Five Cars Made Famous by ‘80s TV Shows

The 1980s were an exciting time to watch television. The broad availability of cable reception and the nearly universal adoption of color TVs by this time gave birth to exciting new options like MTV. In fact, that one channel and the popularity of its medium – music videos – changed the way a lot of TV shows were produced. Add the excitement of loud, fast cars to the mix and it’s no wonder the decade’s most popular shows are often best remembered for their four-wheeled stars.

We’ve gathered the five most influential ‘80s TV cars (well, four cars and a van). Even some 40 years later, many of these are still popular with car enthusiasts and the general public alike. And honestly, who doesn’t get excited at the sight of well-execute a tribute to one of these icons at a local car show? Check out the list and see for yourself.

1969 Dodge Charger

Although The Dukes of Hazzard first hit airwaves in 1979, the show ran for six seasons, well in the 1980s. The undeniable star of the show was the General Lee, a bright orange 1969 Dodge Charger. With its doors welded shut and a full roll cage installed, it hinted at being a former stock car racer, tying it to the Duke family’s moonshining legacy.

The General Lee is memorable for the outlandish stunts it performed in every episode, usually involving long slow-motion jumps over random bridges and through old barns. Depending on which source you read, the production built (and subsequently destroyed) between 255 and 325 ’68 and ’69 Chargers over the show’s run.

Thanks to the show, the ’69 Charger remains a popular fan favorite today, either in General Lee drag or as a more period-correct muscle car. Replica examples of the TV star show up occasionally at specialty sellers and auctions, including this tribute car sold by Unique Classic Cars for nearly $100,000.

1972 Ferrari 365 GTS/4 Daytona Spyder

When Miami Vice debuted in the fall of 1984, it was unlike any other show to hit the small screen. It was shot in a dramatic cinematic style that became producer Michael Mann’s signature. The soundtrack featured original technical compositions from Jan Hammer that echoed what was playing on MTV. Even the bold, cutting edge wardrobe made its stars look like fashion models. And the cars? Well, it was Miami in the ‘80s, so you know they were off the charts as well.

Lead character Sonny Crockett was an eccentric, renegade vice detective who lived onboard a Cigarette boat with his pet alligator. You know he wasn’t rolling around in a department-issued Caprice. Somehow Crokett’s daily driver was an ultra-rare 1972 Ferrari 365 GTS/4 Daytona Spyder, of which only 120 or so examples were ever built. In reality, the black convertible was a fiberglass kit car based on a C3 Corvette and built by McBurnie Coachcraft. The TV show’s popularity, however, may have generated more attention than the kit car builder (who also produced a 250 GTO replica) wanted as Ferrari eventually took legal action to cease production.

Owners of existing cars were not involved in the case, but the folks in Maranello succeeded in halting the replicas. The argument, naturally, was that the McBurnie cars were having a negative effect on the value of the real thing. The real Daytona Spyders like this one are indeed rare, but they do come up for sale on occasion in case you’re sitting on a winning PowerBall ticket.

1982 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am

GM’s third-gen Camaro/Firebird F-body twins debuted as 1982 model. The new hatchback configuration, similar to other sports cars like the Mazda RX-7 and Porsche 924 of the time, was seen as controversial. But after the TV debut of Knight Rider in September of ’82, sales of new model slingshotted into history, particularly those for the black Firebird Trans Am.

The brand-new model looked futuristic when it first arrived in dealer showrooms. This made it the perfect platform to showcase all the fantastic crime-fighting technology built into the fictional Knight Industries Two Thousand (or K.I.T.T. as the car was commonly known). Features like digital instruments, voice activation, video screens, and a sassy voice assistant fueled by artificial intelligence seemed so far off when the show hit airwaves, but are now a reality we almost take for granted. The grappling hook in Episode 6, not so much.

The original series lasted through 1986 and was revived a couple times later, but the impact of the original K.I.T.T. endures. Many enthusiasts have built faithful replicas, down to the strobing LED light bar in the front bumper. It’s not entirely uncommon to see them cross the auction block, such as this K.I.T.T. tribute that sold at Mecum in 2018.

1983 GMC Vandura

Really, what else would you expect a band of misfit former special forces turned do-gooder soldiers of fortune to drive other than a hot rod panel van? The premise of The A-Team was preposterous in the first place, but may have been the only way to make full-size domestic vans look cool in the years between the ‘70s “shag wagons” and the current obsession with #VanLife.

Black on the bottom, dark grey on top and with a red horizontal stripe running from the hood to the front doors before kicking up diagonally to meet a roof-mounted spoiler in the same color, the van had a badass look that was anything but paramilitary. Red mag wheels wearing raised white letter BFGoodrich rubber reinforced its sporty looks, while a brush guard and an array of auxiliary lights on the roof and below the bumper added the appearance of utility.

The A-Team ran for four seasons from early 1983 to early 1987, but the same basic GMC (and Chevy) G-series van lived from 1971 all the way to 1996. And while A-Team van replicas are far less common than other TV vehicles, they do exist. A backdated 1992 model went through Mecum’s chutes in 2022 looking just like the real deal. I pity the fool who doesn’t smile at the sight of it.

1984 Ferrari 308 GTS

As if living on Maui in the guesthouse of an eccentric novelist weren’t fantastic enough, the charmed life of Thomas Magnum, P.I. also included unfettered free use of the boss’s Ferrari. When Magnum, P.I. debuted at the end of 1980, Ferrari’s mid-engined V8 grand touring coupe, the 308 GTB, was still relatively unfamiliar to most eyes.

The hardtop coupe was first shown five years earlier, but the targa-topped 308 GTS was still fairly fresh when the show broke. It was this version that was driven by the title character, played by the 6’4” Tom Selelck. Not only did the open cockpit make it easier for him to get in and out of, it also showed off more of the star himself. Often attired in his character’s signature Hawaiian shirt mostly unbuttoned, the car apparently wasn’t the only thing the actor had going for him. He spent most of the ‘80s on magazine covers as America’s favorite middle-aged heartthrob.

Unlike most of the other vehicles on this list, Magnum’s Ferrari had no special gimmicks to make it special. It just was. And unlike the Faux-rarri Daytonas in Miami Vice, the ones used for this show were the real deal. The Ferrari became synonymous with the show, which undoubtedly helped make the 308 model one of the company’s first true volume cars. A 1979 GTS featured in the first season, to be replaced with a fuel injected 1981 GTSi for the next five seasons. An upgrade came for the last two seasons in the form of a 1984 GTSi quattrovalvole (4-valve) like this low-mileage example sold by Mecum in 2018.