Ford in Pop Culture Trivia Quiz

AUTO

By: Nikki Weed

7 Min Quiz

Image: Solar Productions / Warner Bros. - Seven Arts

About This Quiz

In this world that seems to be glued to social media and what the stars are doing, it's only natural to be swayed by their opinions on things, like what to drive, for example. Take the plain old Ford F-150 with a Platinum package. At first, it just looks like any other truck you'd see at the local home improvement warehouse store. If you look closely, however, you observe that John Goodman is driving it and seems happy as a clam. All of a sudden, the cool factor of the F-150 jumps by about 100 points, and you find yourself leaning towards shopping for an F-150. That boring old truck got a kick in the pants in the desirable department, just because of who's driving it.

The Ford Motor Company has always been cutting edge on design offerings and technology, but sometimes still get the reputation of being "just a Ford." When a celebrity drives one, a movie features one or a song is sung about one, all of a sudden they become something more than just a Ford, they're deemed cool. Pop culture, in general, has been very favorable to Fords, from the tractor on Green Acres to Lady Gaga driving around in a 20-year-old truck. If it's good enough for a celebrity, it must be plenty good for you then, right?

Can you af-Ford to take our Fords in pop culture quiz and see how many cool Fords have been front and center in the public eye? You might surprise yourself with how much you actually know!

In what fun Beach Boys song does "Daddy take the T-Bird away"?

The '60s were a pop culture intensive decade, especially on the music scene. The Beach Boys of that era were huge, and the song reached number five on the Billboard Top 100 Chart. The song glamorizes the hod rod culture and paints a picture of a teenage girl fibbing to her father to go hang out with the cool kids and their hot rods. The song certainly didn't hurt the popularity of the Thunderbird at all. In 1964, when the song was released, Ford sold 92,465 Thunderbirds, almost double what they sold the year prior.

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Which talent scouting television show let the top 11 finalists personalize Ford Focuses in 2011 as an advertising gimmick?

Ford has been a significant sponsor of "American Idol" since day one, so being able to plug their new cars into the wildly popular program is a given. When Ford decided to allow the final 11 contestants to design their own 2011 Focus, they had more up their sleeve than just giving away some cars. By passively advertising, they were able to put their product in front of one of the most diverse television viewer demographics available. This edged them further ahead from their mild competition.

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Andy Griffith fought petty crime in Mayberry while doing his police cruising in what four-door Ford?

The fictitious town of Mayberry, North Carolina, was kept safe by the bumbling law enforcement officers Barney and Andy in "The Andy Griffith Show." Much like other shows in this quiz, "The Andy Griffith Show" was sponsored by The Ford Motor Company and was heavy on Ford fascia. The squad car has gone to auction recently and raked in over $23,000, a low figure for a vehicle with less than 2,000 miles on the odometer.

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The pop-culture phenomenon that was the 1978 movie "Grease" turned many viewers into sock-hopping street racers. What car was sung about in the song Greased Lightning?

The heavily modified convertible purchased by Kenickie is in a sad state of repair, but lucky for the car, it gets taken into the shop class where it's danced around and sung about. "Why this car is automatic, it's systematic, it's hydromatic, why, it's greased lightning!" Any real hot rod enthusiast would certainly not sing and be proud of an automatic transmission. As the song is being sung, if you use an eagle eye, you can spot a four-on-the-floor shifter, but later in the film, he uses a column shifter. Most of the people watching "Grease" didn't care; it was as much of a character in the movie as Sandy or Zuko.

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What glorious woody wagon did the Griswolds haul their Christmas tree home on in the movie "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation"?

When it comes down to holiday movies, there are serious family dramas, and then you have the goofy family comedies. "Christmas Vacation," the second installment of the Griswold family's' adventures, certainly didn't disappoint. At the beginning of the movie, the tackily modified Taurus wagon turns into the hero car by hauling an oversized Christmas tree safely home, despite a few snags along the way. The vehicle itself can now be seen on tacky sweaters, inflatable holiday decorations and mimicked in Christmas parades. Not bad for a mundane Ford station wagon!

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Which bearded band was known for its bright red 1933 Ford Coupe?

