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March 27, 2008

Car of the Decade?

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

As John mentioned Tuesday on New on the Net, the New York Times is already talking about "the car of the decade." Yeah, it’s a bit premature. But their pick? The Porsche Cayenne. Now, I can understand that the Cayenne was a great financial move for  Porsche, but  I think it did some major damage to the brand. And seriously, it’s just a Touareg with a Porsche emblem. Big freakin’ deal.

So I started to think, what would I pick as the car of the decade? Sure, we almost have two years to go, but there are already some strong contenders. The New York Times also floated the new GTR as a possibility. There has been a lot of buzz about this car, and it’s cool and all, but I don’t think you can swoop in at the last minute and claim car of the decade. You need a car that has shown itself to have real influence throughout the decade, a car with some staying power.

When it comes down to it, I’m torn between two cars. So I’m gonna cheat. I’m gonna pick the domestic car of the decade, and import car of the decade. For domestic car, I’m gonna go with the S197 Mustang (I’d put the 300C a close second). But the Mustang redesign for 2005 was huge. It was huge for Mustang fans, it was huge for Ford, and it was huge for Detroit. Heck, its success made GM and Chrysler bring back their pony cars. How cool is that? And at the end of the day, you just can’t argue with 300hp for $25k. Power to the people.

For import car of the decade I’m gonna say second generation Prius (and if you put a gun to my head and made me pick just one car for the decade, I’d probably say Prius, even if it made me feel a bit ill). I don’t think anyone thinks that hybrids are the ultimate answer to our transportation problems, and frankly, the fuel efficiency of the Prius isn’t even as good as a 80s CRX. But this car was hugely important in terms of getting people to accept new technology, and was clearly a step in the right direction. Toyota was so successful with it that all the other manufacturers have practically let them own the entire category. I just wish it didn’t look like the automotive equivalent of a Birkenstock.

Finally, because this is CarDomain, I have to mention the cars of the decade when it comes to modding. For domestics it would undoubtedly by the Chevy Caprice. The Donk. Hate ‘em or love ‘em, they helped to define the 00s. And for imports I gotta go with the Nissan 240 (mostly cause they are more plentiful and popular than the AE86 Corolla). Drifting has been a big part of this decade.

So what would you pick as the car (or cars) of the decade?

Monica's 2005 Mustang GT

Prius

Gatorade Donk For Sale

Nissan 240

Comments

kylestlouis
Mar 31, 2008 at 11:34 pm

Personally I would say the M3, Evo, STI, or the new challenger.
All way better than the stang.
And a vespa will get you laid faster than a prius.

Rob
Mar 31, 2008 at 5:04 am

Guys, to clarify–the Caprice and 240 represent two of the most popular cars to mod this decade, with the popularity of high risers and drifting. That’s all I was saying with that.

gabriel ramirez
Mar 30, 2008 at 11:37 pm

ok im sorry but those pumpose asses at NY dont know what theyre talkin bout a CAYANNE as car of the decade phh please what about the new LEXUS IS-F that thing is a beast the new NISSAN SKYLINE GT-R or what about the new CHEVY CAMARO i think that is hotter than the MUSTANG when it comes to old school style we have 2 more years to go in this decade so i think ppl should wait till all these cars come out and everyone can then make a true statement as to who deserves the CROWN

Anonymous
Mar 30, 2008 at 11:26 pm

has to be the mustang! the prius makes me want to puke, the donk and 240 ain’t even from this decade so has to be the stang!!

Baron Von Natschke
Mar 30, 2008 at 8:02 pm

Did someone actually say the Scion XB? What the hell? This is another example of what drugs will do to you, JUST SAY NO!

jason
Mar 30, 2008 at 6:48 pm

hate to argue and bring in one of the last-minute contenders, but look at the Tesla roadster. if no one has heard of it, Go to http://www.jaylenosgarage.com, go under cars, and click on it, watch the video and what not. Its a fully ellectric sports car, made from the design of the lotus elise. goes 220 miles on a 6 hour charge. not the salvation we need to go on long trips with, but definitly a sweet ride for the commuter that travels 200+ miles a week. plus it looks wayyy better than a prius. otherwise, the ford mustang has my vote.

