The 1980s didn’t offer a lot of variety in terms of rear-drive muscle, as the Ford Mustang and the Chevrolet Camaro/Pontiac Firebird twins were joined by the more expensive Buick Grand National as the only real performers around. Sure, there were other wannabes out there—GM’s G-Body offered disappointing “looks quick” packages like the Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS, while Buick did its best to deliver turbo six-cylinder power across its T-Type lineup—but these weren’t the affordable options most budget-conscious enthusiasts were looking for. Instead, the inexpensive speed spotlight fell on a smattering of econoboxes that took the original muscle formula of a small, cheap car with a big engine and adapted it to the ’80s standard of small, cheap car with a turbocharged engine.

You didn’t have to spend big bucks to get decent speed in the 1980s, but chances are you’d have to look outside the traditional muscle car template to get it. Turbo FWD cars were just coming into their own in that decade, and I rounded up some of the brightest lights in this piece on affordable 80s speed for Motor Trend.