In keeping with last Saturday’s Crap List / Top 25 British cars, here’s my attempt at the top 25 greatest German cars of all time.
1) 1947-1982 VW Beetle: Yeah, call it “Hitler’s Revenge” or “Porsche’s Abomination” or whatever, the Beetle sold in the jillions in almost every single country in the world — definitely the “People’s Car” in any language — and even today it has the ability to get a smile whenever it’s seen on the road. Pretty much every model was iconic, from 1947 till the last variant made some sixty-five years later.
2) 1955 Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing: I’m not sure that anyone can argue with this selection; easily one of the greatest sports cars of the 1950s (and perhaps of all time), it won the Millie Miglia several times, and still commands top dollar in any sports car collection.
3) 1956 Mercedes W186 300 S Coupé (“SC”): When the company’s top executive says that the engineers have to build him a car that can run all day on the autobahn at top speed without breaking down, but must still be luxurious… you get the 300 S line, and the two-door coupé was the best-looking.
4) 1966 Porsche 911 S: Quite possibly the greatest sports car model ever made. Its shape was (and still is) iconic, and despite the rear-engined layout being a nightmare for handling, it’s a wonderful car. Alone among “performance” (as opposed to “touring”) sports cars, the average 911 has been driven more miles than any other brand, which says everything about its reliability and fun-to-drive ethos. Second only to the Beetle in terms of longevity (September of this year will mark its sixtieth consecutive year of production).
5) 1976 VW Golf: Speaking of Beetles: you’re tasked with designing the Beetle’s successor and now, some 35 million cars later, it’s still selling like hot cakes. And speaking of “hot”, its GTI variant set the standard for the “hot hatch” concept across all manufacturers. Oh, and you can till fit a grand piano in the back. [some hyperbole there]
So that’s my top 5. Let’s look at the rest.
6) 1958 BMW 507: Definitely one of the best-looking sports cars ever made (and certainly the best-looking BMW sports car ever made), the 507 gained infamy as the car that nearly bankrupted BMW. In today’s world, the 507 would be a rival to any other sports car; in the late 1950s, its stratospheric price — higher than any Ferrari — was death to sales.
7) 1979 Audi Quattro: Took full-time four-wheel drive out of off-road and into passenger cars. Also killed the rally car scene for other manufacturers until they too went 4WD.
8) 1964 Mercedes 230 SL “Pagoda”: The shape was different from anything out there, and it lasted through two engine upgrades (250, 280) for the next six years. Then there’s the fact that the pagoda top was removable — and its removal made the 230 SL a sexy little drop-top instead of just a handsome mini-coupé.
9) 1952 Porsche 356: Rather underpowered at first, the 356 added “reliability” to the “fun” of the British sports cars of the time and still has a place in the hearts of all Porsche fans.
10) 1969 Mercedes 280 SEL 6.3: If the base 280 SE was a good car (and it was), the blown-out 6.3-liter-engined W109 SEL monster was the ultimate wolf in sheep’s clothing. Like its 50s-era 300 S parent, the 6.3 combined blistering speed, handling and luxury in a single model, and was the fastest saloon car in the world for many years.
11) 1938 BMW 328: Even though the Nazis were forcing BMW to make aircraft engines for the coming little disturbance in 1939, the Bavarians still managed to create a little sportster that was the best of the breed until the late 1950s.
12) 1988 Porsche 959:
13) 1976 BMW M3 E30: Some 50 years since its introduction, the E30 still competes with all the modern cars, and wins. The entire 3-series has been BMW’s most successful model, but the E30 is the best.
14) 1932 Horch 670 V12: One of Mercedes’s principal competitors in the interwar years, the Horch set standards for all European luxury tourers. (Apparently, Audi is planning on using the “Horch” name for its ultra-luxury competitor to the Mercedes Maybach line.) And speaking of luxury:
15) 1936 Mercedes 540K: …brought the concept of “much more than 100mph” into everyday car-speak forever. The supercharged 5-liter engine was, for its time, the equivalent of a Saturn-V rocket. It was the car that announced that its owner Had Arrived.
16) Audi R8: With V10 power (or V8 for the wussies / cheapskates), it doesn’t matter that the R8 shares a platform with its cousin, the Lambo. It means business, and it’s instantly recognizable.
17) 1936 Auto Union Wanderer W25: Its nearest competitor would have come from England (the MG TA), but the mid-market Wanderer was more powerful, more reliable and cheaper. And it looked (and still looks) fantastic.
