Which Stephen King novel centers on a haunted 1958 Plymouth Fury?

Stephen King’s novel Christine centers on a haunted 1958 Plymouth Fury.

Published in 1983, Christine follows teenager Arnie Cunningham after he buys the battered car from its previous owner, Roland D. LeBay. As Arnie restores the Fury, his personality changes, and the vehicle’s violent supernatural influence becomes increasingly clear.

The car is not merely an object possessed by an unexplained force: the story connects Christine to LeBay’s anger, cruelty and troubled family history. The novel uses the car to explore obsession, teenage identity, friendship and the danger of allowing a prized possession to control its owner. Arnie’s friend Dennis Guilder and Leigh Cabot become central to the effort to understand and stop it.

Christine is often remembered through John Carpenter’s 1983 film adaptation, released only months after the novel. The book and film share the possessed-car premise but are separate versions of the story. King reportedly drew inspiration from watching a car’s odometer roll from 9,999.9 to 10,000, imagining one that could run backward and make the vehicle younger.