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Muscle Car History: How It All Began

Have you ever wondered about the history of muscle cars and how it all began? Well, in this article, we’ll take a closer look at the events that spurned the start of the public’s love for these iconic vehicles.

A muscle car is a term that is used to refer to a variety of high performance vehicles. Typically, the term is used for Australian, American and South African models but it is also used for others as well. The average model would be a two door, mid-sized automobile with a rear wheel drive. What sets it apart from others of the same kind would be its powerful engine which is usually a V8 engine. The first muscle car models were produced between the 60’s and the 70’s. These vehicles were designed to be used for races as well as normal street use. Now, one must never confuse a muscle car with a sports car or a GT because those were intended, specifically, for both road racing and touring.

When it comes to the muscle car history in America, some would say that the very first model to be manufactured would be the Oldsmobile Rocket 88 which was released in 1949. This vehicle was innovative for its time because of its power and speed which aroused the public’s interest for more vehicles of the same sort. The Rocket had the very first V8 installed in it. Now, due to the increase in public interest, more manufacturers thought about producing flashier models. Chrysler was among the first ones with their 1955 C-300 which became “America’s Most Powerful Vehicle” during the time it was produced.

When the 1960’s came rolling in, muscle cars became even more popular with several of the biggest car manufacturers locked in a tight race as to who could produce the fastest, meanest and biggest muscle car there was. Dodge, Ford, Chrysler and Plymouth battled it out in drag racing and manufacturing. The decline came when politicians stated their concern over such powerful vehicles in the hands of the reckless youth, as well as new emissions laws that reduce the size of the engines. Needless to say, many people thought of these cars as being dangerous to both the driver and pedestrians who shared the same streets.

These days, while there are still plenty of people who own and drive classic muscle cars, they really are not as rampant as before. But who knows? As history has taught us, some things repeat themselves and for all we know, we could be in the midst of a muscle car revival.

If you enjoyed reading this article, William invites you to read his latest on the barracuda car at MuscleCarMonster.com

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Posted on March 9, 2011 by , Reply

The Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa

If one is to talk about the top classic cars, one could not, and should not, avoid talking about the Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa. The sleek Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa boasts a 3.0 liter V12 engine that dished out 300 horsepower and has a max speed of 168 miles per hour or 270 kilometers per hour. This shiny red car got its name from the color of its valves as Testa Rossa means “red head.” Dominating various arenas in race car driving, this surely is one of the, fastest vehicles of its time. Sadly though, only 34 of these bad boys were built from the mid-50s ’till its end. For you to have an idea how much this car is valued, a 1957 250 Testa Rossa was sold for an astounding $12,100,000 back in 2009, which is a world record price for a single car.

The 250 Ferrari Testa Rossa had unconventional bodywork which was designed and built by one of Ferraris top designers, Carrozzeria Scaglietti and it is one of their most famous works. The car has a sleek aerodynamic design as it was primarily used for racing. What made the design very unique are the pontoon-like front fenders. From the words by Sergio Scaglietti himself, the 250 Ferrari Testa Rossa is in many ways a Formula 1 race car with fenders. The main similarity of the Testa Rossa to Formula 1 cars is the way it brings air to cool the brakes. A formula 1 car has pods on its sides and the idea to cool the brakes of the Testa Rossa was born from this.

Of course, the 50s is parent to many classic cars but the Testa Rossa sure made a niche for itself amidst the number of many muscle cars and super cars manufactured at the time. It won many races and events during its international race career. This was due to how the Testa Rossa was built. It’s aerodynamic, super light, and it had a five-speed gearbox. For those unaware, cars back then only had four. Not only was the Testa Rossa extremely fast, it was also reliable as Ferrari had put a priority on reliability versus outright performance when conceptualizing this super car.

The 1950s was such a great time for automobiles as Aston Martin, Jaguar, Materasi along with Ferrari continued to top each other by designing and manufacturing faster and more powerful cars. Truly, the Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa is but one of the many amazing and captivating classic cars ever built on that decade.

If you have ever wanted to learn all about muscle cars and which models are considered the best of all time, you can read all about it on my site, MuscleCarMonster.com.

