''Car and Driver'' magazine annually nominates a list of what it considers the Ten Best cars and Five Best trucks.

All production vehicles for sale in that calendar year are considered with these restrictions: # The vehicle must be on sale by January # It must be priced below 2.5 times the average car price for that year # The manufacturer must provide an example for testing # Only substantially changed vehicles and the past year's 10 best winners are nominated

The magazine sometimes selects a specific trim and other times a whole family of vehicles.

Top Ten Marques

From 1983 through 2008, the following marques were represented on the list the most times, including both the car and truck lists (except for the 2008 trucks).

{| !Rank !Marque !Number of wins |- |1||Honda||73 |- |2||Toyota||27 |- |3||BMW||24 |- |4||Mazda||23 |- |5||Chevrolet||21 |- |6||Acura||16 |- |7||Porsche||15 |- |7||Nissan||15 |- |7||Audi||15 |- |10||Chrysler||13 |}

Top Manufacturers

Further breaking down the marques into their controlling manufacturers amplifies Honda's dominance of the contest over the last 25 years.

Note that this number is skewed by the multiple products picked over the years. For example, the Chrysler minivans were picked three times, totalling 8 "points" for Chrysler from three wins. The Diamond-Star cars were a similar problem, double-dipping "points" for both Mitsubishi, Plymouth, and Eagle. These situations were not "fixed"; rather, they are left as-is, skewing the totals.

Note also that changing ownership can affect the count. Chrysler and Dodge products from 1999 through 2007 were counted for Daimler-Benz/DaimlerChrysler/Daimler AG, as that company had wholly acquired Chrysler in that period. Similarly, Saab's post-2000 products, had they won a place on the list, would be counted for General Motors. Despite strong corporate ties through this period, Mazda remains separate from Ford, Subaru from General Motors and Toyota, Nissan from Renault, and Mitsubishi from Chrysler.

{| !Rank !Manufacturer !Number of wins |- |1||Honda Motor Company||80 |- |2||Toyota Motor Company||38 |- |3||General Motors||31 |- |4||Chrysler Corporation||30 |- |5||BMW||24 |- |6||Mazda Motor Corporation||23 |- |7||Volkswagen Group||21 |- |8||Toyota Motor Corporation||20 |- |9||Nissan Motor Company||18 |- |10||Porsche AG||15 |}

Top Ten Models

From 1983 through 2008, the following individual models were represented on the list the most times. In 2007, Honda's Odyssey and Pilot trucks appeared in the top ten, a first for any truck.

{| !Rank !Model !Number of wins |- |1||Honda Accord||23 |- |2||BMW 3-Series||21 |- |3||Chevrolet Corvette||14 |- |4||Honda Prelude||10 |- |4||Mazda Miata||10 |- |6||Porsche Boxster||9 |- |7||Acura Integra and RSX||8 |- |8||Nissan 300ZX||7 |- |8||Ford Taurus||7 |- |10||BMW 5-Series||6 |- |10||Honda Civic||6 |- |10||Honda Odyssey||6 |- |10||Honda Pilot||6 |}

==1983== For the 1980s, Car and Driver picked four domestic and six import cars.

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||AMC Alliance||1 |- ||Chevrolet Caprice ''Classic''||1 |- ||Ford Mustang ''GT 5.0''||5 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Mazda RX-7||5 |- ||Mercedes-Benz 380SEL||1 |- ||Pontiac 6000 ''''||3 |- ||Porsche 944||4 |- ||Renault Alliance||1 |- ||Toyota Supra ''Celica Supra''||2 |- ||Volkswagen GTI ''Rabbit''||6 |}

Fastest car tested: Jaguar XJ-S ''HE'', 142 mph

Top-selling cars: # Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme # Ford Escort # Ford LTD

1984

Instituted the price cap at $30,000.

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Audi 5000 ''S/Turbo''||5 |- ||Dodge Daytona ''Turbo''||1 |- ||Honda Prelude||10 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Mazda 626||1 |- ||Pontiac Fiero ''2M4''||1 |- ||Pontiac 6000 ''STE''||3 |- ||Porsche 944||4 |- ||Toyota Supra ''Celica Supra''||2 |- ||Volkswagen GTI ''Rabbit''||6 |}

Fastest car tested: Ferrari 308 Quattrovalvole, 144 mph

Top-selling cars: # Chevrolet Cavalier # Ford Escort # Ford LTD

1985

Price cap: $30,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Audi 5000 ''S/Turbo''||5 |- ||Chevrolet Camaro ''IROC-Z''||1 |- ||Chevrolet Corvette||14 |- ||Dodge Caravan||3 |- ||Honda CRX||2 |- ||Honda Civic||6 |- ||Honda Prelude||10 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Merkur XR4Ti||1 |- ||Plymouth Voyager||3 |- ||Pontiac 6000 ''STE''||3 |- ||Porsche 944||4 |}

Fastest car tested: Chevrolet Corvette, 150 mph

Top-selling cars: # Chevrolet Cavalier # Ford Escort # Chevrolet Celebrity

1986

Price cap: $30,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Audi 5000 ''CS Turbo Quattro''||5 |- ||Chevrolet Corvette||14 |- ||Ford Taurus||7 |- ||Honda Prelude||10 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Lincoln Mark VII ''LSC''||1 |- ||Mercury Sable||3 |- ||Porsche 944 ''Turbo''||4 |- ||Saab 9000 ''Turbo''||4 |- ||Toyota MR2||2 |- ||Volkswagen GTI||6 |}

Fastest car tested: Porsche 944 ''Turbo'', 157 mph

Top-selling cars: # Chevrolet Celebrity # Ford Escort # Chevrolet Cavalier

==1987== Price cap: $30,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Acura Integra||6 |- ||Audi 5000 ''CS Turbo''||5 |- ||Chevrolet Corvette||14 |- ||Ford Mustang ''GT''||5 |- ||Ford Taurus||7 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Mazda RX-7 ''Turbo''||5 |- ||Pontiac Bonneville ''SE''||1 |- ||Saab 9000 ''Turbo''||4 |- ||Toyota MR2||2 |- ||Volvo 740|| |} Fastest car tested: Ferrari Testarossa, 176 mph

Top-selling cars: # Ford Escort # Ford Taurus # Chevrolet Cavalier

==1988== Price cap: $35,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Acura Legend ''Coupe''||3 |- ||Acura Integra||6 |- ||Audi 5000||5 |- ||Chevrolet Corvette||14 |- ||Ford Mustang ''5''||5 |- ||Ford Taurus||7 |- ||Honda CRX||2 |- ||Honda Civic||6 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Saab 9000 ''Turbo''||4 |}

Fastest car tested: Ferrari Testarossa, 173 mph

Top-selling cars: # Ford Escort # Chevrolet Corsica/Beretta # Ford Taurus

1989

Imports and domestics chosen by marque, not by place of manufacture.

Price cap: $35,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Acura Legend ''Coupe''||3 |- ||Chevrolet Corvette||14 |- ||Dodge Colt ''Turbo''||1 |- ||Ford Probe ''GT''||3 |- ||Ford Taurus||7 |- ||Honda Civic||6 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Lincoln Continental||1 |- ||Mitsubishi Mirage ''Turbo''||1 |- ||Mitsubishi Eclipse ''Turbo''||4 |- ||Plymouth Laser ''Turbo''||4 |- ||Saab 9000 ''Turbo''||4 |}

Fastest car tested: 750iL ''V12'', 158 mph

Top-selling cars: # Honda Accord # Ford Taurus # Ford Escort

1990

Eliminated half domestic/half import rule as impractical.

