Europe is home to some of the world’s oldest automakers, and many collectors from North America and Canada have an assortment of Old World vehicles as the centerpiece of their collections. But what classic cars do Europeans actually want? That was the question posed to over 75,000 people in Belgium, Austria, Holland, Spain, and Germany, and the answer is as surprising as it is overwhelming.

More than 37% of those polled by AutoScout24.com said that the classic car they’d most want to own was the Ford Mustang, nearly double the next-highest competitor.

Even though the Ford Mustang has never been sold in Europe (except briefly in West Germany as the Ford T-5), it is still the most-wanted classic in the Old World. Why? Simply put, the Mustang represents the freedom of the road, an affordable sports car that doesn’t skimp on performance.

It is America on wheels, or at least that’s the way Europe seems to see it, and who can blame them? Movies like Gone in 60 Seconds make the Mustang a must-have car, and with the next-gen Mustang set to launch in Europe in the next year or so, they’ll finally have a chance to own a Mustang all their own.

The Mustang received 37% of the popular vote, with the BMW M1 coming in a distant second with 20% of the votes. The Volkswagen Beetle rounded out the top three with 11% of the vote, meaning American muscle is more popular than some of Europe’s most enduring classics. Even with the reasons listed above we still wonder why that is? Not that we blame Europe for their excellent taste in classic cars, but can you imagine if a poll came out in America, and the most popular classic car was a Volkswagen or Toyota?

Neither can we.