Here’s a good one! What is the coolest car you have ever ridden in? I’ll go first. For me, the coolest car I’ve driven was a 1923 Ford Model T. But when it comes to riding, I have to go with this car. A 1941 Lincoln Continental coupe, owned by a friend and member of my church, this hunter green ’41 Connie is an absolutely wonderful car, and at the top of those I’ve personally experienced.
Back in 1997, when I was still in high school, Wayne told my dad that we should come out to his place sometime and see his old cars. So we did one bright September day, and while the highlight was driving his 1923 Model T tourer in the “back 40” of his farm, the best ride occurred when he took me and my dad for a spin in his 1941 Continental.
Out on the two-lane, Wayne accelerated to 55-60, and that car rode just like a cloud. I rode up front, and my dad sat in the commodious back seat. What a wonderful ride! What a wonderful car!
Adding icing to the cake was this car’s stunning originality. Only 45K original miles on the clock, and a totally original car–paint, Bedford Cord-and-leather interior, 24K gold interior fittings, etc. It is, to this day, a highlight of my gearhead life. Last year, it was entered in a local car show, adjacent to the Great Race meetup in LeClaire Park in downtown Davenport. Naturally, I had to get some pictures.
And now, back to you, our readers. What was the coolest car YOU ever had the pleasure of riding in?
1932 Maxim Firetruck….my Grandfather’s. Kinda ruined me….
Coincidentally, my first choices would also be a Model T and a prewar Lincoln, in this case a ’39 Zephyr.
The Zephyr didn’t really feel that different from modern cars except as a question of degree. It had the two-speed axle, so there were essentially six speeds, allowing it to cope with modern freeway traffic without sounding like the engine was going to thrash itself to bits. It seemed like the kind of thing to which you could adjust would any great difficulty. You’d have to remember the choke in the morning, allow more room to stop, and have a bit more patience getting up to speed, but it’s not a matter of reinventing the wheel.
The Model T seemed about three steps removed from modern cars. Just getting it started would be a project and I could see why some states used to have a separate class of license for Model T drivers. The one I rode in, which was also from the early ’20s, felt robust enough, but there was something primordial about it, like something an ambitious village blacksmith might concoct. For ambling along a relatively empty country lane or small town back roads, it would be fine, but the idea of driving or riding in it in traffic is pretty terrifying.
Wayne’s Model T was a ’23, and I didn’t have to start it. He took me and my dad for a ride, then turned to me and said, “Okay, you drive!”
That has to be about my best automotive memory.
Both ridden in and driven 1958 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham. Number 2 was owned by the same person and was a 57 Chevy Nomad. Both times I was very nervous since both are irreplaceable.
Oops wrong picture!
I liked the dogs!
Well over the years there have been plenty of Dogs in the automotive world. I do not think the 58 Eldorado is one of them. Sorry about the mistake.
1936 Packard Eight Touring Sedan, 1956 Packard 400, 1956 Continental Mark II, 1930 Franklin Transcontinent sedan, 1954 Lincoln Capri, 1956 & 1957 Lincoln Premieres, Kaisers: 1953 Deluxe and 1954 Manhattan,1963 Lincoln Continental convertible, 1970 Continental sedan and Mark III……thinking. Oh yes, and a 1949 Flxible bus!
Well I didn’t ride in it or drive it, but the coolest car I’ve sat in was a brand new 1986 Lamborghini Countach at one of NZ’s motor shows. I’ve driven many cars, but most of them couldn’t be described as ‘cool’. Maybe the coolest was my Uncle’s 1975 XB Ford Falcon GS 302 panelvan that had been customised when new. White carpet, brown shag pile on the doors, white sheepskin seat covers padded blue velvet ceiling and rear walls. I drove it once in about 1990, loved the 302’s burble, hated the 83 turns lock-to-lock of the steering wheel… Coolest car I rode in was my late Uncle’s Jag XJS-HE around 1984. But yeah, nothing since could be described as cool (although I think my soon to be unveiled here recently purchased CC is cool!)
You got a CC? Interesting. Hope to hear about it soon!
When I was about 15 a friend of my dad’s ask me to run an errand for him and tossed me the keys to his almost new BMW 2002. It sure drove different than my parents Olds 98!
