5 Cars Owned By Bob Seger That Prove He Has Great Taste
Here's a quick primer for those who might not know who 77-year-old Detroit-born Bob Seger is, let alone that he has excellent taste in cars. The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer dropped his first solo single in 1966, and his first hit, "Ramblin' Gamblin' Man" (then with his band System), reached number seventeen on Billboard's list in 1969 (via Billboard).
One of his greatest hits, "Old Time Rock & Roll," is featured in that scene from "Risky Business," where a very young Tom Cruise bounces around the house in his underwear. Still, others might know the song "Like a Rock" from Chevy's 13-year-long hard-working truck campaign (via WMGK) without even realizing it's a Seger tune.
His affinity for cars goes further back than his rock career. At 16, he bought a "1954 Ford, flat-head six, three on the tree," that helped him learn to drive. Despite spending a good chunk of his life on the road touring, Seger still loves taking road trips with his family, going from Mt. Rushmore to the Grand Canyon and the American Southwest to the Eastern Seaboard and New England to see its storied fall colors (via Motor Trend).
While recording new albums, he routinely listens to the tracks — mentally tweaking and refining them, if needed — while driving back and forth to the recording studio (via Motor Trend). His 2014 album, "Ride Out," features an ode to Detroit muscle cars called "Detroit Made." The man's love for cars is both deep and eclectic.
1976 BMW 530i
The first year Seger really spent any serious money on was in 1976, after the albums "Night Moves" and "'Live' Bullet" became smash hits. He plunked down cash for a silver 4-door '76 BMW 530i with a 4-speed manual transmission. He has repeatedly expressed his love for cars with stick shifts (via Motor Trend). At the time, the MSRP on a new 530i was $10,590 (via J.D. Power), which is like paying $54,468 for a car in today's dollars.
Seger said he owned the car for about five years and loved it for its "great visibility" and because it was fun to drive. He also noted he often left it at the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) for months at a time during his touring heydays and would come back to find it covered in dirt and grime, but it never failed to fire up when he turned the key (via Motor Trend).
While there's nothing wild or outrageous about the car, it was considered one of the midsized luxury sedans of the day. This E12 5 Series 530i had a naturally aspirated inline 6-cylinder engine that kicked out 174 hp with 180 lb.-ft. of torque. It took a while (9.3 seconds) to get from zero to sixty-two miles per hour and only had a top speed of 124 mph (via Ultimate Specs). But it was the car he wanted, so it's the car he "splurged on."
2013 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon
Despite the fact that his song was used to sell thousands of Chevy trucks, Seger is an admitted "Jeep junkie." In fact, he likened his 2013 Rubicon, which he used as a daily driver for at least five years, to a multi-tool, because you can pop off the top and remove the doors. According to Seger, it's "one of the best off-roaders you can have," and he should know since he's owned a few during his life (via Motor Trend).
The base MSRP for a 2013 6-speed manual, 3.6-liter six-cylinder Rubicon is $34,295 (via Edmunds). Still, it's unlikely that Seger's Jeep was standard as there were thousands of dollars of options available, from a $500 remote start system to two different 10th Anniversary Quick Order Packages (at $5,400 each) to a $2,000 MOPAR Premium Sound and Leather package, to changes in body color, fenders, and tops (via Edmunds). And since he is a musician, it probably had a killer sound system.
In a 2014 interview with Motor Trend, Seger said the Rubicon wasn't a fake off-road vehicle, and he loved the fact that it could be driven "coast to coast without a road."
2011 Porsche Carrera S Cabriolet
Seger has owned a few Porsches over the years, including a stick-shifting 365 hardtop, but the 2011 convertible Carrera S is his favorite. Edmunds called the 2011 Porsche 911 "the quintessential sports car." Still, in that model year, there were so many different models to choose from (a total of 19) that correctly ordering coffee at Starbucks was easier by comparison.
The 3.8-liter, normally-aspirated, flat 6 DOHC makes 385hp and 310 lb-ft of torque and can boot scoot from zero to sixty in 4.7 seconds (via Edmunds) with a top speed somewhere around 187 mph (via Suttcars.com). Seger admitted to not driving it enough because he kept it at his Florida home. He occasionally tooled it around Michigan, but only on good days when he could drop the top (via Motor Trend).
1965 Mustang Fastback
There's an interesting little nugget behind Seger's Caspian Blue '65 Mustang 2+2 Fastback, which he owned for 41 years before selling to Dave and Kaye Persell in 2006 (via The Lansing State Journal). The Persell's were told that it was the first new car Seger ever purchased, and he reportedly picked it up in San Jose, California, while on his way to a concert in San Francisco (via Detroit Free Press).
Seger's Mustang has double white racing stripes running from stem to stern. Under the hood is a 289 cid V8 kicking out 200hp mated to a 3-speed manual floor shifter. It had an MSRP of $2,589, and after transportation charges of $149 were added, it brought the total to $2,934.00. In 2015 the car only had 7,263 original miles on the odometer, showing that it wasn't driven very much. Additionally, that same year, it made an appearance on the Travel Channel's show about American car culture called "AmeriCarna" (via Detroit Free Press).
1969 Shelby Cobra GT350 Fastback
Pulling into the final spot on the list is a 1969 Shelby Cobra GT350 Fastback. This particular car is unique for a few reasons. First, it was the last "new original" Shelby that Ford would produce. The GT350 and GT500 released in 1970 weren't actually new or original but re-VIN'd production cars from the previous year. Also, during the summer of '69, Carrol Shelby ended his association with Ford (via MustangSpecs).
It had one of Ford's new 351 Windsor V8 engines with a 470 CFM four-barrel Autolite carburetor under the hood that pounded out 290hp and 385 lb-ft of torque. Its 0 – 60 time was a modest 6.5 seconds, and it did the quarter mile in 14.9 seconds (via MustangSpecs).
According to MustangSpecs, it was typically mated to a 4-speed manual transmission, but Seger's had a Tremec 6-speed stick instead (via Mecum Auctions). Seger's Candy Apple Red GT350 had Ford's upgraded interior package, flaunting a landscape of imitation teak wood covering the dash, steering wheel, door accents, and center console trim (via MustangSpecs).
According to Mecum Auctions, Seger's was number 42 of 935. When it sold at auction in 2013 for $65,000, it noted that it had been displayed at the Henry Ford Museum at the Rock Stars, Cars & Guitars Exhibit.