As car enthusiasts, we always enjoy an opportunity to discover the strengths, weaknesses, quirks, and characters of car brands and models we haven’t experienced before. Who among us would turn down the chance to drive a 700-horsepower super pickup truck from Ford, partake of the EV revolution in a Tesla, or – if you don’t mind dead brands – bask in the innovation and weirdness of Saturn and Saab?
Some say variety is the spice of life, and with my have-driven list stretching across more than 30 brands, I certainly agree.
I may have missed a few, but the lineup of brands I’ve had seat-time in includes:
Acura
Audi
Bollinger
Blue Bird
BMW
Buick
Cadillac
Chevrolet
Chrysler
Dodge
Ford
Geo
GMC
Honda
International
Jeep
Kia
Lexus
Mazda
Mercedes-Benz
Mitsubishi
Nissan
Nova Bus
Oldsmobile
Pontiac
Plymouth
Saturn
Scion
Smart
Subaru
Suzuki
Toyota
Volkswagen
One of my life’s missions is to experience as many vehicles as possible and writing for this wonderful site has opened so many doors to doing that. I mean, the list doesn’t include motorcycles, boats, planes, or locomotives! Still, I have a long way to go. You’ll note that I’ve never driven a Saab before or any truly obscure car brand. I also don’t have a ton of experience driving supercars and no experience driving any Jeep Wrangler. Yep, I’ve buried Smarts and minivans in mud and have gotten massive airtime in a Jeep Renegade on a dirt track, but I’ve never driven Jeep’s famed Wrangler. Thanks to David, my first Jeep drive was in a pristine XJ.
It’s hard to pick a favorite vehicle from that list because I’m a firm believer that every car is awesome in its own way. With that said, if I were going to throw down money on a new vehicle right now, I would buy a Ford F-150 FP700 and laugh all the way into a jail cell.
Here’s where I turn the microphone to you. Tell us about all the different car brands you’ve experienced, whether briefly or long-term. Which impressed you most – and least? Which brands seemed best able to maintain the brand’s “feel” across different models? Which brands have you driven most? Which brands do you hope to add to your list? Tell us all about it!
Im sorry im too busy looking at the drive in movie theatre
Um, as stands, I’ve only ever driven Citroens:
Citroen DS3 (driving instructor’s car)
Citroen Saxo (My mum’s car)
Citroen BX19 GTi (my car)
Technically, I have also driven a Peugeot e-5008, however that was only briefly maneuvering it round a car park and into a film studio, so that doesn’t really count.
What a cool exercise, thanks for posting this question!
Company
Buick Regal, silver, pos, briefly
Borrowed
Old Benz diesel, brown
Jeep CJ-7, brown, loved!
Rentals
A lot of U-Hauls
A few Penske trucks
Driven
1923 Ford Model T Roadster, red, my dad built this. Brakes were sketchy at the time but it was fast
Late 80s Porsche 944, red, hit a curb doing donuts in a culdesac
86 Mustang convertible, silver. HS gf’s ride. Amazing car 😉
16 Honda Accord Silver, totaled it lol
18 Honda CR-V, blue
19 Honda Passport, white
16 Jeep Wrangler Sport S, rhino
Owned
1st truck: 62 Chevy shortbed stepside, black 3 on the tree. This was in 82…
77 Toyota pickup, olive green
86 Mazda B2000 pickup, white, loved this little truck the most
87 Jeep Wrangler, dark blue
95 Jeep Wrangler Sahara, moss green
88 Jeep Wrangler Laredo, maroon
03 Ford F150 FX4, silver/gray
07 Ford F150 King Ranch, white
97 Jeep Wrangler Sport, moss green
03 Ford F150 Lariat, white
03 Harley Davidson V-Rod, silver/black
08 Harley Davidson DynaGlide, silver
07 Jeep Sahara, silver
08 Jeep Sahara, maroon, death wobble
16 Jeep Sport S, white
09 Ford F150, silver
22 Jeep Gladiator Sport S Custom, tan, current rig
22 Honda Navi, red, current m/c
BMX
20″ JMC, Robinson, GHP, Race Inc., Cook Bros., SE Racing: PK Ripper, Quadangle
24″ Cruisers: GHP, Free Agent, SE Racing Quadangle, GT
29″ SE Racing Big Ripper
I think I have driven 15 brands of on road vehicles, counting International and Peterbilt trucks and 13 brands of car.
