Hooniverse Asks – What Car Deserves to be Immortalized in Song?

Robert Emslie

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There’s been Hey Little Cobra, 409, Mercury Blues, Little Red Corvette, and Little Deuce Coupe, all songs about cars that really deserved to have songs written about them. With the exception of the Prince ditty, all those songs hail from the ’50s and ’60s – an era in which seemingly cars and music went together like Trans Am owners and STDs.
So sure there’s been plenty of songs written about lots of cars, but these days our iPods and iPhones and clouds hold more songs than can be filled with just the existing auto-related ditties. That’s why we need some new car-honoring songs to fill in all those hours on the road. I can’t think of the last time a new car-related song – much less one feting a specific model emanated from my car radio’s speakers, and don’t think I haven’t been waiting.
There’ve been lots of cars that – at least in my humble opinion, or IMHO for you crazy texting tweens – deserve to be remembered in song. I’m sure that the Dodge Viper rates a song, as does the Audi A8. Hey, what rhymes with carbon fiber? But enough of my ramblings, what about yours? What car today do you think warrants a song written in its honor and relating its non-suckage? And if you’re particularly energetic or unemployed, how would that song go?
Image source: [da terror blogspot]

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Robert Emslie

Robert Emslie

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  1. Maxichamp Avatar
    Maxichamp

    Kia Rio by Duran Duran.[youtube e3W6yf6c-FA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3W6yf6c-FA youtube]

    Reply
  2. SSurfer321 Avatar
    SSurfer321

    I think some Finnish speed metal band needs to do a song about Group B Rally.

    Reply
    1. tonyola Avatar
      tonyola

      Group B? Maybe death-metal…

      Reply
  3. tonyola Avatar
    tonyola

    The list you linked forgot "Corvair Baby" by Paul Revere and the Raiders.

    Reply
    1. Black Steelies Avatar
      Black Steelies

      'Powder Blue Mercedes Queen' too!

      Reply
  4. engineerd Avatar
    engineerd

    A little car that put Ferrari on its heels.
    <img width=500 src="http://fordpicgall.co.cc/pictures/car/images/18/Ford-GT40.jpg"&gt;

    Reply
  5. P161911 Avatar
    P161911

    Sadly the newest song that I can think of that mentions a specific car model is the 1997 country song "Little Red Rodeo". It is about a guy's girlfriend leaving him, she is driving an Isuzu Rodeo.
    Alan Jackson released "First Love" about his old T-Bird in 2002, but I don't think it mentions T-Bird by name.

    Reply
  6. west_coaster Avatar
    west_coaster

    Don't the rappers pay tribute to their Escalades, etc. in their lyrics? Yeah, I know, those aren't songs per se.

    Reply
  7. RichardKopf Avatar
    RichardKopf

    Winning!
    Link, since I can't seem to imbed properly:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKOVF1qwPzI

    Reply
  8. OA5599 Avatar
    OA5599

    I think Lemons cars deserve their own song, but then I remembered that's already been taken care of.
    [youtube K-34Fdtg1dI http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-34Fdtg1dI youtube]

    Reply
    1. P161911 Avatar
      P161911

      Or Da Yoopers[youtube 50IgzksUqpQ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50IgzksUqpQ youtube]

      Reply
    2. P161911 Avatar
      P161911

      poof?

      Reply
  9. Peter Tanshanomi Avatar
    Peter Tanshanomi

    Peugette, Peugette
    The car I'll never get
    The Italians made you awesome
    But the Frenchies all said nyet
    Your pre-production mules
    Had so much Italian cool
    My four-wheeled ballerina
    From Pininfarina
    (Ooooh, waaaah Peugette)
    Some found your symmetry
    Odd to some degree
    Some dared call it ugly
    But you looked fine to me
    Though Cambiano implored
    That grand French marque ignored
    The words of Monsieur Proust
    And you were not produced
    (Ooooh, waaaah Peugette)
    Peugeot thought you would drink
    Gallons of red ink
    Take their cash and quaff it
    And never turn a profit
    (Ooooh, waaaah Peugette)
    Peugette, Peugette
    A go-kart for the street
    I'll never slide into
    Your low-slung driver's seat

