It’s 1989. You have $20k to spend on a car. What’ll it be?

It’s 1989—Full House is teaching us family values, Michael Keaton’s Batman movie just got released and the Cold War is winding down. What better way to cap off the decade than a new car to ride into the 90s in style.

In 1989, we were just narrowly missing some of the more memorable cars of the decade like the Buick Grand National and the Pontiac Fiero, but we’ll stick with the task at hand.

Here are my top five in no particular order, along with my questionable-to-some justification.

Mazda Miata

The 1989 Mazda Miata, also known as the MX-5, debuted as a lightweight, rear-wheel-drive roadster inspired by classic British sports cars. The Miata was powered by a 1.6-liter inline-four engine producing 116 horsepower and featuring a five-speed manual transmission. I wonder if Mazda ever imagined the cult following this car would gain in its 35 years (and counting) of production. The birth year of this iconic roadster earns it a strong spot in my list.

Ford Taurus SHO

A sleeper in its day, the 1989 Ford Taurus SHO (Super High Output) was a high-performance version of the standard Taurus, featuring a Yamaha-designed 3.0-liter V6 engine that produced 220 horsepower. Performance was impressive for the time and admittedly a large reason this is on the list is likely due to absence making the heart grow stronger – there don’t seem to be an abundance of Yamaha Tauri (the plural of Taurus, of course) on the road anymore.

*“Maxwell Road”, by Shutter Theory, licensed under PDM 1.0‍*

Toyota Pickup

Probably not much explanation needed here. Several years later called the Tacoma, it’s amazing what a following these trucks have gained over the years. My ideal spec would be a singe-cab, manual transmission, 4×4, 22-RE powered rig. And with a starting price of just over $8,000, I might just get two!

Ford Mustang 5.0

*“1989 Ford Mustang GT Convertible, Tallahassee Automobile Museum“, by Mjrmtg, licensed under CC BY 4.0.*

In 1989, the Fox Body Mustang was entering is 10th model year (and 25th anniversary of the Mustang) and was kind of old news at this point. But that didn’t stop me from putting it on my list. You could get a fully loaded manual transmission 5.0 in 1989 for well under $20k and the performance-for-value at the time was impressive. With prices stagnant for decades, clean examples of these cars seem to now be catching the eye of collectors, and for good reason.

1989 Chevrolet K5 Blazer

Two-door 4x4s will always hold a soft spot in my heart. Especially if they’re on a full-size truck platform and have a removable hardtop like the K-5 Blazer. Most buyers in 1989 opted for the 5.7 gas V-8 (also what I would choose) rather than the diesel offered. 89 was the first year for the redesigned front end, which was little more than different headlight size/placement and a grille refresh. Since this is my scenario and I can be choosy, I’d opt for the 4 speed manual transmission option on one of these old beasts.

It’s fun to think back about the cars in an automotive era that, when looking at the automotive past, isn’t typically revered as a time for producing the most exciting cars. As they say though, hindsight is 20/20. What would you add to the list?