The saucy red coupe, known as Eliminator, has been labeled as one of the most recognizable hot rods ever, a title not to be taken lightly! One reason is that the car, in cartoon form, was featured on both the Afterburner and Eliminator albums. The car was also heavily featured in the music videos "Gimme All Your Lovin," "Legs" and "Sharp Dressed Man." Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top owns the car but has given it on loan to be displayed at the Rock and Roll Hall of fame in Cleveland.

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"I bought you a brand new ..." What did Wilson Pickett sing about in one of his most famous songs?

With almost every other word in the song being either "Sally" or "Mustang," it was inevitable that this song would give a kick in the pants of the publicity department at Ford. The title of the song was initially "Mustang Mama" and written by Sir Mack Rice, a Detroit R&B talent a year before Wilson Pickett released the song. Sir Mack Rice wrote the song about a bandmate of legendary Della Reese and her desire to own a Mustang.

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Which "King of Cool" owned a very legendary 1968 Ford Mustang?

Beyond the legendary movie "Bullitt," which features McQueen racing around the streets of San Francisco for almost 10 minutes, is the mystery behind the car itself. The car was sold way back in 1974 in used condition for $3,500 by Robert Kiernan. The car has been mainly under the radar and parked in a barn for the past several decades. Recently it was unveiled for a second time and is going to be offered for auction by Mecum, where it's expected to fetch upwards of $5 million. Talk about some pop culture price inflation!

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Hungry, hungry dinosaurs were on the prowl and ready to tear apart was famous Ford in the first "Jurassic Park"?

The Ford Explorer featured in the movie wasn't a typical model or trim level available at a local dealership. Aside from aftermarket brush bars and rally lights, the Explorers were equipped with autopilot, a glass observation roof, and a water tap for drinking. It really was too bad that a Tyrannosaurus Rex decided to make a plaything out of one! The EXP 04 from the film that got crushed can be seen at Universal Studios in California.

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When Mr. Miyagi taught a young Ralph Macchio how to wax on and wax off in the popular film "The Karate Kid," what did he teach on?

The incredibly popular movie had people joking with each other and saying "wax on, wax off" for years to come. What many people don't know is that Ralph Macchio himself now owns the beautiful yellow car from the film! The car made its rounds through three of the "Karate Kid" films before Macchio considered buying it, but upon asking, he was left empty-handed. On the day of the theatrical release of "Karate Kid III," Macchio was stunned to find the car parked outside of his home, as sort of a thank you present. The car has recently come back into the spotlight, with the new "Karate Kid" spinoff, "Cobra Kai." The car is featured and pays homage to the series humble "wax on, wax off" roots.

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If you look very closely, you can identify what spooky family's big car as a three Ford Model Ts pieced together?

You have to admit, The Munster Koach is no run-of-the-mill grocery-getter for no ordinary family. The macabre show required something very unique and over the top automotive wise. The car was built from the ground up, with help from an engineer that only got paid $200 total for the design. Three Model T bodies were pieced together to create the spooky vehicle that seats eight and can reach an estimated top speed of 150 miles per hour. Powered by a 300 horsepower V-8, the Munster Koach doesn't do much cruising anymore. Instead, it sits on display at a famous car museum in England.

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In the recent movie "Ford Vs. Ferrari," what car conquered all opponents at the 1966 24 Hours of LeMans race?

The film, which is a trail of triumphs, shines a light on Ford and their brilliant racing past. In modern-day, most Ford racecars are simply shells, lacking the heart of a Ford. The film reminds the viewer that racing wasn't always fiberglass bodies and sponsorship ad nauseam. The GT40 itself acted as a David against the Goliaths of racing and looked mighty fine doing so. People that don't care about racing even enjoyed the film; could it be because the GT40 was just that attractive?

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The popular iHeart Radio show Stuff You Should Know did an entire live episode from Atlanta on what tragic Ford event?

The lovable hosts, Josh and Chuck, guide the live audience and somehow garner a few laughs while discussing the great fate of the Pinto. Even though the Pinto incidents had happened decades prior, they remind the listeners that safety should always be paramount over affordability. They may never fully recover from haunting lawsuits and deaths, primarily because podcasts, articles and videos are still being produced about the Pinto to this day.

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Although the Mystery Machine from "Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?" seems like it should be a Volkswagen Microbus, it's not. What could it possibly be?

