Published: September 7, 2017, 8:55 AM
Updated: September 8, 2017, 8:51 PM
Vehicles as sports teams?
Vehicles get compared to a lot of things, but what about sports teams? When looking at the history, style, or sales trends of vehicles, a comparison can be easily made that corresponds to the success, failures or traditions of many sports teams.
With MLB concluding and the NFL, NHL and NBA soon to start, we thought it would be fun to match-up your favourite sports teams with its respective modern vehicle. Perhaps, you didn't even realize how much your car resembles the professional team you cheer for.
By David Miller
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Toyota Corolla – San Antonio Spurs
When compiling this article, the first connection that came to mind was the Toyota Corolla – the 2016 global leader in car sales – and the five-time NBA Champion San Antonio Spurs.
The Spurs dominance over the NBA has only spanned two decades compared to five by the Corolla, but they both achieve success in a similar, non-flashy but consistent style. The Spurs and the Corolla are always contenders in a subtle manner. Both do it in impressive fashion, but without being flamboyant about it.
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Ram 1500 pickup - Pittsburgh Steelers
There are many vehicles that resemble the American toughness of the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers, but that team’s match just had to be a full-size pickup truck. The Ford F-150 comes immediately to mind, but now with its focus on an aluminum body structure, it just doesn’t fit. We had to pick one that features a lot of high-strength steel to represent not only the six-time Super Bowl Champion Steelers, but the “Steel City” of Pittsburgh.
The Ram's bold and aggressive looks combined with its modern take on interior comforts and versatility in engines, resembles the Steelers more than any other pickup.
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Acura NSX – Chicago Cubs
There's no car that has been teased more than the second-generation Acura NSX. After rave reviews to its initial release in 1990, Acura showed off a number of concepts, but never the real thing, much to the chagrin of its loyal followers. Finally this past year, the two-door supercar coupe reappeared with a vengeance, not only in its combined 573 horsepower, but in its cutting-edge style.
The same pattern of teasing and torture has followed the Chicago Cubs organization, albeit for a little longer – 108 years of waiting. The Cubs were the first team to win two World Series Championships in 1907 and 1908, but not again until a magical 2016 campaign that reversed its curse with a mix of power pitching and bat prowess.
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Lincoln Continental – Toronto Maple Leafs
The Lincoln Continental shares a lot of consistencies with the historic Toronto Maple Leafs. The Continental had its most successful run in the 50s and 60s – a time that saw the Maple Leafs flourish with five Stanley Cups. The Continental is also going through a resurgence after a 2002 discontinuation, much like the the Maple Leafs current youth movement that took them back to the Stanley Cup playoffs last year.
Another way to look at the connection between the Continental and the Maple Leafs may be through its corporate season ticket holders in the lower bowl seating area. Perhaps, those fans or corporations use Lincoln Continentals as town cars, while enjoying a similar lifestyle in the arena's cushioned seats and in-seat menu service.
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Cadillac Escalade – Dallas Cowboys
Bigger is always better in Texas, so the Dallas Cowboys get equated to the Cadillac Escalade. There are full-size SUVs and then there's the Escalade. It's big, brash and evokes a certain stature and arrogance.
Everything about Cowboys' owner Jerry Jones is about being bigger and better. All you need to look at his AT&T Stadium known as “Jerry World” that seats up to 105,000 and sports a 180-by-72 ft. video screen. The Cowboys are known as America's team, and Jones made sure that status stayed intact with three Super Bowl championships in four years in the ‘90s.
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Tesla Model S – Golden State Warriors
Both the Tesla Model S and the NBA Champion Golden State Warriors are flashy and lightning fast. The Model S was an industry game changer as it made the auto electrification movement sexy. When it comes to the NBA, the Warriors play has that same game changer element, quickly moving up and down the court with accurate passing and precision shooting.
The Warriors are the team to beat with three consecutive finals appearances, capturing two championships. Much like the team from the 'Bright Side of the Bay', the Tesla brand is seen by many as the way of the future, as other automakers attempt to catch up to the level of power and range achieved by the Model S.
