A fun car is almost guaranteed to put a smile on your face, but you can get the same effect by using a boring car for fun ends — a road trip, visiting friends, or just finding that first-car sense of teenage freedom. Yesterday, we asked which cars put the biggest smiles on your faces , and you gave us a treasure trove of answers. Here are some of our favorites.
Miata Is Always The Answer.
And for good reason, they are just fun happy cars. For me it was a red 1994 NA I learned stick on and then the Emerald Green over tan almond eyed cutie 1999 NB I owned (essentially the cover car on the December 1997 issue of Car and Driver, and sorry NA fans, I wasn’t a big fan of the pop-ups so the NB was an easy choice for me). I didn’t need practicality so the size and only 2 seats weren’t an issue while I owned it. I could drive it a bit hard and still not rack up a bunch of infractions, and on the curvy hilly roads around here with the top down it was like driving a rollercoaster. I got extremely sick while I owned it, racked up weeks in the hospital over course of a year and felt like total shit most of the time out of it, but one thing I still enjoyed was hopping in and throwing the top back even if just to drive a mile to the store, my car looked and felt happy and it was contagious even if for just a brief few moments. After all the shit was over I took it on a 2500 mile road trip, not great for the long stretches but was still perfect once at the destination. I eventually had to get more practical and couldn’t afford two cars so I had to part ways with it. I still miss that car, whenever I see a green over tan NB I still smile.
Runner up would’ve been my Solar Yellow 2003 SRT-4 Neon, a whole different kind of fun, an unhinged loud stupid fast obnoxious kind of fun.
A Miata is an easy answer, but it’s common for good reason — they’re just great cars.
I ended up building the Sentra into a V6 just after college. It was ungodly loud with a slightly resonated side-exit. It was easily faster than the M3, somewhere around the M5 assuming I could get traction. Overall, though, it wasn’t just about speed, it commanded attention and it was just this badass little home-built thing that I couldn’t get enough of.
The M3 was also part of a great era for BMW, it wasn’t crazy fast but one of the best handling cars I ever drove. Very fun to toss around until it one day met a puddle on a dark road.
The M5 is the car I hated the most. I celebrated when I sold it, but for some odd reason I held on to it for 7 years and well over $20k in repairs and maintenance. Why was I so compelled to keep a car that I hated and that made me bankrupt? V10, of course. It was addicting.
Why settle for one fun car when you can own multiple? We all talk about dream three-, five-, or ten-car garages anyway, don’t we?
Mine! 2013 E63 Wagon with downpipes, an ECU and a TCU tune. Loud when it needs to be, more than fast enough, practical as hell (3rd row seat transplanted), unique, looks good (to me), relatively reliable, the list goes on. All I want to do to it at this point is a full paint correction + ceramic coat. I plan on keeping this car forever, leave it at my parents house for my dad to hoon whenever I get a new car.
As a recovering member of the #WagonMafia, I understand the desire for Fast Longroof perfectly. Should I ever need more cargo room, I’ll quickly walk that path again.
Two and a half years ago, we decided to relocate further away from NYC and that meant getting a second car. I needed something that had four doors for occasional car seat and stroller duty but it had to be fun, manual, and something that I could work on. On my short list was a late 3rd/early 4th-gen Sti, E39 M5, E60 M5, and an E90 M3.
Aside from trying to find a manual E60 M5, the Sti was toughest to find because the good ones were selling in days and the not so good ones, well they were completely beat to shit. I finally found a 2013 that was a decent price, knowing that I would have to put some money in the car to make it whole again, and I was able to take it out for a ride with a sales associate.
I used to track my beloved 08' Legacy GT Spec.B (lightly modded for track use) and had a very jinba ittai relationship with the car, getting to know it very intimately on track days and in daily driving. When I took off in the 13' Sti, I knew the car either had chopped springs or a cheap set of Tiens because the ride was shit but the experience immediately felt familiar. The way it built up torque around 3,500 rpm as the turbos kicked in and easy to heel-toe pedal layout and shifter. The way it went around turns as the superior AWD system allowed me to precisely control my turn-in with a feathering of the gas. It was as if I had slipped into bed with a former lover, knowing every curve, move, sound, and smell of this vehicle.
