Muscle Car History: How It All Began

William Jason
SubmitYOURArticle.com
February 13, 2011

William Jason
http://musclecarmonster.com

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.

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William Jason has admired classic cars ever since he was a young child and you can read his blog at: http://musclecarmonster.com/