Carrentals’ best cars of all time

It’s a debate that will rage on for as long as the car still exists. What are the best cars of all time? You’ve read all the other lists, now read ours. This is Carrentals’ version of the best cars of all time and it shuns the norm, because we’ve got 16 cars on our list.

Sixteen: Nissan Skyline
Ever watched The Fast and The Furious? Nope. Well, in it there’s the wonderful Nissan Skyline, loved by engineers and chavs the world over. Never officially imported into the UK, this machine, created nearly 20 years ago was light years ahead of its time in terms of technology. Featuring all wheel drive and, with the later models, 600bhp, and not costing too much, this is a fanboy’s dream.

Just look at it – it reeks of Chav! But, what a car….

Fifteen: Jaguar XJ220
A famous beast, but flawed in so many, many ways. This yacht of supercars was at one stage, the fastest production car on earth, capable of 220mph. But it was flawed from the start, with a hefty V12 engine replaced with a V6 and the much touted 4WD scrapped. People who bought it tried to sue Jaguar. Oh yes, that’s a success. It was expensive as well, and sounded like a Nova with a big bore exhaust. On the list because of its speed, but it could’ve been oh so better.

Flawed but brilliant. Sort of like Kerry Katona

Fourteen: Ford GT40
Named so because its overall height was just 40 inches (I’d like to see it get down Owlsmoor Road with all its speed humps then), this car completely turned racing on its head in the mid 1960s and won Le Mans four times in a row. This car also spawned the road going Ford GT, which is also a mighty fine car, for that legacy, we salute you.

The most desirable Ford of all time, the GT40

Thirteen: Ferrari Enzo
A car so good, it was named after the company’s founder. This shows you how good they thought the cars are. Probably one of the most striking cars ever built, just 399 were made. It has an estimated top speed of 230mph and any schoolboy (young or old) could spot it out from a car park of Testarossas.

The Enzo. Enough said.

Twelve: Toyota Prius
A hybrid car that everyone knows about. For that sentence alone, it should be in the list. Cheap (sort of), economical (despite what Top Gear says) and reliable (kinda) the Prius is the king of the Hybrids, showing everyone that alternative fuels are not just the reserve of freaky hippies and movie stars.

Looks like a geography teacher though, doesn’t it?

Eleven: Model T Ford
This is what started it all. First produced exactly 100 years ago, this was the first car that any Tom, Dick or Harry could buy. And they did. It wasn’t that good, but it started the world’s love affair with cars that even after all this time, hasn’t finished. It also inspired a Japanese engineer, Soichiro Honda to start building bikes and cars…that’s good enough in my mind anyway.

Loathed by environmentalists for starting it all. This couldn’t be more important

Ten: TVR Tuscan
Yes, we know it has dubious reliability, and we know that the company seems to always be in crisis. But, it has up to 400bhp, and is probably one of the most beautiful cars ever made. On that merit only, it makes our top ten.

TVR: always failing, always making me drool.

Nine: AC Cobra
A proper muscle car. British built in the 1960s, this beast is powered by a massive V8 engine and took on Le Mans. You can still get the car as well, and put a Jaguar engine in it, which, if you can afford it, is definitely the way to go!

A car that looks like it can kick my ass

Eight: Jaguar E-Type
Is there anything more British than a Jaguar E-Type? Possible the car next on our list, but the Jaguar E-Type is timeless. When this car was released, Enzo Ferrari said it was the most beautiful car ever made. With The Big E amongst its fans, it couldn’t fail. And it didn’t. A rich motorsport history and a legend about the M1, this is surely one of the greatest ever cars.

Mr Ferrari said it was the most beautiful car ever made…

Seven: Aston Martin DB9
Hands up who wants to be James Bond? Anyone not get their hand up? Yes, James Bond’s car and it’s a beauty. With a design that makes men want to sell their houses and wives to buy the car (I don’t mind! I’ll sleep in it!) It’s such a lovely machine that it was classed by Jeremy Clarkson as “motoring perfection.” That’s the only reason it’s not higher in our list.

DB9. Motoring perfection

Six: Bugatti Veyron
Only at number 6??!  What are we playing at? Well, it may be faster than an FIA fine against Lewis Hamilton, but it’s too new to be classed as one of the greatest ever. Surely the greatest piece of automotive engineering that is and probably ever will be; it needs to be around for another 10 years to become a true legend.

How much to insure? The W16 will certainly need a lot of spark plugs!

Five: Ferrari 250 GTO
What top 10 list would not be complete without a Ferrari? And we’re talking about one of the absolute best. A V12, 3 Litre engine and when it was released in the early 1960s, the applicants had to be approved personally by Enzo Ferrari himself. Designed for racing, this machine grew more and more valuable as the years passed. The highest price a GTO has been sold at an auction was $13.3M in 1989. It is, also, a beautiful car.

Why are those people looking the other way!??!?

Four: Subaru Impreza
A rice burner ahead of the GTO and Bugatti Veyron – have we gone mad? Perhaps. But there are few cars that have changed the landscape like the Subrau Impreza. Immortalised by the late, great Colin McRae in the UK, everyone wanted a blue Impreza. The people who were lucky enough to own one or drive one then realised that they never wanted anything else. With 4WD and a turbo-charged engine, it was a dream and some of the tuned machines hit 170mph + What more did people want?

Check it out – what’s there not to like?

Three: McLaren F1
Hands up who doesn’t know the top speed of the McLaren F1? Of course – you all do. When it was released, it stood out amongst all the other supercars like a M5 at a Robin Reliant convention. Designed by 1980s F1 god Gordon Murray and powered by a BMW engine it was an instant hit and holds the honour of being the only car to win Le Mans on its debut. I really, really want one.

Now we’re getting into the realms of fantasy. Not even Lewis Hamilton has one of these.

Two: Lancia Stratos
Another complete legend. Imagine 560 bhp with no traction control or driving aides. Got that in your head? Good. Now imagine it on dirt, snow or gravel. Then you’re talking about the absolutely amazing reputation this had. But it was quick enough to take three world championship wins in the World Rally Championship in the mid seventies. Only 492 were ever made. It’s rarity and its legendary status puts it in at number 2.

A Ferrari rally car. Awesome.

And number 1………??

Well, that’s up to you to decide. Comment on the below and we will decide in a week what’s the best car – the debate is raging here at Carrentals – what do you all think?