Performance Car - Original Magazine

Original Magazine

AGB Business Publications Limited launched Performance Car in October 1983. It replaced Hot Car magazine, a magazine that focussed on the tuned & modified car scene. The change of name came about due to a slight shift of focus to manufacturer-built performance cars. Early issues were titled Performance Car (incorporating Hot Car). The editor at launch was Ian Wearing.

In 1986, Jeremy Clarkson became a freelance columnist for the magazine. He would later go on to present the BBC motoring TV series Top Gear, but continued to write for Performance Car until 1994, following the launch of Top Gear magazine.

In the mid-1990s, the magazine changed its style, aiming to bring in a larger readership. The move backfired, and they later admitted they "went looking for extra readers that weren't there, and pissed off several thousand that were". Attempts to revert were somewhat successful in regaining readers, but publishers EMAP decided that as performance cars were being covered by other magazines there were not enough readers to justify keeping Performance Car. The final issue, July 1998, was published on 12 June 1998 (12 June 1998) before the magazine was merged into EMAP's other motoring magazine Car. Following one issue of Car with a Performance Car supplement, it remained much the same magazine as it was before, with little influence from Performance Car.

Following its demise, several of the writers from Performance Car, including Richard Meaden and John Barker went on to found a new magazine, Evo, which was launched at the end of 1998 and covered similar topics to those of Performance Car.