    Reply
  10. muthalovin Avatar
    muthalovin

    "NSX" by INXS

    Reply
  11. joshuman Avatar
    joshuman

    Mylo had a song a few years back ostensibly all about muscle cars. There is a lot of talk about being well oiled and such. The lady singer does mention "Camaro, Chevelle, Camino, Daytona, Trans Am, Mustang, Charger, GTO." There are a lot of remixes but this seems to be a fairly straight version (just a static image with the music): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiCFXFuxgVE&fe…

    Reply
  12. PFG Avatar
    PFG

    "My console's wrapped in carbon fiber,
    sweet like Cassius in the Tiber."

    Reply
  13. ZomBee Racer Avatar
    ZomBee Racer

    Come on, don't you think it's time…
    <img src="http://static.howstuffworks.com/gif/1970-1978-amc-gremlin-2.jpg&quot; />

    Reply
    1. mdharrell Avatar
      mdharrell

      She's so fine…
      http://www.divshare.com/download/7512494-03d

      Reply
    2. Black Steelies Avatar
      Black Steelies

      Bowie did 'Rebel Rebel'. He doesn't stoop to Gremlin territory.

      Reply
      1. Alff Avatar
        Alff

        He may have … he did a song titled "Always Crashing the Same Car."
        One thing's for sure – the Gremlin didn't cause any Panic in Detroit.

        Reply
      2. OA5599 Avatar
        OA5599

        Some people think "Space Oddity" was inspired by Kubrick's "2001: a Space Odyssey", but I know for a fact it was inspired by a Honda that somewhat resembled the Lunar Rover.
        <img src="http://www.rc-trucks.org/Honda-Odyssey-FL250-3.JPG"&gt;

        Reply
        1. tonyola Avatar
          tonyola

          Is this thing powered by a "Rubber Band"?[youtube 0DakPPBqPok http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DakPPBqPok youtube]

          Reply
      3. BGW Avatar
        BGW

        "I'm afraid of American Motors"

        Reply
      4. Maymar Avatar
        Maymar

        Ashes To Ashes must've been his ode to Italian supercars.

        Reply
  14. topdeadcentre Avatar
    topdeadcentre

    Easier to rhyme if it's a Gremlin X. Same rhymes would go for an AMX, which has no room in the back for […].

    Reply
    1. Black Steelies Avatar
      Black Steelies

      And a Gremlin does?

      Reply
      1. ZomBee Racer Avatar
        ZomBee Racer

        In fact, yes!
        Ok no, I lied. Never happened.

        Reply
      2. topdeadcentre Avatar
        topdeadcentre

        AMX's have front bucket seats and a lumpy, weird, carpeted "no-mans-land" behind them. While technically big enough for a bit of fun, there's no cushioning, and humps and bumps intruding into the space.
        Gremlins do have something that kinda resembles a back seat (except in the first two model years, when the base model had no back seat and fixed rear glass), though the amount of space is barely adequate for humans over twelve years old. Best to fold the back seat down, toss in a couple of sleeping bags, and bring a flexible partner.

        Reply
        1. Black Steelies Avatar
          Black Steelies

          Ahh so you've given this some thought. Yeah I suppose the Gremlin would make for a better lay than an AMX.
          HEY! I know I say it a lot but this would make a fantastic Hooniverse Asks – Best car for procreation!

          Reply
          1. topdeadcentre Avatar
            topdeadcentre

            I never had access to an AMX (I lust for one now, though, in AMC racing red/white/blue… it'd be knarty knarty good fun!), but I did borrow a Gremlin when I was a high school student. It's kind of a shame, it's a lot harder to find deserted places to park a car these days around the town where I grew up…
            But absolutely the question of best (or even better, worst!) cars for hot-n-heavy fun must be asked of the Hoonitarians…

          2. Black Steelies Avatar
            Black Steelies

            Haha worst, yes!