I started from a stop, nailing and ripping through every shift, sailed around a turn and hit a few corners with precision. The salesperson was a good sport about it, letting me have some fun in the car and being surprisingly confident in a stranger’s driving ability. “You really know your way around this car,” he said, nervously but also a bit excited.
When the drive was over, I knew it was time to part ways with my lover once again. The suspension issues and vape juice-tainted interior could have been resolved with a few thousand dollars of parts and several hours of my time. It was a fun and nostalgic time but I knew it was time to move on and go experience other things that motorsport had to offer. So I went ahead and decided to tame the beast and bought an E39 M5 that needed some work but today sits in my garage as one of the nicest 100K+ mile examples of its kind in North America.
Conveniently, my fast longroof actually was a Legacy GT. I didn’t have the Spec B’s Bilsteins, but I did have semi-solid motor mounts that made the thing a riot around Watkins Glen.
1981 Plymouth Champ. It was a pile of dog shit, but we had so much fun! Back in late 90's I was a car salesman. This old lady came in with it as a trade. The used car manager wanted nothing to do with it. I offered her $300 for it, but she said I was sweet and sold it to me for $200. My friends and I beat the hell out of that car. Zero fucks were given!ipsum
I came very close to making a very similar deal once. A dealer where I worked gave someone $300 for a 2nd-generation Mitsubishi Eclipse on trade, with its period-correct body kit still coated in matte black primer. It didn’t work, so I didn’t buy it, but I came so close.
Submitted by: My Hooptie Fleet is Boring
For me - it was very much my 1971 MGB. How can you not love driving that car? It’s got a ton of character, you get thumbs up from everyone on the street, despite being relatively inexpensive, it has some great lines, and it’s a joy to drive (more fun to drive a slow car fast, etc.).
The best part of owning one, though, is that it seems every time you fill up you find a new friend who wants to talk to you about their experiences with an MG - whether they owned one, their parents did, a friend let them drive it once, etc. Short of the VW Bug, I’m not sure any one car has impacted more people, in more ways, than the MGB - and driving one means taking a trip down someone else’s memory lane every time you stop. And that’s a pretty cool thing.
This one is (or was, sadly), in fact, mine:
I’ve always liked those orange MGBs, partially due to their history with the DaSilva name. An appreciation for them is hereditary.
Go figure: a McLaren 570S with an Akrapovic exhaust, which I drove during my bachelor party last year. 35 or so miles of windy roads in Golden, CO was the best time I’ve had in a vehicle, ever. Nothing I’ve driven (except maybe the Gallardo that same day, the AMG GTR, or the Vantage) made me feel so giddy, so uninhibited, and oddly - so confident. Yes, I kept saying “holy shit, holy shit” as the dashcam video documented so well, but with the 570S being so low to the ground and so nimble, I felt like I actually had control of a car I never thought I’d ever sit in, nonetheless drive. The smile never faded from my face that day, and believe me when I say I still go back and watch the videos in an attempt to re-live some of those moments. Would recommend.
I’m shocked, shocked, that a McLaren would be a great driver’s car. In fact, I don’t believe it, and someone should give me the keys to one to prove me wrong. It’s for science, you see.
I’ve had fast cars, loud cars, new cars, commuter cars, a truck... lots of vehicle. But the car to put the biggest smile on my face was an old Mustang.
When I was 17 (1987) we owned a 1965 Mustang. It had the 289 HiPro V8 with a claimed 271bhp. It dynoed out at something more like 315. Four-speed stick, and disc brakes at the font.
It was kind of rattle-y. With no power steering it cornered like the 22-year-old pony car it was. It got terrible mileage, and smelled like gas.
For teenage me it was the best kind of beast. Nothing I’ve driven since has made me smile like that car.
When you’re a teenager, you don’t need all the little accoutrements that you get accustomed to later in life. Who needs “handling” or “power steering” or “a car that doesn’t smell like it’s going to immolate at any moment” when you’ve got hormones in your brain and three hundred horses beneath your right foot?
My wife was interested in a 2012 Beetle, so as soon as the local dealership had one out front, I dropped in with her for a test drive. What they neglected to tell me before I took off was that the Beetle 2.0T (for turbo) was a GTI with a Bug body.
I quickly figured this out when I mashed the loud pedal down at the first empty section of road I found. The interior that looked like an updated version of my 72 Bug seriously clashed with the engine sounds and acceleration this thing produced. I drove that car for only about 20 minutes, but I was smiling and giggling like a child the entire time.
