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Year: 2021
Auto Paedia
How the greenhouse on US cars has evolved from the late-40s to present
(UPDATED FROM 3/1/2020) Greenhouses have not typically changed as frequently as other parts of the American automobile’s external styling, but they go a long way toward summing up the dominant design approach of a given […]
Design Notes
Early indications of Toyota embracing its inner Virgil Exner
(EXPANDED FROM 4/11/2014) The above photograph shows the beginning of Toyota’s embrace of sci-fi styling. In the foreground, the second-generation Sienna minivan (which was produced from 2003 to 2009) has simple but attractive styling (Wikipedia, […]
History
More on whether Lee Iacocca was a great automotive executive
My essay about Lee Iacocca elicited some interesting pushback, so I would like to offer some follow-up thoughts. Some commentators have pushed back against my criticisms of Iacocca by pointing to things he did well. […]
Design Notes
What’s the most excessive American car design of all time?
(UPDATED FROM 5/1/2020) American automakers have always had a penchant for extravagant designs that can look overwrought compared to imports. Of course, this has been changing of late as foreign automakers — particularly the Japanese […]
Data Dive
The 1967-74 AMC Ambassador didn’t measure up in roominess or quality
(EXPANDED FROM 11/14/2015) A point of contention in a number of Curbside Classic comment threads has been whether the last-generation AMC Ambassador had as much interior room as the Big Three’s full-sized cars. The short answer: […]
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Satire
The untold story of how Dick Teague designed the 1974 AMC Matador coupe
Dick Teague nervously checked his fly and centered his tie as he heard the entourage of AMC executives march down the hallway toward his design studio. He’d made many presentations over two decades but had […]
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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 […]