Re: I Keep an Updated List of my Top 5 Cars

"bartlettab" (bartlettab) 01/28/2014 at 16:00 • Filed to: Top 5, Favorite Cars, Lancia, BMW, McLaren, Saab, Lamborghini, dream, dream car, dream garage, fantasy, favorite, list

1

40

We all do it. "Gear heads", "Petrol heads", "Petrosexuals", whatever your term for car lovers and enthusiasts is, we can all rattle off our top 5 favorite cars at any given moment. This is in response to a friend's post ( !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! ) " !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! " and as he pointed out, this list can change fairly often. My top 5 may not be the most agreeable, anyone who has talked to be about cars can attest to the fact that despite being an automobile enthusiast, I despise most cars and revel only a few. Cars, or autos, as machines, are almost all magnificent. As a mechanical engineering major in my third year of school (though I have no intention of going into the automotive industry) I love complex interactions between moving parts in almost any application, but for a car to lovable it has to have purpose, aesthetics, reliability and above all, character. My top 5 may not be filled with supercars or cars that look like sex on wheels, but they do make me smile. (I'm horrible at arguing but please disagree as much as you wish)

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

1. Lancia Delta Evo 2 (1993)

Yes, it's a Lancia, but one of the few remarkable ones. Anyone with even the slightest interest in rallying is familiar with the HF Integrale that won the World Rally Championship an astonishing 6 times and made famous by Martini Racing. The HF Integrale Evo II is the second to last version they made and in my eyes, the best road going version produced.

2. BMW M1 (no... not the 1M)

The BMW M1 was something that I wish BMW would revisit. A supercar. Love them or hate them, there's no denying that the WWI aircraft company knows how to make a car that's incredible to drive. The M1 was the first supercar you could drive every day, and unless anyone has taken their MP4-12c grocery shopping, may very well be considered the last.

3. The McLaren MP4/12

Not to be confused with the aforementioned MP4-12c, I realize a Formula 1 car is an unconventional choice in a list such as this. Ferrari may be the "best" team in Formula 1, but McLaren will always be my favorite (I wish they would get some decent drivers though). The engineers at McLaren are always pushing the boundaries of the regulations and in 1997 developed the infamous 4-pedal MP4/12.

4. Saab 99

Yes. I love Saab. Mock if you will, but function over form gets no better than this. If you ask anyone who loves Saab which is their favorite, the answer is going to be the 99. Anyone who watches Top Gear will remember James and Jeremy saying goodbye to the little Swedish hatch, but not all of them will miss the quirky, safety-obsessed company that always had to make the perfect daily driver. (My first car accident was in a Saab 900 at the age of one when my mother rolled it 3 times. We were both obviously unscathed. I also bought a 9-5 as my first car when I was 15 and plan on driving it well into my late 20s)

5. Lamborghini Countach

This image was lost some time after publication.

My apologies to anyone who has actually read this and was hoping for me to finally choose a modern car, but #5 goes to the most beautifully vulgar machine ever conceived. Lamborghini's are made to be driven hard, and driven fast, but more importantly to be ogled by bug-eyed bystanders, and no Lambo is as striking as the Countach.

*I may follow up with #6-10 tonight or tomorrow.

Brian Silvestro > bartlettab 01/28/2014 at 17:03

1

*Clears Throat*

V12 Zagato

RS6

Alfa GTV

Fiesta Rally Car

P1

CAR_IS_MI > bartlettab 01/28/2014 at 17:06

0

[insert picture of emo crying kid here]

I can't pick just 5...

Goshen, formerly Darkcode > bartlettab 01/28/2014 at 17:07

0

"one of the few remarkable ones"

._.

Osiris - I can haz Euro spec? > bartlettab 01/28/2014 at 17:11

0

McLaren F1

Shelby A/C Cobra 427

Lamborghini Countach

Audi Quattro

'69 Chevy Camaro

bartlettab > Brian Silvestro 01/28/2014 at 17:18

0

V12 Zagato: "The steering is heavy, the rear wheels will happily lose traction even in fourth gear... this is car as possession, not as driving machine." -Top Gear. A car built for a heated garage. Useless.

