The Cars We'd Buy Our Dads for Father's Day

Every kid dreams of daddy coming home with a new car just for them, but how often do kids dream about bringing dad the car of his dreams?

Well, with Father’s Day coming up, the staff at AutoGuide starting thinking about what we would buy for our respective dads, if we were given access to an unlimited back account. And no, we’re not talking about trips to the Bahamas, espresso machines and solid gold toilets; we are talking about cars.

The rules: each staff member gets two picks, one of which must be on sale today.

So read on to see what our dad’s would be cruising in, if we won the lottery.

What kind of vehicle do you buy for a guy who already owns the classic truck of his dreams? My old man picked up a 1971 Chevrolet C10 Cheyenne last year, and he absolutely loves it. In light of this, my first pick for him is geared towards hauling around his prized possession, which is why I would buy him a new 2013 Ram 3500 Laramie Longhorn.

With the fifth-wheel tow rating maxing out at 30,000 lbs, this monstrous American heavy hauler has way more than enough grunt to haul my Dad’s classic Chevy around to car shows. Staying comfortable over the many miles will be easy with the Longhorn package and its interior amenities, which includes leather wrapped everything and a center mounted touchscreen with UConnect Infotainment. And although the Ram logo may clash with the Chevy bowtie, American muscle is what my old man cherishes. Of course, the 6.7-liter Cummins Turbo Diesel engine with a best-in-class 850 lb-ft of torque helps too.

Plus, when it comes to heavy duties, you just can’t beat the Ram’s tough yet handsome exterior looks.

If you hadn’t already figured this one out, my Dad’s a pickup truck guy. If I did buy him a sports car, say a new SRT Viper, I know that it would instantly be traded in for motor oil, truck parts, new tools and delicious expensive steaks. But I’m not dumb. I know the perfect combo of sports car and pickup truck to keep my old man happy for the rest of his days: the 1999 Ford F-150 Lightning.

As much pickup truck as it is sports car, the F-150 Lightning gets its power from a 5.3-liter supercharged V8 that puts out 360 horsepower and 440 lb-ft of torque. Completely re tuned suspension helps the Lightning actually stick in the corners, making this one of the most track-focused pickups ever made. When it arrived back in 1999, the truck owned the accolade of world’s fastest production pickup truck from Guinness. Towing isn’t completely out of the question either, as this truck is ready for a Class III hitch out the back.

I didn’t grow up in a car-obsessed household. Nevertheless, I can recall my father telling me that if I ever won the lottery, to buy him a Porsche.

The first car I can recall in our family was a 1977 Ford LTD. Affectionately referred to as “the green Ford” my dad made do with it for years beyond its best ones. In fact, it was barely his car. In a single-income family he worked hard to buy something my mom could shuttle us around in while he took the bus. So for that, he deserves Germany’s finest.

Before the LTD, and before my recollection, he also owned a Fiat. A man with a natural penchant for story telling, I can remember one in which, on a twisty drive home from the airport after a business trip, a shiny new Corvette couldn’t shake him. Unfortunately the Fiat was only fast in the corners and after literally giving the car away to a neighbor’s kid he swore he’d never buy another vehicle that needed to build up speed in order to make it up a hill.

That said, I’m thinking not just any Porsche, but a 911 Turbo, is the right choice here. After all, I’ve got unlimited funds … and maybe this will make up for destroying the transmission on his Buick when I was in high school.

That Buick, by the way, was a LeSabre. And it was HUGE. When people talk of the stereotype of a Buick as a big land yacht with a bouncy suspension and a massive hood, they are thinking of a LeSabre.

In a pre minivan era it was the smart choice for a family. When he bought it the test drive included bringing it home to make sure his two tall sons fit in the back seat.

Those big cars also offered plenty of space for other things. My dad might not be the sort to tinker on his own cars, but he’s plenty handy, building shelves, decks and a lot more. The Buick and others made plenty of trips to the lumber yard. And for that reason what my Dad could really use is a pickup truck.