Surprisingly below average around here. I have 3 dead brands: International, Mercury, and Saturn.
Should I add AMC? I have never driven an AMC branded car, but I have driven several vehicles branded AMC Jeep with an AMC logo on them. Let’s make the count 16.
Oldsmobile
Honda
Volvo
Plymouth
Mazda
Toyota
Ford
Mitsubishi
Mercury
Mini
Hyundai
Saturn
Nissan
Pontiac
Now that’s stuff owned by my family
If you add rental cars:
Chrysler
Dodge
Kia
Cadillac
Buick
I’ve probably missed a couple there, just not memorable
I guess I’m unusual here having only driven 5:
Buick
Chevorlet
Dodge
Ford
Jeep
And the GMT 800 Tahoe was only because I was the DD, alot.
Datsun
Cadillac
Toyota
Jeep
Ramcharger!
Lincoln
Chevrolet
Jaguar
Volkswagen
Buick
Oldsmobile
Mazda
Porsche
Audi
Ford
BMW
Fiat
Peugeot
Euro Ford Mondeo
Citroen
Would like to drives:
A Ferrari. Would want it to be a manual, though.
A real Citroen like an SM or CX or XM not the brand new van I rented in Italy that had less than 18km on it when it lunched the diesel engine on a narrow mountain road near Camogli.
First gen Renault Espace.
Series 1 Lotus Esprit.
Lancia Fulvia.
1967 Buick Riviera.
Maserati Bora.
Lamborghini Urraco.
GM. . .Chevy, GMC, Buick, Olds, Pontiac, Geo
Ford and Mecury
Dodge, Jeep. . .maybe plymouth (neon of some sort)
International
Japanese. . . Nissan, Toyota, Mazda
Germans. . .Mercedes
16. . .I need to broaden my horizons.
Let’s see…
Chevrolet (owned many, currently own)
Buick (owned)
GMC (currently own)
Oldsmobile (owned)
Pontiac
Cadillac (owned)
Saturn (owned)
Saab (owned)
Opel
Vauxhall (rented in UK)
Ford (owned many)
Mercury
Lincoln
Volvo
Chrysler (owned a few, currently own)
Dodge (owned many)
Plymouth (owned many)
International Harvester
Studebaker
Excalibur (only about 100 feet, but I’m counting it)
Peterbilt (about a mile, no trailer)
AMC
Jeep (what I learned to drive in)
Eagle
Renault (rented in Ireland)
Peugeot
VW (owned a couple)
Audi (family owned many)
Porsche
Fiat
Alfa Romeo
BMW (owned)
Mercedes-Benz
MG (currently own)
Austin-Healey
Triumph
Jaguar
Morris
Austin
Toyota (owned a few)
Lexus
Scion
Nissan (owned a couple)
Datsun (owned)
Honda (owned)
Acura (owned)
Infiniti (owned)
Mitsubishi (including Fuso box trucks)
Mazda (owned many)
Isuzu (including FTR and NPR box trucks)
Hyundai
Kia
Subaru
Daihatsu
Suzuki (rented in Barbados)
Daewoo
Dolphin RV (Toyota-based)
Winnebago RV (Dodge-based)
Fireball RV (Dodge-based)
And I once got a ride in a DeLorean, but the owner wouldn’t let me drive.
