Image: Silverstone Auctions
About This Quiz
Should you have a degree in classic automotive history? Could you walk into any car museum and trick everyone into thinking you're a tour guide? Do you go to car shows and hang around the really obscure models, hoping you can show off your knowledge of automotive obscurata to strangers? You should probably get help, but first take this quiz!
The automotive landscape is littered with quite a few vehicles people consider classics. Admittedly, the term "classic" is subjective, at least to an extent. Most would agree it doesn't apply to cars that have been produced within at least the past two or three decades. But, after that, the opinions about what makes a classic start to diverge. Some people pretty much only think about cars from the 1960s, or American-made models, or luxury vehicles, etc. Usually, these fall in line with the personal preferences of the individual.Â
It's probably safe to say popular old cars would be considered classics by even the most casual fan of vehicles. That could include the Volkswagen Beetle, Ford Thunderbird and Jaguar E-Type, for example. But, there are many rare and exotic classics only the biggest car fans would know. Just how far does your classic automotive smarts stretch? It's time to put them to the test with this quiz!Â
Who's widely credited for the creation of the Ford Mustang?
Elon Musk
Lee Iacocca
As Ford reeled from the Edsel disaster, rising star Lee Iacocca had a revolutionary idea: create a car that was stylish, fast and affordable. That combination proved to be a huge hit with Baby Boomers, and the rest is history.
Henry Ford II
Carrol Shelby
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The Austin Healey 3000 was one of the three cars collectively called what?
the Rat Pack
the Big Healeys
People refer to the Austin-Healey 3000, 100, and 100-6 as the Big Healeys since they are quite a bit larger than the Sprite, which was made later.
the Trinity
the Trident
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Who originally designed the Volkswagen Beetle?
Ferdinand Porsche
Despite plenty of folklore claiming that Hitler designed the Beetle, it was actually Ferdinand Porsche himself who penned the famous look of the car. Hitler did throw his support behind its creation, and of course tried to take credit for the project.
Arnold Schwarzenegger
John Cooper
Adolph Hitler
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What country bought more than half of the Mercedes 280 SLs made?
Germany
Switzerland
United States
Americans really loved the 280 SL, snatching up the majority of the over 23,000 manufactured between 1967 and 1971. It was fun, relatively inexpensive, and was a surefire way to show the neighbors you had "arrived."
Canada
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What car was the AC Cobra based on?
Mazda Miata
MG Midget
Austin-Healey Sprite
AC Ace
Carroll Shelby was eager to establish himself as an automaker, and he approached AC about making a car body that would accept an American V-8. The combination proved to be explosive.
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The Volvo P1800 started out as a convertible, but then morphed into what kind of vehicle?
SUV
sedan
wagon
shooting brake
When it comes to shooting brakes, the P1800 is constantly listed as one of the most sought-after in the world. The final two production years of this model, 1972 and 1973, consisted solely of shooting brakes.
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What was the big change introduced with the Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud II?
a more powerful engine
Rolls-Royce developed a special 6.2-liter V-8 for the Silver Cloud II, which was introduced in 1959. While it bumped the car's top speed by a decent amount, the main performance gains were peak torque and acceleration.
an in-cabin refrigerator
a built-in garage door opener
an in-cabin phone
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Which of the following design additions did the Jaguar E-Type not have?
monocoque construction
disc brakes
rack-and-pinion steering
carbon fiber body panels
Jaguar really went all-out with the E-Type, not only on the absolutely gorgeous design, but also for the car's engineering. As a result, it could do 0-60 in under 7 seconds and hit 150 mph, which were impressive feats back then.
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What did AMC repeatedly call the Pacer in marketing materials?
a mini Sherman tank
a rally racer for every day
the first wide small car
Even though the Pacer was exceptionally short, its width matched those of domestic full-size cars in the 1970s. That design added to its stability and rather unique looks.
a grand tourer for the common man
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Where did Pontiac get the name for the GTO Judge?
the designer's father-in-law
a comedy routine
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In TV was a popular program back in the day, and it featured a recurring routine called Here Come de Judge. The Pontiac GTO Judge was stripped down as a way to compete with the low-cost Plymouth Road Runner.
a comic book
a type of gun
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What record did the Triumph TR6 hold, that was subsequently overturned by the TR7?
fastest convertible in the world
the best-selling TR model
From 1968 to 1976, Triumph Motor Company made almost 92,000 TR6s, far surpassing the production figures for previous models in the TR range. The vast majority of those cars were exported to other countries.
darkest green paint available
greatest percentage of the interior covered with leather
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Where did the Volkswagen Karmann Ghia get its name?
a famous German monarch
the head of the Ottoman Empire
a city that was located near Istanbul
its designer and builder
Volkswagen recruited Italian coachbuilder Ghia to design this 2+2, while German coachbuilder Karmann constructed each one by hand, making the vehicle a true masterpiece.
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What was the inspiration for the Buick Riviera's name?
a town in Illinois
a casino in Vegas
the French Riviera
Riviera is a Latin word that means "coastline." In France, it's a famous tourist destination known for glitzy yet sophisticated fun on the coast, something you normally wouldn't associate with a Buick.
the original GM factory
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What design innovation on the Jaguar Mark 2 boosted safety, versus the Mark 1?
larger windows
Above the waistline, Jaguar completely revised the Mark 2, adding a wider windshield and making the A-pillars more slender. These changes helped drivers see better than before.
oversized headlights
seatbelts
airbags
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Which of the following was not an official name used for the Volkswagen Type 2?
Bus
Even though you might have heard people talk about the VW Bus or the VW Camper, those names were never officially used by Volkswagen.