A part of me says a Toyota Tacoma would do the trick, or perhaps a Tundra because if you’re going to get a truck, you really should get a proper-sized one. Plus, he’s never been able to convince himself to pay the premium Japanese brands demand over the domestics. Another part of me says to get him the very new 2014 Chevy Silverado. Not too flashy. And a real work horse. Yea, that’s the one!

Maybe he can use it to help me haul the planks for my hardwood floor (and help install it too?). A father’s job is never done…

Tech, luxury, environmental responsibility and near-effortless driving behaviour. These are the traits my dad calls for in his every day driver. Easily the perfect car for him is the Lexus LS600h.A rear-seat blu-ray entertainment system to entertain his friends? Check! Wireless headphones so the kids music doesn’t interfere with his classics? Check!

The additional luxuries of not having to worry about every other crazy driver in the Middle East(where he currently works and lives) will make his drives far less stressful, thanks to the front accident prevention system, pre-collision alert, lane-keep assist, dynamic cruise control, and every other driving aid that will help him focus on enjoying the fine luxury offered in the LS.

And of course, knowing him all-too-well, he’d net the exclusive LS600h, which is not only environmentally friendly, but is the only LS available with a bamboo trimmed interior. Like his many antiques around the house, he’ll ask me kindly not to smudge up his gorgeous car, but invite his friends to feel the unique texture of that bamboo.

Finally, as the owner of a 2008 RX400h, my pops is fully on board the hybrid bandwagon. While his personal car uses a V6 with two electric motors, the LS600h uses a far more potent V8 which works with an array of electric motors to put out a whopping 438-hp. Gliding to 60 mph comes quickly in the LS600h, about 5.5 seconds. I’d also love to think that one day my dad would join me at the track with his Lexus luxo-barge, and take full advantage of the Torsen limited slip center differential, and destroy my lowly FR-S on the straightaway, but knowing him, and his safe and sound driving style, I doubt that’ll ever happen.

When my dad isn’t entertaining me or his friends, he loves to take mom and head out of the city. Sometimes they’ll visit the vineyards, other times they’ll hit the casino. For that I’d imagine the gorgeous Mercedes-Benz CL-Class would be his go-to vehicle. He’s remarked a number of times about his inability to understand the logic of owning a coupe (despite his ownership of a Datsun Z back in the day) but I think he’d make an exception for the CL class, which is essentially a two-door version of the S-Class. That means it’s a more stylish cruiser that will compliment his love for the finer things in life, like live theatre, a romantic dinner spot, or the picture-esque roadtrip.

The senior Haj-Assaad has also remarked a number of times about how much he loves the sportier driving dynamics of modern German cars. The current owner of a BMW 7-series, he’d likely change a few of the little things about his personal car. For starters he’d prefer the style and elegance of the Mercedes over the more blunt and conservative design that’s currently in place at BMW.

Finally, when it comes to drive, the bi-turbo V8 in the Mercedes CL550 4Matic is hard to beat. Given a nice stretch of backroad, he’ll easily hit 60 mph in 4.8 seconds, and when the road gets twisty having the advantage of Mercedes-Benz’ rear-biased AWD system will help him stay cool and composed.

Powerful, cool, stylish those three words sum up both the CL and my dad, so it’s no wonder he’d be right at home in the flagship coupe from Mercedes-Benz.

I’m imagining for a minute that I had the good fortune a few months ago to pour my savings into Tesla stock. Not that it was on my mind, but the scenario about to follow could have been possible if I had. Alas.

What the hell. It never hurts to dream, right? I would love to indulge my dad’s car tastes if I stumbled into some money. With that said, it would be an easy choice to make because we’ve been ogling cars together longer than I can remember.

