You may remember Ralph Macchio as the actor who played Daniel LaRusso in the iconic film franchise Karate Kid. He is back in action with his latest performance in the Netflix show Cobra Kai. Gearheads may recognize the 1947 Ford Convertible in the new series as the same car that also appeared in the original movies. However, you’d be surprised to know that the famous wax-on wax-off car finds a place in Macchio’s garage.
When it comes to cars, his collection is less extensive than some other celebrities. But, over the years, Macchio has held some pretty exciting automobiles. So let’s take a closer look at Ralph Macchio’s car collection!
Wax-On Wax-Off: The Famous 1947 Ford Convertible
In the first movie of the Karate Kid franchise, Mr. Miyagi (Noriyuki “Pat” Morita) teaches Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) to find his balance in his training by applying and then removing wax from one of the cars parked in his garage. The 1947 Ford Convertible later became famous as the wax-on wax-off vehicle from the movie. Ralph asked the producers if he could keep the car and proposed to pay for it after completing the first movie.
But he didn’t hear from them for a long time, and one day, out of nowhere, before the beginning of the third Karate Kid movie, they sent the Ford to his New York home. And it’s been with him since. When the shooting for the Cobra Kai began, Ralph suggested that since the show is essentially a spin-off of the original Karate Kid franchise, it had to have the car in it. So the producers completely fixed up the car for him, overhauling its mechanical components and giving it a new lease on life.
2016 BMW 328i: Ralph Macchio’s Daily Driver
Ralph might have driven the ’47 Ford around New York a while back, but his daily driver is a 2016 BMW 328i. He immensely enjoys driving his German sedan and is a massive fan of how responsive the car is. Macchio used to own a Mercedes-Benz E320 more than two decades ago and prefers the sporty behavior of his BMW in comparison to it.
Macchio’s 3 Series is the sixth generation of this German sedan and comes with electronic power steering instead of the hydraulic setup in the previous version. The Karate Kid actor appreciates this update, as he is pretty impressed with how quickly the car responds to his inputs, even when there is snow on the road.
Macchio’s 3 Series gets a 2.0-liter, four-cylinder turbocharged motor under its hood, producing 241 horsepower and 260 lb-ft of torque. Though he currently enjoys driving his BMW, Macchio might upgrade to an Audi A7 in the future as he was impressed with it when he recently drove it while filming a television series.
1980 Mazda 626: Ralph Macchio’s First Car
Before the 2016 BMW 328i, Ralph Macchio’s daily driver was a 1980 Mazda 626 sedan. He bought it when he was in Los Angeles, filming for the TV series Eight is Enough. As a young actor, the 626 was Macchio’s first car, and he bought it in cash for $9000.88. Interestingly, the car was a stick shift and stayed with him for a very long time. Though it was no muscle car, Macchio enjoyed driving it a lot.
The Karate Kid actor has fond memories of this Mazda and drove it until its transmission suddenly clocked out on him. Mazda’s 626 was a global model, and the automaker sold it in the United States, Europe, and Japan. Abroad, this car was available with a 1.6-liter and a 1.8-liter engine, but the US models were sold exclusively with a 2.0-liter.
Unfortunately, this motor had an unenthusiastic power output of 84 horsepower, which makes us wonder how Macchio ever got over the steep California hills.
1971 Mercury Montego: Macchio’s Learner Car
This car was never really a part of Ralph Macchio’s car collection, but it still holds an important place in his life. It was the car that he learned to drive in. Macchio’s dad brought it before Macchio even got his license, and it ended up being used by him occasionally when he was in college. The Mercury Montego was a fine American sedan that also came in a coupe version when it was introduced in 1968.
1971 was the last year of the Montego’s first generation run. Apart from a sedan and a coupe, it was also available as a two-door convertible and a four-door station wagon. With Mercury being Ford’s division, the Montego was essentially a counterpart of the Torino. The second generation of the Montego was introduced in 1972 and ran till 1976 when it was discontinued. Mercury brought the Montego nameplate back to life in 2005 for a third generation. In 2007, the car was retired for good.
Source: The Late Show With Stephen Colbert / Motortrend / The Karate Kid / Netflix