  15. pj134 Avatar
    pj134

    Pearl Jam has Many Fast Cars, although its an anthem for vehicular anti monogamy.

    Reply
  16. Rust-MyEnemy Avatar
    Rust-MyEnemy

    I'm amused by the idea of a song about an underachieving Xerox toner salesman, cruising from unsuccessful appointment to unsuccessful appointment, in a Cimarron leased from a satanic hire purchase firm.
    Sung by Tom Waits, of course. Title; The Devil Sold My Cadillac.

    Reply
  17. raphaelinberlin Avatar
    raphaelinberlin

    Always with a keen ear for rap tunes talking about cars, Lady D gave a good example of how foreign marques had outpaced domestics as prime symbols of luxury and class by the late 1970s, and 8Ball and MJG gave a perfect description of what luxury is all about with the lines (from "Space Age Pimpin'")
    Who knows?
    Fine clothes
    Lexus doors you'll be closin'
    when you become one of the chosen
    read more about them on my site (shameless plug!) http://autofrei.wordpress.com/2011/02/25/a-simple… http://autofrei.wordpress.com/2011/02/08/1973-cad…
    Also, there were a lot of old rap songs that mention "def OJs", with OJs referring to large luxury cars, usually Lincolns, after a series of popular TV ads OJ Simpson did for Hertz

    Reply
  18. Deartháir Avatar
    Deartháir

    http://hooniverse.info/2009/10/27/ode-to-the-pinto…
    Come on, I think we can make this a regular feature!

    Reply
  19. Age_of_Aerostar Avatar
    Age_of_Aerostar

    Not really fitting, since it does have a song about it already, but because the Beauville got some attention yesterday, I'll give it up for the FORD ECONOLINE!
    [youtube 0OBSo3G8LCg http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OBSo3G8LCg youtube]

    Reply
  20. engineerd Avatar
    engineerd

    Well, since nobody else has said it Ted Nugent will.
    <img width=500 src="http://ford-f-150.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/ford-f150-raptor.jpg"&gt;
    Well I don't know where they come from
    But they sure do come
    I hope they comin' for me
    And I don't know how they do it
    But they sure do it good
    I hope they doin' it for free
    They give me Raptor fever
    Raptor fever
    The first time that I got it
    I was just thirty years old
    I got it from some dealer next door
    I went and see the doctor and
    He gave me the cure
    I think I got it some more
    They give me Raptor fever
    Raptor fever
    It's nothin’ dangerous
    I feel no pain
    I've got to ch-ch-change
    You know you got it when you're going insane
    It makes a grown man cryin' cryin'
    Won't you make my bed
    I make the engine purr with
    The stroke of my hand
    They know they chasin’ after me
    They know just where to go
    When they need offroadin’ man
    They know I do it for free
    They give me Raptor fever
    Raptor fever

    Reply
  21. Black Steelies Avatar
    Black Steelies

    I can't remember if the 'verse featured this or not. Oh, and it's the best song from Grynch, in case you were wondering.
    Hey has the ID youtube embed feature been hoonibbled?
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKOVF1qwPzI

    Reply
    1. Black Steelies Avatar
      Black Steelies

      [youtube tKOVF1qwPzI http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKOVF1qwPzI youtube]
      Ahhh, there I fixed it.