RS6: Agreed. Amazing car.

Alfa GTV: I'm sorry... an alpha? Honestly...

Fiesta Rally Car: Quick piece of machinery, but how many World Rally Championships has it won? Please no throat clearing until it at least sheds its training wheels.

P1: Again. Agreed. An incredible car the the LaFerrari will never hold a candle to.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > bartlettab 01/28/2014 at 17:19

0

1.Ferrari Enzo

2.Lamborghini Countach

3.Lancia Delta Integrale Evo

4.DMC Delorean

5.Dodge RAM SRT10 Regular Cab Manual

stuttgartobsessed > bartlettab 01/28/2014 at 17:20

0

I love your list. However I would replace the MP4/12 with something French. Maybe an Alpine A110. Or a Talbot Lago T150 CSS.

Or if you want to stick with an F1 car, you can't go wrong with a Maserati 250F.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > Luc - The Acadian Oppo 01/28/2014 at 17:22

1

honorable mention

6. Tesla Model S

Brian Silvestro > bartlettab 01/28/2014 at 17:22

0

If I can get a hold of a V12 Zagato I would, it's basically a beautifully rebodied V12 Vantage (which is an amazing car as far as I can tell).

I love Alfas deal with it.

I plan on purchasing a Fiesta sometime in the near future and keeping it as the years go on, modifying it until it's stage-ready, so I'm biased.

bartlettab > Osiris - I can haz Euro spec? 01/28/2014 at 17:22

0

Not a fan of muscle cars, but the '69 camaro was and still is the third best example of why 1969 was the greatest year to be American (behind the moon landing and the '69 stingray). There's no arguing with the other 4 on your list. The Quattro didn't make my top 5 favorites, but I'll always maintain that in terms of engineering it's the most influential automobile of the 20th century.

bartlettab > Brian Silvestro 01/28/2014 at 17:24

0

Love is love, and your Fiesta plan sounds rad. Agree to disagree on the Aston.

Gamecat235 > Brian Silvestro 01/28/2014 at 17:25

1

Brian Silvestro > bartlettab 01/28/2014 at 17:25

0

I love oppo, when two people can completely disagree on something and still have a rational conversation with each other.

Textured Soy Protein > bartlettab 01/28/2014 at 17:27

0

512 TR
'69 Corvette 427 (or possibly '70-'71 454)
E24 M6
FD RX-7
'61-'63 Lincoln Continental convertible

bartlettab > stuttgartobsessed 01/28/2014 at 17:28

0

French? no. But yes, I do find it important to keep an F1 car in my top 5 as there's no better example of pure engineering on Earth than that which you see in F1. The 250F is a classic and probably the best F1 car from the 50s, I'll give you that, but in terms of pushing boundaries and changing the sport, it has to be a McLaren for me, and there are no McLarens sneakier than the MP4/12.

Corey CC97, MAZDA DPI IS STILL BAE JOESTACTIV JOESTACTIV JOESTACTIV JOESTACTIV VISIT FLORIDA RACING LIVES FOREVER IN OUR HEARTS > bartlettab 01/28/2014 at 17:31

1

My list as of now:

Lancia 037

Ferrari F50

1970 Dodge Challenger R/T

Nissan Skyline GT-R R34

Pagani Zonda Cinque

bartlettab > Luc - The Acadian Oppo 01/28/2014 at 17:32

1

You cannot comprehend the amount of respect putting the DMC Delorean in your list earns you here. As a huge fan of the Back to the Future series as well as a musical group called "Hot Pink Delorean" (if you like electronic music look them up), I think there are few cars more foolishly lovable than the Delorean. Especially if you get the model with a flux capacitor as an optional extra. :P

bartlettab > CAR_IS_MI 01/28/2014 at 17:33

0

it's a tough battle...

