Remember, when I was in elementary school, the boys in my class had a copy of the "Seven Dragon Balls" comic book, and each of them had a different number of words, so they could talk to each other about getting a new one so they wouldn't have to buy a new one. I remember I only bought 3-4 manga, and I read the entire Dragon Ball series through the "repeated borrowing" of all the boys in my class.

The most fascinating thing about the manga is the fight scenes. For example, Sun Goku becomes a Super Saiyan for the first time to fight Frieza because of Kobayashi's death, and Sun Gohan uses one hand to unleash Kamen Rider Shockwave, which ultimately defeats Saru.

I can still relish these scenes half the time when I think about them now.

It's just that as I've gotten older, the idea of "destroying the Earth with a wave" has gotten away from me. As of now, all I have left of Dragon Ball is a carefree childhood, and the manga is full of "vintage" cars.

In fact, the manga with "cars" in the story was basically stolen by "Heads Up", which is an anime that focuses on "racing" after all. However, after going through Dragon Ball over and over again, I realized that the manga has a lot of classic cars in it, and even a lot of European classic cars that aren't in Head D.

Today, let's revisit the classic cars from Dragon Ball.

One, Fiat 500

It's no exaggeration to say that the Fiat 500 is definitely one of the most successful minivans in history. It was also the car that established the juggernaut that would later become the Smart and Mini?Cooper.

▲The current Fiat 500

The Fiat 500 has gone through three generations: the Fiat?500?Topolino (1936-1955); the Fiat?500?Nuova?(1957-1975)? ; the current Fiat?500 (2007-present).

The car's status as a classic is directly related to its round and cute styling. With four trim levels, three powertrains and 12 body colors in the European market, the Fiat 500 is a truly versatile car.

The Fiat 500 was one of the first models to appear inside Seven Dragon Balls, but unfortunately it didn't have much of a role, and it got its box office in less than 3 episodes. If it has any commemorative significance, it is the Monkey King's first "Kamehameha Ki Kung" was dedicated to this car. As we all know, one of Sun Wukong's later rounds of "Turtle Pai Ki Kung" is capable of destroying the Earth, so you can imagine how sturdy this car is.

Two, Porsche 911

Not much to say, is still a classic model. Since the birth of the Porsche 911, this car has continued to take the world by storm for decades. To this day, it is arguably one of the most legendary Porsche models, even in Germany, and one of the masterpieces of the rear-engined sports car.

▲The current Porsche 911

By now, the Porsche 911 I*** has gone through eight generations, with the latest, codenamed 992, being the most technologically advanced generation of 911s in history in my opinion.

While the reality is that Porsche has always stuck to horizontally-opposed engines and near-perfect PDK dual-clutch gearboxes, the car in the anime didn't become the usual model for the main group of Dragon Ball characters. The reason for this is...probably because the main characters are all poor losers in the early stages.

Three: Volkswagen Beetle

The Volkswagen Beetle is the ultimate car classic. According to the history of the Volkswagen Group, this would have been the first car introduced by VW, called the Volkswagen Type 1 (Volkswagen?Type?1).

▲The first generation of the Volkswagen Beetle

The origins of this car go back to the World War II period, when Hitler proposed that every German family have a car, the requirement is to be able to seat two adults and three children, as well as their luggage, with a maximum speed of 100 kilometers per hour to meet the needs of highway driving. Average fuel consumption was to be no higher than 7 liters per 100 kilometers, and the selling price was to be kept under 1,000 marks.

So Ferdinand? Porsche took the lead in developing one of the most iconic cars in the history of the Volkswagen Group. In an international poll of the world's most influential cars of the 20th century, the Beetle ranked fourth behind the Ford Model T, the Mini and the Citro?n DS.

The Beetle was also the most frequently seen car in the manga Seven Dragon Balls, with Kame-sennin carrying Goku in the early stages, Kobayashi drive this car out, very consistent with the positioning of the Beetle.

Four, the Volkswagen Golf

Next, again double o'clock is a super classic two-box sedan, many people jokingly said "with the Golf, only with the other models of Volkswagen", visible Golf in the Volkswagen Group's status is high.

The second-generation Volkswagen Golf

When it comes to the Volkswagen Golf, the Beetle has to be mentioned again. At the end of the 1960s, sales of the Beetle declined sharply, and the Volkswagen Group knew that the Beetle's tired rear-engine technology and the use of space inside the car had long been unable to satisfy the public's demand for a "national car," so it developed a new generation of national sedans, which is where the Golf came from.

As of today, this has been the highest-selling model in Volkswagen's history. Even in the global market, the Golf can stand in the third position for more than a decade. Today, the Golf has sold more than 30 million units worldwide, perfectly taking over the title of "Beetle".

The Golf in the Dragon Ball manga is a second-generation model, but it looks very rounded in the drawing, and the second-generation Golf is actually more square.

Five: Suzuki Jimny

Frankly speaking, the Jimny's historical status naturally can't be compared with the above "god cars", but that still doesn't stop it from making a great cameo in "Dragon Ball".

The Jimny's position in the Japanese and Chinese markets is similar, but the situation is not the same. Because of Japan's friendly policy toward small cars, the Jimny has a good reputation in enthusiast circles for its price, tuning potential and off-road performance.