Kombi
Transporter
Microbus
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What design quality did the AMC AMX share with the first-generation Ford Thunderbird?
quad headlights
large tail fins
American-made two-seater with a steel body
Also making the AMX unique was the short wheelbase, which at the time was unusual among American-made cars, particularly a muscle car.
a super low drag coefficient
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What first did the Porsche 356 famously achieve?
first production Porsche
Even though Ferdinand Porsche had been in the automotive business for a while, it wasn't until 1948 that he was able to finally put his name on one of his creations, making the 356 the first branded Porsche vehicle.
first six-speed manual transmission
first convertible Porsche
first German car to be offered in red
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What kind of construction did the MG MGB use?
body-on-frame
unibody
reverse
monocoque
The MGA and T-types from MG all had a body-on-frame construction, making the MGB a standout. The lighter and stronger construction boosted performance considerably.
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What series did Ford make the Mustang Boss 302 for?
NASCAR Sprint Cup
Indycar
Trans Am
The Boss name has only been used a few times in the Mustang's history, and it commands great respect among fans of the pony car.
Rallycross Global
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What version of the Austin-Healey Sprite is referred to as a Spridget?
the convertible
MG Midget
Badge engineering has been around for a while, and the Mk. II Sprite was converted to an MG Midget by this simple tactic, which is where the nickname originates.
the roadster
the limo
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What was the most obvious change with the 1956 Chevrolet Corvette?
a new body
Not only was the sports car wearing different skin, it also gained a better top with optional power assist, glass side windows and an optional hardtop, if you didn't like the wind.
the wheels
quad headlights
large rear fins
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Where did Aston Martin get the name of the DB4?
Dublin
the owner of the company
Sir David Brown was the owner of Aston Martin from 1947 to 1972, which covered the launch of the DB series and the first several versions of it.
Dunford Berg
Deli Bird
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What was different about the Walter Wolf Lamborghini Countach?
a half inch lower ride height
a larger rear spoiler
the engine
Walter Wolf, a rich Canadian who owned the Wolf F1 Racing team, convinced Lamborghini to outfit his personal Countach with the 5.0-liter engine used in the Countach LP500 prototype.
a more prominent chin spoiler
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What material is the Morgan +4 frame made of?
ash
Some people have mistakenly been told that Morgan used wood to make the chassis of some cars, which is absurd. Instead, it used ash for the frame, which is almost as absurd.
aluminum
wax
carbon
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If you pushed the horn on the Plymouth Road Runner, what sound came out?
a high-pitch squeal
the Coyote's laugh
a cackle
the cartoon Road Runner's beep beep
Plymouth partnered with Warner Brothers on the Road Runner, not only borrowing the cartoon bird's signature sound, but also using its as spokes-bird in commercials.
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What addition made the 1970 Dodge Challenger T/A particularly fast?
a much larger engine
turbocharging
a nitrous fogger
three two-barrel Holley carbs
To keep with SCCA competition rules, Dodge created the Challenger T/A, but decided to make it a real street-legal beast by adding the Holley two-barrel carbs, called the Six Pack, and an Edelbrock aluminum intake manifold.
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The Cosmo was the first Mazda vehicle to use what technology?
air conditioning
power windows
a rotary engine
You might mistakenly think Mazda was always about Wankels, but it didn't use one in a car until the 1967 Cosmo, which became the brand's halo car.
an 8-track player
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What world record did the 1968 Mercedes-Benz 300SEL 6.3 set?
fastest quarter-mile trap speed
fastest 4-door car in the world
Instead of using a six-cylinder engine like in the 300SEL, Mercedes-Benz decided to create a monster by dropping the 6.3-liter V-8 from its 600 limo into the smaller car. The result was something that could keep up with sports cars.
quickest quarter mile time
heaviest production car
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What was the Studebaker Avanti's body made of?
aluminum
fiberglass
Depending on how you look at it, the Avanti was either a brilliant accident or a monumental disaster, and was the last big effort by the dying automaker.
carbon fiber
steel
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What kind of engine was the DeLorean DMC-12 originally supposed to have?
Hemi V-8
Wankel
As fate would have it, the DMC-12 never got the mid-mounted Wankel rotary engine that was originally supposed to power it, thanks to the demise of Comotor, which was to be the supplier. Instead, a PRV V-6 was used.
Coyote V-8
Cleveland V-8
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What kind of seats does a Fiat Jolly have?
leather
wicker
The Jolly was just a Fiat 500 that was been modified with the wicker seats and a fringe top. Their purpose was to provide a car to be loaded on yachts and driven off nearby docks.
suede
vinyl
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Where did the Lamborghini Miura get its name from?
a city south of Turin
a Spanish fighting bull breeder
Like so many other Lamborghini models, the Miura received its name from the Spanish bullfighting scene, a trend that lives on today.
an island in the Mediterranean
Ferruccio's daughter
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What was the internal code for the Porsche 911s made from 1995 to 1998?
993
The last of the air-cooled 911s, this generation has become highly sought after by enthusiasts, collectors and investors for that very fact.
996
997
998
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What was the main aim Citroen had when it designed the 2CV?
to win the 24 Hours at Le Mans
to take over the world
to get people to stop using horses and carts
This post-war French vehicle launched in 1948 and was budget-priced as a way to finally get many farmers and others in rural parts of the country to stop using horses and carts.
to push all Fords out of the country
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When the Cadillac Eldorado debuted, which one of the following wasn't a fellow top-of-the-line convertible from the other GM lines?
Buick Roadmaster Skylark
Chevrolet Bel Air
In 1953, the Cadillac Eldorado launched to great fanfare. The fact it was able to last for ten production generations, finally meeting its end in 2002, is nothing short of monumental.
Chevrolet Corvette
Oldsmobile 98 Fiesta
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You Got:
/35
Silverstone Auctions