Indie Auto

In 1974 Harry Bradley anticipated the American wagon’s future

by Steve in History 7

(EXPANDED FROM 9/10/2024) A few years ago Dean’s Garage reprinted a prescient essay Harry Bradley (2022) wrote back in 1974 about the future of the American station wagon. His article made a number of important points, such as the value of wagons once again using the taller, boxier greenhouses of the early 1950s. Bradley also included a sketch of a design [...]

Car and Driver says Ford Mustang will ‘murder’ the 1964 Plymouth Barracuda

September 9, 2026 16

(EXPANDED FROM 4/10/2024) A Car and Driver article on the just-introduced 1964 Plymouth Barracuda adopted an unusual format — a transcript of a conversation with a Chrysler official. When a road tester complained that the car’s [...]

Is David Kiley right that Ford should replace Lincoln with a new brand?

September 2, 2026 19

David Kiley (2026) recently argued in The Car Collective’s Substack newsletter that Lincoln should be killed. His opinion piece shows a lot more spunk than what one might find in the vapid pages of Automotive News, but I would question [...]

1972 Buick Skylark Custom represented the end of an era

September 1, 2026 5

The 1972 Buick Skylark Custom represented the end of an era in a number of ways. This was the last year that the brand’s mid-sized cars were called Skylarks. This was also the end for hardtops. Perhaps most importantly, 1972 marked [...]

1959 Ford Thunderbird was a gimmicky but hugely important car

August 26, 2026 12

(EXPANDED FROM 8/16/2024) I have never been very attracted to the 1958-60 Ford Thunderbird’s gimmicky styling. However, I still must admit that this is one of the most important cars of the postwar era. And while the T-Bird’s design was heavily [...]

Compact cars became the neglected stepchildren of U.S. automakers

August 21, 2026 21

(EXPANDED FROM 6/26/2024) Compact cars represented a dramatic change for U.S. automakers when they were introduced in the early-1960s. After spending the previous decade making its “standard-sized” cars bigger, glitzier [...]

Ford’s design talent in the 1970s wasn’t enough to halt a dramatic slide in sales

by Steve in Drive-By Musings 13

Recently a retired Ford designer stopped by to offer a response to our story, “How 1960s car design reflected the good old (boy) days.” “I started my career at Ford styling in 1960. Retired in 1998. I have lots and lots of true stories about the real world at the Ford styling studios. So much baloney has been written that just wasn’t true. Being surrounded every day in [...]