      Reply
      1. FuzzyPlushroom Avatar
        FuzzyPlushroom

        Alarmingly, between my 244 and 745, I can identify with nearly all of this.
        Both vehicles have occasionally had trouble starting. They do that.
        The 745 is a '92, built in September of '91 – it's only a few months younger than I am. The 244's two and a half years older.
        Both have shared my emotions, the 244 in particular. I've kicked that car and then checked to make sure I hadn't dented her.
        The 244's vent knobs really do resemble Oreos.
        My glove box has never opened itself, although it's a common problem with 240s; my friend's 245 had that particular habit, and he laughed hard the first time he heard this song. (Grynch doesn't mention self-destructing plastics, though.)
        The 244 does, of course, have crank windows. The 745's a turbo and doesn't.
        The 745 is getting new front brake pads as I type this (the job's halfway done, but I needed the jack for my other car, and it's now in the trunk of my boyfriend's Honda).
        The most I've done in the back of either car has been kissing and groping, although the 745 has plenty of room for… sleeping… and other such activities in the future.
        I have pushed both of them, mostly the 244.
        I don't want a Bentley.
        I've spun out in both cars, and actually pulled a clever 180-degree reverse spin on an icy back road in the 745 after realising it wouldn't make it up a hill.
        The 244's died on the freeway exactly once – and was able to coast off of the exit I intended to take to begin with.
        Both cars, without proper planning, require considerable throttle application to climb a steep grade – people who brake on uphill slopes are the number-one cause of my road rage. The 745's not so bad when it's actually boosting.
        It'll be a miracle if either car ever gets anything larger than 15s; anything past 16s is financially prohibitive for a RWD Volvo anyway (requires spacers). The current wheel-diameter average is 14.25", and the 745 has a set of '86-88-ish 240 hubcaps (as shown here) on the rear wheels.
        My cars have ~210,650 and 208,7xx miles on 'em, respectively.
        I'm a brickhead, and this, by association, is my song. No one I know who hasn't owned one understands it.

        Reply
        1. Black Steelies Avatar
          Black Steelies

          I can agree with the sentiment, but haven't experienced the Volvo specificities. I actually thought of our resident brickhead while putting this up.

          Reply
  22. FuzzyPlushroom Avatar
    FuzzyPlushroom

    Since 'My Volvo' has already been posted (cheers, Blackie), The Blasters with 'Long White Cadillac':
    [youtube XyzWj-EChmg http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyzWj-EChmg youtube]
    And Dwight Yoakam coverin' it:
    [youtube ZKcQ_Je5Ugk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKcQ_Je5Ugk youtube]

    Reply
    1. FuzzyPlushroom Avatar
      FuzzyPlushroom

      Oh, I forgot just how obscenely it breaks when you try to post more than one video in a comment.
      Dwight.
      [youtube ZKcQ_Je5Ugk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKcQ_Je5Ugk youtube]

      Reply
  23. AteUpWithMotor Avatar
    AteUpWithMotor

    I'd like Sir Mix-a-Lot to do a song about the Prius…

    Reply
  24. Jim-Bob Avatar
    Jim-Bob

    I'll nominate on of my all-time favorite cars for this one- The legendary Zaporozhetz ZAZ 965. why? well, I just want to see someone try and make that name sound good in song and I have a thing for truly awful people's cars from communist nations. I would have nominated the Yugo but it has already been immortalized in song.
    <img src="http://www.ladaparts.ru/hotrods/ZAZ-965.jpg"&gt;

    Reply
    1. topdeadcentre Avatar
      topdeadcentre

      Get Igor and the Red Elvises on the line… could be their next balalaika power ballad…
      http://www.redelvises.com

      Reply
  25. Franzouse Avatar
    Franzouse

    I think the Renault Clio dci deserves a song, it is the most utilitarian, boring, inconspicuous vehicle ever, which makes it -and its driver- invisible. and I think a car with super powers diserves a song.
    I'm no musician but I'm guessing a concept for the song could be this super hot chick, that totally stands out in the street until she gets into a Diesel Clio and just disappears put to Santana's "she's not there".

    Reply
  26. topdeadcentre Avatar
    topdeadcentre

    "Barely adequate" to fit adults is sometimes all that's needed… for adults. 🙂

    Reply