The 11 most memorable cars on TV

By Melissa Hank

Fire up your engines! Is your favourite small-screen auto on the list?

Have you heard? NBC is finally remaking the classic 1980s show Knight Rider as a TV movie, and there are a couple of reasons to get revved up.

First, the scene-stealing car K.I.T.T. will return, and second, original lead David Hasselhoff will not. (Not to knock the Hoff, but two seasons of him on America's Got Talent are plenty enough for me. A girl can only take so much tan.)

Anyway, back to the car part. As great as K.I.T.T. was, there’ve been many other memorable TV autos that have rocked our world over the years. Here are a few of our favourites.

THE HIPPIES
1. THE FLINTSTONE FAMILY CAR ON THE FLINTSTONES
Model: Flintmobile
Why it rocks: All the seemingly yabba-dabba-don’ts are actually yabba-dabba-dos. (Ha. See how I just did that?) The prehistoric design is clean, simple and has plenty of air conditioning – perfect for the modern Stone Age family.
Special features: One of the most eco-friendly autos to grace the small screen, the Flintmobile was foot-powered, gave off no emissions (except for dust clouds), and was made from renewable resources like wood and stone.
Betcha didn’t know: The license plate read XYZ 643, not YABADO as it was in that regrettable 1994 movie The Flintstones.

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. THE PARTRIDGES’ BUS ON THE PARTRIDGE FAMILY
Model: A random multicoloured school bus
Why it rocks: It was a big bus with a psychedelic paint job.
Special features: With the sole purpose of lugging a chirpy family band from gig to gig, it was TV’s most extreme SUV. The "Caution Nervous Mother Driving" sign on the back was a nice touch. Plus, c’mon – it made us get happy.
Betcha didn’t know: When the show ended, the original bus was parked for years behind Lucy's Tacos on Martin Luther King Blvd. in California. But in 1987, the bus finally wheezed its way to a junk yard. It was a sad, sad sight: windows were broken, tires were flat, and the family name was painted over in white. Sniff, sniff.

THE BURNOUTS
3. EARL HICKEY’S EL CAMINO ON MY NAME IS EARL
Model: Red 1973 Chevrolet El Camino, with a blue 1977 driver’s door and a 1987 Camaro transmission
Why it rocks: It’s the karma-mobile, baby! Dusty, messy and a tad sleazy-looking, it’s the automotive equivalent of Earl (Jason Lee).
Special features: None of note. Well, other than a knack for stalling at the worst times. I wonder if karma can drive a stick shift?
Betcha didn’t know: Earl’s car is a fourth generation El Camino, which was restyled to match the changes to the Chevelle and boasts a lighter construction.

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. ERIC FORMAN’S VISTA CRUISER ON THAT ‘70S SHOW
Model: A second-generation brown 1969 Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser
Why it rocks: Given to Eric (Topher Grace) by his dad Red (Kurtwood Smith), the Vista Cruiser shuttled the gang to cool places like a forbidden Todd Rundgren concert in Milwaukee.
Special features: The Vista Cruiser was the largest Oldsmobile wagon at the time, so it had a big back seat for, um, entertaining your closest friends.
Betcha didn’t know: The car that gets crushed at the beginning of National Lampoon's Vacation is also a second generation Vista Cruiser.

THE SHOW-OFFS
5. MICHAEL KNIGHT’S CAR, K.I.T.T., ON KNIGHT RIDER
Model: A black 1982 Pontiac Trans Am T-Top
Why it rocks: Why doesn’t it rock? K.I.T.T., the supercomputer controlling it, gave smart and sarcastic commentary, was bullet-proof and leaped over anything in its path. And despite what David Hasselhoff says, he can’t do any of that.
Special features: K.I.T.T., which stands for Knight Industries Two Thousand, had rocket boosters, an infrared tracking scope, flame throwers, a smokescreen, and two wheel skis.
Betcha didn’t know: The original K.I.T.T. was auctioned on eBay in 2004, and the bidding started at $40,000. Which is about the same as The Hoff’s annual haircare budget. I’m just saying …

6. BATMAN’S BATMOBILE ON BATMAN
Model: A modified black 1955 Lincoln Futura concept car with cherry trim
Why it rocks: The car didn’t actually drive fast (it weighed a hefty three tons), but it sure seemed like it did. And – ingenious concept – it actually looked like a bat: bubble windows were eyes, rear fins conveyed batwings, and the mean-as-sin grill looked ready to take a bite out of crime. (My apologies to McGruff the Crime Dog.) 
Special features: Many of the bat-gizmos, including the rear parachutes, Batray, Batcomputer, and Batbeam, actually did work.
Betcha didn’t know: Ford sold the original Lincoln Futura concept car – which was hand-built in Italy for $250,000 – to the Batmobile's creator for $1. Bat-hindsight is a bummer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

