Re-Live The 80s With This Weekend Playlist

The Volkswagen Scirocco video from earlier this week inspired us—what if we took a look at some of the good (and bad) that happened in the world of cars during a transformative decade, the ’80s. While the proliferation of digital editing techniques and cheesy pop music makes watching some of these a bit painful, there’s nothing quite like awesome cars of the ’80s. Ferrari F40 LM, anyone?

We’re cheating a little bit already—this clip was filmed in 1992—but the F40 LM, first introduced in 1989, represents the pinnacle of road-going race car technology. With former F1 driver Jacques Laffite behind the wheel, who needs espresso in the morning—just crank this up!

Selling advanced technology was taken to new heights in the ‘80s, with Audi and Honda taking wildly different approaches. Audi did an elaborate stunt…and Honda just hired Jackie Mason to explain the Prelude’s four-wheel steering system.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANv83OJk–4

Formerly of Motor Trend, Road & Track’s Jason Cammisa compares the BMW E30 M3 and Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3-16—even though it’s a few years old, the comparison is very well done.

In the ’80s, just about every music video seemed to feature a car. These two have Ferraris. Here are two of the best: the music video for the Miami Vice theme and “I Can’t Drive 55” by Sammy Hagar

Dealership training videos were never supposed to be shown to the public—which makes them brilliant to watch these days. On the left, a man in a grey suit who channels what he calls “improvisational actors” as he gives salespeople tips on selling a Mercedes-Benz. (We’ve taken the liberty of queuing it up to the awkward moment when a husband and wife “decide” on different cars…) On the right, Chevrolet Blazer vs. Ford Bronco—as-compared by Chevrolet. 

Beautifully shot, with amazing stunts—and yes, a Japanese pop soundtrack set to a compilation of Isuzu commercials from the ’80s—mean that this is the best way to get your fix of the decade. (Yes, it also blends into the company’s ’90s models…)

Cover Image Source: fubiz.net