POLL: How good are you at identifying car makes/models/years on the road?

[The Dancing Peacock]

i'm pretty good at just about anything mid 80's and on. anything before that, and it's iffy. '95+ and I'm probably 95% or up.

 

[NokiaDude]

I mistook a 97 Accord for a 94. I was driving is this guy's 97 Accord and was liking and interior and the handling. It was much nicer than my 96 Chevy Lumina. So I asked him " Nice car, is this a 94 Accord?", and the guy was like " Uhh, its a 97". After that I shut up.

 

[flxnimprtmscl]

Originally posted by: m2kewl

Originally posted by: Cyberian

Originally posted by: psteng19 How many percent of cars on the road do you think you can properly identify? I can probably name the make/model/trim/year of 98% of the cars on the road today... anything '80s onward. The only ones that give me trouble are the rare exotics, the 'ole land yachts of the 50's-70's, and MB CLK/CL/SLK/SL's <-- always confused those 4.

How would you be able to tell the trim level without seeing the little "LE" or"LX" on the back?

that's what i wanna know!

Depends on the car. Moonroof, door molding, etc. There are often lots of things that diferentiate trim models. On some cars at least.

 

[Imdmn04]

bet you guys cant identify all the "same model from different year but from same generation".

 

[flxnimprtmscl]

Originally posted by: Imdmn04
bet you guys cant identify all the "same model from different year but from same generation".

I can for classic cars and trucks. Different grilles, emblem placement, etc. For the current generation of cars you're right though.

 

[Colt45]

i can identify most everything, not always the exact year though, but i can pin it to the rough time-frame that generation was produced..

 

[Ns1]

imports 95%+ 88 and beyond
domestic 70%+ 92 and beyond

i get confused by hyundai, suzuki, mercury, buick, cadillac

 

[bolido2000]

I would say 99% for any car after the 80's

 

[notfred]

I'm better at some cars than others. I can identify mustangs and crown victorias by thier headlights in my rear-view mirror. I'm not particularly food at differentiating bwtween kias and daewoos and hyundais though because, well, I don't care about them.

 

[MustangSVT]

Ok, guys whoever says they are good with identifying cars. i need help.

watch this clip (u already did most likely) MysteryCAR

it just shows the left interior and the left mirror on the car.

after laughin our a$$es off for about 30 minutes, me and my friend couldnt figure out what car it was.

at first my friend thought it was honda accord or civic, because of the shape of the mirror, but i noticed the interior shape is not like honda at all so i guess it might be toyota suv of some sort.

what car is this??

 

[psteng19]

MustangSVT
Kinda hard to tell what kinda car it is looking only at the driver side view mirror.
But it looks like a white, domestic, truck

Originally posted by: m2kewl

Originally posted by: Cyberian

Originally posted by: psteng19 How many percent of cars on the road do you think you can properly identify? I can probably name the make/model/trim/year of 98% of the cars on the road today... anything '80s onward. The only ones that give me trouble are the rare exotics, the 'ole land yachts of the 50's-70's, and MB CLK/CL/SLK/SL's <-- always confused those 4.

How would you be able to tell the trim level without seeing the little "LE" or"LX" on the back?

that's what i wanna know!

You can tell the trim a lot of the times by the size or tires, the rims, moonroof, spoiler/kit, etc. - assuming the car is kept stock.
The lowest trim (DX on a Honda, XE/GXE on a Nissan, etc.) usually comes with the smallest tires and only hubcaps, no rims.
Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo's have the plastic side molding, whereas the Limited is painted.
Same with other cars with painted side mirrors and door handles, i.e. Civics.

You can tell the years of vehicles of the same generation by subtle changes, usually the lights (front or rear), the grille, color of badging, etc.

Sometimes certain colors are only offered on a specific trim (electron blue on the Civic Si), or introduced after a certain year, so that rules out the early models.

 

[Encryptic]

I can barely tell any of the Benzes apart, with the exception of the SLK and their "SUV", the ML320? Aside from that, I'm decent at recognizing models and makes, but not specific years.

On a side note, I did see a DeLorean this morning on the way to work, of all things. Now that was surprising. I also saw an old VW Quantum a little later.

 

[BigSmooth]

Make/model probably 95% if we're talking 80's or later. Maybe some older Buicks or pickups might trip me up.
Trim level, sure if there are different exterior pieces (spoiler, different fascia or something).
Year is impossible in come cases but probably within a couple of years.

Sometimes I amuse myself at stoplights by identifying the cars that go by.

 

[MercenaryForHire]

I'm off on the years occasionally, but other than that, Car God.

- M4H

 

[JeffreyLebowski]

Originally posted by: Soybomb
Its a useful skill to help keep you safe if you're prone to speeding. Can you all identify the cars by headlight or taillights at night too?

Yes, this one baffles my GF and friends. I'm like hey, you gotta know if it's a cop or not.

 

[puffpio]

at night the headlight configuration + fog lights of a mustang look exactly like my sentra

 

[Spac3d]

75%. I can't recognize very many muscle cars

 

[chin311]

im a pro., me and my buds have competions when we are out and about, seeing who can identify them the quikest, we even get down to the trim level sometimes (ex. "THATS A ES, NO ITS AN LS"!!)

 

[thomsbrain]

i can get pretty close to 100% of anything made after ~1980. I can get around 75% at night by the shape of headlights/taillights alone. People don't believe the lights thing until I prove it to them. Just comes from liking cars and reading lots of car and driver when i was growing up.

 

[StageLeft]

I only said 75%. In fact I can identify almost no minivans or trucks because I don't give a sh*t about them. Same for Acuras. Until Acura starts giving their cars real names I'm not going to take any interest in it. Obviously I don't care to identify kias, hyundais, buicks (boring anyone?) and other things that don't interest me.

 

[thomsbrain]

Originally posted by: Cyberian

Originally posted by: psteng19
How many percent of cars on the road do you think you can properly identify?

I can probably name the make/model/trim/year of 98% of the cars on the road today... anything '80s onward.

The only ones that give me trouble are the rare exotics, the 'ole land yachts of the 50's-70's, and MB CLK/CL/SLK/SL's <-- always confused those 4.

How would you be able to tell the trim level without seeing the little "LE" or"LX" on the back?

in addition to the differences listed by another poster, lots of cars have different exterior trim according to the trim level (oddly enough). for instance, for a long time, EX civics had body-colored side mirrors while the others didn't (may still do this, i can't remember). or another civic example, if a civic is coming up behind you, you can tell if it's a sedan or coupe/hatch because the sedans have different grills on the lower part of the car. it's little stuff like that.

 

[thomsbrain]

ooh, i can identify older volvos, civics, and accords by hearing the starter crank over. that's all though, i'm no good with any other car for that.