The Five Best Sports Cars with Pop-Up Headlights

The five best sports cars with pop-up headlights have gone down in automotive history as true gems. Do we know them?

Pop-up headlights have disappeared from modern cars, but that does not mean they deserve to disappear from history, since many models became legends thanks to their headlights, such as the Porsche 924, the Honda Prelude, the Toyota MR2, or even the Ferrari 365 GTB.

The 1935 New York Motor Show was the first to showcase a vehicle with what were called pop-up headlights, and since then many historic models have carried them. Although they did not become fashionable that same year, they had a place in automotive history from 1960 onward.

From that time on, manufacturers such as Ferrari, Porsche or Lotus adapted the technology to their new launches. Today it is hard to find a modern car with this type of headlight, and in 2004 we saw the last gasps with the Lotus Esprit V8 and the Corvette C5.

Opel GT of 1968

Drivers had to activate the pop-up headlights with a lever. The curious thing about this model is that the headlights rotated. It is worth noting that more than 100,000 units of this model were sold.

1971 De Tomaso Pantera

The De Tomaso Pantera was designed by Tom Tjaarda and for many it was the “perfect sports car”. It was powered by a V8 engine, and more than 7,000 units were sold.

Lancia Stratos of 1972

It was unveiled to the world at the 1971 Turin Motor Show. Notably, it became the first Lancia designed by Bertone. It was powered by a 2.4-litre V6 courtesy of Ferrari Dino. This curious model was the rally champion in 1974, 1975 and 1976.

Lamborghini Countach of 1974

Much of the Lamborghini Countach’s success is due to its pop-up headlights. The Lamborghini Diablo also came with this type of headlight, but they were modernised over time with the aim of improving its aerodynamics.

BMW Series 8 of 1989

This grand tourer was powered by the typical BMW engines, V8 or V12. This model became the second production car from the Bavarian brand to feature pop-up headlights. The first? The BMW M1. The BMW Series 8 was sold until 1999, with around 30,000 units produced. It could not be missing from the selection of the best sports cars with pop-up headlights.