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So Jason and I were discussing cars the other night, and we decided to start a lil’ top 5 meme.. Who knows if it’ll actually continue, or if it’ll die right here, but whatever, it’s fun.

He asked me, “if money were no object, what would my top 5 cars be?”

Jason posted his top 5: a 2006 Lotus Exige, 1991 Acura NSX, 1990 BMW e30 M3, 1998 Porsche 993 911 Turbo, and a Spoon Honda Fit race car.. Interesting… all great cars, it’s obvious that J wants speed & handling from his cars… Someone likes to drive fast.

Hmmmmm… so, without further adieu, here’s my list…

1. Lotus Exige 265E
   
   Yah, J has the 2006 Lotus Exige on his list. But, I want the Lotus Exige 265E. Why? the 265E runs on e85, so it produces 44 more bhp, and 70% less carbon dioxide emissions… So, I can go fast AND be nice(r) to the environment. Al Gore would be proud. That’s a lot of responsible get up and go.

   Also, it’s handy if you’re ever being chased by an Apache Helicopter..

   Damn, I want that car.
   

2. 1988 Camel Trophy Land Rover 110 and/or a 2008 Range Rover Sport
   
   I’ve always loved Land Rovers, especially the old Series ones.. They’re so bad ass looking, and you can do an engine rebuild in the middle of the African desert with only a 3/8″ wrench. The Defender is the last of the line of Land Rovers in that whole series, and while I do really like the Discovery, the distinct character brought on by the boxy lines died with the Defender. So, as long as we’re in the “money no object” category, I don’t want just *any* Defender.. I want the one that raced in the 1988 Camel Trophy race through Sulawesi.

   Ok, ok.. if I can’t find a 1988 Camel Land Rover in decent condition (since, as seen in this video, they sure did go through a lot of abuse), I’d settle for a brand new 2008 Range Rover Sport.. That thing has real offroad cred, AND you look bling’in rolling up in it. After all, it’s handy if you’re ever chased by a tank. (ed: I did not mean for this post to be a running homage to the best car show on TV, Top Gear, but I guess it’s kind of turning out that way..)

   Oh yah.. one last thing. For both the Rovers and the Lotus above, left-hand-drive please..
   

3. 1974 BMW 2002 Turbo
   
   So, originally I was going to put the 2002tii on my list (and actually, for this slot, I almost put an old Austin Mini Cooper too). I love the old 2002, and the tii is the most desirable.. But, since this is a “money is no object” list, I think I’ll go with the 1974 BMW 2002 Turbo.

   Only 1,672 of them were ever made, I believe it was only available in the classic Alpina White with the BMW blue and red decals (hot 70′s styleeee). I love that “TURBO” is written on the air dam in mirror-image, so that it proudly announces who it is as it zooms up behind you in the rear view mirror.

   HOLY CRAP!! There is one for sale on craigslist right now for $40k. Hmmmmmmmmmmmm…

   (sound of gears turning in my head)
   

4. 1966 Lincoln Continental Convertible
   
   Check it out.. an American car in my list. Woohoo. Kennedy was a fan of them, and the boys from Entourage can be seen in one in the opening titles of their show. The ’66 Continental was a huge car (almost 19 feet long), a gas guzzler, and rode like a sofa on wheels. I love that it has 4 doors, 2 of which are suicide.. So frikkin’ cool.

   Aha.. craigslist strikes again.. Here’s one for sale for $23k…
   

5. 1991 BMW Alpina B10 Bi-Turbo
   
   Yes, yes.. I know.. I already have a Bimmer on the list, but I guess I just like them or something. I love the E34 M5, and the Alpina B10 Bi-Turbo was the fastest of that breed… So… yah, that’s what I’d like. 360hp in a four door sedan is quite a wolf in sheep’s clothing, and it’s awesome to be able to share that power with four friends.

   And, here’s a video… I don’t think it’s Top Gear, but the dude has a British accent, so it’s kinda like it..

So yah… that was a little difficult to come up with this list, but I think I’m pretty happy with it. I’ve got quite a range of cars for everything from the track, to the mountains, to roadtrips.. There are a ton more cars that I really love (like a Porsche 993 Carrera 4, an old 60′s Mustang, the EV1, an Audi S8, and a ’97 RX7) , but these are my five.. for now, at least.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 8th, 2007 at 1:38 am and is filed under cars, lists, memes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.