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Chevrolet Corvette Z06 Coupe – Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox have quickly moved away from their cursed past with three World Series championships since 2004. For the most part, the Red Sox have achieved success through orchestrating a high-powered offense that led the league in runs, hits, doubles, runs batted in and batting average last year.
Matching up with a high-powered car would only make sense, so enter the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 Coupe. The Z06 is all about performance, featuring a supercharged, 650-hp 6.2-litre V-8 engine that can flat out burn and turn. There are many speed demons out there, but the Corvette nameplate has one of the most loyal followings for decades, and the same can be said about the fans from Beantown.
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Honda Civic – Montreal Canadiens
The connection between the Honda Civic and the Montreal Canadiens is pretty straightforward. Take the vehicle with a 19 consecutive year streak as Canada's best-selling passenger car and match it up with North America's second-most successful franchise, and first in Canada.
Sure, Honda plays a large role in the history of Canadian automotive manufacturing, but the real connection between the two is summed up in one word: winning.
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Porsche 911 – Los Angeles Lakers
Throughout the ‘80s, the Los Angeles Lakers were known as 'Showtime,' and as long as I can remember, you can say the same thing about the classic Porsche 911.
The similarities between the car and team are endless. Both have a historical past of greatness, as well as a current excitement. There have been many other sports luxury cars that have come and gone, but the Lakers and the 911 have stood the test of time, and continue to flourish.
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Ford Mustang – New York Yankees
There are many vehicles that could represent the iconic New York Yankees, but the most fitting is the iconic all-American car – the Ford Mustang. The Mustang has all the glam and star power of the Yankees, and both have been revered on the covers of magazines, as well as in movies and television shows.
The Yankees may be considered a team that spends a lot, especially in the last two decades, and that's in contrast to the affordable muscle-car appeal of the Mustang. But the similarities of sustaining its cult following and retaining its value over the past five or more decades supersedes the team's payroll.
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Lamborghini Huracán – Seattle Seahawks
The NFL's Seattle Seahawks seem to epitomize the Lamborghini Huracán. This comparison is based on the Seahawks success over the last decade, which has been achieved by an exciting, yet a little cocky brand of football. The Huracán has a level of refinement, power and and expert craftsmanship, but it lets you know it's there thorough its angle cuts and sound.
We could have gone with the Aventador, but the Seahawks have developed their core group of stars through the draft, as opposed to bringing in expensive free agent signings, thus making the Huracán, a more suitable choice.
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Maserati Quattroporte – Washington Capitals
In the past, you could find many sports teams that fit the “looks elite but performance suggests otherwise” tag. In today's game, there's one team that fits this bill – the Washington Capitals. On paper, the Capitals look to be the odds-on favourites to win each year, but when it comes to playoff hockey, they fail miserably.
The Quattroporte shares similar characteristics. It looks great from the outside thanks to its signature Trident logo coupled with its Ferrari-built engine, but that impression stops when you look deeper into cheaper interior touches and an exciting, but not overwhelming ride quality. A lot of flash but little substance places it in the shadows of its German competitors when it comes to purchase-decision time.
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Kia Rio – Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns could be easily matched up with any of Volkswagen's TDI vehicles, but the Browns are at least coming back for the 2017-18 season. Therefore, the honour goes to the Kia Rio.
Through July 2017, Kia's subcompact car has sold only 2,534 units in Canada – down 50.9 per cent from the previous year. That dip in sales is probably due to buyers waiting for an all-new Rio, scheduled to come out shortly, that's bigger, more spacious and filled with technology. Along those same lines, Cleveland Browns fans are optimistic about this year with three picks in the first round, and a quarterback in the second. After only one win last season, it's hard to do much worse!
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Nissan 370Z – Toronto Blue Jays
The Nissan 370Z two-door sports car seems to us to resemble Canada's only baseball team, the Toronto Blue Jays. Based on the makeup of this year's roster, it definitely has nothing to do with speed, and mostly to do with an old, tiring act that’s slowly coming apart at the seams.