Ok. Let’s start with the ’63 Imperial Crown sedan. We had just finished the restoration less than a week prior, and now I had been chosen to drive it to a show at Woodley Park in Van Nuys. Medium blue metallic with a blue leather and cloth interior. Quite a few people took notice when that bad boy rolled up. It gave me some sense of what an Imperial owner felt when new.
Next up, same shop, a ’59 Ford Skyliner. Triple black. That car was loaded, too- A/C, power windows, power seat, you name the option and it was present. Took me a year and a half to put that one together, but OMG, what a ride.
As far as I know, both cars are now languishing in Saudi Arabia, neglected and deteriorating.
The coolest car I ever rode in was my Dad’s 1952 Hudson Hornet 308 cu in flathead with Twin H Power and Hydra-Matic, the only four door car that I think looked better that the two door model. But then, I have my stock ’26 Ford Roadster…
Hey, Ed Stembridge, I also met Cole Palen at the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome a few years before he passed and I think he was one of the “coolest guys” I ever got to talk to.
+1
My wife and I were driven off in a ’54 Chrysler Windsor Deluxe 4-door sedan after our wedding in 2000. It was owned by a friend of my wife’s sister, and was absolutely mint with 38,000 miles on the clock. When I was about 10 I got to ride in a 1924 Model T, with my dad following in his new ’73 Impala. The Impala is long gone…the Model T is likely still kicking around. Finally, this summer I got to fly in a 1951 deHavilland Beaver. A true Canadian machine if there ever was one, with lots of dials and levers and a big nine-cylinder Pratt and Whitney radial up front. Rough, noisy and slow, but tough as nails and you know you’ll get there in one piece.
Coolest vehicle I’ve driven? Renault 5 Turbo 2 that my boss had in ’87 or so. Coolest vehicle I’ve ridden in? Hmmm… I’d say my brothers ’69 L-78 375hp ’69 Camaro he had back in ’74-’75, or the Boeing 707 I got to ride in the cockpit of from Miami to San Juan back in ’82
My coolest “vehicle” would also have to be a Boeing product…. B-17 Flying Fortress, left seat for .3 hours “multi engine” time, signed off by a CFI who flew 22 missions before getting shot down to spend the next year in prison camp. We had both our homeschooled sons interview him for school report papers before he passed.
Let’s not start “the coolest aicraft you piloted” contest.
I drove an antonov 124 cargo over the Andes for a few minutes – the Russian crew would let me do that even if I only had a glider licence.
That would be “the *biggest* vehicle you’ve ever piloted!”
Curved Dash Olds – Although your ride is more “on” than “in” with one of those. 🙂
Years ago I was hired to record the sound of a prototype Plymouth Prowler at a secret test track which, if I remember correctly, was in Arizona. It was just an engineer and myself. After I had gathered the sound needed, I asked him if I could drive. He said yes! It was a banked oval about 1/2 mile around. It was a blast. He told me the car was worth over $1M.
Coolest ride, probably when I was 9-10 yo with my uncle in his hot-rodded 74 Camaro. The combination of brutal accelerations, deafening engine roar and tail-skids… I really thought I was going to die. But every ride with my dad in his 76 GMC were cool. I miss that truck.
Coolest to drive would be a friend’s 84 Fiero, how I was sitting on the floor with my legs stretched and the engine behind me was a unique experience in a world of front-engined FWD sedans.
Too many! Coolest perhaps, ridden in was a 1930 Buick Limited Six. I wanted to run out and get a black silk shirt and white tie….
Hmmm…Probably pretty much any Mopar product, old and new. From the (classic) 300, the to the cab-forward minivans and LH cars, the many iterations of Ram trucks, and so on.
My grandpa’s ’76 Gran Fury sedan, which he restored, is pretty cool. It’s huge and blocky, but not in a bad way. He kept the straight-6 though (nothing wrong with that!) but I could only imagine what it would be like if he decided to put a Hemi in it. He still has it and takes it out for a spin when he doesn’t drive his Ram 3500 or my grandmother’s Grand Cherokee. He used a similar car when he first joined the force of the Missouri State Police. He never did understand why his peers preferred the Chevy and Ford patrol cars, but then again, he’s a Mopar diehard, through and through. He’s working on a ’73 Newport right now, that should be cool too.
