There’s something captivating about classic cars – whether it’s their rarity, the way they capture the essence of an era, or simply appreciation for beautiful design, vintage motors turn heads wherever they go. In celebration of this indefinable quality, Carole Nash has produced some vintage-style posters of some of the most unforgettable classics from around the globe.
With a whole world of classics to choose from, we needed a way to narrow down the choices, so we opened the decision up to the public by running a series of polls on Honest John Classics. Voters were presented with a list of ten distinctive motors from four countries – Great Britain, Japan, Germany and Italy – and then the results were totted up before the posters went into production.
The Great British Classic – Jaguar E-Type
The voting process produced some interesting results. For instance, the Jaguar E-Type is the undisputed winner of Great British design with 29% of the vote, with its closest rivals the MGB, Aston Martin DB5 and the Mini trailing with 13%, 13% and 11% respectively. This may come as no surprise for such an iconic piece of British engineering – but we’re surprised the Mini wasn’t shown more love!
The Japanese Classic – Datsun 240Z
There was much less consensus when it came to Japanese cars, but despite facing stiff competition from the Subaru Impreza (15%) and Mazda MX-5 (18%), it was the Datsun 240Z that emerged the favourite with a shade over 18% of the vote. Known on its home turf as the Nissan Fairlady Z, its pioneering design challenged the dominance of Ford and Chevrolet in the 1970s, setting new standards and expectations on both sides of the Pacific.
Germany Classic – Audi Quattro
To Germany next, and the Audi Quattro – the rally car that blew everyone away when it debuted at the 1980 Geneva Motor Show – proved the favourite with 24% of the vote. One of Audi’s most successful cars, both on and off the racetrack, it left its closest rivals the Volkswagen Golf GTI (18%) and Mercedes 300SL (14%) standing in the dust.
Italian Classic – Fiat 500
Finally, the top-voted Italian car by quite a margin was the Fiat 500, with 27% of the final total. With a production run spanning nearly 20 years, Fiat showed with the Cinquecento that practical could be beautiful, and its cheeky, cheerful stylings became hugely influential. In the runner-up positions were the Lamborghini Miura (14%), Lancia Stratos (13%) and Ferrari Dino (11%).
In creating these nostalgic posters, Carole Nash wanted to evoke the design philosophy of each car’s era, while making each one different and unique. The Fiat 500’s poster, for instance, is typical of postwar advertising styles, while the Audi’s pays homage to the more abstract, Art-Deco-influenced tastes of the 1980s. It took time to settle on the perfect look and feel for each poster, but we hope you’ll agree the results were well worth it.
We’re so proud of these designs that we’re making them available as downloadable wallpapers for your smartphone.
We hope you love these posters as much as we loved making them – and that they help you celebrate your own passion for timeless design.
