What car(s) did you really want to own when you were 18?
Discussion
This would have been the late 1990s for me, so obviously a Ferrari 355 GTS and a Porsche 993 Turbo (or maybe an E36 M3) would have been right up there for me but they were never going to happen but there were a number of 1980s/early 1990s performance cars that were cheap to buy and relatively cheap to run (if not cheap to insure) for an 18 year old. So, what was/were the car(s) that you dreamt of owning at the time and do you still want them now?
There were 4 main protagonists for me.
Mk1 Golf GTi - I didn't really "get" the base model Polos/Golfs that my peers all seemed to love, as I found them a bit austere but there was something about this one. The "original" hot hatch and I adored the dainty looks over the more "chunky" mk2. These days, I would probably lean more towards a "big bumper" mk2 16v or a Corrado G60 but I think that this is probably still one of the all-time greats. I have owned a Golf GTi but it was the sh** one (mk4 2.0 GTi), so I don't really count it!
Ford Capri 2.8 Injection - the FWD XR/RS Fords were more popular in period and the Capri was kind of a bit uncool but secretly this side of a Cosworth, this was my Fast Ford of choice. For people of my generation, there weren't many mainstream RWD options. BMWs were expensive and MX5s had a less broad appeal but a rakish, 2+2 RWD coupe with a brawny V6, still held a lot of appeal to me. Obviously the 280 Brooklands was the one to have but I would have settled for a 2.8i Special and I still quite fancy one to this day.
Peugeot 205 GTi 1.9 - I've always loved the big engine in a small car formula so this combined with the razor-sharp handling and pert good looks was the ultimate for me. I did own a GTi 1.6 for 2 years and tried a 1.9 and actually found it a bit underwhelming but I still want one (or an Mi-16 converted one) badly.
Fiat Coupe 20v Turbo - I was more into the late 1980s/early 1990s cars but owning a Cinquecento Sporting at the time, this was a contemporary and shared showroom space with the Cinquecento and was fast, exotic and actually relatively cheap for the performance it offered, I did actually have a poster of one on my bedroom wall at the time. I would still love to own one but the 90s coupe that I did actually later own was the Corrado VR6.
So what cars did you really want to own when you were 18, did you ever get to own them and if you still had the opportunity to, would you still want to own them now?
There were 4 main protagonists for me.
Mk1 Golf GTi - I didn't really "get" the base model Polos/Golfs that my peers all seemed to love, as I found them a bit austere but there was something about this one. The "original" hot hatch and I adored the dainty looks over the more "chunky" mk2. These days, I would probably lean more towards a "big bumper" mk2 16v or a Corrado G60 but I think that this is probably still one of the all-time greats. I have owned a Golf GTi but it was the sh** one (mk4 2.0 GTi), so I don't really count it!
Ford Capri 2.8 Injection - the FWD XR/RS Fords were more popular in period and the Capri was kind of a bit uncool but secretly this side of a Cosworth, this was my Fast Ford of choice. For people of my generation, there weren't many mainstream RWD options. BMWs were expensive and MX5s had a less broad appeal but a rakish, 2+2 RWD coupe with a brawny V6, still held a lot of appeal to me. Obviously the 280 Brooklands was the one to have but I would have settled for a 2.8i Special and I still quite fancy one to this day.
Peugeot 205 GTi 1.9 - I've always loved the big engine in a small car formula so this combined with the razor-sharp handling and pert good looks was the ultimate for me. I did own a GTi 1.6 for 2 years and tried a 1.9 and actually found it a bit underwhelming but I still want one (or an Mi-16 converted one) badly.
Fiat Coupe 20v Turbo - I was more into the late 1980s/early 1990s cars but owning a Cinquecento Sporting at the time, this was a contemporary and shared showroom space with the Cinquecento and was fast, exotic and actually relatively cheap for the performance it offered, I did actually have a poster of one on my bedroom wall at the time. I would still love to own one but the 90s coupe that I did actually later own was the Corrado VR6.
So what cars did you really want to own when you were 18, did you ever get to own them and if you still had the opportunity to, would you still want to own them now?
Edited by white_goodman on Tuesday 23 June 08:47
Also late 90s for me, and my dream car back then was a 300SL Merc from the 50s. I'd still rather like one if anyone is offering a donation? 
Cars I'd actually have had a realistic chance to own... well even back then I wasn't a fan of FWD so I would have been looked mainly at older sports cars, and indeed my first car ended up being a 1974 MGB. Pushing the budget but not to the ridiculous degree of the SL, I guess something like an E-type would have been near the top of the list, or maybe a 60s Elan.
ETA: It's funny to think that my Elise now is nearly as old as my MGB was when I bought it.
Cars I'd actually have had a realistic chance to own... well even back then I wasn't a fan of FWD so I would have been looked mainly at older sports cars, and indeed my first car ended up being a 1974 MGB. Pushing the budget but not to the ridiculous degree of the SL, I guess something like an E-type would have been near the top of the list, or maybe a 60s Elan.
ETA: It's funny to think that my Elise now is nearly as old as my MGB was when I bought it.
Edited by kambites on Tuesday 23 June 08:57
kambites said:
Also late 90s for me, and my dream car back then was a 300SL Merc from the 50s. I'd still rather like one if anyone is offering a donation?
Cars I'd actually have had a realistic chance to own... well even back then I wasn't a fan of FWD so I would have been looked mainly at older sports cars, and indeed my first car ended up being a 1974 MGB. Pushing the budget but not to the ridiculous degree of the SL, I guess something like an E-type would have been near the top of the list, or maybe a 60s Elan.
