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Letters to the Editor
1958 Studebaker’s styling was ‘quite in line’ with the Big Three’s
Peter recently submitted a comment that took to task our article, “1958 Studebaker: Honesty is the best policy.” One part of his critique was that I “mis-quoted facts.” I strive to be accurate — particularly […]
Design Notes
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 […]
Media Analysis
Road & Track once predicted a Karmann Ghia-based VW sedan
The Volkswagen Beetle was a hot commodity in 1959, but it was unknown how the car would hold up against the Big Three’s armada of new compacts in 1960. This led Road & Track magazine […]
Multimedia
Satire of a 1960 VW ad essentially mimics marketing for U.S. compacts
(UPDATED 3/20/2023) Back in 1963, advertising executive Fred Manley presented a slide show parody about how to improve Volkswagen’s legendary “Think small” ad. The “best practices” he presented look hilariously misguided when applied to this […]
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 […]
Media Analysis
Elon Musk’s infamous interview: What the auto media missed
Joe Rogan’s (2018) podcast with Elon Musk may very well be the most infamous — and high-visibility — interview of an automotive executive ever conducted. Alas, the event received so much attention for the wrong […]
Fake Design
1958 Studebaker: Honesty is the best policy
If you went by the above photo alone, you would get a misleading impression of the 1958 Studebaker. Yes, the colors are grossly exaggerated, but an even bigger problem is that the photo only shows […]
Design Notes
Audi R8 : More beast than sports car
(EXPANDED 12/14/2022) An Audi R8 in the wild is an eye-opening event. Everything about the car is over-amped, from the child-eating grille to the showy display of V10 power just beneath the rear window. The […]
Current Events
What died when the VW Beetle ended production?
Paul A. Eistenstein’s (2019) story about the end of production for the Volkswagen Beetle makes an odd editorial decision. He treats the Beetle as a unified product line that stretches all the way back to […]