Price cap: $35,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Acura Legend ''Coupe''||3 |- ||Eagle Talon ''Turbo''||3 |- ||Ford Taurus||7 |- ||Honda Civic||6 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Lexus LS||1 |- ||Mazda MPV||2 |- ||Mazda Miata||10 |- ||Mercury Sable||3 |- ||Mitsubishi Eclipse ''Turbo''||4 |- ||Nissan Maxima ''SE''||3 |- ||Nissan 300ZX ''Turbo''||7 |- ||Plymouth Laser ''Turbo''||4 |}

Fastest car tested: Chevrolet Corvette ''ZR-1'', 175 mph

Top-selling cars: # Honda Accord # Ford Taurus # Chevrolet Cavalier

1991

New rule: No more than two places per marque.

Price cap: $35,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Eagle Talon ''Turbo''||3 |- ||Ford Taurus||7 |- ||Honda Civic||6 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Mazda MPV ''V6''||2 |- ||Mazda Miata||10 |- ||Mercury Tracer ''LTS''||1 |- ||Mercury Sable||3 |- ||Mitsubishi Eclipse ''Turbo''||4 |- ||Nissan Sentra ''SE-R''||4 |- ||Nissan 300ZX ''Turbo''||7 |- ||Plymouth Laser ''Turbo''||4 |- ||Toyota Previa||1 |}

Fastest car tested: Chevrolet Corvette ''ZR-1'', 176 mph

Top-selling cars: # Honda Accord # Ford Taurus # Toyota Camry

1992

Price cap: $40,000

{|Vw Corrado VR6 !Model !Times on List |- ||BMW 3-Series ''325i''||18 |- ||Cadillac Seville ''Touring Sedan''||1 |- ||Eagle Talon ''AWD Turbo''||3 |- ||Ford Taurus ''SHO''||7 |- ||Honda Prelude ''Si''||10 |- ||Lexus SC ''SC400''||4 |- ||Mazda Miata||10 |- ||Mitsubishi Eclipse ''AWD Turbo''||4 |- ||Nissan Sentra ''SE-R''||4 |- ||Nissan 300ZX ''Turbo''||7 |- ||Plymouth Laser ''AWD Turbo''||4 |- ||Toyota Camry ''V6''||3 |}

Fastest car tested: Ferrari F40, 197 mph

Top-selling cars: # Ford Taurus # Honda Accord # Toyota Camry

1993

Price cap: $40,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||BMW 3-Series ''325i''||18 |- ||Chrysler Concorde||2 |- ||Dodge Intrepid||4 |- ||Ford Probe ''GT''||3 |- ||Honda Prelude ''Si VTEC''||10 |- ||Jeep Grand Cherokee ''V8''||1 |- ||Lexus SC||4 |- ||Mazda RX-7||5 |- ||Nissan Sentra ''SE-R''||4 |- ||Nissan 300ZX ''Turbo''||7 |- ||Toyota Camry ''Sedans''||3 |}

Fastest car tested: Lamborghini Diablo, 204 mph

Top-selling cars: # Ford Taurus # Honda Accord # Toyota Camry

1994

Institution of the 2.5x price cap, now at $43,000.

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Acura Integra ''GS-R''||6 |- ||BMW 3-Series ''325i/325is''||18 |- ||Chrysler Concorde||2 |- ||Dodge Intrepid||4 |- ||Eagle Vision||1 |- ||Ford Probe ''GT''||3 |- ||Honda Prelude ''VTEC''||10 |- ||Honda Accord ''EX''||23 |- ||Lexus SC||4 |- ||Mazda RX-7||5 |- ||Nissan Sentra ''SE-R''||4 |- ||Nissan 300ZX ''Turbo''||7 |}

Fastest car tested: Chevrolet Corvette ''ZR-1'', 179 mph

Top-selling cars: # Ford Taurus # Honda Accord # Ford Escort

1995

Price cap: $46,000.

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Acura Integra ''GS-R''||6 |- ||BMW 3-Series ''328i/M3 ''||18 |- ||Chrysler Cirrus ''LXi''||3 |- ||Ford Contour||3 |- ||Honda Prelude ''VTEC''||10 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Lexus SC||4 |- ||Mazda RX-7||5 |- ||Mercury Mystique||3 |- ||Nissan Maxima ''SE''||3 |- ||Nissan 300ZX ''Turbo''||7 |}

Fastest car tested: Lamborghini Diablo ''VT'', 185 mph

Top-selling cars: # Ford Taurus # Honda Accord # Toyota Camry

1996

Price cap: $48,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Acura Integra||6 |- ||Audi A4||4 |- ||BMW 3-Series ''328i/M3 ''||18 |- ||Chrysler Town and Country||2 |- ||Chrysler Cirrus||3 |- ||Dodge Stratus||2 |- ||Dodge Caravan||3 |- ||Ford Contour||3 |- ||Honda Civic||6 |- ||Honda Prelude ''VTEC''||10 |- ||Mercury Mystique||3 |- ||Nissan Maxima ''SE''||3 |- ||Nissan 300ZX ''Turbo''||7 |- ||Plymouth Voyager||3 |}

Fastest car tested: Ferrari F355, 179 mph

Top-selling cars: # Ford Taurus # Honda Accord # Toyota Camry

1997

Price cap: $54,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Acura Integra||6 |- ||Audi A4||4 |- ||BMW 5-Series||6 |- ||BMW 3-Series ''328i/M3 ''||18 |- ||Chrysler Town and Country||2 |- ||Chrysler Cirrus||3 |- ||Dodge Stratus||2 |- ||Dodge Caravan||3 |- ||Ford Contour||3 |- ||Honda Prelude ''SH''||10 |- ||Mercedes-Benz SLK||2 |- ||Mercury Mystique||3 |- ||Plymouth Breeze||1 |- ||Plymouth Voyager||3 |- ||Toyota Camry ''V6''||3 |}

Fastest car tested: Dodge Viper ''GTS'', 177 mph

Top-selling cars: # Toyota Camry # Honda Accord # Ford Taurus

1998

Price cap: $55,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Audi A4||4 |- ||BMW 5-Series||6 |- ||BMW 3-Series ''328i/M3 ''||18 |- ||Chevrolet Corvette||14 |- ||Dodge Intrepid||4 |- ||Honda Prelude||10 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Lexus GS||3 |- ||Mazda Miata||10 |- ||Porsche Boxster||9 |}

Fastest car tested: Ferrari F50, 194 mph

Top-selling cars: # Toyota Camry # Honda Accord # Ford Taurus

1999

Price cap: $59,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||BMW Z3 ''M Coupe/M Roadster''||1 |- ||BMW 5-Series||6 |- ||BMW 3-Series ''328i/M3 ''||18 |- ||Chevrolet Corvette||14 |- ||Chrysler 300M||2 |- ||Dodge Intrepid||4 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Lexus GS||3 |- ||Mazda Miata||10 |- ||Porsche Boxster||9 |}

Top-selling cars: # Toyota Camry # Honda Accord # Ford Taurus

2000

Price cap: $61,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Audi A6 2.7T/A6 4.2||2 |- ||Audi TT||2 |- ||BMW 5-Series||6 |- ||BMW 3-Series||18 |- ||Chrysler 300M||2 |- ||Ford Focus||5 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Honda S2000||4 |- ||Lexus GS300/GS400||3 |- ||Porsche Boxster||9 |- |}

Top speed recorded: Hennessey Viper Venom 1000 Twin Turbo, 289 bsp;mph

Top-selling cars: # Toyota Camry # Honda Accord # Ford Taurus

2001

For 2001, Car and Driver created a separate "Five Best Trucks" award with a single winner in each of five categories.

