1990s
Auto industry analyst Maryann Keller was a key critic of ‘Detroit Mind’
I think it is important to acknowledge the death of automotive analyst Maryann Keller for two reasons. First, because she offered one of the most prescient perspectives on the U.S. auto industry’s decline. Second, because […]
How often did renaming a car fail to help it sell better?
In a recent column, Karl Ludvigsen (2022) wondered whether some cars that were renamed should not have been. For example, he noted that Ford might have benefitted by keeping the Cortina name in Great Britain […]
Should Saab have come out with a retro 96 in the 1990s?
EXPANDED FROM 6/10/2014) In a Hemmings post about a 1971 Saab 96 for sale, Mike McNessor (2014) described the car as “irresistible and timeless as the VW Beetle or the Mini.” He went on to wonder […]
Mitsubishi tanked in U.S. due to ‘epic’ mismanagement and lack of vision
George Denzinger recently wrote a lengthy — and quite nuanced — comment that I would like to highlight on the front page as a letter to the editor. His missive was in response to the […]
What is the right size for a Ford Mustang?
(UPDATED FROM 10/9/2020) Did Ford deviate too much from the original Ford Mustang’s size before finally getting it right once again in 2005? That year was pivotal because it was the first time in a quarter […]
Much bigger ‘Car Spotter’s Bible’ isn’t better
(UPDATED FROM 8/21/2020) My Dad Had That Car is a significantly updated and expanded version of Tad Burness’s American Car Spotter’s Bible (2005). Whereas the previous book covered 1940 to 1980, the new one goes […]
It’s a big deal that Ford and GM knew about climate change in 1960s
(UPDATED FROM 6/6/2020) The news that Ford and General Motors knew about climate change in the 1960s raises a number of big questions. For example, might this revelation open both automakers to lawsuits similar to […]
Older Ford Mustangs got too big but not the newer ones?
(EXPANDED FROM 5/11/2020) Automobile magazine is dead but its Facebook page continues to recycle old articles. Yesterday the one million followers of this page were blessed with a reposted history of the Ford Mustang. Aaron […]