It’s hard to believe, but it’s almost the end of 2025. And what a year, huh? So many things happened this year. Were any of them good? I’ll leave that up to you to decide. So many things happened in the car world, specifically, too. Were any of those things good? Some, at least. Not many. But some. I’m not here to ask you about things that happened in the auto industry this year, though, nor am I here to ask you about things that happened in racing, or to your own car, or anything like that. I’ve got a simple question: What’s the best car you saw this year?
Now, the word “best” in this context can mean whatever you want it to mean. It could be your favorite car you saw this year, the coolest car you saw this year, the rarest car you saw this year, or, sure, whatever you think actually is the “best.” Really, I just want to know about the cars you spotted on the street, at a car show, or wherever else that stopped you in your tracks and made you say “wow,” the spot that you’ll still be thinking about well into the new year. You don’t have to include a picture of said car, but bonus points if you do (especially if you’re cool with us posting it).
My answer is easy
For me the answer is simple, and probably predictable for anyone who knows me and has read my work. The best car I saw this year was a Bugatti Veyron. Last month at the Las Vegas Concours there were a total of 47 Bugatti Veyrons, many of which I had never seen in real life before. One of my favorites was the Grand Sport Vitesse at the top of this story, which has a hand-painted Vagues de lumière livery inspired by how light reflects on the car’s bodywork, but in my eyes the absolute best car there — and thus the best car I saw this year — was the Meo Costantini special edition, of which there are only three in the world. This Veyron (and one other at the show) features polished aluminum body panels that clearly reflect their surroundings, and it was absolutely spectacular.
Daniel Golson / Jalopnik
I’ll give you a few runners-up, though. I started off 2025 in Tokyo where I saw all sorts of incredible cars but became especially fond of the Toyota Century SUV, I was enamored by the Renault 5 Turbo 3E at the Munich auto show, and regularly spotting the first customer-owned Cadillac Celestiq has been another highlight of my year. But it’s those Veyrons that I can’t stop thinking about. Now what about you, dear reader? What was the best car you saw in 2025? I’ll welcome any answer, from the silliest shitbox to the craziest hypercar, as long as you really loved it and tell me why.