18) 1959 Mercedes 190 SL: When the 300SL proved to be too expensive and too powerful for the mass market, Mercedes toned everything down a bit, but went a little too far in the power department. The smaller 190 SL was actually better looking than the Gullwing, but it was hopelessly underpowered by comparison. So despite the price, the beautiful 190 SL’s sales were underwhelming.
19) 2011 Wiesman GT-3: The German equivalent to Clarkson’s “a man in a shed called Ken”, and an answer to the question: “What would a 1935 Bugatti Atlantic look like in the modern era?”
21) 1970 Opel GT: Proof that even if you’re a division of General Motors (where good car designs go to die), you can still make a small, fun and beautiful sports car.
22) 1972 Mercedes G500: Yeah, it started off as a .dotmil Bundeswehr jeep, but its civilian incarnation is sublime. It makes a statement, that statement being “Yes, I know it costs way too much, gets crap gas mileage, has the style quality (and aerodynamics) of two stacked bricks, and its earlier diesel engine had less power than a Pekinese — but I don’t care.”
23) 2010 Mercedes SLS AMG C197: Any resemblances between the SLS and the 1950s 300 SL are completely intentional. Now add less weight and blistering pace…
24) 1938 Maybach SW 38: Their engines powered almost all of the WWI German Luftstreitkräfte aircraft and airships, but after that they also made some cars before the little 1939-45 adventure (during which their engines powered almost every Wehrmacht tank). The SW 38 model made Mercedes sit up and take notice, and MB later bought Maybach in 1960 to turn it into their upscale brand.
25) 1992 Porsche 928 GTS: Porsche’s first entry into the “luxury family car” market started in 1978 with a front-mounted (!) 4.7L V8, and ended in 1992 with an absolute rocket, powered by a 5.4L V8. All the models had room for luggage, unlike any other Porsche before (and arguably since).
There are others, but these 25 are the greatest.
I lack your encyclopaedic knowledge; I just admire most of them for their beauty.
Can’t argue with that list……… Ok ….well maybe a little — I’d drop that crappy Opel GT and fit in a Porsche Carrera GT …… which was basically the Porsche Le mAS SYPDER V-10 Race Car for the street.
I always thought the 2004 VW Touareg V10 TDI was a hell of a SUV. 310 HP, 550 lbs/ft torque, and luxury interior.
This is a good list and I wouldn’t take any off of it, but I might add the Golf R (GTI with a lot more horses and AWD) and the Macan (especially S and GTS) – yes I know an SUV, but it is a screamer and handles like a much smaller vehicle (and not actually all that big).
My vote goes to the BMW E9 CSi.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMW_E9
Have always liked this ad —
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUtE3QlTpKI
I don’t think I’ve seen that one before. Pretty good. My favrorite VW ad is this one from the 60’s. New England Winters were worse mostly because the streets were not well plowed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfirnP08FP0
This is the other insane Top Gear VW commercial. The full video is actually a collection of them, but the one we all remember and love (which is totally non-PC) is the one that starts at 3:15. I tried to save the video at that point, but we’ll see.
https://youtu.be/h5kCRSQsOqE?si=SXEMNnrCNdXt7ser&t=194
I had an ’84 Rabbit. I loved the thing, even tough mine was a lemon. We’re pretty sure someone adjusted the odometer, because there was no way the rack died at only 60K (and the whole thing at 85K and only 5 years old). It also had factory installed power steering which was never an option. My father had an ’86 Golf, and while it was much bigger on the outside, the Rabbit had significantly more cargo room. I think people were better off in the Rabbit too.
The Rabbit’s engine compartment was a miracle of packing. The shop had to pull the power steering and the a/c to replace the water pump. I asked, fascetiously, what, not the engine, and my mechanic responded, quite seriously, “not quite”. Trying to find where the dipstick went required a flashlight even on the sunniest day. When we replaced the Rabbit with a Mercury Tracer, the first thing I said when we popped the hood was “that can’t be the dipstick, I can see it.”
But 35 years later, and I’d still love to have it again.
No Volkswagen Thing?
Unforgivable!
Have a friend who – back in the day – had a couple of 928’s. He said the problem with them was that you could be cruising along at 90-100mph – not paying attention – and all of a sudden when you looked down you were rolling at 140-150.
I see no “problem” there…