"Scooby-Doo" was so much more than some meddling kids solving mysteries with a lovable canine; it was the essence of cool. The characters had the coolest cartoon clothes and said some of the trendiest things to grace the lips of anybody in the late '60s. All of these groovy elements needed a vehicle that was cool to the max, so a cartoon Mystery Machine was created. Although not a solid match to the Transit, analysts have decided the Transit is the closest production van to the cartoon. You can still see the Mystery Machine recreated at Vanning events and even in vinyl wraps on Semi trucks.

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Henry Ford might have passed away a long time, but his heritage and quest for knowledge pioneers on through which television program that is filmed at The Henry Ford Museum?

Saturday mornings for children have been about parking in front of a television and watching cartoons for decades. In the past, shows lacked any real context or real-world values, with shows like "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers" and "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles." CBS made a bold move and shifted the Saturday morning ritualistic paradigm from the mind-numbing entertainment to educational, but fun, television. Mo Rocca, previously from "The Daily Show with John Stewart" and "CBS Sunday Morning," guides young and old alike through scientific yet understandable topics.

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If you take the time to visit Winslow, Arizona, you'll be treated to a mural featuring a flatbed Ford and a statue of a man standing on the corner. Why is this?

Winslow, Arizona, could very possibly be a ghost town had it not been for the famous song by The Eagles depicting a girl in a flatbed Ford. Winslow is a town along historic Route 66, a strip of asphalt that became a forgotten byway due to the Interstate system. Many other small cities along Route 66 became ghost towns after being bypassed. Still, a small frontage along the Interstate and capitalizing on the kitschy Eagles song has made Winslow a destination as opposed to a pass-through city. If you're in the neighborhood, it's worth it to fight your way through the tourists and get a selfie "standin' on the corner" with the flatbed Ford.

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“Zebra Three, come in.” Which dynamic duo cruised around in a Gran Torino heavily laden with chrome and an unforgettable racing stripe?

A little known fact about the red and white 1976 Gran Torino from "Starsky and Hutch" is that the car was supposed to be a Camaro. The Gran Torino was sort of an oafish choice of vehicle for the automotive role, and the stars of the show went on record as saying that the car had poor handling capabilities. This didn't stop Ford from promoting the car, and it becoming an integral part of all the dramatic chase scenes. It may not have been Huggy Bear approved, but the popularity of the car was massive, with model cars, shirts and other merchandise available for purchase. Similar Gran Torinos not even related to the show have gone to auction recently and have gotten over $9,000 with cars from the show fetching upwards of $40,000. That's not bad for a car that was reputed not to be able to turn a corner!

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If you were to take the Gran Torino from "Starsky and Hutch" and beat it with an ugly stick until it turned brown and dented, what movie would you be watching?

The Gran Torino from "The Big Lebowski" was a 1974 four-door, but the heart and soul of the car were similar. The car became a sort of hero car weirdly in the film, surviving getting stolen by Larry, beaten with a baseball bat, viciously hitting a curb and eventually being set on fire by some Nihilists. The car itself is pretty ugly, but it was incredibly symbolic in the film, helping "The Dude" get through a particularly tough time while trying to retrieve his living room rug. Since the release of the movie in 1998, there has since been an entire religion devoted to living more "dude-like," there are no statistics at this time about how many dudeists drive Gran Torinos.

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In what movie did a "just a doggie" try to get into a Ford Pinto?

The movie "Cujo" was based on a real incident that Stephen King experienced in Maine while trying to get a repair done to his motorcycle. Instead of writing the film around a motorcycle, only involving one other person, King used the Pinto instead. The Ford Pinto itself was a known deathtrap, for reasons other than being attacked by a vicious St. Bernard. The Pinto was an absolute automotive disaster, which pop culture ran with on many occasions, "Cujo" is one of them. The major problem with the Pinto was a quick design process because Ford was eager to remain competitive with the new compact Volkswagens in the market. This led to engineering oversight and exploding gas tanks, should the car receive impact from the rear end.

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Ford took some radical moves in the late '90s while trying to garner popularity, the commercial "Ford Country" was one of them. Who starred in the commercial?

As the song goes, "look at that truck," and that's what millions of viewers did in 1999. The commercial even claimed that the whole world was Ford country when that was certainly not the case. Just four years earlier, Chevrolet tried the same gimmick with Bob Seger singing his song Like A Rock, which bled just as much truck pride as Alan Jackson did. The commercials were really the same, featuring hard-working men getting dirty and using trucks. Needless to say, the advertising campaign did not appeal to the non-male crowd.

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While we're fresh on the Alan Jackson topic, in which song did he sing about his dad teaching him to drive in an old Ford pickup?

The truck in question is a half-ton short bed ford 1964, which renders the heart in a melted state upon hearing the lyrics. The beginning of the song starts off a little bland, talking about a boat, but then the emotions get heavy when Jackson's voice turns a little more melancholy. The song reached number one on the Billboard Hot Country list, with critics oozing over the imagery the song laid out. Who wouldn't want to learn how to drive in an old Ford truck after hearing that song?

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Moving from country music to surf music, what popular musician sung Wild, Wild Mustang, about a Ford Mustang in 1964?

"Posi-traction and four-on-the-floor" were the most poignant lyrics to the song, but that didn't matter; the Mustang was already as wildly popular as the song made it out to be. Since the Mustang was a raw introduction to the car scene, it allowed the song to propel itself from being just another surf song to being fascinating. The song itself never made it big, but it currently has a cult following on YouTube and other media platforms.

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If you were watching MTV in 1991 and heard a sample of The Steve Miller Band singing "Fly Like An Eagle" but saw Vanilla Ice singing about a car instead, what music video would you be watching?

The music is cheesy, and the dancing is very period-specific, but the lyrics are spot on. Zero to 60 in 4 seconds, the entire video features Vanilla Ice dancing in front of a blue screen with various scenes of a white convertible 5.0 Fox-body Mustang cruising through different backgrounds. In a time where Vanilla Ice was king, the 5.0 Mustang might as well have been queen.

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Which film featured a spunky topless Ford Bronco named Pepe?

The stars of the film, Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner, are taken for a ride for their lives through cornfields, mud, and a few random heads of livestock in a Bronco. In the movie, the driver of the Bronco makes the proclamation, "My little mule (aka Pepe), he is fireproof," which was not an actual feature on the 1982 Bronco. People still loved the Bronco, though, because of its rugged design and off-road capabilities, even though it wasn't fireproof. Who knows, maybe OJ Simpson was a fan of the movie!

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Nothing screams pop culture quite like pop music. Which famous singer and actress is known to cruise around in her first generation Ford F-150 SVT Lightning?

Lady Gaga is a powerhouse on the pop culture scene and is a massive influencer through her social media channels. Somehow, she made drinking tea out of a Versace teacup in an old Ford pick up look incredibly cool. When the paparazzi were able to snap photos of her getting pulled over in said red pick up, all you could really see was a big smile. Nobody is exactly sure why she got pulled over, though. Who knows, maybe she was going "lightning" fast!

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Lady Gaga not only knows how to cruise the strip in her truck, but she also has skills on dirt as well. In her video, "Perfect Illusion," what is she seen going off-road in the desert in?

If you're starting to notice a recurrence of Ford Broncos on this list, there's an excellent reason! Celebrities and their Ford Broncos raised the popularity of the vehicle. However, it wasn't the most practical sports utility vehicle on the market. The Bronco was designed to be a competitor to the wildly popular Jeep CJ7 and International Harvester Scout. Throughout production, the Bronco deviated from its humble beginnings and became a large and hard-to-maneuver truck. It was replaced by the Expedition, a vehicle even larger and hard to maneuver.

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Which famous athlete and actor owned a very famous Ford Bronco?

As an estimated 95 million people watched on as OJ went on his run from the law in 1994, the only clear thing they could make out was the boxy bodied white Ford Bronco. After that, the Bronco became synonymous with OJ, but even the popularity it garnered didn't save it from being discontinued in 1997. The 1993 Ford Bronco is now owned by a friend of Simpson's who stated that he wouldn't take anything less than a million dollars for it.

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If you were to take a glance at a few rap videos from the early 2010s, you'll more than likely see what kind of Ford rolling on 24" wheels?