▲The current Suzuki Jimny

And although the Chinese market recognized the Jimny's product power in the early days, the latest generation of the "little box" could only be imported into China in the form of parallel imports because of the late increase in import tariffs and poor sales of the Suzuki brand in China. But no matter what, Jimny still for "no money and want to play cross-country" people provide a good direction, looking forward to the future it can once again bloom on the ground in China.

Six, Mercedes-Benz S-class

Mercedes-Benz S-class should be all the large luxury sedan in the strongest aura, so the ride in this car is basically "non-rich that is rich". In movies, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class is used by people of high status, but in Dragon Ball, it's the villain who takes on this task.

▲Mercedes-Benz S-Class coupe (W126)

The Mercedes-Benz S-Class featured in the manga is the sixth generation of the entire lineup, code-named W126, and was earlier known as the "Tiger Ben" in China. The car was a two-door version in the manga, and according to the current model, it would be an S-Coupe, which is a relatively rare model in China.

Because of the "Seven Dragon Ball" style of drawing, no matter what the car in the manga feel look "cute", even the always powerful S-Class has become like K-Car.

Seven, Volkswagen T1

In fact, according to the above models, we will find that Akira Toriyama in the implantation of the vehicle will basically choose the classic models, perhaps they have business cooperation? Just kidding, but the author does seem to favor Volkswagen, even the Volkswagen T1 appears in the manga.

The first Volkswagen T1

The Volkswagen T1, despite having a 1 in its name, was actually codenamed "Type?2", the second Volkswagen Group car. We've already talked about who the first one was above. The Volkswagen T1 was born in 1950 as a van-type utility vehicle, but it was not just for consumers, it was also for vendors.

In the 1950s, many people in Europe were willing to buy a Volkswagen T1 to sell some goods, and then just sleep in the car. After the tourism industry developed in recent years, you must have also seen VW T1 model cars selling ice cream in foreign (especially European) scenic spots.

There are not many ordinary consumers in China who know about this car, and most of them are still some children. Why? Because the "chicken" game appeared inside the car ...

Eight, AC Cobra

Be sure that the British AC we must not be familiar with, this is in fact a veteran sports car automobile manufacturers, was born in 1903. Appeared in the seven dragon ball in this car for its AC?Cobra, born in 1962.

▲AC?Cobra

The Cobra is also a classic car in the history of automobile development, which was designed by Mr. Carroll?Shelby (Carroll?Shelby). Mr. Carroll Shelby designed the car, initially to produce a car that could compete with the Chevrolet Corvette in American races, and so the AC Cobra was born.

▲Netizen's collection of comics, the car on the right is AC?Cobra

This car in the "Dragon Ball" belongs to the star of the model, I believe that most people have seen, but are not familiar with. To be honest, if I hadn't looked up all kinds of information, I would have been completely ignorant of this car...

Nine, Ford Mustang

In 1962, Ford began to develop the first conceptual model of the Mustang - the MustangI model. It was a mid-engine, two-seat sports car, and in honor of the legendary North American P57 Mustang fighter in World War II, Ford decided to name the car Mustang.

First Generation Ford Mustang

The Ford Mustang made its debut in October 1962, when race car driver Dan Gurney was named the Mustang. Dan Gurney drove it in the U.S. Grand Prix of Automobiles in New York. I searched and never found this car in the Seven Dragon Ball story, and only saw it on the cover. As you can see, while the car was a favorite in enthusiast circles, it didn't play much of a role in the manga.

Now that I think about it, what a great scene it would have been if the writers of Heads Up had been able to set up a JDM vs. Pony?Car in the show.

Ten, Jaguar MK?II

The car that looks like a Bentley in the cartoon is actually a Jaguar MK?II. The car was born in 1959, and has a typical British aristocratic appearance.

The Jaguar MK?II is indeed a beautiful luxury model, with 18 percent glass in the cabin and a streamlined waistline that makes it a very recognizable member of the Jaguar family, one of the all-time British classics. Only it's still the same problem, the vehicle's gravitas doesn't show up well in the manga due to the Q-tip style of the Seven Dragons.

Special Exit: Mini?Cooper

The last one, a legendary model that has made guest appearances in almost every classic anime - Mini?Cooper. The model in the manga is a 1961 model, again the most iconic model in Mini's history.

▲First Generation Mini Cooper

The most impressive thing about the Mini Cooper is its "toy" styling, which, combined with its nimble handling and excellent safety features, has made it a sought-after car for many young people, especially for girls. The car is a favorite of many young people, especially girls.

The cover of the last few episodes of Dragon Ball shows Buu the Demon sitting in a Mini?Cooper, and then his head poking out of the sunroof. Honestly, there's something inexplicably delightful about the massive size of Devilman Buu paired with the Mini?Cooper, and the four tires of the vehicle are pressed like they've been deliberately adjusted for camber. And the fact that it's drawn in such a way that it still doesn't feel out of place shows the depth of Akira Toriyama's skill.

This scene has also become one of the most iconic covers in all of the Seven Dragon Ball comic books.

Tails

As we said at the beginning, whenever we think of "cars" in anime, the first thing that comes to mind is "Heads Up". But if you watch enough anime, you'll find the familiar "cars" in any anime. And with Honda announcing a tie-in with EVA just a few days ago, there's bound to be more colorful sparks between cars and manga in the future.

So this column won't end here, and this post is just the beginning. Next time, let's take a look at some of the other classic comics that contain the classic cars we've come to love!

This article was written by the author of AutoCar, and does not represent the views of AutoCar.