Top-selling vehicles: # Ford F-Series # Chevrolet Silverado # Ford Explorer

10Best Cars

Price cap: $120,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Audi A6||2 |- ||Audi TT||2 |- ||BMW 3-Series||18 |- ||BMW 5-Series||6 |- ||Chrysler PT Cruiser||1 |- ||Ford Focus||5 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Honda S2000||4 |- ||Mazda Miata||10 |- ||Porsche Boxster||9 |}

5Best Trucks

{| !Title !Model !Times on List |- |Large SUV||Toyota Highlander||1 |- |Luxury SUV||Acura MDX||1 |- |Pickup Truck||Chevrolet Silverado||5 |- |Small SUV||Ford Escape||1 |- |Van||Honda Odyssey||7 |}

2002

Top-selling cars: # Ford F-Series # Chevrolet Silverado # Toyota Camry

10Best Cars

Price cap: $66,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Acura RSX||2 |- ||Audi A4||4 |- ||BMW 3-Series ''M3''||18 |- ||BMW 5-Series||6 |- ||Chevrolet Corvette||14 |- ||Ford Focus||5 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Honda S2000||4 |- ||Porsche Boxster||9 |- ||Subaru Impreza WRX||2 |}

5Best Trucks

{| !Title !Model !Times on List |- |Large SUV||Honda Pilot||6 |- |Luxury SUV||Land Rover Range Rover||1 |- |Pickup Truck||Chevrolet Silverado||5 |- |Small SUV||Honda CR-V||2 |- |Van||Honda Odyssey||7 |}

2003

10Best Cars

Price cap: $66,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Acura RSX||2 |- ||BMW 3-Series ''M3''||18 |- ||Chevrolet Corvette||14 |- ||Ford Focus||5 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Infiniti G35||3 |- ||Mazda 6 ''s''||1 |- ||Nissan 350Z||1 |- ||Porsche Boxster||9 |- ||Subaru Impreza WRX||2 |}

5Best Trucks

{| !Title !Model !Times on List |- |Large SUV||Honda Pilot||6 |- |Luxury SUV||Volkswagen Touareg||1 |- |Pickup Truck||Chevrolet Silverado||5 |- |Small SUV||Honda CR-V||2 |- |Van||Honda Odyssey||7 |}

2004

10Best Cars

Price cap: $69,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||Acura TSX||3 |- ||Audi S4 ''Quattro''||1 |- ||BMW 3-Series ''M3''||18 |- ||Chevrolet Corvette||14 |- ||Ford Focus||5 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Honda S2000||4 |- ||Infiniti G35||3 |- ||Mazda RX-8||3 |- ||Toyota Prius||1 |}

5Best Trucks

{| !Title !Model !Times on List |- |Large SUV||Honda Pilot||6 |- |Luxury SUV||Cadillac SRX||3 |- |Pickup Truck||Ford F-Series||3 |- |Small SUV||Subaru Forester||3 |- |Van||Toyota Sienna||1 |}

==2005==

10Best Cars

Price cap: $70,000

For 2005 and 2006, the magazine named one winner in each category. {| !Title !Model !Times on List |- |Family Sedan||Honda Accord||23 |- |Full Size Sedan||Chrysler 300C||3 |- |Luxury Sedan||Acura RL||1 |- |Luxury Sports Car||Mercedes-Benz SLK||2 |- |Luxury Sports Sedan||BMW 3-Series ''M3''||18 |- |Muscle Car||Ford Mustang ''GT''||5 |- |Performance Car||Chevrolet Corvette||14 |- |Sports Coupe||Mazda RX-8||3 |- |Sports Sedan||Acura TSX||3 |- |Wagon||Dodge Magnum||1 |}

5Best Trucks

{| !Title !Model !Times on List |- |Large SUV||Honda Pilot||6 |- |Luxury SUV||Cadillac SRX||3 |- |Pickup Truck||Ford F-Series||3 |- |Small SUV||Subaru Forester||3 |- |Van||Honda Odyssey||7 |}

==2006==

10Best Cars

Price cap: $70,000

{| !Title !Model !Times on List |- |Family Sedan||Honda Accord||23 |- |Full Size Sedan||Chrysler 300C||3 |- |Luxury Sport Sedan||BMW 3-Series||18 |- |Luxury Sports Car||Porsche Boxster||9 |- |Muscle Car||Ford Mustang GT||5 |- |Performance Car||Chevrolet Corvette||14 |- |Roadster||Mazda Miata||10 |- |Sport Compact||Audi A3||1 |- |Sports Coupe||Mazda RX-8||3 |- |Sports Sedan||Acura TSX||3 |}

5Best Trucks

{| !Title !Model !Times on List |- |Large SUV||Honda Pilot||6 |- |Luxury SUV||Cadillac SRX||3 |- |Pickup Truck||Ford F-Series||3 |- |Small SUV||Subaru Forester||3 |- |Van||Honda Odyssey||7 |}

2007

10Best Cars

Price cap: $71,000

Car and Driver considers the Porsche Boxster and Cayman to be the same car.

{|bugatti veyron !Model !Times on List |- ||BMW 3-Series||18 |- ||Chevrolet Corvette||14 |- ||Chrysler 300C||3 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Honda Fit||3 |- ||Infiniti G35 ''Sedan''||3 |- ||Mazdaspeed3||2 |- ||Mazda MX-5||10 |- ||Porsche Boxster||9 |- ||Porsche Cayman||2 |- ||Volkswagen GTI||6 |}

5Best Trucks

{| !Title !Model !Times on List |- |Large SUV||Honda Pilot||6 |- |Luxury SUV||Mercedes-Benz GL-Class ''GL450''||2 |- |Pickup Truck||Chevrolet Silverado||5 |- |Small SUV||Toyota RAV4||2 |- |Van||Honda Odyssey||7 |}

2008

10Best Cars

Price cap: $72,000

Car and Driver considers the Porsche Boxster and Cayman to be the same car.

{| !Model !Times on List |- ||BMW 3-Series||18 |- ||Cadillac CTS||1 |- ||Chevrolet Corvette||14 |- ||Chevrolet Malibu||1 |- ||Honda Accord||23 |- ||Honda Fit||3 |- ||Mazda MX-5||10 |- ||Mazdaspeed3||2 |- ||Porsche Boxster||9 |- ||Porsche Cayman||2 |- ||Volkswagen GTI||7 |}

5Best Trucks {| !Title !Model !Times on List |- |Large SUV||Mazda CX-9||1 |- |Luxury SUV||Mercedes-Benz GL-Class||2 |- |Pickup Truck||Chevrolet Silverado||5 |- |Small SUV||Toyota RAV4||2 |- |Van||Honda Odyssey||7 |}

2009

10Best Cars

Price cap: $71,000

Beginning with the 2009 list, Car and Driver considered the Porsche Boxster and Cayman to be the same car.

{| !Model !Times on List |- || Volkswagen GTI || 8 |- || BMW 3-Series || 18 |- | |Cadillac CTS || 2 |- || Chevrolet Corvette || 15 |- | |Honda Accord||23 |- || Honda Fit || 3 |- || Infiniti G37 || 4 |- || Jaguar XF || 1 |- || Mazda MX-5 || 10 |- || Porsche Boxster/Cayman || 11 |}

"Dishonorable Mention"

In conjunction with the 2009 10Best Cars list, ''Car and Driver'' issued a list of what it called "The 10 Most Embarrassing Award Winners in Automotive History", spotlighting cars previously honored by a major automotive magazine (including ''C&D;'' itself) that, with the passage of time, is considered to be anything but award-worthy. {| !Year !Model !Award(s) |- | 1983 || Renault Alliance || ''Car and Driver'' 10Best Cars and''Motor Trend'' Car of the Year |- | 2002 || Ford Thunderbird || ''Motor Trend'' Car of the Year |- | 1971 || Chevrolet Vega || ''Motor Trend'' Car of the Year |- | 1997 || Cadillac Catera || ''Automobile'' All-Stars |- | 1985 || Merkur XR4Ti || ''Car and Driver'' 10Best Cars |- | 1997 || Chevrolet Malibu || ''Motor Trend'' Car of the Year |- | 1990 || Lincoln Town Car || ''Motor Trend'' Car of the Year |- | 1980 || Chevrolet Citation || ''Motor Trend'' Car of the Year |- | 1974 || Ford Mustang II || ''Motor Trend'' Car of the Year |- | 1995 || Ford Contour/Mercury Mystique || ''Car and Driver'' 10Best Cars |}

2010

10Best Cars

Price cap: $80,000

{| !Model !Times on List |- || Audi S4 || |- || BMW 3-Series || |- | |Cadillac CTS-V || |- || Ford Fusion Hybrid || |- | |Honda Accord|| |- || Honda Fit || |- || Mazda MX-5|| |- || Mazda3 || |- || Porsche Boxster/Cayman || |- || Volkswagen GTI || 9 |}

2011

10Best Cars

Price cap: $80,000 This is the first appearance of a Korean automaker on C&D; 10Best.