Brett
Mar 30, 2008 at 4:03 pm

Wow, what the hell were they thinking when they made that Toyota Prius, why they even made it look like it was something is beyond me, that’s all I gotta say, but nice ass Mustang!!

Anonymous
Mar 30, 2008 at 7:23 am

Well considering that this decade has witnessed an incredible gas crisis and the only real response to this by the car manufacturers was hybrids, this goes to show that this decade so far hasn’t really impressed me at all. The GT-R is an awesome car, but with gas prices going higher and higher all we have to look forward to is a prius? I mean there’s a reason muscle cars died out in the 70’s. People need to get their heads out of their asses and stop buying SUV’s and Muscle cars. Like any other guy I love HP and going fast but if gas is $4.50 a gallon whats the use? Maybe in the remaining two years a truly electric car will come out and solve the gas crisis, but until then muscle cars are not the answer. And yes Prius drivers do think their shit smells like roses.

Tyler Man
Mar 30, 2008 at 6:55 am

Well, the Mustang looks a hell of a lot better now. Unfortunately, there are many people that say it isn’t really worth it for several reasons, most being that the V6 doesnt have much power, the V8 doesnt feel like 300hp, the ride feels too low, there is too much interior noise… the Prius is worthless, inefficient, ugly, and makes people smug. Donks are just a waste of money, they make the vehicle less safe for everyone. The 240 was discontinued in the late 90s and used a damn TRUCK engine, in fact its the same one I have in my truck RIGHT NOW!!!

GT-R should have it for 00-10 simply because 0-60 in 3.3 seconds with an automatic, with good gas mileage, two turbos, three intercoolers, 480hp, AWD, quiet interior AND Top Gear’s 2007 supercar of the year within WEEKS of its release with a starting price of $70k.

MY WHITE ASS WILL THEY GIVE THE CAYENNE THE CAR OF THE DECADE! THEY LIE ABOUT THE WAR, THEY LIE ABOUT THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION, THEY LIE ABOUT THE CURRENT PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES SO THEY DON’T DESERVE TO SHARE THEIR OPINION ON CARS.

Franki
Mar 30, 2008 at 4:48 am

Considering that the donks are completely retarded and wasteful and the Caprice not even being from the last decade, same as the 240sx, my choice would actually be the 2007 Malibu and the Impalas. I know what you are thinking, what the f*ck, right? WELL…they both have outstanding gas mileage, great ride, roomy, not riddled with useless crap, clean and both are just nice cars. Don’t get me wrong! My FAVORITE VEHICLE for the past decade would be the Chevy Silverado 2500 Heavy Duty 4×4s! THAT is an amazing truck! Even the 1500s are awesome, but I was only going as far as cars in this…so the new Malibus and Impalas get my vote.

Muff_dyvin
Mar 30, 2008 at 4:29 am

Personally id say the 240. the mustang made a statement yea but if you pay attention it also put for in the red on sales. the 240 like in the article it seems like no one else read, the 240 is still plentyfull with plenty of gas milage and mods at hand so i would have to go with 240 and from my opinion dont take it to heart it should only be the big 2 for domestic ford just dont seem to cut it on reliability and how long you can keep it alive. the mustang is all they have to live by

leojmcca
Mar 29, 2008 at 9:07 pm

I’d have to agree, the new retro mustang did make a big statement to this decade and caused the same result as it did back in the 60s…got the other two to bring somthing to the market to compete for our $$$

Tyler
Mar 29, 2008 at 8:31 pm

I agree with guyface. IMO mustangs are the worst cars ever but they did bring back the 60s with the competative muscle cars. but once the new camaro comes out and TES the streets, it will be the best

guyface
Mar 29, 2008 at 6:09 pm

umm… the 240 and the caprice arent even this decade?!

EVO_PWNAGE
Mar 29, 2008 at 2:22 pm

240 fo sho

Jason
Mar 29, 2008 at 12:33 pm

Ford Mustang all the way!!!

95blckfirebird
Mar 29, 2008 at 8:08 am

corvette!

