About time we had a 'fill in' thread here!
Discussion
So, what about this:
Which car best encapsulates each decade of the latter half of the last century, for you. It can be whatever you want.
For me?
'50s - Jaguar D-Type (the best of the 'fly-screened' Le Mans road-racers)
'60s - Ferrari Dino (perfectly-balanced in style, handling and performance)
'70s - Maserati Merak (the first of that curious '70s breed - the entry-level 2+2 middie supercar)
'80s - Porsche 959 (breathed '80s hi-tech and a marque that will always be associated with that decade)
'90s - Lotus Elise ('back to basics' - and now everyone's trying to copy it. Essentially the anti-959)
As for nowadays - I'm not sure as we're only halfway through the decade, but it would seem, so far, that we're in a culture of, on one hand, trying to 'out-Elise' the Elise with varying degrees of success, and trying to 'out-F1' the McLaren F1 with headline power and speed numbers. As a result it could be the Porsche Carrera GT or the Smart Roadster Coupe.
What do you think sums up each decade best?
Which car best encapsulates each decade of the latter half of the last century, for you. It can be whatever you want.
For me?
'50s - Jaguar D-Type (the best of the 'fly-screened' Le Mans road-racers)
'60s - Ferrari Dino (perfectly-balanced in style, handling and performance)
'70s - Maserati Merak (the first of that curious '70s breed - the entry-level 2+2 middie supercar)
'80s - Porsche 959 (breathed '80s hi-tech and a marque that will always be associated with that decade)
'90s - Lotus Elise ('back to basics' - and now everyone's trying to copy it. Essentially the anti-959)
As for nowadays - I'm not sure as we're only halfway through the decade, but it would seem, so far, that we're in a culture of, on one hand, trying to 'out-Elise' the Elise with varying degrees of success, and trying to 'out-F1' the McLaren F1 with headline power and speed numbers. As a result it could be the Porsche Carrera GT or the Smart Roadster Coupe.
What do you think sums up each decade best?
OK I'll have a go at this from a Yank perspective
50's: 1957 Chevy convertible, 4-sp. FI 283 V-8
60's: 1967 L-88 engine Corvette
60's/70's transition: Superbird. They are all licensed as 1970 cars but belong more to the 60's
70's BMW 2002 tii. Because Detroit sucked in the 70's
80's: 1986 IROC Camaro. Performance is BAAAAACK!
90's: Corvette again, C4 with ZR-1 engine, 6-sp.
Am I that GM oriented?! They don't make anything I like anymore but a few of the pickups and the 'vette...
50's: 1957 Chevy convertible, 4-sp. FI 283 V-8
60's: 1967 L-88 engine Corvette
60's/70's transition: Superbird. They are all licensed as 1970 cars but belong more to the 60's
70's BMW 2002 tii. Because Detroit sucked in the 70's
80's: 1986 IROC Camaro. Performance is BAAAAACK!
90's: Corvette again, C4 with ZR-1 engine, 6-sp.
Am I that GM oriented?! They don't make anything I like anymore but a few of the pickups and the 'vette...
Following a most satisfactory break in Canada its time to get back to doing what I do best, waffling about old motors!
Good idea for a thread by the way so here comes the voting for the West Suffolk jury
50’s A decade synonymous with post war rebuilding and generally a hard time for most people by all accounts. What we need is a car which brought much needed thrust and parry to the stygian gloom, so how about the Fiat 500? Albeit they only came to the world in 57 it was surely the first and arguably the best of affordable mass produced mini sized cars and fun to drive as well. The same applies to a 2CV but there are far too many connotations of beard, sandal and history master about them
60’s The Lamborghini Miura, a decade synonymous with style and cool, so let’s go for the coolest most fantastic looking car ever made. Oh yes, the Italian job should put this beyond all reasonable doubt
70’s An XJ6, now I know they first appeared in 1969 but the ‘King-size Fag’ brought grace and pace right from the very bowels of Albion the likes of which the world had never seen before. Arguably the greatest cat and greatest car ever and that’s despite the best efforts of a bunch of Marxist loony union goons
80’s Peugeot 205 1.6 GTI, if you’ve driven one you will know why, if not go and drive one before it is to late. I owned one and it was just the sharpest most affordable piece of tin ever devised.
90’s It would be so tempting to jump right in there with the F1 but that is just so easy. If the Porsche 911 is the most enduring sports car ever made then the nineties saw it reach its zenith. By the time it had become a 996 it had evolved beyond all recognition so for me the 993 deserves its place in history. Bullet-proof and the ultimate incarnation of flat 6 air cooled motoring. Oh and in case you wondered yes I’ve got one and always will! The Griffith warrants a gallant word seeing the beefy affordable British sports car making a triumphant return and still the best car Blackpool has made.
00’s The digital age warrants a digital car so how about an EVO VIII FQ 330? It pretty much sums up perfectly just what can be accomplished by a load of computer gizmos and a mundane saloon car.
If I was to put one car away in a barn which is bound to become the next AC Cobra then it would be a Viper GTS. Mark my words the track history and affordability of these leviathans make them a nailed on future classic to my mind
Good idea for a thread by the way so here comes the voting for the West Suffolk jury
50’s A decade synonymous with post war rebuilding and generally a hard time for most people by all accounts. What we need is a car which brought much needed thrust and parry to the stygian gloom, so how about the Fiat 500? Albeit they only came to the world in 57 it was surely the first and arguably the best of affordable mass produced mini sized cars and fun to drive as well. The same applies to a 2CV but there are far too many connotations of beard, sandal and history master about them
60’s The Lamborghini Miura, a decade synonymous with style and cool, so let’s go for the coolest most fantastic looking car ever made. Oh yes, the Italian job should put this beyond all reasonable doubt
70’s An XJ6, now I know they first appeared in 1969 but the ‘King-size Fag’ brought grace and pace right from the very bowels of Albion the likes of which the world had never seen before. Arguably the greatest cat and greatest car ever and that’s despite the best efforts of a bunch of Marxist loony union goons
80’s Peugeot 205 1.6 GTI, if you’ve driven one you will know why, if not go and drive one before it is to late. I owned one and it was just the sharpest most affordable piece of tin ever devised.
90’s It would be so tempting to jump right in there with the F1 but that is just so easy. If the Porsche 911 is the most enduring sports car ever made then the nineties saw it reach its zenith. By the time it had become a 996 it had evolved beyond all recognition so for me the 993 deserves its place in history. Bullet-proof and the ultimate incarnation of flat 6 air cooled motoring. Oh and in case you wondered yes I’ve got one and always will! The Griffith warrants a gallant word seeing the beefy affordable British sports car making a triumphant return and still the best car Blackpool has made.
00’s The digital age warrants a digital car so how about an EVO VIII FQ 330? It pretty much sums up perfectly just what can be accomplished by a load of computer gizmos and a mundane saloon car.
If I was to put one car away in a barn which is bound to become the next AC Cobra then it would be a Viper GTS. Mark my words the track history and affordability of these leviathans make them a nailed on future classic to my mind
vario-rob said:Hmm, I had one and it was rubbish (relatively) compared to the 1.9 I also had and that was rubbish (relatively) compared to the mk2 16v golf gti I just bought as a runaround and that not even factoring in build quality which would widen the relative gaps considerably. I agree that the 205 envapsulates the 80s though with journos banging on about them... I just can't work out why.
80’s Peugeot 205 1.6 GTI, if you’ve driven one you will know why, if not go and drive one before it is to late. I owned one and it was just the sharpest most affordable piece of tin ever devised.
IMHO
Mark
>> Edited by dern on Thursday 2nd June 12:06
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