{| !Model !Times on List |- || Volkswagen GTI || 10 |- || BMW 3 Series || |- | |Cadillac CTS-V || |- || Chevrolet Volt || |- | |Honda Accord|| |- || Honda Fit || |- || Ford Mustang || |- || Mazda MX-5|| |- || Hyundai Sonata || |- || Porsche Boxster/Cayman || |}

5Best Trucks

Not yet released.

Notes and references

Category:Automobile awards

The Late Show Top Ten List is a regular segment of the television program ''Late Show with David Letterman.'' It is adapted from Letterman's NBC show ''Late Night''. The list is compiled by the show's writing staff.

Topics

The lists are usually given humorous topics such as ''Top Ten Signs Your Kid Had A Bad First Day At School'' or ''Top Ten Rejected James Bond Gadgets'' or based on current events.

The CBS website also conducts a weekly "Top Ten Contest" on a particular topic (similar to the show), where viewers can submit their jokes and the top ten responses get posted on the Web site. These Top Ten lists, however, are not read on air. The contests continued through the 2007-08 Writers Guild of America strike while the show was on hiatus.

Background and origin

The Top Ten List was not originally a regular segment of ''Late Night'', but was added as a way of mocking ''People'' magazine, which routinely featured such lists (as well as 'Worst 10' lists). Letterman had once made an off-hand remark on the show that he found the ''People'' lists to be annoying, and began his own lists as a way of ridiculing what had by then become an increasingly recurring trend in other periodicals and magazines.

While Letterman may have been mocking ''People'' and other publications (such as ''The New York'' ''Post'') which published these top ten lists, those lists themselves as well as the format used by Letterman may well have been inspired by ''The Dick Clark Show'', which aired on Saturday nights from February 1958 until September 1960 on the ABC network. At the end of each show, Clark would unveil the "Top Ten" records of the coming week, with a great deal of fanfare, similar to that used by Letterman.

Letterman's top ten skit was thought of by Steve O'Donnell while he was head writer of the Late Night Letterman show. O'Donnell had also seen top ten lists in the magazines that looked like they had been written by comedy writers. What set him off was a list of top 10 eligible bachelors list in Cosmopolitan magazine including widower 84-year-old CBS boss William S. Paley.

On September 18, 1985, the very first list, "The Top Ten Things That Almost Rhyme With Peas" was broadcast.

The switch from NBC to CBS

Before Letterman's departure for CBS, NBC had insisted that the "Top Ten List" was the intellectual property of the network, and demanded that it not be used on his new show. A loose compromise was reached where it would be renamed the "Late Show Top Ten," although Letterman would soon simply refer to it once again as the "Top Ten List," with no repercussions.

The only significant modifications in the ''Late Show'' years have been the elimination of mentioning a "home office" (such as Wahoo, Nebraska), and the addition of a computer-animated introduction and closing as well as background graphics.

Presentation

The entries are read by Letterman in reverse countdown order, and are accompanied by a drum roll performed by CBS Orchestra drummer Anton Fig. There are five montages: the pyramids, the athletes (usually used for a sports-themed top ten list), the taxi cabs, the water towers, and the sewer covers. The conclusion of the list is then followed by a brief performance by the band, usually a pop song relating to the topic of the list in some way.

Occasionally, the list is given by a guest presenter (such as John Malkovich reading "Ten Things That Sound Creepy When Said by John Malkovich" or Casey Kasem reading the recurring category "Top Ten Numbers Between One and Ten"). At times, the list has also been given by a series of presenters, with each providing one entry; for example, the list for "Ten Things I've Always Wanted to Say to Dave", presented was presented in 2000 by a group that included Rudolph Giuliani, Cindy Crawford, and Dave's mom.

Four animated characters have recited a Top Ten list on the show: Homer Simpson (twice), Peter Griffin, Stewie Griffin and Optimus Prime.

Perhaps to break the monotony of daily list, the show will occasionally add a twist to the presentation, sometimes by altering the nature of the list itself. One notable example occurred on November 27, 2001. Introduced as "Top Ten Ways Osama bin Laden Can Improve His Image," the list consisted of only one entry: "#10. There's no way he can improve his image. He's a murdering, soul-less asshole."

A common source of confusion regarding the Top Ten List is why the #1 entry is usually seen as the least funny. This even inspired the ''Late Show'' to run a pre-taped bit in 1998, humorously exploring the apparent mystery, and to mention it again on December 29, 1999, when the list "Top Ten Phrases That Were Not Spoken This Millennium," included the #1 entry of, "Why is the number one always so damn funny?" Writer Bill Scheft confirmed this in a 2007 interview on ''Costas on the Radio'', stating that the writers use the three funniest entries on #10, to start the list strong, #6, which accompanies an on-screen slide change, and #2, which is the last opportunity for a laugh before the completion of the bit.

Sometimes the list would be long if video clips are incorporated such as "Top 10 Bush Moments" and the music store featuring Jack Black, where number one simply has him reciting a verse for a minute.

Home offices

Cities that have been the supposed source of the Top 10 list include:

Grand Rapids, Michigan

Lebanon, Pennsylvania

Lincoln, Nebraska

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

*The first ''Late Night with David Letterman'' home office

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Omaha, Nebraska

Liverpool, England

*Used during David Letterman's London shows in 1995

Oneonta, New York

*The last office from the ''Late Night with David Letterman'' show

Sioux City, Iowa

*Was a home office primarily to make fun of its CBS television station KMEG, who refused to air ''Late Show with David Letterman'' for months after it debuted in 1993.

Scottsdale, Arizona

Tahlequah, Oklahoma

Wahoo, Nebraska

*Became a home office after the town lobbied Letterman for the status for months after Letterman mentioned that he liked the word "Wahoo".

Kankakee, Illinois

*Used during David Letterman's Chicago shows in 1994

Radio usage

Each Top Ten list is packaged into a nationally syndicated radio feature, distributed by Dial Global for use the following morning. Following shows from which the list is omitted, or if Letterman is on vacation, the feature will utilize a list from the archives.

name	David Letterman's Book of Top Ten Lists and Zesty Lo-Cal Chicken Recipes
author	David Letterman and the writers of ''The Late Show with David Letterman''
country	United States
language	English
genre	Comedy
publisher	Bantam Books
release date	1995
media type	HardcoverPaperback
pages	165
isbn	978-0553102222
dewey	818/.540208 20
congress	PN6162 .L377 1995
oclc	32894022 }}

Books

David Letterman and the Late Show writers have released four volumes of Top Ten Lists through CBS book publisher, Pocket Books. The first two volumes were originally released in hardcover and later mass-market paperback editions while the latter two editions only had hardcover releases. ''The "Late Show with David Letterman" Book of Top Ten Lists'' (1990). ''Roman Numeral Two!! An Altogether New Book of Top Ten Lists from "Late Show with David Letterman"'' (1991).

* The 1994 mass-market paperback re-print of this volume drops the ''"An Altogether New Book of"'' from the title.

''David Letterman's Book of Top Ten Lists and Zesty Lo-Cal Chicken Recipes.'' (1995).

Also contains a plan for an end table by Norm Abram from ''This Old House''. It however does not contain any recipes for chicken.

''David Letterman's NEW Book of Top Ten Lists and Wedding Patterns for the Husky Bride'' (1996).

