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10. Land Rover Series I
Another brilliant bit of lateral thinking on the part of 4Car readers, amongst the Ferraris and Porsches in our top ten, a classic, humble British hero. The Land Rover Series I made its debut in the late 1940s, and within a decade had become the recognised transport of intrepid adventurers across the globe.
9. Ferrari F40
Back in 1987, Enzo Ferrari decided the best way to celebrate 40 years of making the cars bearing his name was to create a totally focussed race car for the road. And in the F40, we have one of the most inspirational Ferraris of all time and one of the last to be touched by Enzo himself.
8. Porsche 911
All prospective employees of 4Car are asked one question. "How do you feel about Porsche 911s?" And on the basis of its ranking here, we reckon that thousands of 4Car readers would make excellent staffers. Simply put, there is no GT that is better to drive, better built, or better evidence of engineering development triumphing brilliantly over physics (that's not the best place for the engine...)
7. AC Cobra
One of the greatest examples of Anglo-American cooperation, the AC Cobra combined the balance, finesse and lightness of touch of a traditional British open sportscar with the iron fist of a Ford 289 V8 (4.7 litres). The result was one of the most characterful and desirable sportcars of the 1960s, something that 4Car readers were quick to recognise.
6. Aston Martin DB9
4Car asked design supremo Ian Callum, the guy responsible for the DB7, whether there was a bad angle anywhere on the stunning DB9. "Yes," he said. "Crawl underneath it and the view's not so good." We're also happy to report that this is the best Aston to drive of all time.
5. Ford GT40
Famously, this was the car that Ford developed to kick Ferrari's butt after the Italian maker decided against selling out to the Blue Oval. A one-two-three finish at Le Mans made the point rather neatly, and this remains the most inspired car that Ford has ever produced. And even though it's a loud Yank, you voted for it. Well done!
4. Austin Mini
This car was the product of pure genius. We take front-wheel drive and transverse-mounted engines for granted these days, but back in the late 1950s, this was a fantastically radical solution to packaging a small car. Then the Mini only went on to win the Monte Carlo rally...
3. Jaguar E-Type
The most beautiful car to emerge from Coventry, the E-Type was also a performance sensation, famously recording a 150mph top speed in the hands of Autocar magazine road testers. 4Car has spoken to Jaguar's then chief test driver Norman Dewis to chase up rumours that the car was a bit hooky. Norman simply described the engine as 'very well run in...'
2. Volkswagen Golf GTI
This is the car that created the cult of the GTI. Now in its fifth generation, the original Golf GTI almost didn't happen back in the 1970s as the marketing folks at VW couldn't see that people would want to buy a small, sporting hatchback. A bit like the producer who dismissed the Beatles as a passing fad, really. Engineers persevered anyway, and a star was born.
10. Land Rover Series I
Another brilliant bit of lateral thinking on the part of 4Car readers, amongst the Ferraris and Porsches in our top ten, a classic, humble British hero. The Land Rover Series I made its debut in the late 1940s, and within a decade had become the recognised transport of intrepid adventurers across the globe.
9. Ferrari F40
Back in 1987, Enzo Ferrari decided the best way to celebrate 40 years of making the cars bearing his name was to create a totally focussed race car for the road. And in the F40, we have one of the most inspirational Ferraris of all time and one of the last to be touched by Enzo himself.
8. Porsche 911
All prospective employees of 4Car are asked one question. "How do you feel about Porsche 911s?" And on the basis of its ranking here, we reckon that thousands of 4Car readers would make excellent staffers. Simply put, there is no GT that is better to drive, better built, or better evidence of engineering development triumphing brilliantly over physics (that's not the best place for the engine...)
7. AC Cobra
One of the greatest examples of Anglo-American cooperation, the AC Cobra combined the balance, finesse and lightness of touch of a traditional British open sportscar with the iron fist of a Ford 289 V8 (4.7 litres). The result was one of the most characterful and desirable sportcars of the 1960s, something that 4Car readers were quick to recognise.
6. Aston Martin DB9
4Car asked design supremo Ian Callum, the guy responsible for the DB7, whether there was a bad angle anywhere on the stunning DB9. "Yes," he said. "Crawl underneath it and the view's not so good." We're also happy to report that this is the best Aston to drive of all time.
5. Ford GT40
Famously, this was the car that Ford developed to kick Ferrari's butt after the Italian maker decided against selling out to the Blue Oval. A one-two-three finish at Le Mans made the point rather neatly, and this remains the most inspired car that Ford has ever produced. And even though it's a loud Yank, you voted for it. Well done!
4. Austin Mini
This car was the product of pure genius. We take front-wheel drive and transverse-mounted engines for granted these days, but back in the late 1950s, this was a fantastically radical solution to packaging a small car. Then the Mini only went on to win the Monte Carlo rally...
3. Jaguar E-Type
The most beautiful car to emerge from Coventry, the E-Type was also a performance sensation, famously recording a 150mph top speed in the hands of Autocar magazine road testers. 4Car has spoken to Jaguar's then chief test driver Norman Dewis to chase up rumours that the car was a bit hooky. Norman simply described the engine as 'very well run in...'
2. Volkswagen Golf GTI
This is the car that created the cult of the GTI. Now in its fifth generation, the original Golf GTI almost didn't happen back in the 1970s as the marketing folks at VW couldn't see that people would want to buy a small, sporting hatchback. A bit like the producer who dismissed the Beatles as a passing fad, really. Engineers persevered anyway, and a star was born.
