The Ford Sierra was the family car which this manufacturer introduced in order to replace the outgoing Cortina, providing a large and affordable motoring platform which was launched in 1982 and continued successfully for 11 years.

When the Sierra first arrived it was considered to be a bold departure for Ford in terms of its design, because its aero styling broke with the firm's more traditional aesthetic sensibilities.

The aerodynamic nature of the Sierra meant that its style would be replicated in other Ford models, both in Europe and the US.

Of course the press did take a little time to come around to the looks of the Sierra, which led to a variety of nicknames being thrown at it. Eventually its influence on the market would mean that it was no longer an exception.

Ford continued to work on the Sierra over the years and it received its most significant face lift in 1987. This basically standardised the front end of the car across all its variants whereas in the past it had offered different distinctive styles depending on the model.

The basic Sierra could be powered by a 1.3 litre engine producing just 59bhp, although the 1.6 litre and 1.8 litre models were preferred by many buyers.

A 2.3 V6 petrol and a 2.3 diesel engine were also made available to offer a little more performance, although the king of the Sierra range was undeniably the RS Cosworth. This sported a 201bhp power output courtesy of its turbocharged 2.0 litre engine and had rallying heritage on its side.

In fact sportier options were available relatively early in its lifespan, with the Sierra XR4i arriving in 1983 with a 2.8 litre engine shared with the Capri.

The Cosworth range was expanded in 1987 when the RS500 was introduced, this time with 222hp rather than 201. Of course in competitive races the Sierra Cosworth was significantly more powerful still, with some teams taking it up to 550bhp.

By the early 1990s the Sierra's design benefits were starting to look a little less relevant and so Ford phased it out to usher in its replacement, the Mondeo in 1992.

Although the Sierra was only on sale for 11 years it managed to shift 1.3 million units in the UK alone, making it the nation's tenth bestselling car of all time.