If I asked a group of designers, or engineers, or marketers, to name the 12 Most Significant Cars in automobile history, each group would likely provide very different answers. But meat-eating Harley Morenstein, the guy behind Epic Meal Time, just might be objective enough to provide a list that addresses things every group could probably agree on, at least in part. (He's backed up here by Car & Driver editors, which doesn't hurt.)
The car nuts among you will still have issues with at least a few of these, but before watching, ask yourself: What car in auto design history would you estimate had 98% useable interior space? Can you name a car category that completely displaced an older, entrenched form factor within a matter of years? Which car defined the modern supercar? What was Europe's Model T?
The answers to these and more are in this comprehensive video, that clocks in at nearly 15 minutes yet moves briskly enough to be compelling. I should also point out that this list isn't about the best cars, nor the ones with the most positive impact; they specifically use the term "significant," meaning particular vehicles that simply had influence—for better or worse. One of the cars in the standings, for instance, can have a lot of the blame for getting America hooked on SUVs laid squarely at its tires; another car on the list went in the opposite environmental direction, making hybrids cool.
Here it is, and we'll be curious to see which you do and don't agree with—particularly if you work in the auto design field.
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