Gamecat235 > Brian Silvestro 01/28/2014 at 17:34

0

Though, to be fair, I might trade out the Fiesta for a Ford Racing Puma (or an M100 Elan) and the GTV for a 33 or an 8c. But you and I? pretty damn close.

bartlettab > Goshen, formerly Darkcode 01/28/2014 at 17:34

0

they had quite a few great cars, but it's lancia. there were heaps of crap coming off their factory lines 10 times more frequently than something good. :/

Brian Silvestro > Gamecat235 01/28/2014 at 17:38

1

I never considered the 33 to be a dream car because of how hard it would be to get one, and I'd never be brave enough to drive it(but I'd have it over the GTV). When it comes to the 8C I just can't look past it's lackluster performance (ITS SO GODDAMN GOOD-LOOKING THOUGH). See my other reply to bartlettab about why I chose Fiesta.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > bartlettab 01/28/2014 at 17:38

0

The Delorean is the one car on my list that I can confidently say that I will have one. The others would be nice to have for sure. but my life will never be complete without owning a Delorean.

Gamecat235 > Brian Silvestro 01/28/2014 at 17:44

0

Understandable, but having a 33 or 8c, and a V12 Zagato in my garage... I would just look at them. For days. And then drive them around the block, or on dates. And then park them carefully and look at them.

As opposed to the other cars, which would be for driving.

Brian Silvestro > Gamecat235 01/28/2014 at 17:48

0

I picture myself with a fairly big garage with bed and a bathroom in the corner, and I'd stare at them for unmentionable amounts of time. I want a V12 Zagato so bad, it's my dream car.

Gamecat235 > Brian Silvestro 01/28/2014 at 17:50

0

Have we had this conversation? http://jalopnik.com/496142441#comm…

1337HPMustang > Brian Silvestro 01/28/2014 at 17:51

0

Why not a GTA instead of a GTV.

Brian Silvestro > Gamecat235 01/28/2014 at 17:53

2

No but,

Osiris - I can haz Euro spec? > bartlettab 01/28/2014 at 18:00

0

I grew up with hotrods and American Muscle cars. I'm sad that I could only pick 5 because I would love to include the '71 Hemi 'Cuda or the '70 Challenger. I love old muscle!

stuttgartobsessed > bartlettab 01/28/2014 at 18:05

0

What's so sneaky about the 4/12? And I just prefer classic F1 cars to more modern ones. I wonder if I could register a 250F for road use. I think that would make a pretty epic grocery getter.

Drivingforfunandprofit > bartlettab 01/28/2014 at 18:08

0

THAT SAAB!!!!! precious.

AMC/Renauledge > bartlettab 01/28/2014 at 18:21

0

Mine is constantly changing, and I doubt I could ever put them in any sort of order. Right now?

Lancia Fulvia Coupe 1600 HF

1965 Buick Riviera Gran Sport

1956 Packard Caribbean convertible

Jaguar 420G

Lancia Hyena Sport Zagato

bartlettab > Drivingforfunandprofit 01/28/2014 at 20:22

0

it is a thing of beauty... to some of us.

bartlettab > Osiris - I can haz Euro spec? 01/28/2014 at 20:23

0

nooo the '68 Challenger please, not the '70 :P

bartlettab > AMC/Renauledge 01/28/2014 at 20:24

0

that Hyena tho! lolol :)

bartlettab > stuttgartobsessed 01/28/2014 at 20:44

0

I take it you're not familiar with this picture. Just read up on the car. It's impressive story.

bartlettab > bartlettab 01/28/2014 at 20:46

0

and yes, provided you could fashion some sort of luggage compartment, that would be a fabulous shopping car. or pull a trailer! :P

bartlettab > Luc - The Acadian Oppo 01/28/2014 at 20:49

0

it's those doors! lol

Osiris - I can haz Euro spec? > bartlettab 01/29/2014 at 10:07

0

Either will do!

Drivingforfunandprofit > bartlettab 01/29/2014 at 14:04

0

I am constantly searching CL for old saab turbo coupes with manual transmissions. I can't explain why I love them, but I just do.

bartlettab > Drivingforfunandprofit 01/29/2014 at 18:50

0

me tooooo!! I've been dying to find an old 5-speed 900 convertible non-turbo (most of the convertibles had raunchy turbo issues and as much as I would like to do some sort of aftermarket mitsubishi adaptation, I'd rather keep it original.)