Automotive design is constantly evolving. For most gearheads, it's easy to tell when a car was built just by looking at its design. For example, any wedge-shaped sports car you see on the road was likely built between 1970 and 1990. As technology advances, manufacturers eliminate some design features while introducing new ones that meet current needs and market preferences.
While we love modern cars with modern design features, we can't help but feel sad when automakers do away with a design feature we once loved, even if it is obsolete today. One design feature that every gearhead misses is pop-up headlights. Introduced in the '60s as a way to conceal headlights when not in use, pop-up headlights were used in some of the coolest cars up until the early 2000s, when they were outlawed. This article explores ten of the best sports cars with pop-up headlights.
10 Ferrari F40
The F40 is an important part of Ferrari's history for various reasons. For one, the F40 was a celebration of Ferrari's 40th anniversary and was envisioned and produced under Enzo Ferrari's supervision. Sadly, the F40 is also the last car the company built under Enzo Ferrari's leadership before he passed away a few months later.
Ferrari wanted the F40 to destroy the Porsche 959's top speed record, so they equipped it with a 2.9-liter twin-turbo V8 cranking out 471 hp. With a 201-mph top speed, the F40 was among the fastest sports cars of the '80s.
9 Honda NSX
Back in the day, Honda was mostly known for building cheap, economical cars that weren't that great to drive. However, that changed in the '90s when Honda teamed up with the legendary Ayrton Senna and developed a sports car that could compete against anything from Europe - the fabled NSX.
The NSX had many positive features - a sleek design, a lightweight all-aluminum body, fantastic driving dynamics, and tons of power coming from its 3.0-liter all-aluminum V6 engine. The NSX still has a significant cult following to date.
8 Lamborghini Diablo
The '90s were terrible for Lamborghini - multiple ownership changes, poor sales, and poor management almost killed the company. However, despite its struggles, Lamborghini still managed to build a fantastic sports car - the Diablo.
The Diablo was initially designed by the renowned Marcello Gandini, but Chrysler - who owned Lamborghini at the time - was unhappy and made a few changes. They did retain the pop-up headlights, though.
7 Toyota 2000GT
Toyota isn't the first brand that comes to mind when you think of a beautiful sports car. However, in the '60s, the Japanese company built a car that could rival the Jaguar E-Type, Ferrari 250 GTO, and 1963 Chevy Corvette Sting Ray in the design department. Dubbed the 2000GT, this car is still considered to be the most beautiful Japanese car ever.
The only reason the 2000GT doesn't get the respect it deserves is its weak engine. Powered by a tiny inline-six engine producing 138 hp, the 2000GT was quite slow. With only 351 examples built, the 2000GT is one of the rarest Japanese cars.
6 BMW M1
The sports car market in the '70s was dominated by wedge-shaped Lambos and Ferraris. BMW also wanted a piece of the action, so they hired Giorgetto Giugiaro to design a sports car for them. That's how the M1 was born.
Everyone loved the M1. It's still one of the best-looking BMWs ever and was a ton of fun to drive, thanks to a mid-mounted 3.6-liter inline-six generating 273 hp.
5 DeTomaso Pantera
Growing up, Argentine racer and entrepreneur Alejandro de Tomaso always dreamed of building a world-class sports car. This dream was realized in 1971 when his car company introduced the Pantera.
Despite being built by a small company, the Pantera was a beauty and also had the power to match. To keep costs down, DeTomaso equipped the Pantera with a Ford-built 5.8-liter V8 engine producing 330 hp, making it super fast.
4 Lancia Stratos
Lancia barely gets any mentions today, but it was one of the top European automakers back in the day. Lancia was especially successful in rallying, with one of its best rally cars being the Stratos.
The Stratos was incredibly popular, largely thanks to its superb wedge-shaped design penned by Marcello Gandini. It also had a mid-mounted Ferrari-built V6 engine producing around 200 hp, making it a blast to drive.
3 Lotus Esprit
The Esprit wowed gearheads when it debuted in the late '70s. Although it was the product of British engineering, the Esprit's futuristic wedge-shaped design made it look more Italian than British, which is not surprising since it was yet another product of Giorgetto Giugiaro's brilliant mind.
The Esprit's turbocharged four-cylinder engine didn't have much power, but its lightweight nature ensured it could keep up with bigger-engined cars. The icing on the Esprit's cake is that it's a Bond car.
2 Cizeta V16T
Most gearheads have never heard of the Cizeta V16T, even though it was among the best '90s sports cars. The V16T was developed by a group of former Lamborghini employees who wanted to create the ultimate supercar - one that was better than any Lamborghini of the day.
The V16T had a few things going for it. For one, it was designed by Marcello Gandini - the same guy who came up with some of Lamborghini's best designs. The V16T also had a massive 6.0-liter V16 engine under the hood. With a 204-mph top speed, the V16T is one of the fastest naturally aspirated sports cars of the '90s.
1 Porsche 944
The 944 was a success for Porsche in the '80s, selling over 150,000 examples. Looking at the 944, it's easy to see why so many loved it. It was stylish, well-engineered, reliable, and more affordable than most European sports cars of the day.
The base 944 was powered by a 2.5-liter inline-four engine producing 205 hp, giving it decent performance. Those who wanted more could buy the turbocharged version, which produced up to 250 hp.