Owned (Everything past ’93 is either me or my wife):
’77 Pontiac Catalina
’82 Celica GT
’90 Pontiac Sunbird
’95 Dodge Avenger
’97 Ford Explorer
’99 Jeep Wrangler
’05 Volvo C70
’89 BMW 525i
’08 Toyota FJ Cruiser
’13 Miata
’10 Toyota FJ Cruiser
’14 Honda Accord
’16 Honda Accord
’17 Fiat 124 Abarth
’19 Jeep Wrangler
’21 Ford Mustang
’22 Ford Bronco Sport
Cars and trucks, 17 that I can recall:
Audi, BMW, Buick, Citroën, Chevrolet, Ford, Honda, Kenworth, Kia, Landrover, Mazda, Nissan, Oldsmobile, Saturn, Scion, Toyota, Volkswagen, and Volvo
Motorcycles 9:
BMW, CanAm, Harley-Davidson, Honda, Kawasaki, Moto-Guzzi, Royal Enfield, Suzuki, and Yamaha
Heavy Equipment:12:
Benford, Bobcat, Case, Caterpillar, Ford, Ingersoll-Rand, JLG, Komatsu, Kubota, Pettibone, Takeuchi, and Terramite.
I have driven all sorts of stuff, no exotics but a few oddballs like a 2 CV.
Cars owned: Buick, Mitsubishi, Mercury, Chevrolet, Pontiac, Hyundai, Lincoln; Motorcycles: Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki, Suzuki, Buell
Cars driven: Olds, Saturn, Cadillac, Ford, Dodge, Chrysler, Plymouth, Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Kia; International single and tandem axle trucks, Isuzu cabover trucks, Zamboni ice resurfacer
27 total, I feel like that’s pretty good.
O_O
Numbers are hard, but you can always send more obscure microcars my way.
This will date back to my years working at a garage in the 80’s so I’ll just do a simple list
In all of that, the one vehicle that stands out is a customer-owned 1980 BMW 318i. Admittedly, I drove it when I was 18, but it was a standout – superbly balanced, smooth power, perfect transmission/shift/clutch, everything driver-related was spot on. I’m sure there are better BMWs both before and since, but almost 40 years later, I remember that one very well.
Based on the recent article of BMWs owned by the autopian staff, I haven’t drove or own one, yet…
Mercedes, hardly fair for an auto journalist counting models and brands.
It was Matt’s idea. We wanted to do something more fun and having y’all list brands and models would have been quite the undertaking for some of you. I’ve owned enough motorcycles alone that I have to look up a list on my computer to remember what I’ve owned.
I get it I really can’t remember most vehicles I rode under 14.
So my memory
1. Ford Fairlane 500
2. Buick Roadmaster
3. Chevy Chevelle
4. Dodge pickup
5 . Chevy Silverado
6. Dodge Dart
7. Plymouth Valiant
8. Chevy imark
9. Honda Civic DX
10. AMC Javelin
11. VW Beetle Baja
12. Buick hatchback
13. Honda CVCC
14. HONDA Hatchback
15. Opel 2 seater
16. Chevy Monte Carlo
17. Triumph Spitfire
18. Jensen Healey
19. Buick Arenal
20 cadilac El Dorado
21.3 Cadilac Sedans
22. Ford Maverick
23. VW Bus
24. Fiat Spider
25. Isuzu Amigo
26. Isuzu Vehicross
27. Toyota Camry
28. Dodge Daytona
29. Chevy Cavalier
30. Dodge Shadow
31. Ford E350SD
32. P35
33. CHEVY 2500
34. CHEVY VEGA
35. PORSCHE 928
36. PORSCHE BOXSTER
37. BARRACUDA
38. BMY 318
JUST TIRED OF LISTING
Let’s see…
Owned (chronological order): BMW (77 530i), Dodge (78 D100), Subaru (82 wagon), Honda x3 (83 prelude, 85 civic, 96 Del Sol), Chevrolet (89/90 Corsica), Oldsmobile (73 Delta 88 Royale), Ford (01 Focus), Dodge (95? intrepid), Chev (91 caprice), Ford (97?Taurus), Honda (2010 Odyssey), Chev (03 Suburban), Chev (05 Suburban), Honda (02 CRV), Jeep (2000 Cherokee), Jeep (98 Wrangler), so…9 different makes.
Driven: Volvo, Porsche, Buick, Toyota, Chrysler, Pontiac, Cadillac, Hyundai, Kia, skoda, VW, Audi, International, Lincoln, Mercury, something from Amsterdam to Terneuzen?, GMC, Mack, so…18.