1988montecarloss
Mar 29, 2008 at 5:19 am

03 Ls1 camaro ss

austin
Mar 29, 2008 at 4:22 am

definitly the donk and if not the donk then the mustang rate my car

xlankan
Mar 29, 2008 at 4:12 am

240sx

Tony
Mar 29, 2008 at 3:21 am

Im gonna have to agree with you on the new mustang. it helped bring back muscle cars. with the f bodys dissapearing and only the fords left they turned an already great car into something even better. I know alot of people hate them but they inspired the camaro and challenger to come back out so power to them.

Jesse
Mar 29, 2008 at 2:54 am

im gonna have to go with the prius
with the ridiculously high gas prices and its environmentally friendly figure it is the car of the decade
i dont know how NY Times came up with the cayenne though

Jas
Mar 29, 2008 at 2:13 am

Agreed to every single one,THE DONK’s IS AND ALWAYS WILL BE BEST!

Tyler
Mar 29, 2008 at 2:00 am

Oh now let the comments on that 74 caprice just start rollin now

B
Mar 29, 2008 at 1:42 am

… i would love to make the lexus LS500hL my car of the decade. Specifically the 08 design. Hybrid V12….628hp and close to 600 miles per tank. You can’t argue with the greatness of that, but since its fairly new I would have to say the Evo 8 had a big part for the decade. 275hp rally-inspired AWD sedan for under 30grand. Sign me up for that.

i_luv_dusty
Mar 28, 2008 at 7:44 pm

I would only pick the Prius as Car of the Decade if there was a “marketing” category. Marketing is what sold that car; nothing else did.

Andrew
Mar 28, 2008 at 7:15 pm

scion tC, they’re frakin everywhere.

cknarf
Mar 28, 2008 at 6:19 pm

does the ford tempo count?

GTR
Mar 28, 2008 at 4:25 pm

I don’t know about other cars, but the 2009 GTR better be at the top of that fucking list.

caprices4lyfe
Mar 28, 2008 at 12:58 pm

I would have to say the chrysler 300 they seemed to have just ballooned everywhere, from celebs to blue collar and they’re fairly cheap and easy to customize caprices4lyfe@blogspot.com

caprices4lyfe
Mar 28, 2008 at 12:57 pm

I would have to say the chrysler 300 they seemed to have just ballooned everywhere, from celebs to blue collar and they’re fairly cheap and easy to customize caprices4lyfe@blogspot.com

Tony
Mar 28, 2008 at 8:40 am

Who cares what the times think the car of the decade is, none of them have a clue. You might as well consult good housekeeping

Danny
Mar 28, 2008 at 2:47 am

Also to comment on the Mustangs 25k with 300hp, you can get the new G8 for around 29k with a 6.0 V8 with a bunch more hp plus it’s got full back seats.

One other car I might have to mention is the Cadillac Escalade, it really helped to define this era.

Danny
Mar 28, 2008 at 2:45 am

From what I see around here in Michigan it would have to be a Chrysler, most likely a 300 on account of they had cheap leases on a full sized car and it got people around here all having new cars without problems. Also its been known to be pretty good for customization mostly in the DUB category though.

Also if I had to pick a foreign car it would have to be the Lexus LS460, its the first car to ever park by itself and you can complain about it all you want that is a great achievement in a production car.

FordRulesAll
Mar 28, 2008 at 2:07 am

Any Stang for me Shelby, Or the regular bonestock stang.

Josh
Mar 27, 2008 at 8:09 pm

adam, get a clue man. there have been cars like the xB in japan for years now, it’s nothing new… well, only to the american market.

my car of the decade would have to be the shleby mustang with out a doubt.

Adam
Mar 27, 2008 at 5:32 pm

Scion xB! The xB has to be the most unique vehicle to come to the US in a long time. I love all the exotic cars that will likely grace this list, but as far as what “real” people drive, I vote for the xB.

retroman
Mar 27, 2008 at 5:16 pm

woops!! had a typo. I meant strongest.

retroman
Mar 27, 2008 at 5:15 pm

Definitely the Stang. It wasn’t the first retrostyled car, but I think it was the strangest and really let the masses who wanted a ‘65 GT or Shelby get their wish but with the comfort of everyday drivability.

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