Motor Junkie

Introducing muscle cars to the American market brought power and performance to the masses. However, the rise in popularity of sanctioned racing saw the need for more specialized cars in the form of factory drag racers. These cars were made in minimal numbers and weren’t street-legal, but they had unreal quarter-mile times. They featured unique technology, high-compression engines, and rear slicks straight from the factory. These vehicles weren’t advertised in magazines could only be bought if you were in the know.

Today, we looked back at 40 fantastic drag-racing muscle car specials. Very rare, extremely powerful, and brutally fast, these cars shaped the history of the muscle car segment and helped establish legends on the tracks and streets. So get prepared for a quarter-mile ride of a lifetime and check out these cars right here.

Pontiac Catalina 421 “Swiss Cheese” (1962)

In the early 1960s, Pontiac realized that racing helps sell cars and that the famous Detroit mantra “Win on Sunday, Sell on Monday” works. Pontiac had a sound basis for a fast Super Stock car in the form of a two-door Catalina and a potent 421 V8 engine, but it needed more. The model needed to add power and subtract weight (via Hemmings).

To do the latter, Pontiac’s engineers manufactured numerous aluminum parts like bumpers, fenders, hoods, and so on, saving 159 pounds from the heavy car. Moreover, the car got the nickname “Swiss Cheese” since they also drilled holes in the car’s frame to save a few more grams. With a high-compression 421 V8 engine and 410 HP, these Catalinas were lightning quick. The cars were used for two years, 1962 and 1963, and Pontiac built only 14 “Swiss Cheese” Catalinas, each given to notable drag racers of the day.

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They say money and sense don’t always go hand in hand, and that’s the case with celebrity car collections. Celebrities are not the most financially sound people, and they tend to splurge on some crazy purchases. Take Paris Hilton for instance, with her steady stream of diamond-studded pink Bentley Continental models over the past decade. Migos rapper Takeoff was particularly proud of his car collection, which included a Maserati Gran Turismo and a Mercedes C63 AMG. But then other celebrities have chosen a non-traditional path for their vehicles, such as Jamie Foxx with his Rezvani Tank.

The ability to buy whatever you want is alluring at first until you waste the money on something stupid. That’s the case with most celebrities who have blown their fortunes on junk. Some of the cars in this list are downright atrocities, and yet the owners are proud to own them. Nothing’s worse than an ugly car, and some of these celebrities have taken ugly to a whole new level. A custom vehicle is a work of art but in the case of these celebrities, that art form went a little too far.

Takeoff’s Neon Lamborghini

We’re not sure about this Lamborghini Aventador. The car was ruined compared to the beautiful factory example it once was. A bright purple paint job covered in graffiti is the first thing you’ll see when the car hits the road. The worst thing about it is that it glows in the dark. For some people, the paint job might be worth considering, but it ruined the look of an elite sports car (via 21 Motoring).

Not exactly a smart use of hundreds of thousands of dollars, but then again star rappers were never known for financial responsibility. This Lamborghini is a prime example of what you don’t want to do with a top-shelf sports car. The final product was so ugly that many Lambo enthusiasts would never be caught dead driving it.

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The essential measure of a sports car is performance. From its 0 to 60 mph time to its top speed and horsepower ratings, these numbers define a sports car. By default, sports cars are faster and more capable than sedans or SUVs. They also provide more excitement behind the wheel. This is all true and not that surprising. But despite their best efforts, the worst sports cars ever made failed to deliver on these otherwise obvious promises.

Vehicle manufacturers sometimes present sports cars with disappointing performance, weak power output, and embarrassing 0 to 60 mph times. We found the worst sports cars ever made and compiled them all right here. They were models made by reputable brands that failed to deliver the excitement and speed enthusiasts expected. Check them out below.

Lamborghini Urraco

You might be surprised to find a Lamborghini on this list but just look at the specs of this ’70s wonder. The mid-mounted 2.0-liter V8 with 180 HP was capable of reaching 60 mph in 7.5 seconds. Compared to later models and well-known Lamborghini supercars, this is just not as good.

However, they produced the Urraco in the dark times for performance cars, and rumors were that Lambo assembled it poorly. Lamborghini managed to produce over 700 of them, so these wedge-shaped cars didn’t sell in big numbers whatsoever (via Lamborghini).

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Sometimes cheap isn’t always a bad thing. And with the prices of used cars going through the roof, finding a fun car for a deal is not easy these days. But there are cars built that aren’t exactly what you’d call popular in the resale world. However, many of these cars were fun to drive and still present a fun driving experience today. There were cars like the Mitsubishi Eclipse designed with top-notch engineering and features that cost a fraction of a high-priced sports car.