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Posted on March 8, 2011 by , Reply

The Real King Of Muscle Cars: The Road Runner

With the sudden emergence of the muscle cars in the market between the 1960s and the 1970s, car manufacturers produced muscle cars to help attract the market. The Plymouth Road Runner targeted the younger audience in putting a big engine in a cheap car to attract the demographic who could not afford the features presented in most muscle cars during that day.

The Road Runner was developed by the Plymouth division of Chrysler. The name originated from the cartoon character, Road Runner, which the company paid Warner Brothers $50,000 to use the name and likeness of that character for their own muscle car. Chrysler also paid $10,000 to develop the “beep beep” horn. Plymouth then began to develop a back to basics muscle car. Everything that was only related to the performance and handling was improved. The interior only had a basic bench seat. Only a few options were available such as power steering, front disc brakes, AM radio air conditioning and automatic transmission. This certainly was a muscle car packed with maximum excitement at a minimum price!

The very first engine put in the road runner was a 383 cid v8. A $714 option was also available for a 426 Hemi engine. The Road Runner could blaze thru ¼ mile of a track at 13.5 seconds. Which was quite a fast time for a low priced car. The Plymouth Road Runner was one of the best platforms to utilize one of the best engines at that time. The model was expected to only sell 2,000 units but by 1968, sales grew to 45,000. The only muscle cars outselling this model at that time were the Pontiac GTO and Chevy’s SS-396 Chevelle.

Due to the success of the Plymouth Road Runner in 1968, Plymouth widened the consumer’s choices. A convertible was added and also bucket seats were added as additional options. The decals were also now in color. 440 cid V8s engine was also available that provide Hemi-like acceleration for almost half the price. More than 82,000 copies were snatched by the consumers during this time. The Plymouth Road Runner was further improved and continued to be available in the market until its discontinuation in 1980.

Today these cars can command up to $35,000 if not more, whenever they are up for auction, and most owners have no trouble fetching those prices, assuming the car is in mint or near mint condition with its original numbers.

William has just posted about the 69 chevelle ss, so hurry to MuscleCarMonster.com to read all about it!

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Posted on March 5, 2011 by , Reply

Buy Amsoil Now to beat March 1 price adjustment

Amsoil prices are increasing on March 1. Buy now to beat the price increase. We’ve been contacted buy numerous dealers stocking up and signing up, but we will do everything we can to get you set up before the price increase.

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Posted on February 19, 2011 by , Reply

Improve Your Car’s Performance with Preventative Automobile Maintenance Service

If there’s anything that might be just a little too easy to take for granted, it’s a well-behaved automobile. We get so used to just turning the key and rushing off that when something goes wrong, it’s quite a shock. Too often, we don’t think about all that it takes to keep our cars running smoothly, and, unfortunately, forget to take care of the many simple points of maintenance that are so vital to a healthy set of wheels. Of course, the trouble with ignoring the little problems is that they become big problems eventually and inevitably; and the real crime is how often these issues could have been prevented with timely, inexpensive, and simple maintenance at a good auto repair shop.

The best thing you can do for your car is to find a repair shop that you trust and set up a regular auto maintenance service schedule based on the age and mileage of your car and the manufacturers recommendations for your make and model. A quality repair shop will notify you when its time for you to come in for a more sophisticated follow up appointment to deal with things like.

After that, a good repair shop will let you know when you should come in for more sophisticated aspect of car maintenance such as: The most important thing is to find a trustworthy repair shop and set up regular.

Make sure that the repair shop you choose is equipped to carry out more complex procedures such as computer diagnostics and electrical testing, and if you have a foreign car, take the time to find a shop that specializes in your brand, as there are many significant differences between European and US-made cars. While dealer shops are, of course, equipped to take care of their makes and models, there are many independent garages that have the same equipment and can do the same quality work, and often for cheaper.

Regardless of what kind of vehicle you have, taking care of the maintenance items will make your car more reliable and helps you get the most out of your investment.

No matter what kind of car you have, taking care of these maintenance items will increase its longevity and reliability, helping you get the most our of your investment.

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Posted on February 10, 2011 by , Reply
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