Mini 1.3i
There are three constants in the car world: change, change and change. New models are introduced every year, and nameplates disappear often enough to confuse even the most dedicated gearhead. In spite of this, there are long-termers — iconic badges that stick around for decades. The ones that last do so for a number of reasons, but most are simply the result of a good idea. These are some of the cars that were popular then and remain so today.
Read: Built to Last
The original SUV
Seventy-five years ago, the Chevrolet Suburban was a truck chassis gifted with an elongated passenger cab, a live rear axle and more interior space than a typical New York apartment. In 2011, the blueprint remains. A few things have changed — today's Suburban rides like a luxury car and gets just over 20 mpg on the highway, for example — but Chevy has improved, not diluted, the original idea. If you need an all-hauling, people-moving tribute to American persistence, this is your ride.
Compare: Chevrolet Suburban vs. Toyota Sequoia vs. GMC Yukon
Italy's air-cooled darling
Not a lot has changed here. The first Fiat 500, introduced in 1957, was an inexpensive air-cooled midget that helped put cash-strapped Europeans on stylish wheels. The latest 500, launched in 2007, is water-cooled, but the basics — a distinctly Italian silhouette, a postage-stamp wheelbase and seating for four — remain. Cute doesn't always age well, but the 500's lines are the Gary Coleman of the car industry: forever young and perpetually, almost freakishly, adorable.
Read: Finally a Fiat
The best-selling truck in America
Before the Ford F-Series launched in the late 1940s, pickup trucks were largely based on cars. The first F truck, the 1948 F-1, looked nothing like a car, but it offered a docile personality paired with industrial-strength utility. The F-150 badge didn't arrive until 1973, but every modern Ford truck, regardless of name, is evolved from the F-1. The current F-Series trucks are available with airbags, turbochargers and even a capable V6 engine, but they're still what they were 60 years ago: good, honest pickups.
Video: 2011 Ford F-150
Style, style, style
In real estate, location is paramount. With cars, it's looks. The 1964 Mustang was little more than a rebodied Ford Falcon sedan, but taut sheet metal and a sexy stance ensured that it became one of the Blue Oval's best-selling models. Like the original, the 2011 Mustang carries either 6- or 8-cylinder power under its long, masculine hood, in addition to a live rear axle. Fuel economy — 30 mpg from the standard 305-horsepower V6 — however, is worlds better.
Read: More Thrills, Fewer Bills
A tasty helping of bread and butter
How's this for ambitious: Honda says that the Accord, which began life as a 2-door hatchback, was so named because it represented the company's attempt to achieve harmony between society and cars. The big H's legendary midsizer was introduced in 1976. It cost just $3,995, produced a whopping 68 horsepower and cranked out 44 mpg on the highway. Today's Accord is much larger, faster and more comfortable, but the philosophy — a do-everything car for Joe Everyman — thankfully stuck around.
Bing Images: Honda Accord