100 Muscle Cars

In 1970, the American muscle car was as fast and outrageous as it would ever get. But the end was nigh, and 1970 Maximum Muscle dives head-first into the storm before the calm. Wherever you mark the beginning of the muscle car era—Oldsmobile’s 1949 Rocket 88, Chrysler’s 1951 FirePower engines, the 1964 Pontiac GTO—one thing is certain: in 1970, the era that had witnessed a parade of gloriously powerful, stylish, and brawny cars apt to make the hearts of even the most dispassionate squares go pitter-patter was sucking fumes. Gasoline shortages, skyrocketing fuel prices, insurance-industry bean counters, rising ecological concerns, and new, more fuel-efficient imports all conspired to consign the American muscle car to an ugly and unseemly denouement. Yet 1970 saw the actual zenith of the cars themselves, the year manufacturers pulled out all the stops and produced the most powerful and stunning machines the automotive world had ever seen. 1970 Maximum Muscle not only explores the factors that led to the decline of the most exciting era in the American automotive industry, it details some of the new models and model options that arguably made 1970 the climax of the muscle car era from engineering, styling, and cultural standpoints. As the war among GM, Ford, Chrysler, and AMC played out at dealerships, dragstrips, and drive-ins, ready-and-willing gearheads drove off dealer lots in potent behemoths like the Buick GSX, Oldsmobile 4-4-2, and Ford Torino Cobra. Muscle car stalwarts like the SS Chevelle, Pontiac GTO, and Plymouth ’Cuda became available with optional LS-6, Stage 1, and Hemi engines, respectively. Manufacturers ratcheted up the advertising hyperbole at the same time, offering performance packages with names like “Six-Pack,” “Ram Air,” and “Cobra Jet,” while spoilers, scoops, hood tachometers, and decal packages were de rigueur. Meanwhile, on the popular SCCA Trans Am circuit, top drivers campaigned more nimble muscle off-the-rack cars like the Camaro Z/28 and Boss 302 Mustang. 1970 Maximum Muscle is an entertaining and rollicking look at the muscle car's peak year!

100 Cars That Changed the World showcases vehicles from the end of the nineteenth century to today. Along the way, you'll see vehicles such as the Ford Model T that put America on wheels; the Volkswagen Beetle that was loved around the world; the Jeep that helped win World War II and popularized off-road adventure; the Pontiac GTO that launched the muscle car era; the Dodge Caravan that changed the way families travel; the Ford Explorer that ingnited the SUV movement; and the Tesla Model S that made electric cars exciting.

The Chevrolet Corvette; the Dodge Coronet; the Ford GT—they're names that send a shiver down the spine of true car enthusiasts. With big V8 engines crammed into mid-sized shells, they ripped up the roads on their way out of Detroit as they roared onto the market and into the awaiting arms of the power-hungry public. Readers discover which is the most powerful muscle car ever made and what nearly led to their extinction in the '70s, as well as learning which of their 21st century descendants should be purchased today. Readers discover all this and more with beautifully laid-out, detailed profiles of the best muscle cars—their facts, stats, and great stories from behind the scenes.

Chevrolet Camaro. Pontiac GTO. Dodge Charger. Ford Mustang. These names evoke memories of aggressively styled, amply powered kings of the road from the decade of the 1960s and the early 1970s, when Detroit was king, oil was cheap, and cars rumbled when you told them to. Muscle Cars: Kings of the Street from the Golden Era tells the story of these automobiles and dozens more, with insightful descriptions from the auto editors of Consumer Guide and full-color photographs on every page. More than 90 cars are profiled, including their mechanical and design highlights and their place in the muscle car pecking order. Exclusive specifications charts detail each car's vital statistics--how much it cost, how many were built, how fast it went and many more details. The focus is not on highly modified, professionally raced versions of these iconic machines; instead the focus is on prime examples of the cars you or your dads drove during this exciting decade. You learn about: - Genuine muscle cars like the many Dodge Charger versions issued during the 1960s and early 1970s--a true classic. - Car luxury makers' attempts at muscle car stardom, like the 1967 Oldsmobile Cutlass 4-4-2 W-30 and the 1969 Buick GS 400. - The icons, like the Pontiac GTO, Chevrolet Camaro, Chevrolet Nova, Chevrolet Chevelle, and Dodge Challenger T/A. - The 1964 Pontiac Tempest GTO--what some consider the quintessential muscle car. It's all here, in the best muscle-car read you'll find anywhere: Muscle Cars: Kings of the Street from the Golden Era. Take a trip down memory lane--a loud one.

The All-American Muscle Car provides the ultimate hands-on history of the American Muscle car and where it is now -- Mustangs, Camaros, 'Cudas, Challengers, you name it. When John Z. DeLorean and his cadre of enthusiastic rule benders took it upon themselves to bolt Pontiac's hottest engine into a mid-sized Tempest, disobeying orders from the top of General Motors food chain, they created something that should not have been, and will never be again: the muscle car. The resulting GTO spearheaded a new breed of performance car aimed at a new breed of buyer: the baby boom generation, tens of millions of young customers entering the market each year. The All-American Muscle Car: The Rise, Fall and Resurrection of Detroit's Greatest Performance Cars tells the story of these brutal performance machines through the words of muscle-car icons like Jim Wangers, the man who marketed DeLorean's thuggish invention, Joe Oldham, a legendary automotive journalist who tested these cars when they first came off the production line, often via illegal street racing, and classic-car broker Colin Comer, who has been instrumental in restoring some of the most iconic (and valuable) muscle cars. Top muscle car experts like Randy Leffingwell and David Newhardt tell other facets of the muscle-car story, like the pony-car wars between the Mustang, Camaro, 'Cuda, and Challenger; the ultra-high performance dealer specials; and the rebirth of the modern muscle car. All told, this book provides the ultimate hands-on history of these most American of cars.

American Muscle Cars features stunning historic and contemporary photography and offers a thorough chronology of this classic car's evolution from the 1960s to the present.

Since their introduction in 1964, American muscle cars have been closely associated with masculinity. In the 21st century, women have been a growing presence in the muscle car world, exhibiting classic cars at automotive events and rumbling to work in modern Mustangs, Camaros and Challengers. Informed by the experiences of 88 female auto enthusiasts, this book highlights women's admiration and passion for American muscle, and reveals how restoring, showing and driving classic and modern cars provides a means to challenge longstanding perceptions of women drivers and advance ideas of identity and gender equality.

Get the facts on 75 of America's greatest muscle cars, from the classic 1960s Pontiac GTO to the Ford Mustang Cobra.