What will be the Classic Cars in the next decade?

[Patty O'Furniture]

I am not really what you would call a car nut. My car gets me from A to B and that's pretty much all I care about. But I sometimes hear things like "the nineteen sixty-something or other mustang is such a classic!" What are people basing this on? Is there a list of "classic cars" somewhere? What makes a car classic? Tail fins? Sequentially flashing turn signals? A long production life? Just a popular look?

For the record, I drive a '93 Prelude, which has the nice curvy body & the cool dashboard. The Preludes got less attractive whenever they started making it with the angular/squarish body. The ones from the late 90's look more like a shuttle craft than a car.

If there are 8 or 10 cars from the 60's or 70's that are today's classics, what cars from the 90's will be the classics of 2010 and beyond?

[Berkut]

I would nominate these for late-model classic cars:

The 1981-1983 Delorean . Gotta love those gullwing doors and stainless steel finish.

The Chevrolet 454 SS pickup . Kinda weak for a big block, but very good looking and still plenty powerful.

The mid-late 80s Buick Grand National and GNX. I like that midsize GM body style, and the turbo makes it all the better.

The GMC Syclone . All wheel drive, twin turbo, S-10 pickup. Useless as a truck. Only thing it hauls is ass.

The GMC Typhoon . Same as above, but you can take more friends with you. Blazer version of the Syclone.

The first-generation Honda Civic CRX. Often credited as starting the "pocket rocket" craze. Volkswagon GTI owners will argue this, and may be right.


But my personal favorite would have to be the 1994-1996 Chevrolet Impala SS. It's comfortable. It's fast. It's you and three friends doing 150mph with the cruise control on. Most amazing of all, it was built from the ugly as sin Caprice Classic. This was the last of General Motors RWD full-size cars, and it WILL be a sought after item for years to come.

[miatachris]

The 1999+ Mazda Miata.

But I'm biased.

[miatachris]

The 1999+ Mazda Miata.

But I'm biased.

[dead0man]

The C4 (1993?-1996?) and the C5 (1997?-present) will be classic cars. More so the C5, it is the best american "sports car" ever built for mass consumption. I think the 3rd generation Mazda RX-71993-1997 will also because of how few sold and their overall lack of durability. The Dodge Viper will also be one. All the cars metioned by Joey G except the Civic CRX I agree with too. Add in the Acura NSX and most Porsche, and a few BMW and Mercedes. I'm sure we are still midding some.
dead0man

[Jervoise]

The mid- to late-90s model Suburu WRX. Quick, pretty and reasonably-priced for its performance.

[Doug Bowe]

The Lincoln Blackwood.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Ford sold about 350 of those pickup trucks last year.

*-YANK-*


1 year run? These babies will be rare.
Rare is part of it.

Mind you, down the line somebody actually needs to be interested in a $56,000 pickup truck that was offered for one year.

[Ranchoth]

How about the new "Thunderbird" Ford (?) released a year or so ago?




Ranchoth

[Coldfire]

OK, now for a European perspective. :)

The Classics from the 90's.
Subaru Impreza WRX Mitsubishi Lancer Evo (IV, V, VI, whatever) Mazda MX-5 (the Miata) Peugeot 306 GTI-6 Volkswagen Golf III VR6 (the Golf IV is not an interesting car, and actually the Golf II was the last REAL hot hatch VW made) Porsche Boxster BMW Z3 Audi TT Ford Escort RS Cosworth Volkswagen New Beetle (unfortunately) Renault Clio Williams (first model, ca. 1994) Peugeot 205 GTI (the late models, or perhaps the special edition Gentry) Jaguar XKR Mercedes SLK Peugeot 406 Coupé Alfa Romeo 156There's tons more, but this is what comes to mind first.

And yeah, I DO drive a Peugeot. Sue me. :)

[jjimm]

I reckon the Peugot 206 coupé convertible will become a classic too.

Don't forget the new Mini, too.

[Coldfire]

Yeah, but those aren't from the 1990's.

[Philster]

Car from the 90's.....as for Classic Cars, they will be similar to the older classics:

First, any dying Muscle Car, like the Ram Air Trans Am, the Mustang Cobra, the Camaro SS....all will be classics.

Second, some hot trucks will be classics: The Ford Lightning, for example.

Exspensive classic: The Viper - that's an easy one. Aston Martin got revived in the states, so count them in, too.

Hummer....that has to be included. Jag convert, too.

