When a person sees a modern muscle car, like the 2012 Camaro for example, does he ever wonder about how that design came about? What about when and why? Has he ever thought about how those cars have changed our world today? Or what about what makes a muscle car a muscle car as opposed to a sports car or some other car? Historical events and societal changes have influenced the production of muscle cars, and in turn they have changed the car industry by researching and developing speed technology, making it more economic for everyone and making racing more interesting.
There were many muscle cars made in the classic muscle car era. The car that is most often considered the first muscle car of the Classic Muscle Car Era is the Pontiac GTO. The GTO was originally an option package for the Pontiac Tempest. The GTO option package included a bigger motor, different carburetor, dual exhaust, and offered up more horsepower and torque than the Tempest (Wikipedia Pontiac GTO). Although most people consider the 1964 Pontiac GTO the start of the muscle car era, some people consider earlier cars “muscle cars,” although they were not a part of the Classic Muscle Car Era (Leffingwell and Holmstrom).
One reason the muscle car was originally produced was due to the young Vietnam War veterans who had a need for speed. The young veterans who had been in Vietnam for at least a few years had a need for the feeling of freedom and the best way they could find it was racing down the highway in a car at high speeds. Thus, to help appeal to the younger generation, auto manufacturers packed more power in their cars. As more technological advances came about, the power steadily increased (Leffingwell and Holmstrom).
Generally the earliest car considered ...
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...speed and handling, is purely designed for the drag strip (Wikipedia, Ford Motor Company). While Shelby American focused on both types of muscle cars, Chevy’s muscle cars mainly focused on race tracks (Wikipedia, Chevrolet). Dodge and other Mopar’s were focused on the drag strip (Wikipedia, Dodge).
This is how the modern muscle cars, such as the Chevy Camaro, came into existence. Without muscle cars much of the speed and safety technology we know today would either be nonexistent or very expensive. Those are the differences between all the different types of cars, from a convertible to a muscle car. Additionally this is a brief account of historical events and societal changes that have influenced the production of muscle cars. These are the ways that muscle car production has helped create and yet change the racing industry by making it safer and more interesting.
In conclusion, from the early 1950's and 1960's there has been two cars that have taken the American people by storm, the Chevrolet Camaro and the Ford Mustang. Both rivals have tried from day one to out do and out perform each other to bet the first to develop an affordable sports car that handles and performs like a $90,000 dollar muscle car. Each in its own right have established itself on the car market place with such creations by Ford for its 590-HP Super Stallion and Chevrolet for its 600-HP Big Block Camaro. The Camaro and Mustang have been looked at as the "First true American sports cars." They are arguably the two most rivaled sports cars of yesteryear and today. "The Chevrolet Camaro and Ford Mustang are quintessential American pony cars and as such, continue to fight the good fight over which is best" (
Ask any ten enthusiasts what two cars epitomize the concept of an automotive rivalry and at least nine of them will instantly conclude the Chevrolet or Chevy Camaro and the Ford Mustang, two cars that make up part of a small automotive segment known as Pony Cars. These fire-breathing leviathans of the street snarl with guttural reverberations boastfully announcing their presence with the mere turn of key. For nearly five decades, these mechanical beasts have captured the imagination of the American driver and ignited the most contentious debate in automotive history: Which car reigns supreme? Muscle car buffs waste no time quoting sales figures, vehicle performance, track times, or even mundane statistics like vehicle dimensions or available colors to simply justify their support for one model over the other. As this debate rages on, the makers of these brutes fan the flames through targeted marketing strategies, consumer promotions, pricing strategies, and creative advertising all in effort to win an automotive war the likes of which have never been seen or fought before (Davenport, 2013).
The Chevrolet Chevelle SSs' earliest engine in 1964 didn't perform as well as the later models. It had a 327 V8 engine which wasn't even close to as powerful as the later models. After a slow start, the 1965 Chevelle became a real muscle car. The car now had a lot more power since it had a 396 V8 engine, also known as the Z-16 package. Along with a better engine the Chevelle also had front and back anti-roll bars, faster power-assisted steering, and better braking. The 1965 Chevelle SS was great, but the 1970 Chevelle was the better than anything Chevrolet had made previously. The 1970 Chevelle had a LS6 454 engine, this was the best engine that Chevr...
Some say that automotive racing began when the second car was built. For over a hundred years, competition has driven innovation in the car industry, thus the industry maxim “Win on Sunday, sell on Monday.” NASCAR and drag racing contributed greatly to muscle cars’ success. Muscle cars were born from these competitions as factory made race cars. Because of this, the muscle car quickly moved from a low quantity specialty item to the image of the American automotive scene. Each brand had to have one and each one needed better performance and personality than the next. The Golden Age began in the 1960s with the introduction of more performance models such as the Chevy SS Impala and the Ford Galaxy Starliner (Auto Editors).
