Gallery
Year: 2021
Auto Paedia
Halo cars are popular but not always a good idea
Halo cars tend to quite popular — even wetness inducing — among auto enthusiasts. That’s because the mission of halo cars is mostly to generate a positive buzz about a brand rather than high sales. So […]
Quotes
Robert Bourke: Studebaker V8 ‘was a catastrophe’
“. . . 1950/’51 — was the first time that Studebaker had a V-8 engine, and it was a catastrophe. They had a terrible time. They kept eating up camshafts and millions of dollars. Studebaker never […]
Readings
Hiott’s VW book captures essence of old Beetle better than new one
Andrea Hiott has written an engaging and nuanced automotive history that transcends the usual “car guy” narratives. Thinking Small: The Long, Strange Trip of the Volkswagen Beetle offers a wealth of background about the political, economic […]
Quotes
Early dealers fueled car craze with extravagant buildings
“Instead of investing in mechanics or inventory, early dealers constructed lavish marble palaces on expensive parcels of land. They clustered on highly visible downtown thoroughfares, often called ‘Automobile Row’. . . . Early dealers could […]
Gallery
Media Analysis
Did a rumor cause the downsized 1962 Plymouth and Dodge?
A few years ago Paul Niedermeyer (2017a) questioned the conventional wisdom that the downsized 1962 Plymouth and Dodge were an 11th-hour accident of history. In an epic essay, the Curbside Classic publisher poked holes in […]
Links
The Daily Drive: Slick, superficial and sometimes wrong
First of all, The Daily Drive should not to be confused with The Drive, the Drive Tribe and Driven Nuts (okay, that last one I made up). The Daily Drive is produced by Consumer Guide […]
Readings
Ed Cray’s ‘Chrome Colossus’ offers a masterful history of General Motors
Chrome Colossus: General Motors and its Times, is one of the best automotive history books in my library. Author Ed Cray eschewed the usual focus on product minutiae and instead focused on how GM’s growth in […]