*This blog post was written by Rachel Jensen on behalf of Evans Halshaw, the UK’s leading automotive retailer for new cars.*
Many celebrities – certainly the ones who you’d classify as ‘A-list’ – have a lot of money, with which they can do exactly what they please. Like many of us regular folk, they’re interested in motoring and like to drive around in the best possible rides. There are some celebrities who have vast collections of cars (generally the extremely rich or gearheads), while others are content with an investment in one or two dream cars.
In this post we’ll take a look at which cars in particular are very popular among celebrities, and we’ll also try to understand why some cars become star-favorites. We’ll examine cars which are popular now, but also ones which were popular in the past. Many of these are classics, so they’ll fit into both categories. We’ve tried to pick a few different types of cars – not just sports cars – in order to cover all bases.
The Land Rover Range Rover:
On a weekly basis, we’ll see paparazzi shots involving some celebrity driving their Range Rover. They’re a classy vehicle choice – there’s no question about that – but just why are they so popular with the rich and famous? Some would argue that the Range Rover is a status symbol, and there’s certainly evidence to support that theory. Many footballers seem to own them – often customised – but even across the pond they’re very popular. Kim Kardashian owns one, rapper 50 Cent does too, as does American Olympic gold medalist swimmer Michael Phelps (pictured above). It doesn’t seem to attract a particular type of celebrity – it’s popular with all types.
The Range Rover is of course a very big vehicle. Perhaps this explains the attraction somewhat – large cars are very popular amongst celebrities because size is synonymous with their wealth (large houses, large televisions, large watches, and so on). Put it this way – you don’t see many driving around in Smart cars, do you? (Though some do, which we’ll get onto a bit later…)
Lamborghini (various):
Nothing says “I’m important!” like one of these Italian beauties. They’ve got a hefty price tag, they’re totally unmistakable in appearance, and they’re loud – pretty much exactly what your average wealthy celebrity will want out of a car. Fashion designer Ralph Lauren is a well-known fan of Lamborghinis, as are countless Premier League footballers, Hollywood stars and various other famous folk. Even the crazy skateboarder Bam Margera had one – a burgundy Murcielago (had as in past tense, because he predictably managed to ruin it).
Not only do they look absolutely stunning, but it would be fair to say that Lamborghinis can move rather quickly. Even celebrities who do indeed behave behind the wheel and stay within the speed limits seem to like them – perhaps it’s because they like knowing that, if they wanted to, they could get moving quickly.
Aston Martin (various):
Perhaps a more understated choice than the previous two, Aston Martins do seem rather popular with quite a few celebrities. Jay Kay, lead singer of the British funk group Jamiroquai, has a DB5 amongst his extensive collection (indeed – he is an extremely avid car collector, believe it or not!). Other famous owners (though fictional) include the spy and star of the 007 series, James Bond, and it probably goes without saying that a number of the actors who have played Bond over the years have gone on to own Aston Martins, perhaps because they became smitten with them on set!
(Pierce Brosnan pictured above)
The Mini Cooper:
Despite the fact that many celebrities choose to go large with their choices of automobiles, there are a few who like to be a bit more understated and take on a much more classic approach. The Mini is a symbol of British iconography, and is of course synonymous with the 1969 film The Italian Job and its star Michael Caine. However, there have been many more Mini owners over the years, some who you might not have been aware of or expected!
Celebrity couple Peter Sellers and Britt Ekland shared a Mini during their marriage, and there are a few funny photographs of them out there, if you do some digging on Google.
Even Hollywood icon Steve McQueen had a Mini at one point, and as you might have guessed, it was a fast one at that! For those of you who aren’t aware, McQueen was an actor who absolutely loved motor racing and driving at fast speeds. Every spare moment he had, pretty much, was spent either riding in cars or on motorcycles, or fixing them. He had a car and motorbike selection so vast that he had to store most of it in an aircraft hangar!
(Charlotte Rampling pictured above.)
Porsche (various):
Quite rightly, Porsche sports cars have been popular for a great number of years now. At the moment, they’re very popular with hip hop stars from the United States – rappers like The Game and R&B big names such as Kid Cudi and Ne-Yo also have them. The beauty with Porsches is of course that there are quite a few stunning models, and they’re all purebred performance machines.
Hollywood stars like Sylvester Stallone (pictured above) and Jim Carrey are proud Porsche owners, and Bam Margera who we talked about above has a Panamera (which, despite its questionable styling, is a very popular model among many celebrities).
———–
Can you think of any more cars or brands that seem popular among the rich and famous? We think we’ve covered quite a few but there are always more! Let us know in the comments section below – we’d love to hear from you!
*This blog post was written by Rachel Jensen on behalf of Evans Halshaw, the UK’s leading automotive retailer for new cars.*
(Images courtesy of wikispaces.com, rapgenius.com and remarkablecars.com.)