For a car to be considered a classic, it must be 20 years old, which is putting a lot of the original tuning cars in this category. Before there were all the Japanese imports, there were many cars that did not make the grade. If you want to start tuning up a classic for an interesting project, here are some more modern classics that you may want to consider:

1. Volkswagen Scirocco—is a sleek hatchback sports car from this German automaker. It is still in production today, but if you want a classic to tune, get an 80s model when they first started to put fuel injection in these cars. These cars can be tuned with aftermarket parts that will give them plenty of power for their tiny 4-banger engines. If you want a car that is reliable, gets good gas mileage and can be tuned to go fast, a Scirocco is a good choice for a restoration project.  

2. Toyota Supra—is a performance package of the Celica, which was produced until 2002 and the models from the 80s and 90s have become popular tuning classics. If you want a car that is iconic of the Japanese compact sports car, this is a great option. Models from the late 80s and early 90s dropped the Celica and were only badge with Supra; Earlier models were labeled Celica Supra and Celica GT models. If you are looking or a rear-wheel drive import, then the Celica GT and Supra are a good choice to restore an import and test it out at the drag strip.

3. Mazda RX-7—The RX-7 is another compact import from the 80s that was an iconic car of its classic. These cars are some of the only production cars to be produced with a rotary engine, which makes them interesting and has a distinct sound when the engine hits higher RPMs. The RX-7 is a small two-seater that is light and fast. Some of the models from the late 80s produced up to 200 horsepower, which can make this lightweight compact get up to high speeds quickly.

These are some of the more modern classics that you will want to consider for a tuning restoration. Contact a transmission service, like Interstate Transmission & Automotive, to help with rebuilding the transmission or transaxle to accommodate any customizing you do to give your classic more power.  They can change the gear ratio to handle power from tuning and upgrades that you do during the restoration process.