cortina 80; Britain called it the Mk5. The 1979 facelift of the Mk4 was the last Cortina of all, holding the sales lead until the radical Sierra replaced it in 1982 and ended two decades of rear-drive Cortinas. The development story, the run-out, and the survivors.

The third-generation Granada of 1985 was Ford's most advanced car yet, a smooth aerodynamic hatchback that brought executive-class technology like standard anti-lock brakes to the mainstream and was named European Car of the Year. Known as the Scorpio abroad, it was Ford's big British saloon for a decade. The development story and the survivors.

The Princess was Harris Mann's other wedge, a front-drive Hydragas-suspended family car that BL forgot to give a hatchback. A guide to the 18-22 launch confusion, the Princess 2, the Ambassador handover, what to look for, and what they're worth.

The Hillman Avenger was Rootes Group's last clean-sheet small saloon, sold as a Hillman, then a Chrysler, then a Talbot, with a yellow rally homologation Tiger in the middle of it. A guide to the lineage, the Tiger, what to look for, and what they're worth.

The Morris Marina sold over a million cars, finished last in nearly every road test, ran on a front suspension dating from 1948, and survived in such small numbers that finding a clean one today is a real search. A guide to the lineage, the Ital handover, what to look for, and what they're worth.

The Vauxhall Chevette was Britain's best-selling hatchback for parts of 1978, the rally homologation HS won the 1979 British Rally Championship, and almost all of them are now scrapped. A guide to the variants, the HS, what to look for, and what they're worth.

The turbo era and the birth of the hot hatch, the British cars of the 1980s running from the Sierra Cosworth and the Esprit Turbo to the Range Rover, the XJ40, and the performance cars that landed on everyone's neighbour's driveway.