Driving helps many drivers relive the nostalgia of their youth, which can be refreshing. Cars are one of the things that bring us back to our golden years and help us relive our greatest memories. We looked back at cheap rides that fuel every driver’s nostalgia. Many of these cars were once popular, but have since fallen into obscurity. The drivers who remember them will instantly be brought back into a better time in their lives. Reminisce on them right here.

1998 Porsche Boxster

The Boxster was the first affordable Porsche sports car ever built and it was a success. The Boxster was marketed toward young professionals who wanted a Porsche but couldn’t afford a 911. The main thing about the Boxster was that it was powered by a stellar 2.5 L 6-cylinder and a short wheelbase. The car had excellent performance for the price and was popular (via KBB).

The Boxster was initially only offered in a convertible body style, but the coupe was added years later. Few cars were as iconic in the late 1990s as the Boxster as it reinvigorated Porsche. The car was affordable and provided cheap thrills with Porsche quality behind it. The resale value for the Boxster is still affordable, and the earliest models are the easiest ones to get ahold of.

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Even though turbocharged cars have been around the automotive world since the late 1930s, they got their chance in the 1970s. It was used as a way to keep the performance but reduce emissions and fuel consumption. Throughout the 1980s, it was popular with many manufacturers, yet forgotten in the ’90s and early 2000s.

Due to tight regulations and the hunger for horsepower, it returned triumphantly recently. Today, it has become an integral part of just about every ICE model today. This means drivers have access to many turbocharged cars that can outrun standard muscle cars. Unlike the actual muscle cars powered by V8 engines, turbocharged models can have all kinds of cylinder configurations. From small but efficient four-cylinders to even a twin-turbo V8, everything is possible. We found 40 turbocharged cars that will leave even the best American muscle cars in the dust, so check them out right here.

Ferrari F40

The Ferrari F40 was and still is a special car in many ways. Built to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Ferrari, it was a car supervised and envisioned by Enzo Ferrari himself. It was his last creation and he died just a couple of months after the introduction of the F40 in 1987 (via Ferrari).

Heavily based on the 288 GTO model, the F40 was an improved version of a twin-turbo, 2.9-liter V8 engine supercar with two seats. A pretty basic interior, a manual gearbox, and 480 screaming horsepower behind your ears. The F40 was one of only two cars that accelerated from 0 to 60 mph in less than four seconds in street-legal trim. The exact result was 3.8 seconds.

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There are many things the 1980s were synonymous with, and sports cars are certainly one of them. The decade was full of great examples. Every European automaker had all kinds of new exotics coming onto the market. Porsche found a completely new clientele with the slant nose, the most popular German sports car of the decade. Even more new offerings came out in the ’80s, such as the Ferrari Testarossa and the all-new Lamborghini Countach. These cars defined an era centered around opulence and new young money generated on Wall Street.

The 1980s were no doubt the decade of greed, but there’s no denying that many of the sports cars were awesome. During that time, one of the most popular primetime TV shows was the infamous “Miami Vice.” We looked back at 1980s sports cars straight out of that show. These cars made you feel different when you were behind the wheel, and they are still some of the most iconic rides on the road. Take a walk down memory lane and remember that decade of decadence right here.

1984 Lamborghini Jalpa

Driven in season four of Miami Vice, the Jalpa was the quintessential Lamborghini model of the 1980s. Take one look at the styling and you’ll see a mixture of traditional Lambo and Porsche in one package. The Jalpa was a project car by Lambo and was not well regarded in the community (via Classic Italian).

The performance and build quality of the Jalpa were the two major shortcomings of the car. For some reason, the Jalpa just didn’t resonate with consumers the same way that the Countach did. But when you saw the car on Miami Vice, there was a sense of speed and styling that gave it a temporary resurgence.

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The concept of American luxury vehicles has changed significantly over the past several decades. Chrome ashtrays, clumsy radios, and vinyl seats gave way to infotainment screens, massaging seats, and autonomous driving systems. It took ages to get from the elegant sedans of yesterday to today’s luxury SUVs, but is this real progress?

There’s no doubt that today’s luxury vehicles are safer and more efficient, but are they more prestigious and stylish? We don’t think so. Just look at our list of 30 classic American luxury cars and decide for yourself. Would you rather drive one of these classic machines than the nondescript modern luxury car you see every time you drive? We would, so we compiled this list of American luxury cars that will make you sell your Lexus.

