We've been celebrating a lot of automotive centennials lately, including those of Ford and GM, and today we bring you another 100-year-anniversary: 2009 will mark 100 years since the first automobile took up residence at the White House.
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In anticipation of the anniversary, Hagerty Insurance has put together a list of the Top-10 Most Interesting Cars of America's Influential Past Presidents and Current Candidates. From the first U.S. President to own an automobile to the latest candidates, our leaders over the past 100 years have had some interesting rides. We particularly like the '39 Packard 12, the '61 T-Bird 'vert (pictured above), the '67 Mustang, and the Baker Electric (pictured left). What are your favorites? Is there a cool presidential car missing from the list? Check out the list and leave your thoughts in the comments section below.
10. Barack Obama (2008 Candidate): First car: Ford Granada - This was reportedly Obama's grandfather's car and the car he learned to drive in. To quote Obama directly: "It may be the worst car Detroit ever built... This thing was a tin can. (Detroit was) trying to compete with the Japanese. They wanted to keep the cars big, so they made them out of tin foil... You basically couldn't go over 80 (miles per hour) without the thing getting out of control."
Current car: Ford Escape Hybrid - Nearly 100 years after William Taft drove an electric vehicle, Obama traded in his Chrysler 300C for a more fuel-efficient Ford Escape Hybrid. It makes sense that Obama owns a hybrid, as he is a big supporter of researching the best methods for alternative fuels for transportation.
9. John McCain (2008 Candidate): First car: 1958 Corvette - This is considered a highly coveted collector car and was the first year for the dual front headlights, which gave the car a much more aggressive look than any earlier Corvette.
Current car: 2006 Cadillac CTS - The CTS is Cadillac's entry-luxury sport sedan, designed to compete with the best European sport sedans. This is a midsize luxury car that gets respectable fuel mileage - up to 27 mpg.
8. Bill Clinton (1993-2001): 1967 Mustang Convertible - Clinton owned this Mustang as a collector car prior to and during his presidency. He has been quoted as saying that this car was the hardest thing for him to leave behind when he moved to the White House
7. Ronald Reagan (1981-1989): 1952 Army Jeep, Model M-38A1 - This was a gift to President Ronald Reagan from his wife Nancy and was considered highly collectible by the time he received it in the late 1970s.
6. Richard Nixon (1969-1974): 1950 Oldsmobile - This particular car owned by Nixon is of historic impact because it was referred to during his infamous "Checkers" speech that was said to save his candidacy for vice president, when his honesty and loyalty were in question.
5. John F. Kennedy (1960-1963): 1961 T-Bird Convertible -- This was the first year for the much sleeker "Bullet Bird" styling. The Thunderbird was 1961's Indianapolis 500 pace car and was featured prominently in U.S. President John F. Kennedy's inaugural parade. (This was probably helped along by the appointment of Ford executive Robert McNamara as secretary of defense.)
4. Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-1961): 1956 Chrysler Imperial - The 1956 Chrysler was updated with the new 1956 "Forward Look" styling. This particular model was frequently used by President Dwight D. Eisenhower and became known as "The Detroit Car."
3. Harry S. Truman (1945-1953): 1945 Ford Super DeLuxe Tudor Sudan - All automakers shut down their production during World War II and did not return to making passenger cars until 1946. The very first car assembled after World War II was a white Super DeLuxe Tudor Sedan assembled on July 3, 1945, and it went to President Harry Truman.
2. Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933-1945): 1939 Packard 12 - In the 1920s and 30s, Packard produced some of the most beautiful and innovative cars of the era. Packard's V-12 engine was especially smooth and provided exceptional performance in its time.
1. William Taft (1909-1913): Baker Electric - Taft was the first president to own and drive cars during his presidency. One of the most interesting cars he owned was, ironically enough, "green"- a Baker Electric. This electric vehicle was especially popular with women in the era, as it did not require any cranking and was virtually maintenance-free.
Source: Hagerty Insurance
Were you one of those kids who taught themselves to identify cars at night by their headlights and taillights? I was. I was also one of those kids with a huge box of Hot Wheels and impressive collection of home-made Lego hot rods. I asked my parents for a Power Wheels Porsche 911 for Christmas for years, though the best I got was a pedal-powered tractor. I drove the wheels off it. I used to tell my friends I’d own a “slug bug” one day. When I was 15, my dad told me he would get me a car on the condition that I had to maintain it. He came back with a rough-around-the-edges 1967 Volkswagen Beetle he’d picked up for something like $600. I drove the wheels off that thing, too, even though it was only slightly faster than the tractor. When I got tired of chasing electrical gremlins (none of which were related to my bitchin’ self-installed stereo, thank you very much), I thought I’d move on to something more sensible. I bought a 1986 Pontiac Fiero GT and got my first speeding ticket in that car during the test drive. Not my first-ever ticket, mind you. That came behind the wheel of a Geo Metro hatchback I delivered pizza in during high school. I never planned to have this job. I was actually an aerospace engineering major in college, but calculus and I had a bad breakup. Considering how much better my English grades were than my calculus grades, I decided to stick to my strengths and write instead. When I made the switch, people kept asking me what I wanted to do with my life. I told them I’d like to write for a car magazine someday, not expecting it to actually happen. I figured I’d be in newspapers, maybe a magazine if I was lucky. Then this happened, which was slightly awkward because I grew up reading Car & Driver, but convenient since I don’t live in Michigan. Now I just try to make it through the day without adding any more names to the list of people who want to kill me and take my job.
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