Their unique body styles will catch anyone’s attention on the roads. Their engines are similar in some ways but muscle cars tend to have bigger engines so they can produce more torque. Sports cars, however, still have large engines, but the light weight of the car causes it to be able to cut corners very easily compared to muscle cars. The Ford Mustang is the most known muscle car to this day. It is still being collected by car enthusiasts and will keep being collected until the end of it’s production. The Chevrolet Corvette is known for having the ability to cut corners at high speeds due to its low clearance from the ground. Muscle cars and sports cars have always been rival vehicle classes. Though there are some similarities, the differences are where you can see just how much different they
Although most Camaros sold through the years have not been performance models, it is still the image and reputation of the various Super Sports, Z28’s, Pace Cars, and IROC-Zs that have defined the Camaro and kept the car in the public eye. While other car fashions have changed, Camaro buyers still want powerful V8s driving the real wheels, preferably with a manual transmission between the two. Given the opportunity, they will buy performance.
Henry Ford did build a successful universal car, to sell at a low price, but his Model T with its 2.9-litre engine was by no means a small car, nor was the Model A that followed it. When it was in production in the late 1920s, small 'proper'; cars in Germany ranged from the 700-cc DKW to the 1-litre Opel, with small Adlers, the BMW Dixi (a license-built Austin Seven) and the NSU-Fiats to come. These stimulated desire rather than a year's wage for an average worker. This prompted motorcycle manufacturer Zundapp to commission a low-cost car design from Dr. Ferdinand Porsche's new design studio. The project did not get far, but a Porsche-designed NSU that reached that prototype stage in 1933 accurately foreshadowed the Volkswagen.
The world of technology is ever changing and advancing. With the automotive industry in play technology is constantly surpassing what is available today with what can be done for tomorrow. Technology and the automotive industry go hand in hand with constant improvement to components of cars. Due to technology advancement there is competition within the car industry, especially between American car companies and European car companies. European car companies provide their buyers with innovative variety and revolutionary luxuries. European car technology is superior to American car technology due to their safety, entertainment, and luxury features.
Muscle cars have always been a big in the United States such as the Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro, and Chevrolet Corvette. These cars have been some of the most popular cars for the past 35 or more years, but over the past 20 years, Japanese cars are becoming more and more popular. Many people who are into muscle cars despise these 'imports' and people who are into these imports have the same feelings toward muscle cars. These two types of car lovers have a strong dislike for each other and these cars. Many people see both muscle and import cars as just a car and don't perceive any difference between the two cars.
“The twentieth century was the century of the automobile.” This statement could not be more true. After the start of the twentieth century the number of cars on the road dramatically increased. Before 1900 there were only 8,000 registered cars on the road in the United States of America. Production of the Model T began in 1908. Soon the number of registered cars in 1920 increased to 9 million. By the end of the twentieth century the number of cars registered just in the United States was 190 million. The automobile changed the face of the American landscape and helped build the middle class and suburbanization. Middle class Americans were ready to move out of the cities and the automobile made that possible. The automobile truly transformed the twentieth century.
I think that the target audience for these cars is the same. these cars are family cars. Both of the cars are designed to be comfortable and safe, they are not advertised to be fast sports cars. or stylish city cars; they are advertised as normal cars. In both of the adverts there is no real reference towards the performance of the car apart from in the Chrysler where there is a reference to the fuel.
built on June 30th, 1953 at the Flint, Michigan plant and continues to be produced today. In 1953 it featured an all fiberglass body with a chromed grill. The car had no side windows and no outside door handles. Each 1953 Corvette was virtually hand built and all 1953 models were white and had red interiors. This may have not been the most technologically advanced car but it would pave the way for the true performance and sports car.
This outlet was racing and not just in the states like NASCAR and NHRA drag racing that, but against European companies that had dominated Motorsports in prior decades in LMP class endurance racing. It was through the maturation of domestic racing into legitimacy from its unlawful background of smugglers and street racing kids that Many manufacturers entered competition engineering purpose built race cars, from which more advanced mechanics would eventually trickle down into their road cars through a process known as homologation. Higher R&D budgets allowed this process as taking a feature from a race car and making it reliable enough for the road is no simple task. Domestic racing though was usually viewed in person rather than being broadcast like other sports. If football wasn't broadcast entertainment it would never have as many fans and viewers as it does. Ford and Ferrari rivalry throughout the 60s in the LMP race The 24 Hours At Lemans was the perfect narrative to captivate american audiences. With all of the additional money made in sales booms Ford at one point tried to buy Ferrari to grow their performance and racing division though Enzo Ferrari refused. Out of spite it became Ford’s mission to beat Ferrari at Lemans. In 1964.5/1965 Ford finished the GT40 race car that for the next four seasons in 1966-1969 at Leman would place 1rst dethroning Ferrari's dominance of the sport and proved that America was a force to be reckoned with in Motorsports. Expanding racing and the viewing of racing fully placed cars into the fabric of American culture as cars were not only transportation anymore they were also passion and inspiration struck into millions of
common racing track is a paved oval with banked corners, from 200 m to 4000 m in
There are two configurations for hybrid cars. The first configuration uses gasoline engine to run a generator. The generator supplies electricity to the motor, which drives the wheels, which allows the gasoline engine to run constantly while achieving optimum fuel efficiency. This thereby minimizes emissions owing to incomplete combustion. A hybrid car with parallel configurations uses both an engine and a motor to drive the wheels depending on driving conditions. "A hybrid car is an automotive equipped with two or more sources of motive energy" (http://www.howstuffworks.com/hybrid-car1.htm).