References

External links

Category:David Letterman Category:Television lists Category:Top lists

de:Top Ten

Name	Aaron Robinson
Position	Catcher
Bats	Left
Throws	Right
Birth date	June 23, 1915
Birth place	Lancaster, South Carolina
Death date	March 09, 1966
Death place	Lancaster, South Carolina
Debutdate	May 6
Debutyear	1943
Debutteam	New York Yankees
Finaldate	September 28
Finalyear	1951
Finalteam	Boston Red Sox
Stat1label	Batting average
Stat1value	.260
Stat2label	Home runs
Stat2value	61
Stat3label	Runs batted in
Stat3value	272
Teams	New York Yankees (–) Chicago White Sox () Detroit Tigers (–) Boston Red Sox ()
Highlights	All-Star selection (1947) World Series champion () }}

Aaron Andrew Robinson (June 23, 1915 in Lancaster, South Carolina – March 9, 1966 in Lancaster, South Carolina), was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from to for the Chicago White Sox, the Detroit Tigers, the New York Yankees, and the Boston Red Sox. Robinson's tenure with the Yankees spanned the gap between the careers of Yankee Hall of Fame catchers Bill Dickey (1928–1946) and Yogi Berra (1946–1963).

Major League career

Robinson made his major league debut for the New York Yankees on May 6, 1943, playing in only one game before leaving to serve in the United States Coast Guard for the remainder of World War II. When the war ended in 1945, Robinson returned to the Yankees, appearing in 50 games. He took over as the Yankees' starting catcher in 1946 with promising results, posting a .297 batting average along with 16 home runs and 64 runs batted in. He also finished third among American League catchers with 25 baserunners caught stealing, and fourth in assists with 50. Robinson finished 16th in the American League Most Valuable Player Award voting.

Robinson began the 1947 season as the Yankees starting catcher, and was named as a reserve player for the American League in the 1947 All-Star Game. However, as the season progressed, Yogi Berra began to take over as the starting catcher. Robinson ended the year with a .270 batting average in 82 games, with 5 home runs and 36 runs batted in, as the Yankees went on to win the American League pennant. In the 1947 World Series, Robinson appeared in three games and started in Games 5 and 7, getting 2 hits in 10 at bats, as the Yankees defeated the Brooklyn Dodgers in a seven-game series.

Having a surplus of catchers in 1948 with Berra, Sherm Lollar and Gus Niarhos, the Yankees decided to trade Robinson along with Fred Bradley and Bill Wight to the Chicago White Sox for Eddie Lopat in February of that year. He played in 98 games for the White Sox, but his offensive statistics continued to decline, hitting for a .252 batting average. After only one season with the White Sox, Robinson was traded to the Detroit Tigers for Billy Pierce in November 1948.

Robinson became the Tigers starting catcher in 1949 and 1950, providing solid defense, however his batting continued to decline. During a pennant race late in the season, Robinson was involved in a critical play during a game against the Cleveland Indians on September 24. The Tigers had been in first place for most of the season and, had just fallen to second place behind the Yankees with one week left in the season. Heavy smoke from a Canadian forest fire forced the Tigers to turn on the lights in Tiger Stadium in a Sunday afternoon game. With the score tied 1-1, Bob Lemon opened the tenth inning with a triple, and two intentional walks followed. With the bases loaded and one out, Luke Easter grounded out to Tigers' first baseman Don Kolloway, who then tagged first base. Because of the haze, Robinson did not see Kolloway remove the force after fielding the ball. Thinking he only had to step on home plate to force out Lemon, he failed to apply a tag, thus allowing Lemon to score the winning run. The Tigers fell two and a half games behind the Yankees in the standings with one week left in the season, and weren't able to recover before the season ended. Robinson retired at the end of the season.

Career statistics

In an 8 year career, Robinson played in 610 games, accumulating 478 hits in 1839 at bats for a .260 career batting average along with 61 home runs and 272 runs batted in. Robinson was a fine defensive catcher, ending his career with a .990 fielding percentage. In only, the 'Aaron Robinson, MacGregor G176' catcher's mitt was produced. The trade between the Detroit Tigers and the Chicago White Sox involving Robinson and Pierce has been cited as one of the more lopsided trades in baseball history, as Robinson had retired from baseball by 1951, whereas Pierce had a lengthy, productive career with the White Sox.

Managing career

After retiring as a player, Robinson became a manager in the minor leagues, managing the Fayetteville Highlanders to the Carolina League championship. He later managed the Winston-Salem Twins and, won another title with the Shelby Colonels, winning the Western Carolina League championship despite having a losing record.

References

External links

Aaron Robinson at Find a Grave

Category:1915 births Category:1966 deaths Category:Major League Baseball catchers Category:Baseball players from South Carolina Category:Chicago White Sox players Category:Detroit Tigers players Category:New York Yankees players Category:Boston Red Sox players Category:Snow Hill Billies players Category:Akron Yankees players Category:Norfolk Tars players Category:Binghamton Triplets players Category:Kansas City Blues (baseball) players Category:Newark Bears (IL) players Category:Portland Beavers players Category:Fayetteville Highlanders players Category:Charleston Senators players Category:Winston-Salem Twins players Category:Minor league baseball managers Category:United States Coast Guard personnel

name	Dan Wheldon
nationality	British |
birth date	June 22, 1978
birth place	Emberton, Olney, England, United Kingdom
death date	October 16, 2011
death place	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
last series	IRL IndyCar Series
years active	2002–2011
teams	Chip Ganassi RacingAndretti Green RacingPanther RacingBryan Herta AutosportSam Schmidt Motorsports
starts	128
wins	16
poles	5
best finish	1st
year	2005
prev series	Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car SeriesIndy LightsToyota Atlantic ChampionshipU.S. F2000 National Championship
prev series years	2005–2008200120001999
titles	IndyCar Series ChampionU.S. F2000 National Championship
title years	20051999
awards	IndyCar Series Rookie of the YearIndianapolis 500 Winner24 Hours of Daytona WinnerIndianapolis 500 WinnerIndyCar Series Most Popular Driver
award years	2003200520062011 }}

Daniel Clive "Dan" Wheldon (22 June 1978 – 16 October 2011) was a British racing driver from England. He was the 2005 Indy Racing League IndyCar Series champion, and winner of the Indianapolis 500 in both 2005 and 2011. Wheldon died from injuries shortly after a collision at the 2011 IZOD IndyCar World Championship at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on 16 October 2011, at the age of 33.

Early life and career

Wheldon, who was born in Emberton, near Olney, Buckinghamshire, England, took up karting at the age of four with funding from his father. He progressed through the junior ranks of motor racing during his school years. Attending Bedford School until he completed his GCSEs at age 16, he frequently took time off to race. During his early career in open wheel racing, he developed a rivalry with Jenson Button before ultimately leaving the United Kingdom to race in America. The reasoning behind the move was that the level of investment needed to fund his racing career in the UK was beyond his family's resources. Moving to the United States in 1999, he spent several years in lower open-wheeled circuits like the U.S. F2000 Championship Series, the Toyota Atlantic series and the Indy Lights series.

IRL IndyCar Series

In 2002, Wheldon moved up to the IRL IndyCar Series for two events with Panther Racing as teammate to Sam Hornish, Jr.. The following year Wheldon joined Andretti Green Racing, taking the spot of Michael Andretti following his retirement, and collected league Rookie of the Year honours. In 2004, he won his first IRL race at Twin Ring Motegi in Japan, ultimately finishing as runner-up to teammate Tony Kanaan in the championship with three wins.

He won the 2005 Indianapolis 500, as well as that season's IndyCar Series championship. His six victories in 2005 also broke the record for most victories in one season (under IRL sanction), previously held by Sam Hornish, Jr. with 5. His win at Indy was the first for an Englishman since Graham Hill's victory in 1966. In November 2005, it was announced that he would be driving for Chip Ganassi Racing in the IndyCar Series in 2006. Shortly after his first test with Ganassi, he won the 24 Hours of Daytona endurance sports car race with Ganassi teammates Scott Dixon and Casey Mears.