We settled for the non-turbo version when it came time to buy. But it was still fun to drive, fun to look at and fun to hear stories from everyone who saw it about the Bug they had or road trip they took in one.
Small as it was, my wife still managed to stuff a 9.5 foot long taxidermy Mako shark into that thing and get it home from the auction. It also took me about 5 years to stop trying to open the hood to stow luggage or groceries.
The GTI of that era had a fun, enticing powertrain. Why not live a little and opt for the turbo when you get the chance?
My current car, a late model Challenger, brings me more smiles per mile than anything I’ve ever owned. Now before you judge, it’s not straight piped or bagged, nor does it have that obnoxious “move over ==>” windshield sticker. And it’s just the 5.7. Granted I bought it as a recreational car but damn, if this isn’t the definition of fun to drive, then I’ve been doing it wrong for all the years since I started driving. I get thumbs ups from random people, waves from other owners but more than anything it’s kids who point at it excitedly and tug at their parent’s shirt to interrupt and say “look at that car!”. I remember what it was like as a little gearhead myself, seeing a ‘cuda or a modified ‘vette or whatever it may have been that caught my eye on the road. I remember the excitement and maybe even a little ambition that it inspired in me to own one too one day. All these years later I’ve switched places and you can be damned sure I acknowledge every little gearhead in the making who gives me a thumbs up. Makes even this jaded old guy smile.
Smiles per mile is the ideal metric for automotive ownership. Leaving out all the typical Challenger Owner things is nice, appreciated even. However, the yellow or pink splitter guards are always a good touch, if you felt like adding them.
All of them that weren’t utilitarian / daily driver beater type vehicles.
‘99 XJ. My ‘I was overlanding before it was cool’ vehicle. Introduced me to the off road world, and had my first back country Colorado trips with it.
2010 Xterra. Bought in 2013, still own it. Continued my overland adventures with it. She’s tired now, but I’m having a tough time making the decision to sell.
2018 Camaro SS 1LE. Finally making big boy money and decided it was time for a V8. Couldn’t help but smile every time I hit that start button. Sold last year to take advantage of the market. Miss it every day.
‘22 Colorado ZR2 Diesel. Adventure is just starting with this one. Love the clatter of that little diesel, though. Hopefully it treats me as well as the Xterra did.
Life’s too short to own boring cars, isn’t it? If your automotive history is full of cars you’re proud to have owned, you’ve done well.
A Voisin Biscuter. A Spanish microcar that’s basically a go-kart with a body designed by the legendary Gabriel Voisin. Sequential shifting on the column, tiny two-stroke motor. Everyone should drive something like this.
This car is adorable, and I would lay down my life for it. That is all.
My Evo did, however I wasn’t driving it. I had my friend drive it back when I got my daily driver, had a big ole fireball come out the back. My friend said he never seen me smile like that lol
The second is when I was driving a GT black series. Interestingly enough, the downshifting was what made my knees weak...uh
Who doesn’t love a car that shoots flames? The problem with owning one, however, is that you rarely get to experience the flames for yourself. That’s why you have to let your friends behind the wheel every once in a while.
Talk about an easy question to answer: my ‘69 Charger.
All-time Hollywood star car—even the Batmobile casting.
And I’ve got one in my garage for which I’ve owned for umpteen years. Yet every time I go to the garage and just see it, let alone fire up the awesome 440, I still grin like an idiot.
If you have a car that puts a big dumb grin on your face every time you see it, owning it for umpteen years is the only sensical move. Never get rid of it.
Submitted by: the 1969 Dodge Charger Guy
Yeah, for me it’s my SRT-4. It’s always been a super-fun little car. I bought it new and have over 240K miles on it now. Mine’s both a little more wild and a little more tame than stock. With some simple but judicious suspension changes, Stage II turbo upgrade and BWS turbo, light-weight forged wheels, and full exhaust upgrade, it goes better than anybody expects from a Neon. I’ve added a high-flow muffler, factory Neon cruise control, and swapped the big wing for an SXT wing (still have the original in the garage), so it’s not ridiculously loud or uncomfortable. I’m 56 now, but I’ll keep driving it as long as I can still press the clutch pedal. :D
Do SRT-4 fans still get mad if you call it a Neon? I know that used to be a big thing in the community, but does anyone care any more?