I guess the coolest newer car I’ve traveled in wouldn’t be a fast supercar or classic muscle but a Mercedes GL350 SUV. My significant other and I borrowed it from her parents for a week of canoeing and camping a few times. Very classy and refined but not afraid to get its tires dirty, so to speak, even though it was a suburbia-oriented Mercedes and not a built-for-the-sticks Jeep. Admittedly, it did feel out of place in a remote, unpaved area (and when we finally arrived, it wasn’t exactly a shining example with all of the dust), but the trip was literally smooth. I’m not really an SUV person (save for the Grand Cherokee) but it’s comfortable, and what’s more, it’s a diesel. Travelled 700 miles and averaged about 26 mpg. Not bad.
Adding the coolest car I’ve driven. High on the list would be a friend’s 1965 Buick Wildcat convertible (red, red bucket seat interior, white top) with the 465 and four speed manual (rare option). This was in 1967 and that car was wicked fast for such a big, luxo-barge. GM truly was at the top of its game in 65 and this car was a great example of their best work.
The two most memorable rides were in a ’74 Ferrari 246 GTS and a ’74 Corvette 454. The Dino belonged to my dad’s dentist friend. I felt like I was sitting in a beautifully made baseball mitt with a full orchestra playing behind me. The Vette belonged to my friend’s dad and was the last year for the big block. It was white with a red interior and went like hell. I learned at an early age the difference between peaky and high torque engines.
The coolest car was maybe a ’64 Lincoln Continental convertible. The car rattled like crazy and felt very loose from the passenger’s seat. Later, on sites like this one, I read about how stout that uni-body construction was but it sucked on that 4-door convertible.
Mine was a taxi cab. It was in Berlin a few weeks after 9/11 and when I left Tom’s Bar near Nollendorf Platz, there was the last fin tail Mercedes taxi left in operation parked on the rain slicked cobblestones. We took it to Keuzberg for a wonderful post Cold War experience. My outfit matched the seats.
1927 Bentley 3/4.5 L on the way to a race meeting in the UK. The expression on the faces of the assorted boy racers who could not believe how quick this old thing was were priceless.
This is an easy one, a RHD GT40. Unfortunately not a Ford but a SAFIR so close enough. It is quite a strange thing sitting on the “driver’s side” but not having a steering wheel.
Carter’s Messerschmidt this past summer at Gould’s microcar event. It’s so basic and mechanical, and it really handles. The granddaddy of all those 3 wheelers of today shows why they are all so much fun. And it proves that speed can be an illusion… A tight 30 mph turn, 5 inches off the ground feels like 60 when you have 200cc 2-stroke buzzing behind you! It’s like a personal carny ride.
Citroen DS for sale in 1990(only $2500) It was cool alright!
ridden and driven a couple of Jensen Interceptors very cool apart from the heat wash coming off the engine.
The coolest ride -among lots of others- was from my aspect a DMC De Lorean. The second was with a formerly discharged armored special Secab Ford Econoline diesel 7.3 Litre V8…
A Lola T-492 Sports 2000. I had been racing Showroom Stock and Sedan class cars, but on one track testing day my crew chief asked if I wanted to take the Lola for a few laps. Um, yeah. I did 4 laps around Blackhawk Farms; the only time I have driven a purpose-built race car.
I am not sure where to begin, I am in awe as I reflect and begin listing the incredible collection of cars I have rode in and driven as well, not too many I only rode in .
My Uncle (Kurt Grayson) was an actor in Hollywood from the 1960’s to the 90’s, at one time he had 75 cars and trucks etc.
