Guess Who’s Turning 50? Five cars that will be celebrating the big 5-0 soon

1. Ford Mustang: The car that started the pony car craze turns 50 next spring. The Mustang was unveiled in April 1964 at the New York World’s Fair to a rapturous response. The youth market was a huge factor for the first time, fueled by the first of the baby boomers coming of age. The rest is history. The Mustang’s eternal competitor, the Chevy Camaro, is a youthful 46 in comparison. Bowtie fans will have to wait until 2017 to blow out the candles for the Camaro.

2. Plymouth Barracuda: The Barracuda actually predated the Mustang by a couple of weeks, but it was the Mustang that got all of the attention. Not that the first generation (1964-66) Barracuda was a bad car in any way — it was based on the very successful Plymouth Valiant compact (in much the same way that the Mustang was based on the Ford Falcon). But the Mustang was glamorous and beautiful where the Barracuda was merely attractive. Both celebrate their half-century in April 2014.

3. Porsche 911: The iconic German sports car turns 50 this September. Introduced in September 1963 at the Frankfurt Motor Show (where it was known as the “901” until French automaker Peugeot claimed a trademark infringement), the 911 has undergone thousands of evolutionary changes and several complete redesigns, but it retains the classic rear-engine architecture and many of the basic styling cues of the original from 1963.

4. Aston Martin DB5: It’s a double anniversary for the favorite ride of James Bond. Aston Martin the company celebrates its 100th anniversary this year, and its best known product, the DB5, turns 50. For the record, Daniel Craig, who currently portrays James Bond, is five years younger than the DB5. Happily, the Aston Martin DB5 that was destroyed onscreen during the latest 007 film “Skyfall” was a replica.

5. Pontiac GTO: It’s another double anniversary of sorts next year. Although it’s debatable, GTO fans mark the beginning of the muscle car era with the introduction of the 1964 Pontiac GTO. Conceived by GM young gun John Z. DeLorean, the formula was simply to stuff the biggest engine possible into the smallest package. It worked like a charm and set off an automotive arms race among muscle car makers that would last until the early 1970s and spawned the infectious surf rock song “G.T.O.” by Ronny & The Daytonas.