Bring a Trailer (BaT) is endlessly interesting to someone who follows eighties cars. To me, one of the best parts is the rarely seen or unusual vehicles you see. I’ve picked ten that stood out to me from August 2026, choosing one from each year of the eighties. All photos courtesy of Bring a Trailer.
[Lot 255332] 1980 Porsche 911 SC Weissach Special Edition coupe. Platinum Metallic with Doric Gray leather front bucket seats with burgundy piping. 172 bhp 3.0 liter/183 ci flat six with fuel injection, a five-speed manual, and an indicated 76,000 miles. This not perfect but very nice Weissach sold for $81,750 on August 1st. I have written about the 1980 Porsche 911 SC coupe.
[260066] 1981 Chevrolet Malibu sedan. Cream with a Camel cloth front bench seat. LC3 110 bhp 3.8 liter/229 ci V6 with a two-barrel carburetor, a three-speed automatic, and an indicated 32,000 miles. This lightly used example—described as a classic “Sunday driver”—went for $8,000 on August 27th. I have written about the similar 1983 Chevrolet Malibu sedan.
[258150] 1982 AMC Eagle wagon. Topaz Gold Metallic with beige vinyl reclining front seats. 110 bhp 4.2 liter/258 ci inline six with a two-barrel carburetor, a five-speed manual, and an indicated 121,000 miles on an inoperative odometer. This Eagle went for $4,600 on August 17th. I have written about the 1980 AMC Eagle wagon.
[260163] 1983 Datsun 280-ZX Turbo hatchback coupe. Cadet Blue Metallic with Gray velour front bucket seats. L28ET 180 bhp 2.8 liter/173 ci inline six with fuel injection and a turbocharger, a five-speed manual, and an indicated 88,000 miles. This well-cared-for Z-car in a great color went for $27,000 on August 28th. I have written about the 1980 version.
[252179] 1984 Pontiac 2000 Sunbird coupe. White with Blue cloth front bucket seats. 84 bhp 1.8 liter/110 ci inline four with fuel injection, a five-speed manual, and an indicated 8,000 miles. This 2000 Sunbird—Pontiac was in the middle of a naming transition for its version of the J-car in 1984—went for $7,500 on August 15th. I have written about the top-of-the-line 2000 Sunbird S/E hatchback coupe (the one with the turbo) from the same year, but this is a lightly equipped base coupe—the cheapest 2000 Sunbird available in 1984. Who saves these cars?
[258485] 1985 Mazda RX-7 GSL-SE hatchback coupe. Royal Maroon Metallic with Gray cloth front bucket seats. 13B 135 bhp 1.3 liter/80 ci two-rotor Wankel engine with fuel injection, a five-speed manual, and an indicated 19,000 miles. All GSL-SEs came with the “big” engine and were also loaded—ventilated disc brakes, Pirelli P6 tires on alloy wheels, cruise control, air conditioning, etc. This final-year example went for $39,000 on August 18th.
[257846] 1986 Ford LTD Crown Victoria sedan. Dark Gray Metallic with a Black Luxury rear half vinyl roof and a Medium Gray cloth split front bench seat. Windsor 150 bhp 4.9 liter/302 ci V8 with fuel injection, a four-speed automatic, and an indicated 67,000 miles. This single-family-owned Crown Vic went for $5,350 on August 14th—I really should write a blog post about these cars someday.
[256545] 1987 Volkswagen Golf GTI 16V hatchback coupe. Dark Blue Mica (not Black) with Rainbow cloth front bucket seats. EA827 123 bhp 1.8 liter/109 ci inline four with fuel injection, a five-speed manual, and an indicated 31,000 miles. This handsome GTI—a California resident from new—went for $27,500 on August 7th.
[257825] 1988 Rolls-Royce Corniche II convertible. Royal Blue Metallic with a Tan convertible top and Tan leather front seats. L410I 205 bhp 6.8 liter/412 ci V8 with fuel injection, a three-speed automatic, and an indicated 8,000 miles. A great color combination beautifully presented, this award-winning Corniche II sold for $255,000 on August 15th.
[259548] 1989 Toyota Camry LE sedan. Light Blue Metallic with Blue Luxury velour front bucket seats. 2VZ-FE 153 bhp 2.5 liter/231 ci V6 with fuel injection, a four-speed automatic, and an indicated 46,000 miles. With standard air conditioning, the V6-equipped LE was the top-of-the-line front-wheel-drive Camry available in 1989. This example sold for $7,200 on August 25th.
Eighties Cars 