Was the Honda S2000 out by 1999-2000? If so, that's an easy classic....as is the Porsche Boxster.

[jjimm]

Coldy: doh.

[wolfman]

My deffinition of a classic car means that it is the type of car that people will love enough to throw absurd amounts of money to keep it on the road or well restored, far past any utilitarian value.(which kind of means that it is much harder for a 50,000 dollar plus car to hit classic status since once you have spent that much on a car it is only reasonable to spend a fair amount to maintain the investment)

Unfortunately the WRX doesn't count in America as it wasn't offered until after the 90's were over. I would submit the Subaru SVX as a substitute potential classic(many people who own one, including me, plan on never letting the car die no matter how many trannies I have to go through :) ).

[Gatopescado]

pretty good choices so far. i would second the limited production stuff, but thats kinda cheating!

my first thought was that there won't be any classics from the 90's because they are too festuned with safety crap and all pretty much the same, but after thinking about it a little more, i would agree with alot mentioned so far, especially the goddamn new Thunderbird, that goddamn dealers are marking up 10-30000 over sticker and goddamn people are still lining up to pay!

and look for the new Ford GT-40. sould be an instant classic.

[caveman]

Originally posted by gatopescado
and look for the new Ford GT-40. sould be an instant classic.

My dad designed the transmission for this one!

[JThunder]

The Adam West Batmobile!

[Caffeine.addict]

How about this one (http://www.shotimes.com/SHO4_jayl.html) I don't think they made that many of them.

It might make collector status just for a quirk factor.

[Sam Stone]

That new Ford GT40 is amazing. But it's going to be huge money, up in the supercar stratosphere, IF they build them. I don't think its status is settled yet, is it?

How about the Holden Monaro, soon to be the new Pontiac GTO? http://www.motortrend.com/news/stories/020327hm.html

In GT) form, it is expected to have anywhere between 302 and 400 horsepower (there's already a 400hp version of the Monaro). It's a rear-wheel drive coupe, and looks very fast.

I think the 94-and-up Mustangs are destined for classic status. They are great cars. Not quite as fast as the Camaro Z-28s, unless you get one of the very latest ones, but they are far more practical, reliable, better quality, and more comfortable to drive.

We had a '94, and I just loved it. Here's an example of the more collectible ones, complete with limited edition run and personalized serialization of each car: http://www.motorcities.com/articles/02fordmach1.html

Considering that performance and rarity help make a car truly collectible, I'd have to nominate any of the 'SVT' vehicles Ford is making: http://www.svt.ford.com/flash/index.html

The SVT Mustang Cobra, by the way, puts out 390 HP, making it faster than the new Corvette. Considering the advances in tires, suspension, transmission, and the rest, this may in fact be the fastest 'muscle car' ever built.

I think you've got to get into the 'supercar' range, the bottom end of which would be the Viper, to find anything faster.

And hey, how about that 380HP SVT Lightning truck? That's pretty radical.

[raz]

94 Dodge Intrepid. Too cool for words!

[WSLer]

The new GT-40 is supposed to cost aroun $100,000-125,000 when it goes on sale, and I'm sure there will be plenty of fools ready to part with the money.

[Trancey]

chevettes :P
i drive one, so of course its gonna be a classic *looks around aimlessly* my baby's 18 years old n perfecto condition, she better last till 20, hasnt broken down yet! :P

[Caffeine.addict]

Aside from the above mentioned Shogun, I think that no list will be complete without the Mitsubishi 3000GT or the Nissan 300ZX.

Cars I'm not sure of are the Ford Probe and the Mazda MX-6. The V-6 versions have sport tendencies but they mass produced a bunch of them.

[Coldfire]

Well, in order for a car to become a true classic, there's gotta be some degree of mass production.

Wait, let me rephrase that. There's exotic classics (your Ferrari 250 GTO, your Rolls Royce Silver Cloud, your Bugati Royale), and then there's the sort of classics you and I could possibly afford (your MGB's, your Citroen DS's (look that one up, if necessary ;)), your Triumph Spitfire, your Peugeot 404, et cetera). Availability of spare parts is vital to keep things affordable.

So, a Nissan 300 ZX will do fine as a (semi?) classic (it'll never be a 240Z!), and the new GT40 will be destined to become an exotic.

[Airman Doors, USAF]

I would just like to say that I hope the future of classic cars does not include the Pinto, which I just saw down here in Biloxi with Classic plates. :eek: