AMC AMX

The AMC AMX is a two-seat GT in style and approach sports car that was produced by American Motors Corporation for the 1968 through 1970 model years.

Buick GS

1965-1975

Buick Riviera

The Buick Riviera was not a muscle car, per se, but it had a tremendous impact on the American automotive scene. The Riviera represented one of the most sucessful American attempts at capturing European styling and performance in a large automobile. Positioned at the top of Buick's coupe line up, the Riviera always represented cutting edge styling and performance and deserves a place in American automotive history.

Buick Skylark

The Buick Skylark first appeared as a limited production model in 1953 and 1954, when it disappeared. It would reappear in 1961 and serve as the basis for the mighty Buick GS line.

Buick Wildcat

The Buick Wildcat was arguably Buick's first performance car, although it was more a luxury sports coupe than all out performance. Nevertheless, it began Buick's quest for power and even lended its name to several Buick engines of the mid sixties.

Chevrolet Camaro

After two years of watching the Ford Mustang enjoy tremendous success, General Motors finally launched its entry into the pony car segment, the Chevrolet Camaro. Although available with a mediocre six cylinder for volume sales, the Camaro could be equipped with several V8s and a myriad of performance options. Then, of course, was the famous Regular Production Code, Z/28, that would change the industry's view of pony cars.

Chevrolet Chevelle

The Chevrolet Chevelle SS represented Chevrolet's entry into the hot midsize muscle car battle. The Chevelle SS was the high performance version of Chevrolet's Chevelle, and had its own line of engines and performance equipment. At first caught napping with just a 327 V8, the Chevelle SS would soon sport powerful 396 V8s and eventually the most powerful rated engine in muscle car history, the LS6 454 in 1970. The Chevelle, along with the Pontiac GTO, remains one of the most popular cars from this era and with good reason. Its strong performance at a reasonable price made it popular on the street and at the track.

Chevrolet El Camino

Envious of the success that Ford was having with its car/truck Ranchero that debuted in 1957, Chevrolet struck back with its new El Camino model in 1959. Originally based on the Impala, the half car, half truck El Camino survived for only two years, but reappeared in 1964 based on the Chevelle. This new El Camino shared most of its underpinnings and powertrains (including high performance engines) with the Chevelle. SS versions would debut in 1968 and firmly establish the El Camino as a muscle car/truck.

Chevrolet Impala

The Chevrolet Impala is often credited with starting the muscle car era. Born as Chevrolet's top of the line model, the Impala quickly became the symbol for performance in the early sixties and introduced Chevrolet's signature "SS" brand of performance. Although it would later be eclipsed by smaller, lighter automobiles, the Impala still remains the performance car of choice for those that like big cars.

Chevrolet Monte Carlo

The Chevrolet Monte Carlo was introduced in 1970 at the height of GM muscle car power. Positioned as a personal luxury car, the Monte Carlo competed against the Pontiac Grand Prix and Buick Riviera for the gentlemen's performance market. However, right after its introduction, performance fell out of favor in Detroit and its short life as a muscle car ended almost as soon as it began.

Chevrolet Nova

The Chevrolet Nova SS represented Chevrolet's entry into the compact budget muscle car battle. The Nova SS began life in 1962 as the meek Chevy II but was soon made into a legitamate giant killer in 1964 with the availablity of its first V8. It would soon adopt all the engines available in the Camaro including the mighty 375bhp 396 V8. This all added up to the ultimate sleeper, as well as the true reflection of budget performance.

Chrysler 300

 Some MOPAR purists insist that the Chrylser 300 Series or "Letter Cars" were the first muscle cars. That is debatable as the 300 Series were fast, large, luxury coupes instead of cheap all out intermediate size performance. However, there is no denying that the elegant if somewhat unconventionally styled Chrysler 300 Series made performance cool again and started the horsepower race among American automobile manufacturers. And for that, all muscle car fans must be thankful.

Dodge Challenger

 Dodge was the last one to the pony car party, but it spent its time wisely, perfecting its entry, the Challenger. The Challenger debuted with an engine lineup that ranged from a docile slant six to the powerful 440 Six Barrel and the awesome 426 Hemi. Other pony cars could only dream of a line up like that.

Dodge Charger

 The Dodge Charger was a response to the fastback fad started by the Mustang and the Barracuda, but on a much larger scale. Based on the midsize Dodge Coronet model, the Charger was launced in 1966 and quickly became a sales hit with its dramatic fuselage styling of 1968. From the beginning, it packed serious muscle, from the 318 V8 to the all mighty 426 Hemi. Finally, the MOPAR street crowd had some serious midsize muscle to bring to the party.

Dodge Coronet

The Dodge Coronet was Dodge's entry into the midsize segment. It first appeared in the mid 1950s, disappeared, and then reappeared in the mid 1960s. With R/T trim, and packing some serious power, the Coronet was a true muscle car sleeper.

Dodge Dart

 The Dart was Dodge's entry in the growing compact market. Introduced in 1960, the first generation Dodge Dart was actually just a small fullsize car. It was "reborn" in 1963 as a true compact. The Dart lineup would continue to evolve, and included Demon and Swinger models as well as the Dodge Sport and the mighty Dart GTS.

Dodge Demon

1971 saw the addition of the all new Dodge Demon to the Dart lineup. Based on the Plymouth Duster, it was a pillared two-door fastback with a 108" wheelbase (three inches shorter than other Darts) and was available in two trims. The base Demon had the 198 cid I6 standard and minimal equipment, all for the bargin price of $2,343, just $30 more than the Duster.

Dodge Daytona

In 1969, Dodge took its sucessful Dodge Charger, and made the ultimate aerodynamic high speed race car. Required to sell 500 copies to the public inorder to race it for NASCAR, Dodge released the Daytona in 1969. The world would never be the same again.

Dodge Super Bee

 GM divisions had been doing it for years, but it wasn't until 1968 that the two MOPAR divisions, Dodge and Plymouth, began to engage in a bit of sibling rivalry. The result was the Dodge Super Bee, a direct competitor to Plymouth's Road Runner. Although a capable budget muscle car, it never was as successful as the Road Runner, which truly must have hurt.

Ford Fairlane

 Introduced in 1955 as Ford's fullsize model, the Ford Fairlane was reborn in 1962 as Ford's entry into the hotly contested intermediate muscle car market. With lighter weight than the fullsize Galaxie but with the same powerful engines, the Fairlane, and its spinoffs the Torino and Cobra, were a force to be reckon with on the street and the drag strip.

Ford Galaxie

A predecessor to the muscle car era, the Galaxie was Ford's fullsize competitor. Although it outpowered the similar Chevy Impala at first, it never sold as well do to its uninspired styling, poor aerodynamics, and heavy weight. Ford kept trying though and continued to install larger and larger engines, reaching a pinnacle with the most powerful engine Detroit ever made, the Cammer 427. Producing 657bhp, this engine was installed in only a few copies as it was almost impossible to drive on the street and was later banned by NASCAR, promting Ford to stop production. Most street racers had to rely on the Ford 427 engines.

Ford Mustang

The date was April 17, 1964. Intermediate sized muscle cars, with big block engines were gradually replacing the fullsized muscle car. Lee Iacocca, Ford's General Manager, had always invisioned a small sports car to be the next hot item in the street wars. Ford decided that instead of improving their lackluster intermediate, they would do the competition one better and introduce a whole new breed of automobile, the pony car. Originally designed as a two seater in the European tradition, Iacocca realized that true success depended on volume sales. Therefore the Ford Mustang was introduced as a 1965 model that was based on the compact Falcon to lower production costs. It came with an obligatory back seat and a multitude of options that would give the buyer an opportunity to customize their purchase, and generate extra profits for Ford. Plymouth faithful stress that their Baracuda beat the Ford Mustang to market by two weeks. But it was the Mustang, which racked up over 22,000 sales its first day and one million sales in its first two years, that turned the market and people's attention to the pony car. The pony car class that the Ford Mustang helped create is the only class of muscle car that still exists today.

Ford Thunderbird

The Ford Thunderbird was Ford's answer to the Chevrolet Corvette. But whereas the Corvette never strayed far from its two seat sports car concept, the Thunderbird would soon add a hardtop coupe version, a back seat, and even two more doors as the do-everything personal car for Ford over the years. But it always provided decent performance along with a dash of style.

Mercury Comet

The Mercury Comet was the everything car for Mercury. Introduced in 1960 on a stretched Falcon frame, the Comet had to be Mercury's compact, intermediate, and pony car entry at the same time. But through continuous refinement, the Comet, and its spinoff variations the Cyclone and Spoiler proved to be quite a worthy muscle car.

Mercury Comet Cyclone

The Mercury Comet was the everything car for Mercury. Introduced in 1960 on a stretched Falcon frame, the Comet had to be Mercury's compact, intermediate, and pony car entry at the same time. But through continuous refinement, the Comet, and its spinoff variations the Cyclone and Spoiler proved to be quite a worthy muscle car.

Mercury Cougar

 The Mercury Cougar was introduced in 1967 as the more upscale version of the Ford Mustang. It had more mature styling and upscale interior appointments and rode on a three inch longer wheelbase than the Mustang. Yet despite its greater emphasis on luxury than performance, the Mercury Cougar still managed to make its mark on the American street scene.

Oldsmobile 442

There are those who claim that it was Oldsmobile that created the first muscle car when it stuffed its hot new fullsize Rocket V8 into its midsize model to create the Olds 88 and Super 88 series back in 1949. But it wasn't until 1964 that Oldsmobile would return to the concept, encouraged by the success of the Pontiac GTO. Oldsmobile was the first GM division to follow Pontiac's lead, and began to offer fullsize muscle in its midsize Cutlass model. The package included the top engine available from Oldsmobile, a 330 cid V8 with the police package. It was named the 4-4-2 package, originally signifying the engine's 4 barrel carb, 4 speed manual transmission, and dual (2) exhausts. Although the specifications would change through the years, the name stuck. Although never the fastest or the best seller of the GM A-bodies, the 4-4-2 was known for its balanced performance, exceptional handling and the "W" and Hurst editions that would come out in later years.

Oldsmobile Toronado

The Oldsmobile Toronado was a bold idea combined with intriguing styling. It was the first attempt to apply front-wheel drive to a full-size American car since the mid 1930s Cord, and is one of the most desirable Oldsmobiles ever produced. But the Toronado was definitely a muscle car in spirit, with its standard big cube V8 and dynamic styling.

Plymouth 'Cuda

The Plymouth Barracuda was the first pony car, debuting two weeks before the Ford Mustang. It was quickly eclipsed by the Mustang and the Camaro/Firebird due, but would make a name for itself in 1970 when it was available with an engine its competition could only dream of, the Hemi.

Plymouth GTX

Although there had been numerous performance Plymouths, it wasn't until 1967 that Plymouth offered one model with all the necessary performance goodies standard, the 1967 Plymouth Belvedere GTX. Positioned as Plymouth's "gentlemen's" hot rod, the GTX offered stylish performance for the discriminating buyer.

Plymouth Road Runner

The Plymouth Road Runner was a car built by Plymouth in the United States between 1968 and 1980. In 1968, the original batch of muscle cars were in the opinion of many moving away from their roots as relatively cheap fast cars as they gained more and more options. Although Plymouth already had a performance car, the GTX, they decided to go back to the drawing board and reincarnate the original muscle car concept.

Plymouth Superbird

The Plymouth Super Bird was created for the same reason as the Dodge Daytona -- a full on high speed race machine designed for the NASCAR races, but available to the public.

Pontiac Catalina

As the cheapest and lightest of Pontiac's fullsize coupes and convertibles, the Catalina was the car of choice for fullsize performance enthusiasts. From light-weight body panels to Super Duty engines and other modifications, the Pontiac Catalina would firmly establish Pontiac's performance image.

Pontiac Firebird

Having watched first the Ford Mustang and then the Chevrolet Camaro enter into the pony car market, Pontiac finally got into the act in the middle of 1967. The Firebird was offered with both six and eight cylinder engines, like the Mustang and Camaro, and was based heavily on the Chevrolet Camaro chassis. Pontiac did try to make it their own and would create a European styled and mannered pony car that could hold its own against its more experienced competition. 

Pontiac Grand Prix

 Introduced in 1962, the Pontiac Grand Prix was one of the first and most popular personal cars of the 1960s. It was also first in a long line of posh Pontiacs that continue till today. Of course, luxury in the 60's meant performance, and the Grand Prix had lots of it.

Pontiac GTO

 The Pontiac GTO is considered by many the first true muscle car. Whereas other manufacturers were concentrating on their fullsize lines, Pontiac saw the potential for dropping a big block engine into an intermediate frame and marketing it at a budget price. Pontiac sneaked past the GM restriction on this combination by making the GTO an option on the Tempest model, creating the hottest performance machine yet. The GTO sold in great numbers and would fuel the competition between GM, Ford, and Chrysler that would keep the muscle car industry thriving for years to come. The GTO would later evolve into the Judge, an extroverted option package of the blotted GTO, and would continue the tradition until the GTO died an embarrasing death in 1974.