There is not a person alive who saw the Batman television show as a kid and didn’t want a Bat Mobile. Of course, such a thing would have been hard to come by as it was powered by billions of dollars, a secret engineering division of a megacorp accountable to no one, and magic. Don’t forget the magic. Now that you are a successful adult with a passion for cars, you should revive some of those cars that sparked your imagination as a kid. Don’t let the magic die just because you have real responsibilities.
That car collection you have might now be the subject of an irrevocable or revocable trust. You are in a position where you have to know the difference between the two and make some grown-up decisions that were not a part of your childhood fantasies. Also, not a part of your childhood fantasies is life insurance. Real talk: You love fast cars and you need to occasionally open them up and see what they can do. The autobahn awaits. Also waiting is a professional ready to talk to you about the difference between term life and whole life. The subject of beneficiaries and contingent beneficiaries is also part of the plan. If you don’t have a plan that includes these things, call a professional and get started today. If you do already have that sorted out, pick up those old comic books and DVDs, and let’s go car shopping:
KITT
Do you call yourself a gear head? Where is your KITT from Knight Rider? The heart of the vehicle was a 1982 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am. It goes without mentioning that we’re talking about the 2,000 rather than the 3,000. Don’t even get me started. Wash that terrible sequel from your mind and return to the glory days of David Hasselhoff when everyone wanted to be him. Sure, he got the big contract, but everybody knows that KITT was the star of the show. He was the first supercar that people would have rooted for in a street fight with the BatMobile.
This third-generation Trans Am on which KITT was based would have had a V8 with a four-cylinder carburetor. An optional 305 with cross-fire fuel injection was also available. You can find them retailing today for just under $9,000. You can drive away with one for around $3,000 if you look hard enough. The parts are still available, but you will have to provide your own magic.
Doc Brown’s Time Machine
It didn’t have a name. But it was arguably the most magical car of them all. We are talking about the time machine car built by Doc Brown in Back to the future. The star of the movie was played by Michael J. Fox. But the car of the movie was played by a DeLorean DMC-12. It is one of the most recognized and beloved cars in history. From Motor Authority:
The 1981 DeLorean DMC-12 time machine from “Back the Future” is the 29th car to join the National Historic Vehicle Register. Run by the Hagerty Drivers Foundation in collaboration with the United States Department of the Interior, the aim of the register is to “recognize and document” historically-significant vehicles, and the DeLorean-based time machine certainly has our approval.
There is also an interesting connection to the KITT car besides being born in the early 80s. The maker of the DeLorean used to work for Pontiac. Concept cars for the future are still having trouble keeping up with the real cars of the early 80s.
Baby
We are talking about the Impala with a 502-cubic-inch, big-block V-8 that has an almost supernatural run in the film industry. It was the co-star, or maybe the star of the worldwide blockbuster, Supernatural. The show isn’t that great and the car is not magical. But Dean’s Baby is the Baby of car enthusiasts of all ages in every part of the world. The 15-year hit is the longest-running sci-fi series in history. The car didn’t need magic, just a lot of love. And that is exactly what it has gotten from fans since day one.
It wasn’t the 80s and it wasn’t magic. It was our fascination with very real possibilities embodied in very real vehicles. If the fascination and wonder have gone out of your life, check the back pages to find your next Trans Am, DeLorean, or Impala.