What do audiophiles do in their cars?

I have a 2011 Mini Cooper hardtop and the upgraded Harman Kardon system (replete with - hello! - CD player) is pretty astounding. It does bass really well, but you don't want to overload it. Other than that, the watchword is: vivid.

I'm in my car a lot and drive almost 40,000 miles a year for work. I really consider what kind of audio system I could get when I'm looking at purchasing a car because I spend so much time listening to music, podcasts, and God knows what else.

I pretty much stream from Tidal, Bandcamp, and then listen to audiobooks. I used to have a Tesla Model S many years ago before I started driving a lot more for work, which had a really good stereo system. I'm just excited to be getting another EV here soon with the Rivian R1T that has a fairly high end Meridian sound system.

But to be honest I can't stand the sound of engine noise, and never was a fan of it. It always was an unsettling sound to me.

Cars - the only place digital sounds better than vinyl…

Cars - the only place digital sounds better than vinyl

I haven't tried playing vinyl inside my 1969 Fiat 500 so I'll have to take your word until I figure out the logistics.

I specifically limited the style and brand of car based on the availability of certain sound systems.  I do not in any way think I can replicate the sound of my home system, but, wanted something pretty highly rated.  Most new cars, with integrated head units that control a myriad of things, are poor candidates for upgrades. 

I personally was not interested in anything Bose, so that ruled out certain models.  I also was only looking for a sedan (which are unfortunately slowly going away it seems).  Ford/Lincoln had the Revel systems and I was drawn to it, and ended up with a Lincoln with the Revel 14 speaker (maybe, I cannot recall exactly, there is a 14 and a 19 system) and have been quite pleased.  The DAC in the head unit is also quite nice it is a 24 bit DAC by STMicroelectonics (or something to that effect).  So when I play off my attached USB drive or via the iPhone connected via USB it comes through crystal clear.

My other car, the sports car (Mustang Convertible - 1983) has all Infinity and Kenwood components but I agree with prior posters, in that car it is more about the air in my face and the sound of the 5.0L V8 that is the music there.

I remember back in the day we used to put 12V to AC converters in our car to run a home stereo receiver, and then put some beat up pair of bookshelf speakers on the rear deck of the car to blast the music ha ha.