Pontiac Grand Ville

In the early 1970s, Pontiac’s management entered the luxury car segment by introducing a new top-of-the-line model called the Grand Ville in 1971. The Grand Ville had a Bonneville platform but with a few trim details that differentiated the two models. Pontiac decided to offer a 400 V8 engine as standard. The 455 came as an optional engine and a offered a high level of equipment (via Hemmings).

For those who wanted something extra, Pontiac offered a leather interior, climate control, heavy-duty suspension, an AM/FM radio, and even adjustable brake and accelerator pedals. The Grand Ville was provided as two and four-door hard top and luxury convertibles. But the market didn’t respond well and sales needed to be higher.

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Kids in the 1980s and ’90s had it a lot better than the kids of today when it came to cars. There were expensive sports cars, such as the Lamborghini Countach, that were the stuff of legends. With shows like ‘Miami Vice’ in prime time slots, these kids saw cars that were unlike anything else on the road. The 1990s followed that tradition with cars like the Toyota Supra, 300ZX, and the Mitsubishi Eclipse.

Towards the end of the decade, we saw cars like the Honda Civic SI, which became a cultural phenomenon and one of the most stolen cars in the country. So we looked back at the cars high school kids dreamed about during these decades. These were the cars that you’d routinely see on posters and in video games. Many of these cars have become common on the road today, but there was a time when many of them were the stuff of dreams.

Toyota MR2

The MR2 was often referred to as the poor man’s Ferrari and rightly so because their designs were similar. The mid-engined design of the car gave it excellent handling and performance compared to the competition. Other cars on the market were faster than the MR2 but the lightweight design and bulletproof reliability made it preferable (via MR2OC).

The MR2 lasted for three generations, with the final generation being the least impressive. First-generation MR2s are hard to come by and expensive. There was a time when high schoolers wanted this car badly because of the interesting styling and the fast performance for its cheap price.

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The sports car segment is an ever-changing part of the automotive industry. Modern sports cars are not only more powerful but are also more feature-packed than ever before. Speed used to be something that only wealthy people could attain. But today, even the most modest sports car has power. All that aside, however, there have also been duds in the sports car market that are quite often overvalued by the people who drive them.

With the recent bubble in the auto industry, prices have been rising more than ever. The price of sports cars has gone up tremendously, especially used models. As more consumers age, they want to enjoy the cars of their childhoods. Thus the prices of cars like the Toyota Supra and the Nissan 300ZX have gone astronomical. So we looked at several sports cars that are outrageously priced but aren’t as cool as you’d think. Enjoy – or rather, don’t – right here.

Ford Mustang II

How do you sell a Pinto-based Mustang? Ford did it under the guise of fuel economy. Unfortunately, the car was the furthest thing from a Mustang there was. The underpinnings of the car were almost exclusively made up of Pinto parts. Consumers weren’t too happy about this and enthusiasts didn’t want to claim the car as a Mustang (via Auto Trends).

The debacle hurt the reputation of Mustang II dramatically. The car was deemed unreliable by consumers and the sales sunk. The Pinto-based Mustang has since become a collector’s item in certain circles. But there were much better sports cars from this era than the Mustang II, even if it did offer a reasonable price tag and V8 performance.

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The muscle cars that drivers have today are a shadow of what they once were. There are ups and downs in the auto industry that depend greatly on current fuel prices and consumer tastes. The new generation of drivers has embraced crossover vehicles. But it was once a badge of honor to drive a sports car. Oftentimes these sports cars were rough, but they were exciting to drive. The current generation of millennials might think of these cars as nothing more than collector’s items, but they were legendary.

Many historic automotive brands from the ’60s and ’70s like Pontiac and Plymouth have come and gone. We looked back at legendary sports cars that millennials will never experience in their prime. There’s a big difference between buying a restored muscle car and experiencing it when it was brand new. So check out these legends of the car world that many current fans will never be able to see in their full glory right here.

Photo Credit: Ford

Ford Mustang II

The Mustang II was an important part of automotive history, but why? Because it was the first “fuel-efficient” Mustang ever released. The fuel embargo of the 1970s hurt the auto industry yet Ford was quick to adapt. Although the Mustang II is often made fun of because it was based on the Ford Pinto, the car had many positive attributes. The lightweight design was innovative at a time when cars were still heavy chunks of metal (via CJ Pony Parts).

The Mustang II changed the game because it had a dramatically smaller size than the previous generation. Enthusiasts often criticize the Mustang II for being a pale comparison to the muscle cars that came before it. But as the collectible car market increases in interest, the Mustang II will be a hidden gem. There was a lot Ford did with the Mustang II as its lightweight design stood out from the crowd.

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