American Muscle Cars

Chevrolet Camaro GM overlooked Ford’s Mustang and hadn’t been able to give a fitted reply for three years. But three years later it launched two cars at once, they were the Pontiac Firebird and Camaro. Both cars were well sold over the years but none of them could get the Mustang’s sales level. The last “old” Camaro was sold in 2002. It seemed the car had gone, but due to “retro” Mustang we have an increasing interest to muscle car segment nowadays, so GM decided to renew the Camaro and restart its production in 2010. So, who is the target audience of today’s muscle cars? I think, middle aged men who saw the original models as well as new generation of young drivers who like high speeds and want to differentiate themselves from others. Today’s muscle cars greatly differ from the previous generation. Although their appearance is close to that of the originals, their under-the-hood is based on the modern technology. They are faster, more efficient, and more powerful. We’re at

1966 GTO The First True Muscle Car. Pontiac GTO Pontiac GTO in General Pontiac GTO has two generations. The first generation cars were built by Pontiac from 1964 to 1974. The second generation of the muscle car was made by General Motors Holden from 2003 to 2007 in Australia. Though both of the two models have several major differences, the main thing is in the fact that Pontiac GTO by General Motors is actually Holden Monaro, a coupe modification of the Holden Commodore, but with a left hand drive; and the older Pontiac’s cars are very close to Pontiac Tempest and Pontiac Ventura. 1970 Pontiac GTO The First Generation Models: During his first period GTO changed its design several times. The very first Pontiac GTO was just an option for the Pontiac LeMans. It was available with hardtop coupe, the two-door sedan, and convertible body styles. Later on they made a few other variants which were available until 1968. All those modifications can be named first generation GTOs. The Second

Plymouth Barracuda Plymouth Barracuda was launched in 1964, a few weeks earlier than the Ford Mustang, but it wasn’t popular until 1970. The Plymouth Barracuda became extremely popular in early 70-s due to its sexy lines and a 7.2 liter 390bhp beast under the hood. It also had a smaller engine – 7.0 liter Hemi block capable 425bhp! The power was so great that even the revamped suspension couldn’t improve its handling, and the Cuda was considered one of the most difficult in handling muscle cars.

Shelby Mustangs These cars are a legend, the non-duplicated classics. Shelby Mustangs were the first "muscle cars" and the first street racers. They made the beginning of sports car age but there were so little of them – only 14,559 cars were made during those 6 years when Ford Mustangs was modified by Carroll Shelby. 1966 Shelby Mustang GT 350 Shelby dreamed to give the car a new look. The main change the Mustang went through was the change of its engine. The new Mustang’s heart was a huge one. It made the car one of the fastest on the road. It also became the most dangerous one (potentially). The first Shelby Mustang was launched in 1965. It was the GT350, white with parallel blue stripes. It was made for racing and had little comfort. 1967 is the year when Shelby decided to make his creation less racing and more comfortable, and the Mustang finally got its back seat! The decision result in GT500, which was a marvelous example of mean racing car and stylish street vehicl

An American Classic: 57 Chevy Bel Air was launched in 1957 and nobody – not even the producer – expected to create history. But the car became one of the icons and the most recognizable one the world has ever seen. Today’s automakers still consider the 1957 Chevy a perfect example of nice design and great timing combination. 1957 Chevy Convertible  Actually, the 57 Chevy included 19 distinct models. All of them were made on a single platform. 1957 was the last year of that frame’s producing. It was used in 55, 56 and 57 Chevrolet's model years. Then Chevrolet also sold the Corvette only. Both Ford and Chrysler had new styling and platforms for their 1957 models. But in spite of the fact, the GM’s Chevrolet with aged frame outsold Ford. The difference wasn’t dramatic (126 cars), but the total numbers were impressive: 1,522,536 units of all manner of the 57 Chevy and 6,339 Corvettes. The Two-Ten four-door sedan was the best-selling 1957 model. Its base price was $2,174.00. The che

American Muscle Cars: Ford, Dodge, and Chevy During 1950-s – 1970-s several muscle cars were produced in Detroit. They have a lot of common features: they have souped up engines and responsive transmissions, and all of them were two door coupes having an aggressive exterior and a sporty interior. Moving forward, changing tastes and high fuel prices greatly limited sales of these cars, and there were times when only a few models were produced. Today muscle cars are in demand again, in spite of high prices for oil. Due to the Ford Mustang and Dodge’s sedan and wagon models people are again interested in the category, which seemed to be forgotten for long. The future of the muscle car segment is bright, and Chevrolet decided to bring back one of its yesterdays’ darlings, the Camaro.