He began the IndyCar season by beating Hélio Castroneves by 0.0147 seconds at Homestead-Miami, a sombre race due to the earlier death of Paul Dana in a practice session. Wheldon retired at St. Petersburg due to contact with Sam Hornish, Jr. during a caution period. At the end of the 2006 IndyCar season, Wheldon and Hornish were tied for the lead with each driver having 475 points. In the event of a tie, the driver with the most wins for that particular season is declared the champion. Hornish had four wins for the 2006 season to Wheldon's two; therefore Hornish was declared the 2006 IndyCar champion.

During the close season he was offered a place in the BMW Sauber Formula One team, but declined on discovering he would not be assured a regular drive. "I do want to race in F1. When my contract expires with Chip, I'll take a serious look at Formula One."

Commenting in 2007 on the perception of him as 'difficult', Wheldon said "I put everything into my racing, and I expect the same back. If I see people who aren't giving it I'm not afraid to say so but that sometimes comes out a little brash. That could be improved a little bit."

On 22 June 2008, his 30th birthday, Wheldon took his 15th career victory in the IndyCar Series after winning the 2008 Iowa Corn Indy 250 over Hideki Mutoh and Marco Andretti. He donated his winnings to help the victims of the recent tornadoes and flooding which had occurred in Iowa.

Wheldon was released from his drive at Ganassi on 2 September 2008. He was replaced by Dario Franchitti. "I have enjoyed these last three seasons with Target Chip Ganassi Racing but will be moving on to pursue a very exciting opportunity for 2009," Wheldon said. This would later turn out to be a return to former team Panther Racing. Wheldon drove the Panther car to a second place finish in the 2009 Indianapolis 500, the second Indy 500 runner-up finish in a row for the team. However, his strong start to the season faded and Wheldon failed to crack the Top 10 in 7 of the last 8 races of the year. The following year Wheldon finished second at the 2010 Indianapolis 500. This gave Panther its third straight runner-up finish at Indy. This time, Wheldon remained competitive all year, challenging for wins on the oval tracks.

Despite strong showings in the Panther Racing No. 4 car, Wheldon still failed to win a race during his time with the team. This led to his being replaced at Panther Racing by the young American driver (and 2009 Indy Lights champion) J.R. Hildebrand. Wheldon attempted and won the 2011 Indianapolis 500 with Bryan Herta Autosport after inheriting the lead with metres to go after Hildebrand wrecked going into the final turn trying to get around the decelerating Charlie Kimball with too much velocity, being the first driver in Indy history to win the race by leading a single lap. Wheldon was very emotional after the win, due to his not having a ride for the rest of the season and the news that his mother had recently been diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease. It was Wheldon's first series win in three seasons.

Over the rest of the 2011 season, Wheldon helped IndyCar and Dallara test the new IndyCar chassis that was to debut in 2012.

Personal life

In 2008, Wheldon married his long-time personal assistant, Susie Behm, originally from Armstrong, British Columbia, Canada. They had two sons, one of whom was born in February 2009, and the other born in March 2011. They lived in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Death

At the IZOD IndyCar World Championship at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on 16 October 2011, Wheldon was involved in a 15-car accident during lap 11 of the race, in which Wheldon's car flew approximately into the catch fence with the cockpit area first into a pole lining the track before landing back on the ground. The carnage and ensuing debris field resulted in race officials throwing a red flag almost instantly. Wheldon was extricated from his car by the Holmatro Safety Team and their Las Vegas-based colleagues and was airlifted to a local hospital with what were described as "unsurvivable injuries." He succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at 1:54 PDT. He was 33 years old.

The IndyCar officials and drivers determined after vote and input from drivers and team owners that the race would be abandoned, and that a five-lap, three-car–wide formation salute would be held in Wheldon's honour, with his number 77 being displayed alone at the top of the scoring pylon. He had been the only driver participating in Go Daddy's IndyCar Challenge where he and a randomly selected fan, would have been eligible for $2.5 million each if he won the race, starting from last place.

An autopsy conducted on 17 October 2011 concluded that Wheldon died of blunt force trauma to the head.

Wheldon's funeral was held on 22 October 2011 in St. Petersburg, Florida. Fellow drivers Dario Franchitti, Scott Dixon, and Tony Kanaan attended the funeral, and served as pallbearers along with Wheldon's brothers. IndyCar held a public memorial service for Wheldon a day later at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

Wheldon was the fifth Indianapolis 500 winner to die in a motorsports accident in the same year as winning the race, and the first multiple-winner to do so. Preceding him were Gaston Chevrolet (1920), Joe Boyer (1924), Ray Keech (1929) and George Robson (1946).

Aftermath

After Wheldon's death, Michael Andretti revealed that Wheldon had officially signed with Andretti Autosport on the morning of 16 October 2011 for a multi-year deal to replace driver Danica Patrick starting in the 2012 season. Andretti Autosport, previously known as Andretti Green Racing, was the team with which Wheldon won the 2005 Indianapolis 500 and IndyCar Series Drivers' Championship.

On 5 December 2011, a charity race honouring Wheldon was held in Milton Keynes in England. The location of this race was less than 10 miles from where Wheldon was born and raised. The drivers in this race included Dario Franchitti (who took part in the race where Wheldon was killed), Anthony Davidson and Jenson Button. All money earned by this charity race was donated to a charity chosen by Wheldon's family.

Other projects

Dan Wheldon was a guest star in the voice cast for the TV series ''Hot Wheels Battle Force 5''.

On 9 August 2011, Ignite Game Technologies announced that Wheldon would assist the physics development for its online auto racing game, ''Simraceway''. Wheldon commented "It was pretty obvious that Ignite was not looking to build just another racing game, so the opportunity to influence Simraceway's physics directly was pretty appealing." It later emerged Wheldon would also be playing a role in the company’s performance driving center at Infineon Raceway.

Motorsports career results

American open-wheel racing results

(key)

U.S. F2000 National Championship

! Year

! Team

! 1

! 2

! 3

! 4

! 5

! 6

! 7

! 8

! 9

! 10

! 11

! 12

! 13

! 14

! Rank

! Points

1999

! Jayhard/Primus Racing

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Toyota Atlantic Championship

! Year

! Team

! 1

! 2

! 3

! 4

! 5

! 6

! 7

! 8

! 9

! 10

! 11

! 12

! Rank

! Points

! PPI Motorsports

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Indy Lights

! Year

! Team

! 1

! 2

! 3

! 4

! 5

! 6

! 7

! 8

! 9

! 10

! 11

! 12

! Rank

! Points

PacWest Racing>PacWest Lights

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IndyCar Series

! Year

! Team

! 1

! 2

! 3

! 4

! 5

! 6

! 7

! 8

! 9

! 10

! 11

! 12

! 13

! 14

! 15

! 16

! 17

! 18

! 19

! Rank

! Points

! Panther Racing

HMS

PHX

FON

NZR

TXS

PPIR

RIR

KAN

NSH

MIS

KTY

STL

! Andretti Green Racing

HMS

PHX

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! Andretti Green Racing

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! Andretti Green Racing

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! Chip Ganassi Racing

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! Chip Ganassi Racing

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! Chip Ganassi Racing

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! Panther Racing

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! Panther Racing

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! Panther Racing

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!

! Sam Schmidt Motorsports

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: : ''^a Wheldon lost the title on the tiebreaker—he won only two races compared to [[Sam Hornish, Jr.">Bryan Herta Autosport style="background:#ffffbf;" ! Sam Schmidt Motorsports style="background:#cfcfff;" style="background:#FFFFFF;"

: : ''^a Wheldon lost the title on the tiebreaker—he won only two races compared to [[Sam Hornish, Jr.'s four after the two tied on 475 points'' : ''¹ Run on same day'' : ''² Non-points race'' : ''³ Event cancelled after a 15-car incident on Lap 11 involving Wheldon, who would later succumb to injuries sustained in the accident.

