№ 03 · The catalogue

The catalogue

Nineteen 1999-model-year automobiles, grouped by archetype. Each one is a specific car with a specific reason. Click through for the long-form provenance.

British & European GT · 6

1999 Mercedes-Benz R129 SL500 in studio profile.
№ 01 / 19
Mercedes-Benz R129 SL500
The closing chapter of the engineer-led, cost-no-object era at Mercedes-Benz.
In collection
1999 Lotus Esprit V8 three-quarter view.
№ 02 / 19
Lotus Esprit V8
The apex of Giorgetto Giugiaro's wedge silhouette — a shape penned in 1972 and finally given the engine it deserved.
In collection
1999 BMW E39 M5 sedan front three-quarter.
№ 07 / 19
BMW E39 M5
Widely regarded as the high-water mark of the BMW M Division.
Acquisition target
1999 BMW Z3 M Coupe in Dakar Yellow.
№ 14 / 19
BMW Z3 M Coupe
The 'clown shoe' — the unicorn shooting brake variant of an otherwise ordinary roadster platform.
Acquisition target
1999 Jaguar XJR X308 sedan profile.
№ 18 / 19
Jaguar XJR X308
The cool, dinner-jacket-formal supercharged saloon — the British villain car.
Acquisition target
1999 Audi S8 D2 sedan side profile.
№ 19 / 19
Audi S8 D2
The executive sleeper — aluminum-bodied luxury saloon with cinematic association with Ronin.
Acquisition target

Italian Exotic · 2

1999 Ferrari 550 Maranello front three-quarter.
№ 03 / 19
Ferrari 550 Maranello
Ferrari's apology for the 456 GT — a public admission that the front-engine V12 GT was the correct architecture all along.
Acquisition target
1999 Ferrari F355 Berlinetta side profile.
№ 09 / 19
Ferrari F355 Berlinetta
Widely treated as the soul of the analog Ferrari era.
Acquisition target

JDM Hero · 6

1999 Acura NSX Zanardi Edition front three-quarter.
№ 04 / 19
Acura NSX Zanardi Edition
The rarest production NSX ever sold in North America: fifty-one cars, all 1999, all six-speed manual.
Acquisition target
1999 Nissan Skyline GT-R R34 V-Spec I in Bayside Blue.
№ 06 / 19
Nissan Skyline GT-R R34 V-Spec I
The most-photographed, most-mythologized JDM car of the 1999 era.
Acquisition target
1999 Toyota Supra RZ Mk IV in white.
№ 10 / 19
Toyota Supra RZ
The 2JZ-GTE legend — the car around which the entire post-1990s Japanese tuning culture organized itself.
Acquisition target
1999 Mazda RX-7 FD Series 8 Type RS front three-quarter.
№ 12 / 19
Mazda RX-7 FD Series 8 Type RS
The final, lightest, most JDM-specific version of the rotary-engined Mazda sports car.
Acquisition target
1999 Honda S2000 AP1 with top down.
№ 15 / 19
Honda S2000 AP1
The high-revving Honda statement — a 9,000-rpm naturally-aspirated four-cylinder roadster.
Acquisition target
1999 Mitsubishi 3000GT VR-4 front three-quarter.
№ 16 / 19
Mitsubishi 3000GT VR-4
The kitchen-sink Japanese GT — every available technology in Mitsubishi's parts bin.
Acquisition target

Race-Bred · 2

1999 Porsche 911 GT3 996.1 side profile.
№ 05 / 19
Porsche 911 GT3 (996.1)
Where the modern Porsche GT-car program begins — a road-legal homologation of a near-cup-car.
Acquisition target
1999 Subaru Impreza 22B STi in WR Blue Pearl.
№ 11 / 19
Subaru Impreza 22B STi
The rarest, widest, most homologation-special Impreza Subaru ever built.
Acquisition target

American · 2

1999 Dodge Viper GTS ACR low front three-quarter.
№ 08 / 19
Dodge Viper GTS / ACR
Unfiltered, unapologetic American performance from the era when Detroit decided the Japanese exotic threat required an overwrought response.
Acquisition target
1999 Chevrolet Corvette C5 FRC side profile.
№ 13 / 19
Chevrolet Corvette C5 FRC
The Fixed Roof Coupe — the under-loved, performance-oriented variant of the C5 platform.
Acquisition target

Utility Outlier · 1

1999 Lexus LX470 three-quarter view.
№ 17 / 19
Lexus LX470
The no-excuses SUV of the collection — engineered for African expedition use, calibrated for half-million-mile durability.
Acquisition target