Famous stars and their cars have long been inextricably linked. Clark Gable’s love of cars and involvement in a minor traffic incident gave rise to the urban legend that he had killed a pedestrian whilst drunk driving, Jayne Mansfield famously lost her head over a 1966 Buick Electra and Steve McQueen had a legendary obsession with speed.
Star car envy is as rife as celebrity obsession itself so to fuel the fires a bit more or dampen them completely here is a list of some famous celebrities and their cars. Go on, ask yourself if you really want to drive what they are driving.
Car collections
Some stars make no bones about their car obsessions. Here are some who go public with their collections.
Rapmobiles
Rappers’ love of bling is matched by a love of chrome. Akon showed just how ‘paid’ he was with an exhibition of his car collection at a recent Atlanta V103 Car and Bike Show. It included a Ferrari 458 Italia, Audi R8, Lamborghini, Mercedes SLR and a Porsche Panamera. 50 Cent has spent a little more than his name may suggest on his ‘blue car collection’ which includes a blue Lamborghini Murcielago Roadster, a blue Rolls Royce Ghost and an imaginatively coloured blue Ferrari F430.
Jay Leno’s garage
Funny man Jay Leno is serious enough about cars to host his own car website and blog. Jay Leno’s Garage has over 200 models, including a Bugatti and a jet-powered motorcycle, maintained by a full time staff of mechanics.
Ralph Lauren’s gallery
For Ralph Lauren cars are no laughing matter either – he claims that cars are works of art and who could disagree when his private gallery hangs with more than 200 classic cars. Amongst the masterpieces is one of only three 1938 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic coupes ever produced. Other cars on display include a Bugatti Veyron, 1929 Blower Bentley, 1938 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900 Mille Miglia and 1958 Ferrari 250 Tesla Rossa. Here he has casually parked his Porsche 959 using Greenwich Avenue as a framing device.
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Stars of the big green
In 2003 the Oscar for ‘Choice of car to arrive in’ surprised film celebrity watchers by being awarded to the Toyota Prius, which delivered a real publicity coup by ferrying many film stars in a conspicuously eco-friendly manner. It seems now that this trend for using green cars to get to the red carpet has lasted about as long as the latest clothes designer darling and many of those fickle stars are back in gas guzzlers. Some, however, have kept the eco faith.
Toyota Prius
Larry David made his bucks producing ‘Seinfeld’ but still favours the Prius for his wheels of choice. Cameron Diaz, Robin Williams, Ewan McGregor, Gwyneth Paltrow, Thandie Newton, Julia Roberts and Leonard Di Caprio have also extolled its virtues.
Electric
Stars who have gone electric include Kristin Scott Thomas who can be regularly seen squeezing herself into the tiny electric G-Wiz (or REVAi) in the interests of cutting down her emissions whilst seeking new film commissions.
The Telstra Roadster combines a sports car with an electric engine and has tempted George Clooney (who also owns a 2-seater electric Commuter Cars Tango 600), Brad Pitt, Matt Damon and Will I Am. The Chevy Volt doesn’t scare Stephen King and is graced by Alyssa Milano.
Mercedes and Lexus
Golden Globe and Emmy winner Felicity Huffman (‘Desperate Housewives’) opts for the classy, clean diesel machine that is a Mercedes-Benz BlueTEC, as does Sarah Jessica Parker, Liv Tyler, Christina Applegate and singer Nicole Scherzinger. Robert Downey Jr. prefers the Mercedes S 400 HYBRID for his economical saloon of choice and Salma Hayek and Halle Berry sit pretty in the hybrid Lexus RX.
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BMW
The BMW Hydrogen 7 is a car fuelled by hydrogen alone and has been only produced in very limited numbers which have been allocated on an invite-only basis. Still waiting for ours but lucky recipients so far have included Will Ferrell, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Jeremy Piven, Edward Norton, and, of course, Jay Leno.
A life less ordinary but a car more so
‘The car has become… an article of dress without which we feel uncertain, unclad, and incomplete.’ (Marshal McLuhan)
It seems that some celebs seem to love dressing down rather than glamming it up when they choose their wheels. As an antidote to all those lists of stars and their expensive cars here are some surprisingly ordinary cars that stars own. So keep your eyes peeled next time you visit those Fiat 500 dealerships because it may just be a Hollywood goddess speaking to the sales guy in front of you!
Fiat
Jennifer Lopez may have fronted up Fiat 500 commercials but she actually prefers to drive a Range Rover. Liz Hurley, on the other hand, looks like she could desperately need some revenue from starring in car ads as she was recently seen out shopping in London squeezing herself into one.
Harry Potter movie star Daniel Radcliffe gained access to his $37m fortune on his eighteenth birthday but bypassed the showier showrooms and was cast under a spell by his local Fiat dealer where he purchased the economical and eco-friendly Fiat Grande Punto.
Ford
Many stars opting for affordability over glamour favour Ford. Angelina Jolie has driven a Ford Explorer and HBO’s Entourage star Jeremy Piven loves his vintage (1977) Topless Ford Bronco - as Colin Farrell famously also does and O.J. Simpson infamously once did. John Goodman keeps up his regular guy persona by getting around in the best-selling pick-up in America: a 1997 Ford F-150. Australian-born Eric Bana has been seen down under the hood of his 1974 Ford XB Falcon GT Coupe, tweaking the engine in preparation for mammoth races such as the Targa Tasmanian and the Adelaide Classic. Bana has even released his own documentary – tellingly entitled ‘Love the beast’ – about his car.
Oldsmobile
Zac Efron would risk being the of several high school seniors’ sharp tongues if he rolled up to High School Musical in the reliable, classic but dated 1999 Oldsmobile Alero he favours. Speaking of music Tom Waits has shown great love for his classic Oldsmobile on his debut album Closing Time.
Mini
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The Mini in all its guises has a long history of star involvement and it became a star in its own right in the original Italian Job film starring Michael Caine. Steve McQueen, Britt Eckland and John Lennon sung its praises in the sixties and glam rock star Marc Bolan fatally wrapped one round a tree in the seventies. The next generation Mini has its fans too: amongst them Madonna and Manchester United football star Wayne Rooney who can be seen arriving at his training ground in a Mini GP with alloy wheels and sports suspension.
Still want to drive what they drive?
The link between stars and cars is as old as the (Hollywood) hills but exactly what the stars are driving may surprise you. It may just be that you are already driving what they are driving!
About the author:
WLMG (www.WLMG.co.uk) is passionate about cars, driving cars, selling cars and everything to do with cars. It owns a chain of used and new car dealers near London and keeps an eager eye out for stars gracing its forecourts..