Cars of the Rich and Famous

What they are (or were) driving.

At the height of the long sleek gas guzzling luxury car era in 1976. Elvis Presley was the proud owner of a brand new El Dorado from Cadillac. Maybe not quite as gaudy as his residence at Graceland, but close, this vehicle was the subject of many oohs and ahs as the King of rock and roll settled into sideburns and jumpsuits that barely contained a very noticeable middle-aged spread until he “left the building.“

Just a few years before that John Lennon was the talk of the town for his 1970 Pullman from Mercedes Benz. In that same year Reggie Jackson’s World Series performances made him a national celebrity, and his 1970 Chevy Nova basked in the limelight. This one is a real classic (Man, I wish I had kept mine.), maybe not as pricey as some antique celebrity vehicles, but with real character. Many celebrities collect cars. Jay Leno is a noted car collector, and drives a wide variety of big name models, and even a few really old fashioned steam cars.

While spending their millions on cars is generally expected of celebrities and regarded as a sign of their superior (ahem) judgment and style, by 2006 some were making a political and environmental issue out of things by driving gas/electric hybrids which your average small town rich person might be able to afford. Julia Roberts and Leonardo DiCaprio are leading this new trend. Some of their peers, however, make up for this odd show of celebrity good sense by taking conspicuous consumption to new levels.

Britney Spears is said to have been seen driving a $450,000 SLR McLaren from Daimler Chrysler. That’s a lot of baby food (and/or condoms) Britney. Paris Hilton goes old world with a $170,000 Bentley Continental GT, and Lindsay Lohan one ups her by about 15 grand by driving a $185,000 Mercedes SL65 AMG convertible. I don’t know what all those letters and numbers stand for, but they must cost about 20 grand apiece.

Tom Cruise, Kevin Federline, and the rest of the field are coming in somewhere in the middle by driving Porsches, Ferraris, Lamborghinis, and similar cars. A few Cadillacs, custom Mercedes’s, and others garner an occasional honorable mention, but according to your point of view Britney’s half million dollar ride, or maybe, the sensible politically conscious hybrids, seem to be leading the field.

In the culture of celebrity that dominates so much of modern American life fans and aficionados alike have a real interest in what the rich and famous are driving. Fans have always had a fascination with, and sometimes a desire to emulate the cars that their celebrity idols drive or have driven. So, I put this piece together in the interest of both recording such interesting historical data for posterity, and for satisfying the urge of those now interested in stars and the cars they drive.

Sources: Forbes.com, The Wall Street Journal, and E-bay Galleries, but all the wisecracks are fairly original.