Good choice. Pretty timeless but I'm guessing never cheap?Cars I'd actually have had a realistic chance to own... well even back then I wasn't a fan of FWD so I would have been looked mainly at older sports cars, and indeed my first car ended up being a 1974 MGB. Pushing the budget but not to the ridiculous degree of the SL, I guess something like an E-type would have been near the top of the list, or maybe a 60s Elan.
Interesting, so you always liked older cars? I have only come to appreciate cars from the 60s and 70s as I have got older and these are what I still consider to be "classic cars" but many what I would consider to be "modern" cars from the 80s/90s/early 2000s would be considered as classics now. BMWs and some Japanese sports cars (MX5/RX7/MR2/Supra/200SX) at the time were RWD, did they not appeal to you?
I think I always liked organic designs - graceful curves rather than sharp edges, so for me car design going down-hill in the 70s and never really recovered.
I liked (and still like) the 993 911, which was just about still current when I passed my driving test, but obviously that was waaay out of reach at that age and arguably whilst being new, wasn't aesthetically modern.
I liked (and still like) the 993 911, which was just about still current when I passed my driving test, but obviously that was waaay out of reach at that age and arguably whilst being new, wasn't aesthetically modern.
Edited by kambites on Tuesday 23 June 09:04
kambites said:
I think I always liked organic designs - graceful curves rather than sharp edges, so for me car design going down-hill in the 70s and never really recovered.
I liked (and still like) the 993 911, which was just about still current when I passed my driving test, but obviously that was waaay out of reach at that age and arguably whilst being new, wasn't aesthetically modern.
I loved the 993 but always found the G-Series 911s that I grew up with a little old-fashioned. The more modern 944 and 928 always appealed to me more aesthetically.I liked (and still like) the 993 911, which was just about still current when I passed my driving test, but obviously that was waaay out of reach at that age and arguably whilst being new, wasn't aesthetically modern.
Edited by kambites on Tuesday 23 June 09:04
My automotive coming of age was mid-late 80s. Once past the stage of my dream car being anything that moved with an engine then it was always an aircolled 911. Ideally a turbo. That ship has sunk, but regular Carrera's are still just about within sight or possibly 'settle' for a 996 Turbo.
Failing all of that the other 'attainable' dream car of the time was British 911, a wedge TVR, preferably a 390 or bigger. Now much more attainable, but may struggle with the 'move' part a little these days...
Failing all of that the other 'attainable' dream car of the time was British 911, a wedge TVR, preferably a 390 or bigger. Now much more attainable, but may struggle with the 'move' part a little these days...
white_goodman said:
I loved the 993 but always found the G-Series 911s that I grew up with a little old-fashioned. The more modern 944 and 928 always appealed to me more aesthetically.
I think the earlier ones worked in wide-body guide. The father of a friend of mine had a 930 turbo cabriolet and I always thought that was a pretty car. I was 18 in the early 90's. The cars I lusted after were:
The Honda NSX.
E30 325i sport coupe.
And more realistically, a Vauxhall Nova GTE. My mate's brother has a red one. Even at the time they were never the best or most advanced hot hatch, but it was one of those cars I looked at and lusted after. He swapped it for a Nova Sport. I bet he wished he still had that!
A couple of years later and I’d have gone with:
A 993 911 with the soft top (which is unusual for me as I'm a coupe sort of guy.) The just looked so good, especially in blue. Maybe watching Crocodile Shoes had an influence! A Ferrari F355. I mean, they've not managed to make a car anywhere near as good looking since.
The Honda NSX.
E30 325i sport coupe.
And more realistically, a Vauxhall Nova GTE. My mate's brother has a red one. Even at the time they were never the best or most advanced hot hatch, but it was one of those cars I looked at and lusted after. He swapped it for a Nova Sport. I bet he wished he still had that!
A couple of years later and I’d have gone with:
A 993 911 with the soft top (which is unusual for me as I'm a coupe sort of guy.) The just looked so good, especially in blue. Maybe watching Crocodile Shoes had an influence! A Ferrari F355. I mean, they've not managed to make a car anywhere near as good looking since.
Passed in 2007.
We were all Peugeot/French mad tbh. Peugeot 306 GTi-6, 106 GTi, 205 GTi, Saxo VTS, AX GT, Renault 5 Turbo. All the cars we wanted.
My first car was a Peugeot 306 XS 1.6 which essentially had the GTi bodykit but with 90 BHP 1.6 8v.
When I turned 18 I had this though. BTCC vibes.
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Rust killed it in the end.
We were all Peugeot/French mad tbh. Peugeot 306 GTi-6, 106 GTi, 205 GTi, Saxo VTS, AX GT, Renault 5 Turbo. All the cars we wanted.
My first car was a Peugeot 306 XS 1.6 which essentially had the GTi bodykit but with 90 BHP 1.6 8v.
When I turned 18 I had this though. BTCC vibes.
Rust killed it in the end.
I started out wanting an E39 M5, then various muscle cars finally settling on a Buick GSX... but Gran Turismo came out and I started to look at Japanese cars, then I got my Skyline, it was 'only' a GTS25t but I really liked everything about it, now I just want something 80's or early 90's and Japanese in my garage and (maybe abit newer) on my driveway.
At 18 in 1984 I had 1980 Fiesta Supersport but what I lusted after was a Capri 2.8 injection, they just looked and sounded amazing...but I never had one the insurance was too expensive and by the time I could buy one I'd discovered Golf GTi's.
Thinking back about my Supersport it was only four years old but was rusting like a two week old Lancia...Ford's really were rubbish cars.
Thinking back about my Supersport it was only four years old but was rusting like a two week old Lancia...Ford's really were rubbish cars.
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