The Knight Rider

I was in my first year in high school when it became a big time hit. Who has ever heard of a car that had everything “computerized” by the 80s standard, had the ability to jump…yup, without any ramps, drives on a twisty road, while the driver falls fast asleep… and o yes, the car talks as well,  predating the infamous and very lame “protected by Viper stand back” as every other car’s annoying anti-theft device by more than a decade.  It was something to look forward to on a Wednesday night…willing to give up time to do the typical high school homework for the sake of getting a glimpse of that show……that black TransAm, that unrealistic 300MPH, jumping, talking car show – The Knight Rider.

Unrealistic as it was, I've been so fascinated by it …and to be honest, it was KITT who did play such a big role in my insanity towards cars that I still carry to this day. O well, I’ve been car crazy even before, but I’m sure it did ignited the flame to be blown out of proportion.

Knight Rider is a story of a man who never existed when after recovering from an almost fatal gunshot was given a totally new identity. From a police officer Michael Long he became a crime fighter, investigator, commando, problem solver Michael Knight who fights every other bad guy around town, with no weapons, just that indestructible car (relatively) that was handed over to him for free...which pretty much carry the most insane  “James Bond” type of gadgetry.

But the real star for a car nut like me was KITT…..a 1982 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am. It was intended to be an advertisement for the new F-body Firebird/ Camaro (3^rd generation) series, a totally new design from the previous Smokey and the Bandit Firebird that we all knew…..and it worked, at least as far as viewership is concerned.

True enough, I’ve seen a bunch of KITT replicas out there on car shows, and was even surprised to see a detailed one in the Philippines, once again proving Filipino ingenuity.

With all the movie/TV cars that I love, from Crockett’s Testarossa, to McFly’s DeLorean, from Hardcastle and McCormick's Lola-bodied kit car to Starsky and Hutch's 76 Ford Torino,  KITT, in my book has always been on top of my list. Yes there’s a bunch of other cooler TV cars out there, but it was KITT (not Michael Knight!!!) that got me so hooked up with cars