The top five most popular classic cars - the exciting race for the first places

Although new cars have a lot of advantages, the older generation of vehicles is by no means forgotten. Quite the contrary - the classic car industry is booming and more cars are maturing into classics every year. The number of classic cars registered in Germany has now exceeded half a million - and the trend is rising.

Not every car over 30 years old is lovingly cherished. But which vehicles stand out as classics and are worth the expensive restoration of old technology with low mileage? We looked into the question of which are the top five most popular classic cars.

VW Beetle - the crawler from Wolfsburg is and remains the most popular car of all time

Running board, open top and wind around the ears - the ride in the old Beetle Cabriolet resembles a journey to bygone times of economic miracle and the spirit of optimism of the post-war years. Produced over 21,000,000 times, the VW Beetle was not only the most popular car of all time, even today the crawler from Wolfsburg occupies first place among the most popular classic cars. It was the first vehicle in Germany to mobilize the masses and for a long time the most built car in the world.

Although it is not quite easy to acquire a VW Beetle in good condition or to get spare parts, the Federal Motor Transport Authority registered more than 35000 VW Beetles with H license plates in 2018. In addition, there are also specimens without special license plates that enjoy free passage on German roads.

Mercedes W123 & Mercedes SL R107 - classic car favorites in second and third place

In the struggle for the front ranks of the classic car top, it is not really surprising that the Mercedes brand plays right at the front here. The Mercedes W123 was and is a true everyday classic and has long since joined the ranks of the honored classic cars. Never has a Mercedes model been built more often than this Mercedes generation. With over 2.7 million vehicles produced, it was even enough to knock the then VW Golf off the throne of the registration statistics in 1980. Although the first examples are more than 40 years old, the W 123 with its timeless body design does not look like a veteran. Even in its youth, it was an inconspicuous automobile without any fashionable attributes.

Anyone who wears the name SL already comes into the world as a classic. But what a stellar career the successor to the Pagoda would actually have was not yet clear when it made its debut in 1971. The Mercedes SL R107 became the darling of the rich and beautiful. Its appearances in movies such as Denver, Dallas and Miami Vice as well as TV soap operas are innumerable. But in real life, it was also present in many places of high society. Today, the Mercedes SL R 107 is the third most popular classic car in Germany! Its magical abbreviation SL no longer stands for "super light", but for "sex appeal and luxury".

Porsche 911 - Men's dreams come true

Porsche's original 911 is the Porsche par excellence. It not only makes men's dreams come true, it is also a real gem for female car fanatics. Above all, however, the Porsche 911 writes a piece of industrial history, which stands for German engineering and brings it to fourth place among the most popular classic cars in Germany. Not only visually in Irish green paint a sporty cult piece, also acoustically and in terms of engine power and acceleration it is unique.

Mercedes W124 - Germany's next top classic car

When classic car fans talk about the Mercedes W124, they go absolutely into raptures. The "last real Benz", as enthusiasts call it, could even knock the Beetle off its throne as the most popular classic car in a few years. But why does this car, which is so simple in all its variants, attract so much enthusiasm? In fact, it is the superior build quality and the longevity of the W124's engine and technology that appeal to more than just die-hard Mercedes lovers. Tens of thousands of vehicles are still on the road today. For Germany alone, the Federal Motor Transport Authority lists more than 80,000 registered vehicles.

But where does the assumption come from that the first official E-Class from the Stuttgart brand will knock the little Beetle from Wolfsburg off the number one spot among the most popular classic cars? Quite simply - many vehicles in the W124 series are not yet 30 years old and therefore do not yet maintain classic car status. The race for the top five most popular classic cars therefore remains exciting!