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Which Classic Cars Do Not Get Enough Love?
There are loaded questions, and then there are loaded questions about classic cars. Some of us will accept a legal definition of a 25+ year-old car being a classic or antique, but others will insist on items like chrome and carburetion as real classics. Any and all interpretations are welcome, because there are classic cars from every point in time that don’t get the love they deserve.
I once postulated that there are three keys to buying an affordable classic car. I firmly believe that a car’s affordability has a direct correlation to how many people love them, and certain brands, body styles, and eras of automobile production are not getting their just deserts.
I will kick start the discussion with one of the lower hanging fruits of lackluster love for a classic, one that is likely less desirable than the Buick Park Avenue seen at the top.
1995-99 Oldsmobile Aurora
The first-generation Aurora shares its G-platform underpinnings with other classics that don’t get enough love in my book. While front-wheel drive luxury and problematic Northstar engines are 1990s hallmarks that haven’t aged well, the examples that remain in 2025 deserve a better fate. This is especially true of the Aurora, which was a clean sheet luxury sedan with very few flaws when new.
Its unique, stunning styling and admirable performance suggested a resurgent Oldsmobile brand, one that never came to fruition. While many of us have positive memories of famous Oldsmobile products under the Cutlass name, I wager few of us show any love to their pricey ($30,000+ when new) luxury sedan aimed at Lexus and Mercedes-Benz buyers.
But that’s based on what I have seen. You, dear reader, have witnessed other classic cars get the short end of the stick. So now we put the ball in your court and ask you to post in the comments with an answer to this question:
What Classic Cars Do Not Get Enough Love?
C4 Corvettes were selling in March of ‘83 as ‘84 models. Everybody knew a new Corvette was coming. ‘82 Corvette sales took as nose dive from ‘80-‘81 because of it.
MN12 TBirds and Cougars
Anything American Motors 100%
Anything Studebaker 110%
I agree with the later C3 vettes. But I’ll go back a little further to the 61-63 Pontiac Tempest/Lemans. Great styling, innovative driveline with the IRS transaxle, torsion bar driveshaft in the torque tube, big 195.5 cu 4 cylinder or 215 or 336 V8’s. You don’t see them too often and the value has been creeping up but they don’t get the love like a Mustang or Chevelle, etc.
I had an Aurora when they were first out. For that time it was the sleekest, most swoopy thing out there. It was very comfortable and had many gizmos. For the first 6 months everyone asked what it was.
Give me an XLR (especially the V) as a title contender. Sure, GM made some poor decisions on it and didn’t support it for the long haul, but the styling holds up well and they’re a blast to drive. Yet you see nice examples of these in the low teens . . .
Anybody thinking Buick Reatta, or is that just me. A car way ahead of its time.
Not just you… It’s one of those models on my “would like to own at some point” short list.
1966 Toronado, the Iconic Oldsmobile, father of the Aurora.
First gen Acura RL! Honda would have a had a “world-beater if they had gone rearwheel drive, and stuffed a V-8 into them like Lexus did. I’m a little biased however, because my daily-driver is a 2000 Acura RL.
Acura RL for sure but going with the theme of underappreciated, our 1989 Acura Legend coupe had great styling and exceptional performance. Reliability wasn’t bad at over 240k miles until it was totaled after being rear ended.
On that note, the Acura Vigor was, IMO the best looking sedan they ever made followed by the 2nd gen integra sedan.
The 4th gen-F-Body Camaro and Firebird are a performance bargain. These car’s prices are slowly creeping up, but not as much as they should be for as much fun they are to drive.
And with how many of those got pulled apart for LS swaps I expect them to be just a half step behind the Holden GTOs in terms of difficulty to find a good un-abused stock one.
The 1991 Nissan Sentra SE-R. Little compact coupe with a 140 hp, 7500 RPM redline, screaming dual overhead cam 4 cylinder, both front wheels were driven, ABS, a 5 speed, and an absolute riot to drive. Hard to have more fun for less money with a car that will go 250k without batting an eye. Almost unseen today.
The NX2000 version of this Sentra is a rarity too. Essentially the same car with a sportier look, T-tops, and a few other upgrades.
Had to sell because it wasn’t child-seat friendly. One of the (many) cars I owned that I would love to have today.
had two auroras…Fantastic cars with never a problem
No Fiero love? they had their ‘issues’ but V6 4 spd 85s I had were quick (not fast, quick) and fun to drive. Plus the seating position maybe the most comfortable overall of any car I’ve driven, once the shifter was cut down to a short version. And gotta love those headrest speakers – tho took a while to get used to turning your head while tunes were on