QOTD: What Car Rekindled Your Automotive Enthusiasm?

In today's Used Car of the Day feature, I pointed out that the Volvo C30 helped me rekindle my automotive enthusiasm, which was flagging a bit at the time both for professional reasons and because of the state of that era's new-car market. The C30 was not the only car that got me back to the Barnes and Noble magazines section to buy buff books, but it helped -- merely by looking cool.

Of course, times change, and the C30 isn't a car I think about much anymore. And truth be told, my enthusiasm for new cars has waxed and waned over the years -- some years just had cooler fleets than others. I am lucky that since the early '90s, when I first really started to car about cars, the overall vibe has been good -- we've long had performance cars that would dust anything from the muscle-car era, cars are safer and offer more convenience features, and while not all tech advances have been good, most have.

Still, there are times when I feel my passion sliding -- and then perhaps a new car launches or a current car gets a thorough redesign, and something about that car's looks and/or performance remains me why I care about something that 80 percent of the world (or more) simply writes off as basic transportation. I am reminded why I've stuck in this business -- meaning automotive in general and automotive media specifically -- when I could be working in an industry that faces fewer challenges and offers a more lucrative income.

So what say you? Is there a car, or multiple cars, that rekindled your automotive fire at a time you were feeling down about the state of market?

You know what to do.

Sound off below.

[Image: Virrage Images/Shutterstock.com]

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