Cars For The Land, Sea, And Air

Dan Jedlicka, and editor for the Chicago Sun-Times, has come up with a list of 12 vehicles he believes cry out for further attention:

• Acura NSX (1990 - 2005): A cool car that may not have gotten the original attention it deserved because, well, there's very little name-recognition attributed to Acura. That's a shame since the NSX had an all-aluminum chassis and body structure 10 years ahead of its time
• Aerocar (1951): It was reality probably before the TV cartoon “The Jetsons”  showed off its flying car. Yes, it was a flying car. Invented by a former U.S. Navy pilot, it had a ground speed of 67 mph and a flying speed of 110 mph. In order to drive on the ground, though, the wings and fuselage had to be removed and folded up, not exactly an easy task at the local parking lot.
• Alfa Romeo Duetto Spider (1966-’69): Dustin Hoffman drove a Spider in the classic movie, “The Graduate.”
• Amphicar (1961-’68): About 3,500 units of these "boatcars" were built in Germany with most going to America.  When in the water the front wheels acted as the rudder and the car/boat could go 68 mph on land and 7 knots on water.
• Auburn 851 “Boattail” Speedster (1935): The body of the Boattail had pontoon fenders and a tapered tail making it look like a sleek boat.  Futuristic for the 1930s it was powered by an eight cylinder engine with turbocharger.
• Bizzarrini (1965-’68): An exotic sports car designed by Giotto Bizzarrini after he came up with the Ferrari GTO and Lamborghini V-12 engine. However, the American Corvette V-8 make it affordable to the (near rich) masses.
• BMW 2002 (1968-’76): This coupe helped to build the BMW legend and mystique in the U.S. where it's been ever since. 
• Buick Grand National GNX (1987): This was not a stodgy old Buick, especially with a turbocharged V-6 engine that provided enough thrust for the GNX to go from 0 to 60 in 5.5 seconds, fast even by todays standards. Its production was limited -- only 547 were actually built.
  
• Cadillac Eldorado (1967-’70): Styling and front-wheel drive made this classic a standout. The 1970 version also carried a V-8 engine that generated 400 horsepower.
  
• Chevrolet Corvair Corsa (1965-’66): This was the second generation Corvair released after Ralph Nader attacked the first generation version model. The Corsa featured Corvette-style rear suspension and the engine that was air-cooled and mounted in the rear.
  
• Dual Ghia (1956-’58): Built out of a joint venture project between Italy’s Ghia and Dual owner Gene Casaroll, the Ghia was a hand-built sports car owned by some of the biggest celebrities of the day including Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Peter Lawford and Sammy Davis, Jr. Only 117 were built.
• Muntz Jet (1951-’54): A four-seater convertible with a removable hardtop, the Muntz Jet was the brainchild of businessman Earl “Madman” Muntz who sold everything from cars to TVs.