There's no other way to say this - I love cars. I think that's stating the obvious. But I also love sneakers. I don't have a huge collection - probably because I can't afford a huge collection. If I had the cash for it though, look out! I may have even bought those ludicrous Nike Mags that sold for around $10,000 (that's no typo - in fact there have been reports of resales for up to $75,000)!
Now, this blog isn't about sneakers, it's about cars. But that got me thinking, what sneakers were designed with a car as its inspiration? I remember my first pair of Air Jordans, the Jordan XIV. The design was famously inspired by MJ's Ferrari 550 Maranello. But what else were there?
I don't count car-branded shoes (like the adidas Porsche Design line, or Puma's Ferrari line). Instead, these are shoes that just took their inspiration, in part or as a whole, from a car. There are probably more, so please put whatever I may have missed in the comments box!
1. Jordan XI (1991) - Porsche 911
Perhaps the first sneaker to overtly use a car as inspiration, the Jordan XI's rubber heel pull was inspired by the Porsche 911's famous whale tail.
2. Jordan XIV (1998) - Ferrari 550 Maranello
The Jordan XIV was the shoe that MJ wore when he hit his famous championship-winning shot against the Utah Jazz. The shoe had its Jumpman logo in a shield-like emblem, like the Scuderia Ferrari emblem on the 550's front fenders. The outsole also had a tire tread-like pattern, further adding to the automotive theme. Finally, the "side vent" accent on the medial midsole was supposed to be the Ferrari intake vents, though the Maranello didn't have those vents - this was possibly inspired by the earlier Ferrari 355.
3. Jordan XVII (2002) - Aston Martin Vanquish
These are one of my favorite Air Jordan designs, and one of my favorite to play in. While there are no obvious details that connect the Jordan XVII to any Aston, the Jordan Brand website itself states that “the fine details from an Aston Martin, the smooth lines and flow of a jazz solo and the long Air Jordan history of innovations in style.” I guess we have to take their word for it.
4. Jordan XVIII (2003) - F1 Cars/Lamborghini Murcielago
The XVIIIs were Jordan's Washington Wizards comeback shoe. The suede/alcantara upper was inspired by motorsport shoes styling, while the exposed carbon fiber heel was a design feature intended for lightness, flexibility, and stability - it was left exposed also as a nod to Formula 1, which Jordan is a fan of. The "wing vents" on the ankle area are reminiscent of the pop-out air intakes of the Murcielago. This shoe even came with an "Air Jordan Driver's Manual" booklet.
5. Jordan XXI (2006) - Bentley Continental GT
Again the suede/alcantara appears on this iteration of the Jordans, but this time, the design was influenced by Jordan's own Bentley Continental GT. The only obvious signs of this, however, are the mesh accents, mimicing the Bentley's grille, quilt-stitching on the inner bootie, and the (vaguely identifiable) 3rd brake light strip on the top of the heel counter.
6. and 7. adidas The Kobe I (2000) and Kobe II (2001) - Audi TT
The Kobe I was actually designed in cooperation with Audi's design studio. The sculpted "wheel arch" in the midsole, the shell toe front grille, "bullet nose" front design, and the strong, continuous shoulder line were all inputs of Audi to associate the sneaker with the then-newly released TT. The resultant design had a love-it or hate-it effect on sneakerheads. The Kobe II carried over many of the same design features, but in an even more minimalistic package, which turned off a lot of buyers (and eventually sent Kobe packing and moving over to rival Nike). The Kobe II was famous for spawning a horrendous stars-and-stripes colorway that scared even the biggest Kobe-lovers from wearing the signature shoe of their hero.
8. adidas TMac 4 (2005) - Lamborghini Murcielago
After Kobe Bryant's departure from adidas, Tracy McGrady became the new face of the brand with 3 stripes. The design was inspired by the Murcielago (the second time this car makes it on this list), with the perforated plastic heel design paying homage to rear mesh grille flanking the Lambo's center exhaust pipe, and a "rear diffuser" tray.
9. Dada Spinners, aka the Spree (2004) - Spinner Rims
Ok, so technically these weren't inspired by a car. Instead, they were inspired by one of the fads of the times, spinning chrome rims. The in-your-face spinners on the ankles spun like their namesakes, and even had fake big brake kits printed behind the spinning plastic. These were endoresed by Latrell Sprewell and were a tie-in to his custom car shop, Spreewell Motorsports.
10. Nike Air Zoom Generation (2004) - Hummer H2
Lebron James' first signature shoe, these were supposed to have been inspired by his then-infamous Hummer H2 (there was some controversy of how he bought that car when he was just 17 years old, before he even signed his first NBA or shoe endorsement contract). There aren't many obvious design features that say "Hummer," but like the Jordan XVII, that didn't stop Nike from using the car in its advertising spiel.
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