The 80s were awesome. Spandex, hair metal, synth-wave, long hair, action movies, and denim jackets were king. You weren’t cool unless you had a million holes in your jeans. We weren’t involved in any major wars, so the kids got to stay at home and have some fun. Part of that fun was driving a fast car.
Every kid had a list of cars he or she wanted to drive. They were all fast, low, mostly European, but always bad to the bone. These are the top 10 cars that every 80s kid salivated over:
NISSAN 200SX
The most attainable car on this list, the Nissan 200SX was entry-level awesome. Oversized panel lights, optional T top, and a boxy frame that only an 80s kid could love, this car was the original turbocharged Japanese import.
WOOD PANEL FORD STATION WAGON
Maybe this is just a hindsight inclusion, but how awesome were the 80s station wagons with wood paneling on the side? It seemed like every mom drove one. For most kids, this ended up being their first car when they turned 16 and mom upgraded to something a bit more palatable.
FORD MUSTANG GT
Some people consider the 80s a downturn in Mustang design, but these bad boys were still desirable. They were fast, American classic, and perfectly 80s boxy. I only remember them in red.
DATSUN 240Z
The precursor for the modern Nissan 350Z, these dudes looked like Porsches with a much lower price tag. Their round headlights had tons of attitude. Did we mention they were super fast? Speaking of...
PORSCHE 911
Still one of the most quintessential sports cars on the planet, Porsche 911 posters bombarded walls all over America. These German compact cars packed a turbocharged wallop. The 80s might have been some of their best designs too.
PONTIAC FIREBIRD
Remember in the movie, Billy Madison, when Adam Sandler goes back to school and drives a hilariously stereotypical 80s car? He drove a Firebird. These guys were mean, heavy, and classic American muscle.
CHEVY CAMARO
While the 80s weren’t a great time for most American muscle cars, the Chevy Camaro is an exception. The 80s version featured a hood that stretched on for miles, oversized racing tires, and super rad gradient paint schemes.
LAMBORGHINI COUNTACH
Lamborghini makes some of the most absurdly amazing cars in the world. The 80s were the coming out party for these Italian supercar stars. These things were unlike anything the world had ever seen before, and they were cool as heck.
FERRARI TESTAROSSA
The 80s Ferrari Testarossa might be one of the slickest looking cars that the world has ever seen. It was pure Italian supercar style from front to back. Everything about this car screams 80s in all of the best kinds of ways.
DELOREAN DMC-12
Thanks to Back to the Future, the Dolorean is still one of the most sought after cars in the world. The doors open like bird wings, it was constructed out of fiberglass, then it was covered in stainless steel panels. If you had a DeLorean, you were probably the coolest person in the whole world.