Whether you like the donk style or not, you have to respect the amount of work it takes to get a passenger car to accommodate such large wheels. Aside from the ease of modifications, the Crown Vic is an extraordinary car to purchase used. Of course, some people might buy them to scare people while imitating a police car, but the car itself is cheap to fix, easy to work on and hard to steal. Take a look at the video for "Crown Vic Sittin' High," and instead of looking at it as a monster car, appreciate the mechanical aspects of it!

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Which Ford/Shelby car was sung about in surf-style by The Rip Chords in 1963?

"Hey little Cobra, don't you known you're gonna shut 'em down?" The Cobra was a result of Ford wanting a little roadster that could compete with the popular Corvette of the time. It had a Ford V-8 engine and super lightweight body, which made it an agile powerhouse of a car. In the song, a bold lyric describes the little Cobra overtaking a Stingray Corvette. Other popular songs by The Rip Chords also included Ford, such as "'40 Ford Time" and "Drag City." It's unknown if they ever received any kickbacks from Ford.

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What famous Ford graced the cover of Hot Rod Magazine, has songs written about it, and eventually became one of the most famous cars of hot rodding?

The original Little Deuce Coupe of radio and magazine fame was initially purchased by a fresh-faced 15-year-old for $75 in 1955. The car slowly began to take shape, pennies at a time until eventually, it was doing the quarter-mile in just under 13 seconds (impressive for that time). The car remained a work in progress until it was sold, but only after gracing the cover of The Beach Boys album of the same name. Although it was powered by an Oldsmobile engine, it had the bones of a great Ford.

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Even the wealthiest people of the world drive Fords. An F-150 King Ranch is the preferred mode of transportation for which American heiress?

Alice Walton may have the Walmart fortune in her back pocket, but it doesn't mean that she spends it all on frivolous vehicles. Her estimated net worth as of January 2018 was $52.1 billion. Along with being conservative with her truck choices (the King Ranch was estimated to retail at $40,000), she also curates art and helps fund charter schools. When word spread that the King Ranch was good enough for a billionaire, people looked at the truck a little differently. If it's suitable for one of the richest women in America, it's good enough for ordinary folks too. Right?

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When you're the leader of the free world, you're usually carted around in a bullet-proof limousine, but which president had a love affair with the Ford Thunderbird?

John F. Kennedy was a self-proclaimed GM man before taking office, but once his butt hit the oval office, he became a massive fan of the Ford Thunderbird. He was known for having great taste and a keen eye for styling, so it was only natural that the Thunderbird became his favorite car. His own 1961 T-Bird convertible was front and center in his inaugural parade and was often seen at the White House. He also owned a '63 Thunderbird convertible as well. Again, if a car is good enough for a president, it should be good enough for his constituents!

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Country songs are often about trucks that are lifted and driven through the mud. Dierks Bentley went a different direction with his music video to "What Was I Thinkin'" and used what Ford?

The 1966 Ford Ranchero featured in the video transports us through a sequence of scenery that screams Americana. Down to the dog riding in the back and the small-town vibe, the Ranchero reminds the viewer of simpler times. Although the car breaks down in the video, they're known for being easy to work on, not the stressful dilemma seen in the video. Perhaps the main character was more stressed about all the other drama going on in the video! Even when broken down, the Ranchero looks cool! You can purchase one of your own for somewhere in the ballpark of $23,000.

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What car plays just as significant a role as Nicholas Cage does in the 2000 remake of "Gone In 60 Seconds"?

Aside from the Mustang from the movie Bullitt, the car in "Gone In Sixty Seconds" might be one of the most recognizable Mustangs in the world. Eleanor, as they call it in the movie, isn't a run of the mill car they picked out from a studio lot. The cool coupe was purpose-built by Cinema Vehicle Services specifically for the film. Eleanor is actually a trademarked name, and although there have been many reproductions of her, they can't technically be sold as an Eleanor.

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Chuck Berry, The Father Of Rock and Roll, sang about his cherry red what?

As far as influencers went in the 1960s, there weren't many people bigger than Chuck Berry. He influenced nearly all rock musicians of the time, with John Lennon even stating, "if rock and roll were called something else, it would be called Chuck Berry." With this sort of popularity, whatever he sang about might as well be good as gold. The song itself was a musical sales pitch about the car and became quite the earworm. The song was released in '65 but sung about the '66 model, which might have helped in '66 being the best selling year for the Ford Mustang ever.

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