Dream Cars

1967 Shelby Cobra 500

If you read this blog regularly, you know I like cars. I really do. I'm not sure what the appeal is to me (and a lot of people) about cars. They are amazing engineered machines and some are fun to drive. Some of them even sound good.

Jay Leno is a car guy. He owns 181 cars (and 160 motorcycles). I'm envious of his ability to do that. There are so many great cars that have been made over the past century.

Like any piston head, I have cars I dream about owning. Here's some of mine:

2015 Ferrari 458 Italia. This was the last naturally aspirated (no turbos*) Ferrari sports car. And 2015 was the last year they were made. After that, Ferrari started putting turbos in their sports cars and shrinking engine sizes to meet EU and US carbon emissions regulations. In Ferrari red, please. Which is actually rosso corsa or "race red."

2024 Ferrari 812 Superfast. This is a "grand tourer," not a sports car. But it has a naturally aspirated V12 engine that makes 789 horsepower. I'd like this car in yellow, or "Giallo Modena" in Ferrari speak.

1967 Ford Mustang Shelby Cobra 500. Not only are these beautiful cars, but they have around 650 horsepower. A little scary with 1967 suspension technology. In blue, please, with a white stripe.

2025 Chevrolet Corvette Z06. An amazing sports car packing 670 horsepower out of its naturally aspirated V8 that sits behind the driver. With huge tires and an amazing suspension, it's designed for racetrack duty. In "Accelerate Yellow Metallic," please. Or maybe "Hysteria Purple Metallic" (which is a new color this year).

2024 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS. This is the last year for the Cayman before it goes all electric. (Maybe. Porsche might be backing off of that.) This model sports 493 horsepower in its mid-engine design. A true old-fashioned sports car that is small with go-cart like handling and lots of power. Either "Guards Red" or "Racing Yellow" are my color choices. (Or, for $14,750 you expand the colors you want so maybe "Acid Green.") Used ones are selling for more than MSRP of new ones.

2024 Ram 1500 TRX. A pickup truck with a 702 horsepower supercharged* HEMI V8. That was the last year it was be offered with the HEMI. It's fast 0-60 (especially for a truck) but its top speed is limited by it's weight and tires. Made for off-road use, it would be fun to barrel through some muddy trails. In "Flame Red" and "Crystal Black" please (all come in two colors).

1967 Shelby Cobra. A tiny sports car from England (the AC Cobra) with a Ford V8. Built by Carroll Shelby, original models today sell for over $1 million. Replicas can, depending on the quality, go for six figures. A very scary car with old-fashioned suspension. But oh so pretty. Blue with a white stripe.

Honorable mention: 2024 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing. A sports sedan with supercharged V8 engine and is available with a manual transmission. I'm not really picky about the color (believe it or not).

And now Ferrari has a new car, the 2025 12Cilindri two seater. It has a 12 cylinder engine and is beautiful. It is the replacement for the 812 Superfast. I think I still want the Superfast more. Ferrari has announced it will make V-12s until regulations make it impossible.

Do you have any cars you dream about owning? Let me know in the comments below.

*Turbos and superchargers pump air into the cylinder to give it more oxygen to burn, thus increasing horsepower. They work like a bellows in a blacksmith shop, making the fire burn hotter.  In a car engine's cylinder, that means more energy thus more horsepower.

Turbos use exhaust gasses to spin. Thus you often get "turbo lag" where the exhaust pressure has to build up. Somehow, automakers have found ways to minimize that. 

Superchargers are belt driven and don't have "turbo lag." You can hear them whine under the hood as they spin up. The faster the engine goes, the more pressure they put into the pistons.