90s kids & the cars they grew up with: Tata Estate to Opel Astra

The car market is an ever-evolving space where the technology and new advancements are changing the way automobiles look every few years. Any modern car looks significantly different from the cars that were launched a few decades ago. If you are someone who was born in the 90s and then you have seen the number of cars increasing on the roads and the rapid change in the models in your life. But which are the cars that definitely takes you back to the memory lane? Well, here are 10 such cars.

Maruti 800

Launched with the joint efforts of the Indian government and Suzuki, the first-generation of the Maruti Suzuki was known as the SS80. It became a sensation in the market as it was the most affordable car in the market with a price tag of below Rs 50,000. The Maruti Suzuki 800 was the first car of most Indian families back then and it remained in production for decades before Alto forced it out of production in 2014.

Also read: Maruti 800 modified to look like the Honda 660 & a Lamborghini (Video)

Maruti 1000

With the successful launch of the 800, the second car from the brand to be launched in India was the 1000, which was later known as the Esteem. The four-door sedan became a status symbol for the middle-class families and everyone just wanted to have one. The Maruti Suzuki 100 was the first sedan from the brand and was powered by a 46 horsepower engine. Later, the Esteem came with a more powerful 1.3-litre engine.

Maruti Suzuki Zen

It was the brand’s third car in the Indian market and was launched in 1993 as a premium choice to the 800. The Zen became very popular in India as it offered a bigger cabin space and was more powerful too. It was called India’s first world car since it was exported to the European markets from 1994.

Padmini Premier

The four-seater, four-door Padmini Premier lived for decades in the Indian market and in the 90s, it was actually coming to an end of its production life. The Premier Padmini was launched in 1964 as the Fiat 1100 Delight and was later changed its name. It was a luxury car in its time and there are many who still hold onto their Premier till now. The list includes the likes of Mammootty and Rajnikant.

Opel Astra

The Opel Astra gave the taste of German engineering to the mass-segment customers in India in 1996. It was an entry-level car that was known for its impeccable build quality and premium interiors. It was sold with a petrol and a diesel engine and Opel also offered an automatic transmission option with the petrol engine. Opel also introduced the Club variant of the car that came with a sunroof too.

Tata Sierra

Touted as a car that was much ahead of its time, the Tata Sierra is an iconic car that numerous 90s kids remember clearly. The three-door SUV was launched in 1991 and offered an ingenious massive glass window in the rear. It came with a Peugeot diesel engine and also had a four-wheel-drive system and rear differential locks. Sadly, the Sierra did not sell as much.

Mitsubishi Lancer

The Lancer was launched towards the end of the 90s and it became a delight for the enthusiasts. The performance sedan from Japan became very popular in India, especially because of the set of engine sit came with. The Lancer was decently popular in the market but failed to attract a large portion of the crowd.

Tata Estate

While station wagons were becoming popular in the European countries, Tata launched the Estate in India. It was an extremely spacious car and offered perfect value to the families. However, it just did not become as popular. Even in the 90s, the car was not very common on the roads.

Hindustan Ambassador

The Ambassador was the first car to be made in India. It was launched way back in 1957 and it remained in production for 57 years, making it the car in production for the longest time in the Indian market. Came built on a monocoque chassis, the Ambassador was launched in many different forms including a station wagon too but none of them became as popular as the sedan version.

Hindustan Contessa

 

 

The Hindustan Contessa, which many of us know as the “muscle car” was launched in 1983. Based on the Vauxhall Victor series, the four-door sedan came powered by a 88 horsepower engine, which was considered to be good power in those days. The Contessa is an iconic name and it has been used in numerous Bollywood movies too. In fact, there are many well-maintained examples of the car available in the market.

Also read: Maruti Suzuki recalls 1.35 lakh units of Baleno & WagonR in India