Cars from 'National Lampoon's Vacation' and 'Ferris Bueller's Day Off' at Detroit Auto Show
Five cars that we all know from popular movies, TV and more
These Hollywood attractions aren’t seen at theaters.
Five cars popularized by movie and TV will be featured at the Detroit Auto Show.
While the 10-day event that opens to the public on Saturday, Jan. 11, is known globally for its massive collection of new cars, trucks and SUVs, this year’s event also will include a collection of rare specialty cars.
These original and replica vehicles, made possible in partnership with Hagerty, deliver their own fan base:
1985 Ferrari Modena Spyder California from the 1986 film, “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” the 1986 John Hughes comedy featuring Matthew Broderick as a high school kid who cuts classes and the principal trying to catch him.
My favorite quote from Bueller: “Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”
1998 Volkswagen Beetle from “Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me,” a 1999 film featuring Mike Myers behind the wheel of a time-travel car that took him back to 1969. (The vehicle is on loan from the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles.)
1979 Ford LTD Country Squire known as Griswold’s “Wagon Queen Family Truckster” from “National Lampoon’s Vacation,” a 1983 comedy featuring Chevy Chase, Beverly D’Angelo, Imogene Coca, Randy Quaid, John Candy, Eugene Levy and Christie Brinkley that launched a series of sequels.
The Rosso Corsa red Ferrari 308 G synonymous with the “Magnum P.I.” TV series from 1980 to 1988 starring Tom Selleck. During the eight seasons, three different Ferraris were used. (This, too, is on loan from the Petersen Automotive Museum.)
1982 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am “KITT,” a talking sidekick to crime fighter Michael Knight in “Knight Rider,” played by David Hasselhoff from 1982 to 1986.
(Little-known tidbit: Hasselhoff, now 72, attended Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan, before earning a theater degree from the California Institute of the Arts in Santa Clarita and becoming a global superstar. His beloved roles have included Dr. Snapper Foster in “The Young and the Restless” and L.A. County lifeguard Mitch Buchannon in “Baywatch,” which he produced.)
The 1992 Jeep Wrangler YJ Sahara featured in the original 1993 “Jurassic Park” dinosaur film with Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum and Richard Attenborough. The vehicle and film were so popular that they inspired special packages that Car and Driver magazine said let fans “live out their fantasy.”
Seeing the roles that old cars played in movies at the Detroit Auto Show can change how adults — looking back — feel about pieces of their childhood.
My mother owned an old brown Ford LTD from the same era as the iconic Griswold vehicle when I was in high school in the early 1980s. The vehicle was so ugly that our neighbors in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, demanded that we never park it on the street. They worried that someone might think it belonged to them.
But wait, that’s not all
Classic and muscle cars won’t be overshadowed by their big (and small) screen counterparts.
One of the nation’s top collector car dealerships, Vanguard Motors of Plymouth, Michigan, is bringing a “Detroit Through the Decades” display of Motown cars and trucks to town.
When I covered Autorama years ago, I’ll never forget interviewing teenagers who talked about old cars with a sort of envy — because of their strong cultural presence. In 2018, a 1963 Chevy Impala with 11 miles on the odometer stole the show.
The Detroit Auto Show has decided to offer a mix of offerings, old and new, for visitors, including these classics:
1923 Ford 5-Window Coupe Street Rod “American Graffiti Build”
1949 Cadillac Series 62 Convertible
1958 Chevrolet Impala
1964 Ford Mustang Convertible
1965 Pontiac GTO Convertible
1965 Shelby Cobra Superformance
1967 Ford Mustang Fastback
1970 Chevrolet Camaro
1970 Dodge Charger R/T
1971 Chevrolet K-20 4x4 Pickup
1979 Ford Bronco
2009 Dodge Viper SRT-10 ACR
Sam Klemet, co-executive director of the Detroit Auto Show, told me, “We want something for everyone, but maybe not everything for everyone. Whether it’s a young family or a single guy, this will be a place to go to spend the afternoon and check out cool cars, engage with music and art.”
Karl Zimmermann, chairman of the Detroit Auto Show and owner of George Matick Chevrolet in Redford Township, Michigan, praised the partnerships that created the unusual exhibits designed to appeal “from kids to grandparents and everyone in between.”
One of the most powerful elements of the Detroit Auto Show, year after year, is the storytelling of visitors from all ages and backgrounds who see and react to things that create memories that last a lifetime.
The overall event will spotlight new vehicles from 34 recognized, luxury and exotic brands.
Detroit Auto Show ticket prices, hours
The public event at Huntington Place runs from Saturday, Jan. 11 through Monday, Jan. 20. The annual charity fundraiser will be Friday, Jan. 10 at a cost of $400 per ticket or $700 a pair. General admission tickets cost $20 for adults, $12 for seniors and $10 for kids. Military veterans with identification may attend the show at no cost.
Public hours will be 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day except Jan. 15 and 16 (1 p.m. to 8 p.m.) and Jan. 20 (10 a.m. to 7 p.m.). Tickets are good for one day with a hand stamp that allows visitors to leave and return to the venue.
Editor’s note: Phoebe Wall Howard has covered the Detroit Auto Show since 2017.
PS: As a proud member of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative, a roundup of world-class journalists, I hope you’ll check out the incredible collection of columns that include news, commentary and features.
Were all these old cars made in Detroit? My family had a cherry red Ford LTD. Horrible thing got 6 mpg. Also in Grosse Pointe, but it was stolen from the Henry Ford Hospital parking lot on Thanksgiving day when my mom was with my dad who just had bypass surgery.
What?! No Herbie The Love Bug?! 😜