Some of the more memorable are,
1967 AC Cobra 427(not a kit car)
1969 Rolls Royce Corniche convertible
2003 Bentley Azure convertible turbo
1946 Mercury woody 4wd Marmon Herrington conversion originally built for Donald Bleitz.
Several 1946 Chrysler Town & Country woody convertibles
A 1937 Lincoln Zephyr 3 window V 12 Coupe
Daytona and Dino Ferrari’s
1970 Boss 429 worked on by Earl Wade took it to 486 ci
1956 Ford F 100 with a 413 Chrysler/Torque flite and rear end chrysler front clip
1970 Nova SS 350 4 spd
1967 Chevelle SS 396 turbo 400
1929 Chrysler roadster, from Framingham Mass to Los Angeles Ca
( a story in itself)
1930 Chrysler Airflow
1920? Cadillac V 12
1963 Corvair turbo Monza spyder convertible
Mercedes 3.5 convertible
A 39 Plymouth of his
I think that Plymouth is actually a ’41. Very nice car.
inside the 39
39
67 Cobra in background with Maude Adams
It’s hard to pick a winner. The Citroen SM and the CX were otherworldly. Biggest thrill was a circa 1981 Porsche 911 Turbo. But the most exclusive, hand-built machine I parked my derriere in was probably this 1949 Talbot-Lago T26 coupe. If I find the time, I’ll write sthg up about it.
Alas, I’ve never ridden in a Tatra, nor in a real 40s/50s American car, such as a Packard, a Nash or a Studebaker… Someday, someday…
Why not include air planes ? .
I am *so* digging reading all these comments .
Keep ’em coming .
-Nate
Oh my, so many choices. The red 63 split window Vette I rode in last summer was certainly cool. Also a 64 R2 Avanti from my youth. I think I have to follow Tom K with a 1947 Lincoln sedan that was owned by my best friend’s dad in the early 70s. He drove us to school in it one morning, and boy did that make for a scene. A gorgeous black low mile original. I will never forget the silence of the V12.
of those I owned, both the 29 Model A and the 59 Plymouth Fury were probably tied for coolest, though the 63 Fleetwood and the 64 Imperial Crown Coupe were right up there too.
Not sure if it’s the coolest or dorkiest: a Bricklin.
Citroën 2CV.
Comfortable (for the ride smothness, not for the noise !), surpringsingly easy to drive for an old car. And so many people love it 🙂
Coolest I’ve ridden in: Chrysler Turbine Car. My Dad worked for Chrysler and brought one home for the weekend in 1964. It sounded like a jet engine (well, it basically was). I was the coolest kid in the neighborhood that weekend!
Coolest I’ve driven: The rear end of an old articulated hood-and-ladder firetruck owned by a friend of a friend, about 15 years ago. It took some getting used to steering in the opposite direction of a turn!
“Chrysler Turbine Car”
I think you just won the thread…
+1
yes, but tied with the Amphicar below, I reckon. Unless someone sat in a Bugatti Royale or the Lunar buggy?…
Don’t forget Syke’s Dusenberg – he even got to drive that one!
Hook-and-ladder: hands on the bottom of the wheel, instead of the top. Then the back end curves around the corner, rather than into it. Just like backing a two-wheeled trailer into the shed, just another direction (and a bigger oops if you make a mistake!)
I guess mine would be a friend’s ’69 Boss 429 Mustang. Another would be another friend’s ’72 Vega wagon with a blown small block. That one was a real attention getter.
I carpooled in a 48 Continental convertible back int he mid-50s. Same family had a number if other interesting cars that I rode in — a couple of Panhards, a Traction Avant, a 2CV, an early Dauphine. In later years — tgeh 70s — I had the opportunity to ride in a Messerschmidt. Also ridden in a Model T, a Model A, and a 51 Studebaker convertible. Also, a 48 Pontiac station wagon that we used to sneak into a drive-in. That same family also had a pink 56 Nash Statesman (huge inside!) and a 55 Rambler Sedan. Memories!
An Amphicar. It belonged to my Mother’s boss. It was in about 1968. We took it to a lake, drove down the boat ramp and out into the lake a while. I guess it also qualifies as the coolest boat I have ridden in.
I have been thinking awhile about this one. I come to the conclusion it was an early 60’s Jaguar S-Type. When you ride rather than drive the luxurious interior appointments and smooth ride make it special. It even had fold down tables for your snacks in the back.
“Would you have some Grey Poupon?”–“But of course!” However, they used RR’s in that commercial.