! Years	! Teams	! Races	! Poles	! Wins	! Podiums(non-win)**	! Top 10s(non-podium)***	! Indianapolis 500wins	! Championships
10	5	133	5	16	27	50	2 (
! Year	! Chassis	! Engine	! Start	! Finish	! Team	! Summary
	[[Dallara">2005 Indianapolis 500

: ** Podium (non-win) indicates 2nd or 3rd place finishes. : *** Top 10s (non-podium) indicates 4th through 10th place finishes.

Indianapolis 500

! Year	! Chassis	! Engine	! Start	! Finish	! Team	! Summary
	[[Dallara	Honda				Wrecked in turn 4, flipped
	Dallara	Honda				Running
	Dallara	Honda				Running; 157.603 mph
	Dallara	Honda			Chip Ganassi Racing	Running
	Dallara	Honda			Chip Ganassi Racing	Crashed on backstretch
	Dallara	Honda			Chip Ganassi Racing	Running
	Dallara	Honda			Panther Racing	Running
	Dallara	Honda			Panther Racing	Running
	Dallara	Honda			Bryan Herta Autosport	Running; 170.265 mph

Sports car racing

24 Hours of Daytona results

! Year	! Class	! No	! Team	! Car	! Engine	! Co-drivers	! Laps	! Position	! Class Pos.
24 Hours of Daytona>2005				Crawford	Pontiac	Dario Franchitti Milka Duno Marino Franchitti
24 Hours of Daytona>2006					Lexus	Scott Dixon Casey Mears
2007 24 Hours of Daytona>2007					Lexus 5.0L V8	Scott Dixon Memo Rojas
24 Hours of Daytona>2008					Lexus 5.0L V8

Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, Results are overall/class)

! Year

! Team

! Make

! Engine

! Class

! 1

! 2

! 3

! 4

! 5

! 6

! 7

! 8

! 9

! 10

! 11

! 12

! 13

! 14

! 15

! Rank

! Points

2005 Rolex Sports Car Series season>2005

Childress-Howard Motorsports>Howard-Boss Motorsports

! Crawford

! Pontiac

! DP

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2006 Rolex Sports Car Series season>2006

Chip Ganassi Racing>Target Chip Ganassi Racing

Riley Technologies>Riley MkXI

! Lexus

! DP

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2007 Rolex Sports Car Series season>2007

Chip Ganassi Racing>Target Chip Ganassi Racing

Riley Technologies>Riley MkXI

! Lexus 5.0L V8

! DP

bgcolor="#EFCFFF"

2008 Rolex Sports Car Series season>2008

Chip Ganassi Racing>Target Chip Ganassi Racing

Riley Technologies>Riley MkXI

! Lexus 5.0L V8

! DP

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References

External links

Official Site

IndyCar Driver Page

Audio Interview with Dan Wheldon Dan Wheldon talks about his karting days

Audio Interview with Dan Wheldon Dan Wheldon looks forward to a new challenge

ESPN Profile

Category:1978 births Category:2011 deaths Category:24 Hours of Daytona drivers Category:Atlantic Championship drivers Category:BRDC Gold Star winners Category:British expatriate sportspeople in the United States Category:Burials in Florida Category:English expatriates in the United States Category:English racing drivers Category:Filmed deaths in sports Category:Formula Ford drivers Category:Indianapolis 500 drivers Category:Indianapolis 500 winners Category:IndyCar Series drivers Category:Indy Lights drivers Category:McLaren Autosport BRDC Award nominees Category:Motorsport announcers Category:People educated at Bedford School Category:People from Olney, Buckinghamshire Category:People from St. Petersburg, Florida Category:Racing drivers killed while racing Category:Sports deaths in Nevada

ar:دانيال ويلدون bg:Дан Уелдън br:Dan Wheldon cs:Dan Wheldon de:Dan Wheldon es:Dan Wheldon fr:Dan Wheldon ko:댄 웰던 id:Dan Wheldon it:Dan Wheldon hu:Dan Wheldon nl:Dan Wheldon ja:ダン・ウェルドン pl:Dan Wheldon pt:Dan Wheldon ru:Уэлдон, Дэн simple:Dan Wheldon fi:Dan Wheldon sv:Dan Wheldon vi:Dan Wheldon zh:丹·威尔顿

name	Keiichi Tsuchiya
nationality	Japanese
years	-
team(s)	Team Kunimitsu Honda, Team Lark McLaren, Toyota Team Europe, TV Asahi Team Dragon
best finish	2nd ()
class wins	2 (, ) }}

is a professional race car driver. He is also known as the "Drift King" (or Dorikin (ドリキン)) for his nontraditional use of drifting in non-drifting racing events and his role in popularizing drifting as a motorsport. He is also known for touge (mountain pass) driving.

The car he drives, a Toyota AE86 Sprinter Trueno, has become one of the most popular sports cars; the car is also known as "Hachi-Roku" in Japan (''hachi-roku'' meaning "eight six"); his car is also called "The Little Hachi that could." A video known as Pluspy documents Tsuchiya's touge driving with his AE86. He also is a consultant for one of the popular comic books, "Initial D". "Bunta" (Takumi's dad) is a character which describes him.

Biography

Tsuchiya started his career through the Fuji Freshman series in 1977. Unlike many drivers who came from wealthy families or motorsport backgrounds, he honed his skills from street racing and became an underground legend.

Racing career

; National championships He would continue to take part in the Japanese Formula Three Championship, Japanese Touring Car Championship (JTCC), the latter while driving a Nissan Skyline GT-R (previously in the Cosmo Oil Sierra Cosworth) in the Group A championships and later a Honda Civic in the Supertouring car championships.

; Le Mans He went on to score a class win and an 8th place overall at the 1995 24 Hours of Le Mans in a Honda NSX. In 1999 of the same race, this time in a Toyota GT-One, during the last hour while co-driver Ukyo Katayama was building up pace to the leading BMW V12 LMR he was forced into the grass by a backmarker privateer's BMW LMP, blowing the tire out. They survived the ordeal and went onto score the fastest lap but were forced to settle for second.

; NASCAR He has raced in NASCAR-sanctioned exhibition races at Suzuka Circuit (Suzuka Thunder 100) and at Twin Ring Motegi Superspeedway for the 1998 NASCAR-sanctioned exhibition and 1999 NASCAR Grand National Division, AutoZone West Series races at the circuit, both named the Coca-Cola 500K.

Drifting career

When Tsuchiya was a freshman in circuit racing, he got his racing license suspended because of the illegal racing he was still doing. In the movie series ''Shuto Kousoku Trial'', he advised street racers to leave the illegal racing scene if they want to become involved with professional racing.

After his retirement

After his retirement, he remained in racing and is now an official Drift Muscle(He Quit D1 in January 2011) judge and was Team Director for both GT500 (for one year) and GT300 Class of ARTA JGTC Team until the team disbanded their GT300 operation at the end of the 2005 season. He owned the aftermarket suspension company Kei Office until he sold the business in 2005. His trademark color is jade green which appears on his overalls and helmet and is the adopted color of the company he used to own, Kei Office. It was also the color of the D1 Grand Prix Kei Office S15 Silvia of driver and employee Yasuyuki Kazama who also wears a suit similar in pattern.

He also hosts the video magazine "Best Motoring" which features road tests of new Japanese cars including a special section called "Hot Version" which focuses on performance-modified cars. He is a guest presenter in ''Video Option'', a monthly video magazine, similar to the Hot Version which also regularly covers the D1GP and its sister video magazine ''Drift Tengoku'' which deals purely with drifting.

