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Month: September 2021
Readings
Thomas Bonsall’s Edsel book is nuanced but suffers from groupthink
(EXPANDED FROM 6/26/2020) Disaster in Dearborn: The Story of the Edsel is paradoxical. On the one hand, this is a serious history book — unlike so many of the coffee-table decorations that populate the big-box […]
Media Analysis
Collectible Automobile puffs up the 1971-74 AMC Javelin
Collectible Automobile’s overview of the 1971-74 AMC Javelin is a good example of what John A. Heitmann describes as auto history written by a car buff. Heitmann, who is the editor of the Automotive History […]
Auto Paedia
‘Lower! Longer! Wider!’ fixation of US automakers left opening for imports
(EXPANDED 10/24/2022) “Lower, longer, wider” was the domestic automakers’ dominant design approach until they were forced to downsize their fleet in the late-1970s due to federal fuel-economy standards. Since that time automakers have at least […]
Design Notes
Which looked better: Exner’s 1966 Duesenberg or 1971-87 Stutz Blackhawk?
(EXPANDED FROM 7/20/2018) A few years ago Hemmings published a for-sale ad about a 1966 Duesenberg prototype designed by Virgil Exner (Stohl, 2017). The car shared major styling themes with another one Exner subsequently designed — […]
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Design Notes
Obesity wins even when it loses with pony cars
(EXPANDED FROM 3/4/2015) The 1993-2003 Chevrolet Camaro is a paradox. It sold so poorly that it was discontinued. This was a doubly painful failure given that the fourth-generation Camaro had a more modern body than the Ford Mustang’s. […]
Quotes
Bill Porter: Why as a Pontiac designer he competed most against Chevy
“(The AMC Javelin and AMX) were very handsome cars. They look great on the road. They were fine, and they still look today. They’ve held up very well. But I was in Pontiac at that […]
Fake Design
1959 Studebaker: Throwing the baby out with the bath water
(EXPANDED FROM 5/22/2015) The 1959 Studebaker Lark’s design was initially so successful that it was described by historian Robert Ebert as a “miracle” (2013, p. 55). Studebaker-Packard Corporation, which was on the verge of liquidating […]
Editor's Note
The great debate: Which Chrysler 300C was better styled?
Indie Auto stories are occasionally linked to — and then debated — on other automotive history websites. A recent example is Curbside Classic, where a subthread discussed the 2004-to-present Chrysler 300C. This debate is a […]