First up, I would replace his long lost 1964 MGB. He left it behind to go to college and returned to learn only too late that the car had a new home. I’ll never forget the (perhaps hyperbolic) stories he used to tell me about dragging his knuckles on the ground while taking hairpin turns near Manitou Springs, Colo. There’s only one way to really know if it’s true: buying one and taking it for a spin in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.

The perfect car for my dad has open wheels, a mid-mounted engine and no roof, but if you think he’s interested in an IndyCar or some kind exotic convertible you’d be as wrong as the jury that acquitted O.J. Simpson. The perfect car for pops isn’t; he has no use for anything with doors and a low ride height. His ideal vehicle is a motorcycle.

Dad is a die-hard bike enthusiast the way Rush Limbaugh is a die-hard jackass. He’s clocked hundreds of thousands of miles on his cycles over the decades riding across the country in all weather conditions. Rain drops don’t stop him, nor does cold weather or drunk drivers in Pontiac Catalinas. If he were to get a new hog today his pick would be a factory-fresh Harley-Davidson Road Glide, with a thundering V-twin engine and an aerodynamic fixed fairing. Too bad they’re equipped with fuel injection; he much prefers carburetors.

Of course he’d also love a vintage four-cylinder Indian from around 1940. About 30 years ago he restored a ‘41 Scout military bike but to him a four-banger is always the one that got away.

But you can’t ride ‘round the calendar, not in Michigan anyway, so dad needs something with an enclosed cabin and heat. Since he’s a no-nonsense, blue-collar-to-the-bone kind of guy a truck is his vehicle of choice, but not some leather-lined, chrome-plated yuppie pickup. He works for a living and needs something with suitable utility. He doesn’t care about features or amenities; to him functionality comes first.

The 2014 Chevy Silverado would be his top pick. He’d order it in the most basic work-truck configuration, complete with manual locks and crank windows. The only options he’d spring for would be air conditioning and four-wheel drive. Pushing utility he’d undoubtedly opt for an eight-foot bed, a regular cab and a V6 engine. Like I said, no nonsense.

My Dad isn’t a big car enthusiast believe it or not, but he still can recognize a good car when he sees one. Growing up in Hong Kong while it was under British rule, his younger years were filled with fine British vehicles roaming the streets, from MINIs to Rolls-Royces.

Many of the people growing up during those years in Hong Kong knew that Rolls-Royce was the pinnacle of luxury: the brand of automotive to aim for to prove you’ve “made it in life.” But as we all know, in a more realistic world, Rolls-Royce vehicles aren’t easy to come across, even if you’re successful in life. So the first car I would get my Dad if I won the lottery would be a Rolls-Royce Ghost. Why not a Phantom? Well, even though my Dad is retired now, he wouldn’t want to be driven everywhere and the Ghost offers the best of both worlds. It’s an amazingly fun car to be behind the wheel of, but it’s also luxurious enough to be chauffeured around in, maybe even by me!

My dad isn’t really into cars. In fact, you couldn’t find someone less interested in cars. He loves road trips and joins me every summer on our annual charity rally, but we could be driving a 1994 Cavalier and it would all be the same to him. He just wants a vehicle that can get him from point A to point B, comfortably and carry a lot of gear. Some of his more recent vehicles included a Kia Rondo, a GMC Safari and a Pontiac 6000-LE wagon. It is hard buying fantasy vehicles for someone not really interested in them, but here are my choices.

As you can see, there is a history of wagons or vans in our family that dates back to around the time I was born. The first wagon I remember, a Mercury Zephyr, could quite possibly be the worst vehicle my dad ever owned, but did not deter him from these practical haulers.

After my dad took an early retirement, he briefly worked as a car shuttler for a local GM dealership. It was around the time the very first CTS sedans were arriving on dealership floors. He was tasked with driving one across town and this was the only time I ever heard my dad say “Wow, what a really nice car, I really like it!” So, a brand-new Cadillac CTS Wagon 3.6 AWD would be perfect for him as it could haul stuff up to the cottage in the summer and plow through snow in the winter.