He has been an editorial supervisor on the televised anime ''Initial D'' and ''Wangan Midnight.'' He appeared in episode 23 of ''Initial D'' First Stage as a special guest. He also appeared in the semi biographical film ''Shuto Kousoku Trial'' 2,3,4,5 and was also featured in the Super GT magazine show in Japan. His life in driving is parallel to that of the ''Initial D'' main character, Takumi, as both of them started exploring their local touge while doing regular deliveries for their family businesses. In Initial D 1st Stage episode 23, he was alluded to when Takumi's father was having a conversation on the phone with someone referred to as "Mr. Tsuchiya" who addressed Takumi's father as "Bunta," adding that the memories of his drifting still "scared the shit" out of him. In the Initial D 3rd Stage, the color can also be seen on the overalls and helmet of the sportsbike rider who overtook Takumi as he was en route to an initiation battle with Ryosuke Takahashi. The color of Tomo's racing suit from the Initial D 4th Stage is jade green and has a similar pattern to Tsuchiya's suit. Lastly, Keiichi himself is featured in one episode of Initial D right before the battle with Ryosuke Takahashi when he calls Bunta (Takumi's father) to inquire about the young man. Here he is shown wearing a similar race suit design.

He also made an appearance opposite Top Gear's Jeremy Clarkson in a Motorworld in Japan special showing drifting competition in the late 1980s in Japan.

After 1995, he sometimes appeared as a Formula One guest commentator in Japanese Fuji TV. He now owns a new suspension company called DG5.

In 2006, he made a cameo as a fisherman in the movie ''The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift'' in which he was also stunt coordinator and stunt man. Although he only had two lines, it is considered to be an inside joke to the drift racing community.

AE86 Specs

Car	Toyota AE86>(Kouki)TRD Street Tuned Toyota Sprinter Trueno GT-V AE86
Year	1986
Body Color	Super White II
Engine	A TRD Mid-Tuned 20v Blacktop 4AGE, TRD WaterPipe, TRD Header, Outputs 170PS with Freedom ECU w/ Garage Motore(from Touge Showdown 200 Round 2 with AE86 Coupe) setting, OEM Injectors, Engine rebuild, TODA 1800cc Kit(TRD Sakurai Special), and 1.8L HKS 7AGE Kit
Custom Parts	TRD N2 AE86 FRP Spoiler, SSR/Modex Dori Dori Mesh Rims, Zenki Front Lip, TRD Reclining Bucket Seats, Sabelt Harness, GT Wing(added for downforce and grip), TRD Carbon Fiber Hood, Nardi TRD 3 Spoke Steering Wheel, Freedom ECU, ARTA Floor Mats, TRD Short Shifter Kit with Wrap Leather, DG5 Suspension Kit(Kei Office Suspension Kit before DG5), Image C2 Brake pads, TRD 2-way LSD, DLI Ignition, Brigestone Potenza RE-01R and Kenwood CD Player

Quotes

"I drift not because it is a quicker way around a corner but the most exciting way."

"Speed isn't everything; you gotta look cool on the touge too."

"This is fun! I wish that Toyota could make cars like this again!" (on the Toyota AE86)

"Yeah! How come this car gets me fired up all the time?" After winning a downhill touge against a Skyline R34 with the Toyota AE86

"カウンターステアが遅いんだな？ (Countersteer is late, huh?)" (from ''The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift'', dubbed as "You call that drifting?")

"Men with guts attack those corners!" - it was a reply to Nobuteru Taniguchi who, driving a more powerful car on the touge, said " I'll get away with turbo power on the straights."

"The most important thing is balance." (Tsuchiya says this word in every race action.)

"There's tension on the track; now you see how hard it is. You may be fastest on the street but, unless you know the track, you're not good enough to sit behind the wheel." (Tsuchiya speaking to Shikiba, subtitled portion, ''Shuto Kusokou Trials MAX'')

"I'm afraid that if I raced you on the street I'd push you to your death." (Tsuchiya speaks to Takahiro Yamanaka, subtitled portion, ''Shuto Kusokou Trials 2'')

"What is power without control?"

"It's so fast it will make a dead man scream" (Tsuchiya describing the performance of the Mines R34 Skyline)

"This is a Cefiro!" (Tsuchiya negatively describing the performance of the V35 Skyline)

"The important thing is to keep trying"

Career results

1977 Debut in Fuji Freshman series.

1977-1984 Ran selected entries in All Japan Touring Car championship.

1984 Fuji Freshman series race (Toyota AE86)= 6 wins

1985 All Japan Touring Car championship (Toyota AE86) 1st in Class 3

1986 Corolla Sprinter Cup-2 podium places

1987 All Japan Touring Car championship (Honda Civic) -1 win

1988 Toyota Cup-1st overall

*All Japan Touring Car championship (BMW E30) -3rd in Class 2

Macau Guia race (BMW M3) -4th overall

1989 All Japan F3 championship

*All Japan Touring Car championship (Ford Sierra Cosworth) -1 win

1990 All Japan Touring Car championship (Ford Sierra Cosworth)

*Macau Guia race (Ford Sierra Cosworth)

*New Zealand Touring Car series (Toyota)

1991 All Japan F3 championship (Ralt-Mugen)-10th overall

*All Japan Touring Car championship (Nissan Skyline GT-R) -5th overall

1992 All Japan Touring Car championship (Nissan Skyline GT-R)

1993 All Japan Touring Car championship (Taisan Nissan Skyline GT-R) -1 win

* Japan Endurance series (Honda Prelude) -2nd Tsukuba 12 Hours

1994 All Japan GT championship (Porsche 911T) -1 win

* All Japan Touring Car championship (Honda Civic)

* Suzuka 1000 km (Porsche 911T) -1st in class, 2nd overall

*Le Mans 24 Hours (Honda NSX) -18th overall

1995 All Japan GT championship (Porsche911TRSR)

*All Japan Touring Car championship (Honda Civic)

*Suzuka 1000 km (Honda NSX) -5th overall

*Tokachi 12 Hours (Honda NSX) -1st overall

*Le Mans 24 Hours (Honda NSX) -1st in class

1996 All Japan GT championship (Honda NSX) -13th overall

*Entered NASCAR Thunder Special race at Suzuka

*Le mans 24 Hours (Honda NSX) -3rd in class

1997 All Japan GT championship (Porsche 911/Dodge Viper)

*Fuji InterTec race (Toyota Chaser)

*Suzuka 1000 km (Lark McLaren F1 GTR) -9th overall

*Entered NASCAR Thunder Special race at Suzuka

*Le Mans 24 Hours (Lark McLaren F1 GTR) -qualified 10th, retired from race

1998 All Japan Touring Car championship (Toyota Chaser) -7th overall

*All Japan GT championship (Toyota Supra) -8th overall

*Le Mans 24 Hours (Toyota GT-One) -9th overall

*NASCAR at the California Speedway.

1999 Japan Touring Car Championship (Advan Altezza Touring car).

*Le Mans 24 Hours (Toyota GT-One) -2nd overall

2000 Le Mans 24 Hours (Panoz LMP-1 Roadster-S) -8th overall

2000-2003 he joined team ARTA racing an NSX once again in the All Japan GT championship.

2004-2005 studied in Australia to complete inter-2 course.

References

External links

Official site

IMDb profile

AsianAthlete.com profile

Bridgestone Automobile Radio

Best Motoring International

Drift Japan » Keiichi 'Drift King' Tsuchiya - Driver Profile and Overview

Category:1956 births Category:Living people Category:D1 Grand Prix Category:Drifting drivers Category:Japanese racing drivers Category:Japanese Touring Car Championship drivers Category:Japanese Formula Three Championship drivers Category:NASCAR drivers Category:24 Hours of Le Mans drivers Category:Motorsport announcers Category:Japanese radio personalities Category:People from Nagano Prefecture

de:Keiichi Tsuchiya es:Keiichi Tsuchiya ja:土屋圭市 pt:Keiichi Tsuchiya ru:Цутия, Кэйити zh:土屋圭市