If there ever was a toy calculated to instill a love of hoonage in impressionable young minds, it had to be Kenner's Smash-Up Derby set. You got a pair of toy cars using Kenner's SSP "rip-cord" drive system, only with a huge improvement over the standard SSP deal: these cars were hideous 50s beaters, with dents and mismatching body-part colors. Best of all, when they hit something (another car, expensive furniture, your sister's ankle), parts would fly off! Jumps were the stuff of an 8-year-old's most hoonic dreams. And if you got tired of the '57 Chevy wagon, you could get the Lincoln Continental. My favorite childhood toy, period. – Murilee Martin

Related:
Jalopnik Holiday Gift Guide: Sizzlers Lucky Best Super O! [internal]

Contact information for this author is not available.