The Blue Jays have made two exciting consecutive playoff runs that have captivated their fans into a frenzy, and the same can be said when the 370Z whizzes by. It still looks good! But when you take a closer look into the Z – its naturally-aspirated 3.7-litre V-6 engine seems outdated as most competitors go with a turbo-four. Both entities are in need of a change!
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Chevrolet Silverado – Detroit Pistons
It would be hard to leave outf a team from 'The Motor City' called the Pistons. So the Detroit Pistons make the list equated to the Chevrolet Silverado, based on the team’s days as 'The Bad Boys' of basketball during the ‘80s and early ‘90s.
The most striking similarities between the two are how straightforward both are. On one hand, the Silverado's design is bold and tough. It keeps its good looks without too much flair to become the working man's pickup. When looking at the Pistons of that era, they went about their business in a similarly workmanlike fashion. They would rough opponents up with brute force and that technique provided the team with two championships.
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Subaru WRX STI – Edmonton Oilers
The Oilers are a youthful, energetic team that reached the playoffs this year for the first time in 11 years. Now their team, led by Hart Trophy winner Connor McDavid, is primed for a long run as one of the top teams in the league. That youthful energy and excitement connects them to the rockstar status of the Subaru WRX STI.
Like the Oilers, the WRX STI is tuned for ultimate performance through its turbocharged, 305-hp 2.5-litre boxer engine. It also looks the part with aggressive design angles and cuts, as well as a massive rear wing. The Oilers fan base is one of the most passionate and loyal and that combination easily translates to the STI and the Subaru brand.
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Hyundai Accent – Milwaukee Brewers
The Hyundai Accent and MLB's Milwaukee Brewers are both cheap and cheerful. In the subcompact car segment, the Accent leads the way in Canadian sales for the segment at a modest starting price of $13,999. While it may lead its segment, however, it is overshadowed by Hyundai’s Elantra, Santa Fe, and newly-released Ioniq.
Similarly, while the Brewers have the lowest payroll in 2017, they are overshadowed by most baseball teams. Despite national attention and roster challenges, the Brewers find themselves in the hunt to make the playoffs and in the middle of the pack in attendance with an average of over 31,000 per game.
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Jeep Cherokee – Washington Redskins
The Jeep Cherokee and Washington Redskins have one major similarity and that's in their names. The Cleveland Indians, Atlanta Braves, Kansas City Chiefs and Chicago Blackhawks also all fall in this category, but we went with the Redskins team name as that's the most offensive, and still uses the face of a Native American as its logo.
It's a sensitive stereotypical subject to the Native American community, especially with the use of a mascot but that concern doesn't seem to translate into the auto industry. Why is the Cherokee nameplate non-controversial? It certainly would seem that it should be and most all other such stereotypical nameplates have come and gone. Perhaps, Jeep's saving grace is that no affiliation to the Native American community is used, nor are any cartoon logos.
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Mitsubishi RVR – Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz play a slow and boring brand of basketball. They are the epitome of middle-of-the-road sports teams since their glory days of the 1990s when they made two NBA finals appearances. There were many vehicle selections that could have gone the way of the Jazz, but considering Utah's rugged terrain, we went with the Mitsubishi RVR.
The RVR is reasonably priced, gets you from A-to-B with enough room for the family, along with decent cargo space, but there's nothing exciting about it. The crossover is equally as boring on the outside as it is on the inside. Jazz fans may take a slight affront to this comparison, and it may be a bit harsh, but some team had to take it, and why not choose the team that deliberately slows the game down in their half-court sets.
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Nissan Qashqai – Vegas Golden Knights
Out of all the professional leagues, the Vegas Golden Knights are the only expansion team, so they automatically have an affinity to the Nissan Qashqai.
Both parties are new kids on the block and they both share horrendous names. No offense to either, but I can't figure out what a clan of various ethnicity that live as nomads in the mountains of Iran have to do with a compact crossover? As for Golden Knights, I'm not sure what that has to do with Las Vegas, but then again, it's better than other hockey names such as the Lightning, Wild or, worst of all, the Mighty Ducks.
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