There are a lot of reasons you can end up waiting for a car. It might launch elsewhere first, it might get held up on delivery or it might be teased for months and months before it goes on sale. But whatever the reason for waiting, some cars are just so worth it.
To uncover the cars that are definitely worth waiting for, we turned to you and posed that very question. Here are some of the top responses we received.
“The C8 Corvette.
“Chevy has been teasing a mid-engined Vette for what... almost 50 years?
“Now that it’s finally in production, it seems to be a giant killer, at least from what I’ve read – supercar performance for a fraction of the price of a ‘real’ supercar.
“I have a work colleague who is on the waiting list for a Stingray, he has promised me a ride once it delivers. Can’t wait.”
The long-awaited electrification of the long-awaited C8 Corvette came last week. Was that worth the wait as well?
Suggested by: earthbound-misfit-i
“2023 Defender. After looking at them and waffling for a year we finally got a build slot and ordered one in March. First new vehicle I’ve ever optioned out and ordered. Months getting updates from our sales associate about transportation delays, parts shortages, and finally took delivery almost six months to the day after putting in the order.
“Amazing truck, exactly what we wanted and totally worth the wait. Got it at MSRP but the dealer offered $20k cash for us not to take delivery so they could resell it with markup which was tempting but not worth waiting for a new build.”
Land Rover teased the replacement for the aging Defender for decades and, by all accounts, the car that followed in the icon’s footsteps was also pretty great.
Suggested by: monkeypawwishes
“My 2022 GTI was absolutely worth the three month wait. I left a deposit for it knowing roughly when my dealer would have it. It was exciting for me to know when it rolled off the line and was on its journey to me. Best of all, I had plenty of time to go process all of the concerns feelings that often result in buyer’s remorse long before I even saw the car in person.
“The deal was put together before it even got here, so I knew exactly what I was getting into and could enjoy it from there. I’m planning to run this car for at least 10 years. If I’m buying new, I’m not buying something off the lot again if I can help it.”
I imagine all the excitement of picking out all your options and following the build and only amped up the anticipation in this case.
Suggested by: Ian Campbell (Facebook)
“My A91-MT. I went to two dealerships the day ordering opened to put down deposits in hopes that I got one, then waited as the delivery dates were pushed back multiple times.
“I have to say, the reviews really don’t do it justice. The car is absolutely incredible to drive. It’s deceptively fast. The seats are comfortable, the visibility is much better than I expected. And, frankly, it’s beautiful to look at. After I picked it up, I watched the Hagerty video on the 2000GT, and then released just how many elements of 2000GT Toyota designers put into the Supra.”
The latest generation Toyota Supra hit the market 17 years after the fourth-gen was killed off. Seventeen years is a long time to wait for anything!
Suggested by: put-some-turbo-on-meeeee
“I think the ultimate winner in the worth-the-wait category is the Mercedes W123. People were following Mercedes employees to their homes, begging them to buy their cars. The dealers who managed to get a few of the early units sold them at ridiculous mark-ups, and those were then sold on the used market at a profit.
“Production eventually ramped up and the W123 became a legend. Dare I say that no car ever car’ed more in history, therefore well worth the hype when it was launched.”
Sold between 1975 and 1986, the W123 from Mercedes-Benz is a certified legend. Even if you get your hands on one today, it’ll probably still be worth the wait.
Suggested by: Gabriel Lang (Facebook)
“Miata right?
“Waited for the ND to come out since I wanted a reliable fun car to put a lot of miles on. After 5 years and 120,000 miles it was the right decision.”
As always, the answer is Miata.
Suggested by: jordanmielke
“The F-150 Lightning was way better than I expected. I had my doubts, but one ride in one I was hooked..had to have one. The instantaneous acceleration is unreal.
“Will it work for everyone..no. However it does work well for many use cases. EVs just drive so much better than gas.”
Ford first announced plans to build an electric truck in January 2019, and it was on sale by January 2023. In contrast, Tesla also unveiled the Cybertruck in 2019 and God knows when that might actually exist.
Suggested by: Nathan Green (Facebook)
“The Prius was long overdue for some car enthusiast love, and it looks like in 2023 Toyota might have finally given us something that we want to drive rather than an appliance to make some environmental statement or just because you don’t like paying $100 to fill your car up every four days.
“I predict that it is going to take Toyota by surprise and be a runaway hit, catching them off guard with their conservative production plans.”
Everyone was caught out by the stunning new Prius when it was unveiled late last year. And, by the sounds of it, it’s a pretty neat car to live with as well.
Suggested by: regnis78
“After watching the development from concepts to prototypes, early teaser reviews, etc – buying my Scion FRS (brz/86) in 2013 was absolutely worth the wait. I drove it for nine years and it was a spectacular car.”
If this little car doesn’t put a great big smile on your face, there must be something wrong.
Suggested by: Nate Kuhn (Facebook)
“The two-door Bronco. I waited 16 months from reservation to delivery and while the wait was tough, the truck is awesome. Sure its not perfect, but rolling around like this while rowing your own gears on a nice day made it all worth it.”
The new Bronco has been as famous for its performance as it has for its long delivery times and sky-high markups. it’s good to know that it’s worth all that.
Suggested by: plindsey
“I waited six years from when I first saw the Alfa Romeo 4C to be able to buy one – it was everything I wanted in a small mid-engine sports car. Well worth the wait!!”
They say don’t meet your heroes, but this sounds like the exception to that rule.
Suggested by: Corey Kononchuk (Facebook)
“I waited 11 months for a Maverick Hybrid (Lariat) and it was worth the wait. It was of nicer quality than I was expecting and I was averaging 44 mpg on the highway as well. Unfortunately someone lost control on the highway and slammed into it and it was a total loss.
“Now I am waiting on a new Model 3 Performance that should be here next month.”
Another big Ford that faced big demand.
Suggested by: p-d-morgan33
“Back in 2001 or 2002 I ordered my WRX and had to wait forever for the first shipment from Japan. The first week I had it I got pulled over by a cop who just wanted to see it.”
After its launch in Japan in the early 90s, America had to wait almost a decade before drivers could get their hands on the Subaru WRX.
Suggested by: Sam Harris (Facebook)
“March 2016: Waited in a two-plus hour line at the mall to place a reservation.
“September 2018: Car delivered on a trailer to my house.
“Present day 2023, over four years later: Love it. Best daily driver money can buy. Not too large or too small, incredible performance, obviously incredible fuel economy, great tech, great road trip ability with Superchargers. Pair it with my solar panels and I estimate I’ve saved about $6,000 on fuel and home electricity since switching both over.
“Maybe less so in 2023 since they’re quite popular, but back in 2018-2019, it was real hit at car shows, especially putting a bottle of V8 under the hood. People just hadn’t seen something like that before.”
You can’t put a price on time, unless it’s time spent paying for gas. And then it’s about $1,000 for every year.
Suggested by: stalephish
“Your first ‘nice’ car.
“Many of us drove, or still drive, crappy cars. There are multiple avenues to owning one’s first nice car, including the short-term easier route of borrowing outside of one’s means. I’m here to tell you that it is worth waiting, and saving, until you can actually afford your first nice car. It feels so much better to drive one’s nice car, knowing that it is not an albatross around one’s neck.”
Look at us uncovering some solid consumer advice. Go Jalopnik.
Suggested by: pmb2012