I’m dating myself here, but I graduated from high school in the brief period of hope between surviving Y2K and before the towers fell. Having been raised on American car mags, German car toys, and Japanese car racing video games, my understanding of the greater world of cars was already strong. Fittingly, my tastes were on the eclectic end of the spectrum.
My girlfriend’s dad autocrossed a C5 Corvette Z06 in yellow with the FRC, which is now my all-time favorite Corvette. I wonder what that means? While America offered up a number of interesting performance cars, The Fast and the Furious was soon to ignite the slow gas-line leak of interesting cars from abroad making their way into my consciousness.
The answer to this question may not be exactly the answer I’d have given upon receipt of my diploma, but at no time in my life would I ever be unhappy with my current choice of an FD RX-7. In particular, the English market version. My online pal Joana Fidalgo from The Intercooler has one and I can’t help but gawk at it every time she posts about it on Instagram. It is one of the most perfect silhouettes to ever come out of Japan, and the high frequency staccato yelp of its rotary engine gives it a soundtrack rivaled by few.
What about you? What was the coolest car from the year you finally nabbed your sheepskin?
Easy:
In 1983, everyone wanted a red Ferrari 308GTS QV just like Robin Masters
(which Magnum drove)
One of the things about the meh reboot that annoyed me was: why did they have to pointlessly destroy the 308?? Couldn’t it just have sat peacefully in the garage for the rest of the show?
I have an issue between “obtainable” and “dream car.” Dream car, yes 308 or Countach. Obtainable: 1983 BMW 320i or 280ZX. I did get the 320i in about 1988 and loved the shit out of it.
For some of us without family money – any BMW that wasn’t more than 10 years old was unobtainable. A new BMW was a dream car and a Ferrari was a fantasy.
But that wasn’t the question.
That’s a good point.. that was probably the coolest.
In 1993 some truly old-school cars based on legacy designs were still being made by Saab, VW, Alfa Romeo, etc., which is kind of cool in its own right.
But the Civic Del Sol takes it for me. There will never be anything like that again.
Once was a time I would have pointed out that the Volvo S60/V70 R with 300 HP and the six-speed “spaceball” shifter came out in 2004, the year I graduated…but that would have been many years ago, before I owned one and found out what a disappointment they actually were. Still cool on paper, I guess.
I graduated HS in 1991. So what was the coolest car that year? Off the top of my head, the candidates (limited to vehicles on sale in Canada) are:
Porsche 959– not sold in 1991So if I had to pick one, I think the Acura NSX is the coolest one… at least to me.
That’s a good year and a great list.
I’d have picked the NSX too. RX7 second.
The 959 would have been #1 if it had been on sale.
So the NSX is my pick… but most of the other vehicles are very close behind
Easy, 74 Porsche RS 3.0. If I wanted to be perfectly practical, a 74 DeTomaso Pantera. I know I can fit in them as I’ve driven both of them.
Lucky!
I will admit, both were cozier than I prefer.
Nice try. I’m not telling you when I graduated or my mother’s maiden name!
But what was your best friend’s name and the street you grew up on?
Are you trying to steal his identity or give him a porn name?
No, that’s first pets’ name. I think.
1998 was tough, the E39 M5. the 1st water cooled 911, Subaru Impreza WRX STi, Mistubishi Lancer Evo V, Audi TT, or Miata NB. I guess I would go with Impreza, I would have been able to afford a base model and driven it.
The E39 is still the greatest sports saloon ever made.
Agreed!
The E39 M5 wasn’t available in the states until model year 2000. I think it was produced in 98, but was a 99 model year, in some European countries.
Miata skipped a year in 98. Na goes to 97. Nb starts with 99
That would be the Miata in 1990.
I second this! Also graduated in 1990, and own a 1990!
I too owned a 1990, but not until 1999. In 1990, I had a 1970 Cougar.
Oh, the Viper for 2015. No discussion. 700+ horsepower is cool and all, but 91% of the horsepower in a far lighter car, a cooler engine, a far better-looking car, and a far better performing car is better than any Challenger, and most Chargers.
1981 – easy choice. DeLorean DMC-12
The Lamborghini Countach LP5000 QV is the money no object choice, although the Lancia Delta S4 Stradale is a close second. The IROC Camaro was introduced for the class of ’85 for those of us with more limited budgets.
I was struggling for a 1985 choice but maybe the IROC is the answer. Realistic answer anyway.