7. THOMAS MAGNUM’S FERRARI ON MAGNUM, P.I.
Model: A red Ferrari 308 GTS
Why it rocks: So what if it was Magnum’s (Tom Selleck) employer's car and not his? The smokin’ car somehow made the Hawaii scenery look kinda dowdy in comparison.
Special features: Producers used three models of the 308 during the show’s run, and they all boasted a funnel-like front end, a drop top (to let Magnum’s moustache blow freely in the wind, natch), round rear lights and a small rear windshield. Top speed was more than 155 miles per hour.
Betcha didn’t know: Producers originally lusted after a Porsche for Magnum, but the car company wouldn’t build in an extra-large sunroof. Later, when the series was a hit, Porsche offered producers a free car and a blank cheque. They turned it down.

8. DEAN WINCHESTER’S CHEVY ON SUPERNATURAL
Model: A black four-door 1967 Chevrolet Impala
Why it rocks: The ghost-busting show with the rock soundtrack wouldn’t be the same with out the “Metallicar”. I mean, can you imagine Dean (Jensen Ackles) and Sam (Jared Padalecki) rolling down the highway in a VW bug?
Special features: The trunk doubles as a weapons arsenal, holding at least three machetes, a grenade launcher, an assortment of pistols, and more. Nuff said.
Betcha didn’t know: Writer Eric Kripke told press his first choice was a 1965 Mustang, but his neighbour said it had to be a '67 Impala because “you can put a body in the trunk.” Alrighty then. Also, the car’s licence reads KAZ 2Y5, referring to Kansas, the brothers’ home state, and 2005, the year the show premièred.

 

 

 

 

 

 

THE WORKHORSES
9. B.A. BARACUS’ VAN FROM THE A-TEAM
Model: A black-and-grey 1983 GMC G-Series van with a red stripe
Why it rocks: Despite being crashed, chased, disassembled and shot at, that van just wouldn’t die. Just like Baracus’ portrayer Mr. T. (We pity the fool who has to hear his catchphrase one more time. Uh ... sorry.)
Special features: A rear wing, shag-tastic carpeting, a gun rack, white bucket seats, a quad-headlight configuration, and a front brushbar. 
Betcha didn’t know: If you’ve got a keen eye, you can spot grip tape on the roof of the van where stuntmen were set to jump off it.

10. THE GENERAL LEE FROM THE DUKES OF HAZZARD
Model: An orange 1969 Dodge Charger
Why it rocks: It flew through the air with the greatest of ease. In every. Single. Episode. Also, who among us didn’t attempt to master Luke Duke's (Tom Wopat) opening-credits hood slide?
Special features: The horn whistled “Dixie” – which, by the way, was forever ruined for me in that infernal Dukes of Hazzard movie. Thanks a lot, guys. Also, the 16-valve V8 engine generated 375 horsepower, 490 pounds of torque and propelled the car from 0 to 60 in 5.4 seconds.
Betcha didn’t know: Since the General was crashed so often on the show, a total of 309 Chargers were used. In fact, near the end of the series, the car wasn’t being made anymore so producers offered owners of the model money on the street if they saw one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

11. DAVID STARSKY’S GRAN TORINO ON STARSKY AND HUTCH
Model: A red 1975 Ford Gran Torino with a white “L” stripe
Why it rocks: Nicknamed the "Striped Tomato", this sleek-looking auto made the utilitarian and rust-prone Torino seem like a sports car.
Special features: Chromed-out rear-wheel drive. Also – continuity alert! – a Torino with bucket seats was often swapped for a Torino with bench seating in the same episode. Tsk, tsk.
Betcha didn’t know: The car became so popular that Ford produced 1,000 limited edition 1976 Gran Torinos with a Starsky and Hutch paint job.

HONOURABLE MENTION
* Al Bundy’s brown “Dodge” on Married… With Children, which was actually a 1971 Plymouth Duster 340.

* Grandpa Munster’s Drag-u-la on The Munsters. It had a fibreglass coffin-shaped body and 350HP 360CI Ford Mustang V-8 engine, but it only got four miles to the gallon. Talk about dead weight.

* The Green Hornet’s Black Beauty on The Green Hornet. As a black 1966 Chrysler Imperial sedan with oil- and smoke-spewing guns and rocket launchers, the car just seemed like a second-rate Batmobile.

* Herbie on The Love Bug. Knight Rider's K.I.T.T. could talk, just like this Volkswagen Beatle, but looked much cooler doing it.

What do you think? Did I miss anything or get the list all wrong? Let me know at melissa@tvguide.ca. And if you're craving more cars, check out this article on the coolest cars ever.

Published: Sunday, November 11, 2007