06/24/2026
It’s all about the memory for an NCIS actor who wanted to remember the 70s. To be more accurate, “That 70s Show” that made him famous.
Wilmer Valderrama bought the Oldsmobile Station Wagon from That ’70s Show for $500
Not every movie car is what it seems.
Some are replicas. Some are rentals. Some barely survive the filming process, held together just long enough to make it onto the screen. They look iconic, but behind the scenes, they’re often far from special.
And then, every once in a while, there’s a car that becomes something more.
For Wilmer Valderrama, that car was the 1969 Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser from That ’70s Show.
On screen, the Vista Cruiser wasn’t flashy. It wasn’t fast. It didn’t steal scenes with speed or power. It was simply there, a family station wagon, part of the everyday world the characters lived in. But over time, it became something familiar. Something tied to the rhythm of the show itself.
And for Valderrama, who played Fez, it became something personal.
As the final season approached its end, he knew everyone would want a piece of the show to remember it by. Some would take props. Others would keep scripts or costumes.
He wanted the car.
When he approached the props department, the reaction was almost dismissive.
You don’t want that thing.
But he did.
He insisted. And when they finally gave him a price of $500, he didn’t hesitate. He bought the Vista Cruiser and took it home, not because it was valuable, but because of what it meant.
Mechanically, the car was nothing extraordinary. It was a standard Oldsmobile station wagon, the kind built for families, not collectors. Back in its day, it wasn’t considered cool. It was practical, spacious, reliable, and unremarkable.
But time has a way of changing things.
Today, cars like the Vista Cruiser carry a different kind of appeal. Their design, their presence, even their simplicity, all of it feels like a window into another era. And for Valderrama, that connection runs deeper than nostalgia.
He doesn’t plan to restore it into something new.
In fact, he’s said he wants to keep it exactly as it is, even if that means it sits in a garage one day, battery dead, tires flat, quietly aging with time. He’s even included it in his will, passing it on to his children.
Because for him, the car isn’t about performance or value.
It’s about memory.
A reminder of where he started. Of the people he shared that time with. Of a chapter in his life that changed everything.
Some cars are meant to be driven.
Others are meant to be remembered.
