Car of the Century?

Reuters Email 12.17.99
DETROIT -- Forget about those Cadillacs with gigantic tailfins, or the '57 Chevy, or the American muscle cars from the 1960s, or any of those elegant Jaguars. None qualify as "Car of the Century," according to a jury of 133 automotive journalists from 33 countries.

And only one of the five finalists for the title -- the Porsche 911 -- is universally admired for both its looks and speed.

The 911 is competing against the Ford Model T, the Volkswagen Beetle, the British-built Mini, and the Citroen DS 19. The champ will be crowned by a group of European organizers on Saturday in Las Vegas.

Among the finalists, there are certainly cars that some people would be reluctant to park in their driveway. But the finalists, picked from a pool of 200 vehicles, were chosen as much for their technology, impact on the automotive industry, and longevity as for their design.

Bob Lutz, the former president of Chrysler Corp. and the emcee for the Las Vegas event, said as much as he loves American muscle cars, the five finalists deserve top honors.

"In terms of significance to world transportation," he said about muscle cars, "they're a zero. They were great for accelerating in a straight line, and they looked great, but other than that, they were zero."

On the other hand, since the Porsche 911 appeared at the Franfurt Motorshow in 1963, it has been both a great race and road car. It consistently wins in its class at the grueling 24 Hours of Le Mans.

"The Porsche 911 in a lot of ways is a steroid-fed Volkswagen Beetle," said Edward Lapham, executive editor of Automotive News and a jury member.

The Mini, introduced in 1959, was the original front-wheel drive small car. Barely 10 feet long, it can fit in the back of many sport utility vehicles. The Mini is still made today, and may be brought back to the United States.

"The Mini was the progenitor of all of the small cars that came afterwards. I mean all of them," said Lutz, one of Detroit's most respected "car guys."
The Citroen DS 19 is barely known by the general public outside of France, but loved among enthusiasts for its smooth shape, its ground-breaking technology, and its odd characteristics, such as a fat brake pedal the French referred to as "the mushroom." Nearly 45 years after the introduction of the DS, called "The Goddess" in France, the car still amazes.

As great as those two cars were, many jurors believe that the race will come down to two vehicles, the Ford Model T -- which led the automotive revolution -- and the Volkswagen Beetle, which symbolized a counter-cultural revolution, at least for many Americans.

The Beetle, easily one of the most recognizable shapes ever, is also the best-selling car of all time. More than 21 million have been sold worldwide since its introduction in 1946.

The nationality of the jurors could prove to be a factor in the results. European journalists, wanting a winner from Europe, could push the Beetle over the top. Japanese writers were apparently irked that a Japanese car failed to make it even on a preliminary list of 27 vehicles. And ethnicity could even prove to be a factor.

However, fairly or unfairly, the Beetle does carry some baggage.

Juror Paul Eisenstein, the publisher of the online Web site thecarconnection.com, said some may hesitate to vote for the Beetle because of its history. "The realty was that it was Hitler's car," he said.

Adolf Hitler, wanting a "people's car" that was affordable for all Germans, backed the Beetle when it came off the drawing board in the 1930s. But production was delayed until after World War II.

But even forgetting the Bug's historical albatross, a lot of American jurors think the Model T will win on merit alone.

That's because the Model T, built between 1908 and 1927, had a huge impact, shaping not only the automotive industry itself but by introducing the assembly line, which made cars affordable to the masses.

"To me, the Model T is the car that put the world on wheels," said juror John McElroy, the producer of the weekly automotive television program Autoline Detroit.

"Literally, you could argue it changed society. To me, no other single car has had as much impact as the Model T."

Copyright 1999 Reuters Limited.

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