Ride along during a historical cruise of muscle car advertising from the '50s, '60s, and '70s. Near full size ads paint the history of thundering muscle cars from three tumultuous decades. This valuable reference depicts some of the last remnants of promotional print material containing hard-to-find factory facts and images on muscle car models. More than 160 ads have been restored to their original, vibrant color. Muscle cars from American Motors, Buick, Chevrolet, Chrysler, Dodge, Ford, General Motors, Mercury, Oldsmobile, Plymouth, and Pontiac are included. Covers popular models such as Javelins, Gremlins, Barracudas, Belvederes, Road Runners, Chargers, Camaros, Corvettes, Novas, and GTOs.

As the muscle car wars developed in the early 1960s, auto manufacturers scrambled to find catchy marketing campaigns to entice the buying public into their dealerships. General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler, with all their divisions, as well as AMC and Studebaker, inevitably sank billions of dollars into one-upmanship in an effort to vie for the consumer's last dollar. Automotive writer Diego Rosenberg examines the tactics and components used by manufacturers in waging war against one another in the muscle car era. Manufacturers poured millions into racing programs, operating under the principle of "Win on Sunday, Sell on Monday." Cars were given catchy nicknames, such as The GTO Judge, Plymouth Roadrunner, Cobra, and Dodge Super Bee. Entire manufacturer lines were given catchy marketing campaigns, such as Dodge's Scat Pack, AMC's Go Package, and Ford's Total Performance. From racing to commercials to print ads, from dealer showrooms to national auto shows, each manufacturer had its own approach in vying for the buyer's attention, and gimmicks and tactics ranged from comical to dead serious. Selling the American Muscle Car: Marketing Detroit Iron in the 60s and 70s takes you back to an era when options were plentiful and performance was cheap. You will relive or be introduced to some of the cleverest marketing campaigns created during a time when America was changing every day.

Get the full history of the American muscle car in The All-American Muscle Car, from it's origin as an act of descent, to where it sits now.

During the 1960s, the automobile finally secured its position as an indispensable component of daily life in Britain. Car ownership more than doubled from approximately one car for every 10 people in 1960 to one car for every 4.8 people by 1970. Consumers no longer asked "Do we need a car?" but "What car shall we have?" This well-illustrated history analyzes how both domestic car manufacturers and importers advertised their products in this growing market, identifying trends and themes. Over 180 advertisement illustrations are included.

This book provides a comprehensive history of American print automobile advertising over a half-century span, beginning with the entrenchment of the "Big Three" automakers during the Depression and concluding with the fuel crises of the 1970s and early 1980s. Advances in general advertising layouts and graphics are discussed in Part One, together with the ways in which styling, mechanical improvements, and convenience features were highlighted. Part Two explores ads that were concerned less with the attributes of the cars themselves than with shaping the way consumers would perceive and identify with them. Part Three addresses ads oriented toward the practical aspects of automobile ownership, concluding with an account of how advertising responded to the advance of imported cars after World War II. Illustrations include more than 250 automobile advertisements, the majority of which have not been seen in print since their original publication.

“Just what is a Muscle Car?” Road Test magazine asked in June 1967. The answer: “Exactly what the name implies. It is a product of the American car industry adhering to the hot rodder’s philosophy of taking a small car and putting a BIG engine in it. . . . The Muscle Car is Charles Atlas kicking sand in the face of the 98 horsepower weakling.” Unconcerned with such trivial details as comfort and handling, the vintage American muscle car was built for straight-line speed and quickly became the ride of choice for power-hungry racers and serious gearheads. In a country where performance was measured in brute force, a quarter mile at a time, the muscle car was the perfect machine. In the intervening years, these down-and-dirty, high-performing beauties have earned their place in the automotive pantheon. As prized by collectors and aficionados as they are by denizens of garages and drag strips, classic muscle cars now fetch upwards of a million dollars at auctions and feature in any story of America’s automotive glory days. The icons of muscle car art—including Camaro and Chevelle SS, the Hemi and 440-6 ’Cuda, Challenger, Roadrunner, Super Bee, GTX, Super Bird, Daytona Charger, Super Cobra Jet and Boss Mustang, Talladega Torino, Buick GSX and W30 Oldsmobile 442, and AMX Javelin—are all here, on full display in this lavishly illustrated volume, each described in a detailed essay followed by a gallery of portraits and special gatefold presentations that capture the art of the muscle car at its finest.

Collects a decade of automobile advertising stressing performance.