We’re all car guys here at Leftlane, and that means that we spend an inordinately large amount of time thinking about cars, staring at cars and, of course, dreaming about cars.
Luckily, we get to share our passion with you every day, but that’s hardly enough for this crew. The downside to our overactive imaginations is that, at the end of the day, we don’t go home to a garage the size and scale of Jay Leno’s.
Still, we like to dream. Each editor was asked to put together a list of five dream cars that are currently in production. We restricted ourselves to cars available in the United States and we tried to stay somewhat practical; a garage full of supercars sounds fun, but what good is a Lamborghini Aventador at the hardware store?
We hope our dream garages give you a little insight into our enthusiasm. What cars would be in your top five dream garage? Feel free to share in the comments below.
Andrew Ganz, Senior Editor
Ram 1500 Laramie Longhorn, Dodge Challenger SRT8, Mazda MX-5 Miata, Range Rover Sport Supercharged, Jaguar XFR
To appeal to my pragmatic nature, I’ll start with a Ram 1500 Laramie Longhorn. Its interior decor edges just the wrong way into tacky, but I’m smitten by its reasonable hauling capabilities, its smooth ride and, of course, its Hemi V8. That Hemi also motivated me to select the Dodge Challenger SRT8, a model which has been on the market since 2008 but still grabs my attention every time I see one. While the Challenger is a performance brute, the Mazda MX-5 Miata is just the opposite. The old maxim that it’s more fun to drive a slow car fast is so true here (although the Miata’s not that slow) and it’s cheap enough that I wouldn’t worry about thrashing it on a race course. At the end of the day, all I want is a little comfort and luxury, and nobody coddles better than the British Range Rover Sport Supercharged and Jaguar XFR. The zippy Rangie looks and feels enough like its rugged 1970 predecessor to ignite my enthusiasm for classic cars, while the Jag is a brilliantly complete performer that subtly stands out from the crowd.
Ronan Glon, European Editor
Fiat 500 Abarth, Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG, Porsche 911 Carrera, BMW 3-Series Sports Wagon, Toyota Tacoma.
My first order of business is to pick a car that’s fun and reliable to drive every day. With those requirements in mind, I would go down to my local Fiat dealer and order a 500 Abarth. It’s nimble to drive and quick enough to embarrass tuners at stop lights. Being based on the 500, it remains a practical car to run errands with. If I need something faster than the Abarth, I’d hop into my Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG, a vehicle that blurs the line between a sports car and a luxury sedan. I’d have 518 horsepower and 516 lb-ft of torque under my right foot and sit in one of the best-finished interiors Mercedes has ever offered in the E-Class. In the back of my garage would be a base-model Porsche 911 Coupe that I would take out occasionally on weekend drives. I believe the 911 is the quintessential sports car and I like the rear-engine layout of it. Next up would be a BMW 3-Series Sports Wagon. I would use it on longer trips when I need to carry other people and their stuff. Last but not least, I’d buy a Toyota Tacoma. Toyotas are some of the toughest pickup trucks out there and I would need something like that to pull old Fiats and Citroëns out of fields and tow them home. The truck would also come in handy when I need to haul lumber, cement and cinder blocks in order to build a garage when my neighbors threaten to have the police remove the wrecks in the driveway.
Mark Kleis, News and Buyers Guide Editor
Ford F-150 SVT Raptor SuperCrew, Koenigsegg Agera R, Aston Martin Rapide, Ferrari California, Mazda Mazdaspeed3
My dream garage list is meant to be an insight into my tastes and of the many flavors of the automotive world, all of which have a special place in my car-loving heart. Although I love pure power as much as the next car guy, the first vehicle I would add to my garage is a Ford F-150 SVT Raptor SuperCrew so I could pack up my stuff and friends and head out for an epic road trip to the mountains. Upon returning, I would have the truly unique and definitely Swedish Koenigsegg Agera R to satisfy my pure power needs, the Aston Martin Rapide to transport myself and friends in comfort and style, the Ferrari California to enjoy all the sunshine San Diego, California, has to offer. And then the Mazda Mazdaspeed3… this would be my first and second date car, to keep the gold diggers out of my pockets and to weed out the shallow ones while still maintaining a fun-to-drive appeal and practical hatchback layout for transporting my automotive detailing supplies to the job.
Sanjiv Sathiah, Weekend Editor
Mazda MX-5 Miata, BMW 1-Series M, Nissan GT-R, Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Roadster, Ferrari 458 Italia.
The Mazda MX-5 Miata is an enthusiast’s car that is accessible to a wide audience. It is the perfect blend of light weight, slick shifting, tidy handling that brings an irrepressible smile to the driver’s face as you hit the bends. Next up is the new BMW 1-Series M. It’s a tough looking pocket rocket, blessed with an engine that pulls the car from here to eternity. Heading back to Japan, I would have to get behind the wheel of Godzilla, the Nissan GT-R. It is a stunning, futuristic, high-tech tour de force that could have only come from the land of the rising sun. For a change of pace, I would have to head out for a date with the gorgeous, yet brutal Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Roadster. Finally, the car I would leave my wife for: The Ferrari 458 Italia.
Nat Shirley, Assistant News and Buyers Guide Editor
Mercedes-Benz S350 BlueTEC, Porsche Cayman R, Ferrari 458 Spider, Cadillac CTS-V Wagon, Jeep Wrangler.
Bracing as I am for winter to hit New England (it’s bound to happen sometime, right?), my first pick is the Mercedes-Benz S350 BlueTEC. Besides all-wheel-drive to get me through the inevitable snowy days, this daily driver has one of the most coddling interiors on the market, gets 31 mpg on the highway and has 455 lb-ft of torque to keep me entertained until the spring thaw. At that point, I would bring the Porsche Cayman R out of the garage – this machine delights with tactile steering and nimble handling and isn’t so exotic that I would be preoccupied thinking about dings and scrapes every time I left it in a parking lot. I would, however, be a bit worried about leaving my Ferrari 458 Spider unattended for more than five minutes, which is fine as I would likely be unable to force myself to park this Italian beauty once I got behind the wheel. When the reality of mundane chores forces me to abandon my Schumacher fantasies, I would have my “utility vehicle,” the Cadillac CTS-V wagon, so I could lay down rubber on the way to the Home Depot. Finally, what better vehicle to explore the trails of Maine with than the new Pentastar-powered Jeep Wrangler?
