This is a rant about all those rich old guys that have too much money, don't know anything about cars, and therefore buy what every other rich guy is driving, a Ferrari 360 spyder, instead of trying to be a little individual and finding their own super car.

So today is the Grand Prix in Montreal, and naturally this is always a wild weekend in Montreal. I live just next to one of the streets downtown that gets closed off to traffic and lined with terraces and fancy cars on display. All the nicest vehicles come out this weekend, it's definitely a good weekend to walk around with a camera if you're into hot cars. Unfortunately, I don't have a camera, so i can't give you any shots, but you've seen em all before anyway.

But I am just SOOOO sick of seeing Ferrari 360 Modenas, and occasionally F430s. Well... the F430's are a bit more impressive, but for the most part, they leave me bored and annoyed at whichever rich guy just hopped onto the Ferrari bandwagon as soon as he had enough money. I must have seen about 20 of them this weekend, maybe even more, and I just gotta roll my eyes every time I see the balding fat man at the wheel, cause you just know he doesn't know anything about cars.
But what's even more annoying is the people who are still so impressed whenever they see one, taking photos next to them. I mean even when the grand prix isn't in town, I see one probably once every week or two.

Now I know I don't have to worry about anybody on this website having such poor taste (okay not "poor", cause it is an attractive car and it is **** fast)... having such a LACK of their own taste in cars. But please if you've got a relative who's made it big, please act as an advisor or something like that when it comes time for them to find a super car to show off their wealth. Tell them to have a look at what else their money can buy rather than just buying what the rich guy down the street has.

A lambo's a bit of a step in the right direction... You don't see quite as many of those, but I'd still rather see something a little more interesting. Something like the ONE Ford GT I finally saw last night, it was in the distance, but the noise it made got me looking pretty quick. There's a car that's quicker, cheaper, and much better looking than it's Italian competition. And perhaps more importantly, you don't see one parked in front of every Starbucks in a slightly upscale neighbourhood. Its a car that instills some PASSION, and it really stands out. Now obviously I'm on a mustang site, so of course I would root for the Ford, but I honestly feel that somebody who buys a Ford GT over a Ferrari 360 or F430 has much better taste. It might take some strength to opt for the Ford name over a Ferrari, but if you know anything about cars, you should be able to look past the whole "Its still just a Ford" mentality and recognize that the Ford is a much cooler car, its more impressive in every way.

Props also go out to the dude in the DB9, the SLR (definitely in a bit of a different league with that one), the Jag XKR (a new one), and the old Pontiac Parisienne just near my house.

Of special note, on Peel street, which is often dedicated to italian cars, sat about 15 examples of a car I had only seen once since my trip to France two summers ago. The street is usually full of a bunch of classic Alfas and older Ferraris, as well as McGill's Formula SAE car which draws quite a crowd, but all along one side of the street, stretching the entire block, was a row of Fiat 500's! What a crazy cool car. I saw one for the first time ever two summers ago, and my girlfriend and I immediately fell in love. This thing is so tiny, it might even be smaller than the mini (the original of course). Just after we returned from that trip, i spotted one that's always parked in the parking lot of a service station, no doubt one of the mechanics working there has a thing for the car. But I hadn't seen a single one other than that and on posters for an italian museum exhibit, and then last night I see at least a dozen of them, all with Quebec plates, and many of them looked race ready. VERY COOL!

Here's a photo i took in France. A great comparison next to that M class, but even the Twingo on the right of that photo is a ridiculously small car (and pretty ridiculously frog like in appearance too).

 

Understand where you're coming from about the Ferrari bandwagon thing. Rather have a Ford GT myself (turbo!) and Astons are great indicators of money and taste - DB9's are gorgeous. Same goes for the new XK/XKR.
Ferrari's 360/430 are driver's cars though, and all Italian supercars are meant to invoke passion for driving. If I "had" to go Italian (don't I wish!) the prancing horse would be at the top of the list - to go with the running horse parked next to it in my big garage at my big house (again, I wish!). Out here, I see 911 Turbos and Gallardos more often than the 360/430. Only once have I seen a Ford GT on the road and it sounded GOOD (also seen pictures of it in the shop getting the clutch/transmission repaired - since the car is owned by one of those rich old guys w/too much money).

 

yeah, i see what you mean. There's no reason the same old balding rich guy wouldn't buy a GT40 just as much as a 360. And I know what you mean about the Ferrari's being real driver's cars. I guess I just feel like you're more likely to come across a Ferrari 360 that never gets driven properly than a GT40. I think this all comes down to the fact that the guy who's just trying to show off is more often thinking he can impress people with the Ferrari nameplate than a Ford, and therefore you get more posers in the Ferraris.

Anyway, I'm glad that seeing a GT40 is always gonna be a special occasion for me.

Believe it or not, I still have yet to see a GT500 on the street. I guess they aren't really part of the F1 crowd.

 

Wow...that Fiat (ain't it a Fiat?) in the middle is even smaller than a "Smart" car...if that's possible.

Despite that, I believe they're bringing it back with a modern version.

 

yeah, its a Fiat 500 in the middle, I was just comparing it to the Twingo on the right which is already a pretty **** small car, smaller than anything in North America. I feel like the Fiat is even smaller than the original Mini, but its a close call.
And yeah, they definitely are bringing back the 500. It definitely doesn't have quite as much appeal, and i'm guessing it'll be a bit bigger than the original too.
http://www.fiat500.com/eng/

 

Yeah, that's what I saw.

Cool. Bring it on, I say - I can't get enough of '50s and '60s retro.