I’m another HS grad from 1968. It was a pretty great year for cars. Ferrari’s, Lambos, Mustang Mach 1, Stingray, GTO, GM, Ford, & Mopar missiles, Mazda Cosmo, BMW 2002, Alfa GTV, Datsun 510 and on. How to choose? We had a 66 T’bird that I learned to drive on. It was pretty cool, but my taste ran to the sports sedans, so my vote would be for the BMW 2002. I ended up with a 72 510 that I bought new-$2200. Put a BRE racing suspension and exhaust on it a few years later and drove it trouble free for over 250,000 miles. Handles great comfortable absolutely bulletproof.
Graduating in the late 60’s is pretty much cheating for this question.
2001 For me it was a Mitsubishi 3000GT… GET OFF MY LAWN!
Totally agree! (C/O 2000). The 3000GT VR4/Dodge Stealth were insanely cool! E39 M5 was a more practical runner up.
Hey now, making us look bad as the 3000GT wasn’t produced in 2001 (it’s last MY globally was 2000, last available in the US as a ’99). With that said, those 99/00 cars were absolutely amazing looking, particularly in VR-4 trim. A girl in my class had a red ’99 SL Auto and it was gorgeous. After she was accordioned in it in a crash she then had a silver ’00 Prelude Auto (Dad owned a few dealerships, but obviously had good choices for his daughter).
Going specifically with cars that have a 2001 MY, my 18yo self would’ve picked the final year of the DC2 Integra Type R or Prelude.
Lamborghini Murciélago was the dream car though and really brought the bull stampeding into the 21st century.
LMAO that’s all fair but, in my defense, that was 25+ years ago and those years have begun to get fuzzy around the edges, close enough.
McLaren F1 followed by a XJ220
Coolest in parking lot a friend (only one in HS with a new car) had a Eagle Talon TSI AWD manual. It may have been a 90-91 a teacher had a manual yellow Prelude we all gawked at her and the car.
Based teacher
1982 leaves a lot of malaise-era choices but I’ll roll with one of my dream cars, a Bitter SC.
“Is that Italian??” “NO!”
One of the best Goldbergs episodes for sure.
Likewise. Not much “cool” was available, we drooled over Ferrari and Lamborghini cars that would lose to a 2020 Camry. If I have to pick something, it would be a 512BB
2013 was the year I graduated high school and the coolest car to have just hit the market that year was the new Mustang GT500 with the 5.8 liter V8 and 662 horsepower. It was only available for 2 years and was soundly overshadowed by the Hellcats only 2 model years later, but it was a pretty big deal at the time.
I don’t care about muscle cars as much anymore (never owned one for that matter) but hitting a horsepower number that high in a stock mustang felt very awesome back then.
’13-’14 GT500s are highly coveted and sub-50k mile cars routinely sell for $30-$40k. This was the ultimate variant of the S197.
The mid aughts had a lot of cool stuff, but I’m gonna pick my fav of the bunch based purely off the engine.
The 2006 BMW M5.
That 5.0L V10 is just absolutely brilliant, even if you need to replace the rod bearings like oil changes.
IROC-Z
i hear those are adept at running over old ladies at county fairs
I know I’m getting old, because those cars are getting cooler everyday to me.
Not a car: GMC Syclone.
Mustang GT and IROC. I had a SVO that was pretty cool, too.
In high school senior year, I worked at a gas station next to a Lancia dealer. They had a new Scorpion that looked great. But my co-workers reminded me that it was Italian.
did it rock you like a hurricane?
I think the correct phrase would be rot you like a hurricane.
Dad’s 1968 Lincoln Mark III. It was dark blue with a white vinyl roof and a white leather interior. White carpets too. Beautiful car. Unfortunately he did not buy it until fall of 68. I graduated High School in 1968 so I had to settle for Mom’s new 1967 Mercury Cougar. It was pale yellow with a black vinyl roof and interior and a small V8 which he allowed me to take my date to prom in.
He traded in the Cougar a year later, but I kept my prom date. 55years next month 🙂
I graduate this year. (yes, go crack your aching backs or whatever it is you uncs do for fun :P)
So far, it’s a tie between the Bugatti Tourbillon and the Slate. As I am typing this I do find it funny that the cars I chose are very different in almost every way but they both emphasize a screenless experience
now if we are talking about cars on sale, it’s easily the Chevy Corvette ZR1X. what a car, holy hell. I love it to bits
2003 was either the Lamborghini Gallardo or the 2nd gen Prius if you consider the start of hybrid proliferation cool
In 1994 the coolest car in my school parking lot was the Dodge/Plymouth neon. I mean it had a frickin neon yellow master key. Plus it was a car a kid might reasonably hope to drive/afford that wasn’t a clapped out malaise era Buick hand me down. Neons even handled well and came as a coupe you could that you could still fit some friends into. I did not have a Neon, but a 1980’s Camry is also cool right?