First guess was 30, so I shoulda just written ‘30’…
Including bikes it’s over 40…Ariel, Maico, Beta, Suzuki, Kawasaki, Yamaha…
Owned – Cars Motorcycles
71 Ford Torino 86 Honda Gold Wing
74 Chevy Nova 04 Aprilia Caponord
77 Honda Accord 04 Aprilia Futura
82 Audi Coupe
86 Nissan Pulsar SE
82 VW Westfalia
78 Ford LTD
85 Plymouth Caravelle
89 Plymouth Acclaim
98 Acura EL
99 F150
03 Mini Cooper
03 PT Cruiser Turbo
07 Chevy Avalanche
06 Ford Five Hundred
07 VW Jetta
08 VW Passat wagon
14 Lincoln MKT
16 Ford CMax
16 Ford Taurus SHO
18 Honda Clarity PHEV
71 Cadillac Coupe deVille
01 BMW M3 convertible
23 Ford Maverick
23 Volvo S60 Recharge
Impressive listing of vehicles; how are you liking the S60 Recharge?
Love it. I haven’t put gas in it since February, and the HP/torques are intoxicating. Probably the most comfortable seats I’ve been in.
The only things I don’t love are a general lack of storage space in the console, as it’s taken up by the battery, and the drive mode is two screens deep instead of what should be a button/wheel, so you can go full power mode easily.
Depending on how loosely you’ll allow “driven,” I’ve driven basically everything on the market from about 2005-2015, excepting exotics. I did the photos for dealer used car ads for a couple years, which usually involved moving the car to a specific shooting location. If we’re restricting it to on-road time, it’s still over 30, although I’m sure I’m forgetting something.
Also, if you’re including heavy trucks Mercedes, I’d think motorcycles count as well, which would have to bring your number up a bit (likewise, it’d bring my number up closer to 40).
I worked at a car auction for a few months a decade ago. So probably every brand available in Canada between the early 1990s and 2013 approximately. Even did a couple of “exotic” auctions that included the fancy stuff. Add in working in West Africa for 5 years to capture the major French brands as well as Great Wall. And Kenworth and Freightliner. Probably 60+ brands?
I have no idea, with rental cars and designated driving for coworkers who can’t handle their liquor, who keeps track? Most of the ones in those categories have made little to no impression on me
Owned: Honda, Toyota, Daihatsu (twice), Subaru, Suzuki, Lexus
Driven: FSO, Fiat, BMW, Range Rover, Ford, Kia, Hyundai, VW, Audi, Seat, Skoda, Nissan, Opel, Chrysler, Saab, Mercedes, Mini, Alfa Romeo, Volvo, Mazda and that’s pretty much all I can remember from a top of my head.
By my count, I’ve had wheel time in vehicles from 26 different brands (27 if you count Datsun and Nissan separately.)
Not as many as probably most of the people here but I think I can name them all:
Owned: Toyota, Mazda, Subaru, Nissan, Ford
Driven: Honda, Suzuki, Chevy, Pontiac, Lincoln, Mercury, Fiat, Ferrari, BYD, Lexus, BMW, Volvo
In 40+ years of driving, there are a few that stick out to me.
The Chevy Impala- 8th generation for being able to cruise 4 people with all their large suitcases in the trunk with no issues going 80+, no pogoing, 73 degrees in the dead of summer to NYC. A real highway cruiser with the sense of being good at this task above all.
The Porsche 911 GTS for a car that felt like it was the best dance partner that you ever had.
The Volvo S60 R-Design with the Polestar package for a sleeper that would pull like a freight train with the supercharger, then the turbo charger took over to hit to the limiter.
A 1970’s Ford tow truck with a granny gear that would get that idiot who stuffed their car down the side of a hill with no issues.
A Chrysler Sebring (2000 to 2003 second generation) for proving what a miserable car can be made when one desires to make no concessions for anything of joy (crappy seats, crappy engine, an interior that Marquis De Sade would run from as being too much punishment from every angle).