When you drive the responsiveness of the steering the road holding and so on are more important. I drove this S-type too, but it was not the coolest ride ever. That goes to a much more modern BMW 330 Coupe.
A brand new and very shiny Scania L85 that had just arrived from the dealership. I think it must have been in 1974.
I wasn’t interested in cars back then, but I could recognize any Euro-truck from a country mile. Cars came later. I remember the rides in an Opel Admiral B with a straight six and several Mercedes W115 and W123 diesels. No Beverly Hills nor Saint Tropez “les automobiles extraordinaires” around here.
The most interesting car I have ridden in was a Maserati 450s that belonged to a friend. This was in 1962 on an abandoned Air Force base where SCCA races were held, but not on a race day. My friend was practicing his driving to prepare for future races. A wild ride, to be sure! On the straights we reached speeds of over 150 mph. There was no seat belt for a passenger in this open car, and the race course was less than freeway smooth. The 4.5 litre quad cam V8 with four Weber carbs could really move this car that was strictly for racing. I think Maserati built less than ten of them.
’66 Lincoln Continental Convertible…baby blue with a 462.
My uncle eventually listed it with Hemmings and sold it to none other than Carol Shelby.
Shelby GT 500 without a doubt. 340 six pack Cuda is in second place.
When I was about 6 (1968), my uncle’s best friend showed up with his new Porsche. He took my dad and me for a ride – presumably I was on the package shelf?. I was a car nut so you’d think I would have loved it as he went really fast down Route 123 in Lincoln RI. But instead it scared the heck out of me.
Fast forward to last spring. A dad in my son’s Scout troop has a late 60’s 442. He took me for a ride one day an was pretty amused by the expression on my face when he gunned it over a speed hump. Some things never change I guess…
Boy, this is a mind bender, been thinking about it for two days. Being a child of the 50’s and a teenager in the 60’s, there is a world of cars from those decades that I experienced, all pretty cool in my young eyes, the images of which have remained with me to this day. Having always been drawn to big American luxury cars, probably one of the most cool, when I was in high school, was riding in a classmate’s family ’56 Lincoln Premiere 2-dr. hardtop, turquoise with a white top, and a matching leather interior. We were class reps together in student government in 1963, so I rode with her often to school functions. Felt like a million bucks in that penultimate mid-50’s Lincoln. My grandmother’s ’56 DeSoto Firedome, of which I have often spoken, was also at the top of my list. Riding home with another high school classmate’s mother in her ’55 Ford Crown Victoria, two-tone magenta and white (how 50’s could you get!). In later years, a friend had his mother’s fully restored ’56 Continental Mark II, baby blue with contrasting blue leather, which was a totally cool vehicle, drawing stares wherever you went, what a trip to ride in that. Also in later years, a friend’s fully restored ’57 E-code Thunderbird, equipped to the hilt, even down to the Dial-a-Matic power seat. And not to forget my own parents’ ’65 Lincoln Continental, all black, which was about as cool as could be for a teenager back then. I was a pretty fortunate guy to come of age in those “cool” automotive eras.
Tie between a friend’s early ’50s Bentley Continental R, and his ’24 3 Liter roadster. Hard to choose, but the motorway ride from the train station out to his house in the Continental sure was nice!
My uncle’s 1929 Ford Model A Coupe when I was 9 years old in 1976. I have been interested in cars ever since.
–That car remains parked in my Uncle’s garage, where it has been hibernating since the early 1980’s. I have asked to buy it from him, but he has not responded yet….only been a few years……:(
I’ve driven my brother in laws Superbird many times but I rode with him as we got to drive it for a lap of Talladega. One year when the Mopar Nats was still in Indy we were staying at the Speedway motel and a silver Viper coupe came into the parking lot. The driver had the room beside us, was a member of Team Viper and told us the car came off the line the previous day-he give both of rides after he settleled in. Got to ride a few laps at LasVegas in one of those 2 seater cup cars–my driver as allowed to go faster than the guys driving on their own and it was so cool passing them.
Some other guys have posted aircraft so B25 Mitchell, Boeing Stearman, Avro Lancaster.
There have been so many,so I will name the oldest car,a 1912 BSA tourer.The BSA was a slow and very noisy and rattly machine.