Indie Auto
header-advert
  • Home
  • About
    • Introduction
    • Editor’s Notes
    • Story Ideas Bank
    • Why All The Data?
    • Fake Stuff
    • About Those Photos
    • Talk Legal To Me
    • Privacy Policy
  • All Our Features
    • Ad Nauseam
    • Bird Chatter
    • Calendar
    • Current Events
    • Data Dives
    • Design Notes
    • Drive-By Musings
    • Fake Designs
    • Gallery
    • Histories
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Links
    • Literature
    • Media Analysis
    • Multimedia
    • Our Sponsors
    • Photo Essays
    • Quotes
    • Random Shots
    • Satire
  • Look It Up
    • In Auto Paedia
    • By author
    • By automaker or brand
    • By time period
    • By topic
    • By vehicle type
  • Readings
    • General Reference
    • Specific Brands & Automakers
    • Auto Culture, Policy & Business Strategy
    • Bibliography
    • Where To Buy Your Books
    • Recently-Posted Readings
  • Links
    • Bibliography of Links
  • Contact
    • Emails & Newsletter
    • Rejected Comments
  • Donate
Home2026August

Month: August 2026

1959 Ford Thunderbird
Gallery

1959 Ford Thunderbird was a gimmicky but hugely important car

August 26, 2026 Steve 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 […]

Parody ads about the auto industry and media
Our Sponsors

BMW shows future of in-car advertising with innovative campaign

August 21, 2026 Steve 2
Data Dive

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

August 21, 2026 Steve 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 and more powerful, Detroit responded […]

1980 AMC brochure cover with picture of American Center building
History

AMC’s Roy D. Chapin Jr. succumbed to the illusion of bigness

August 19, 2026 Steve 2

(EXPANDED FROM 1/8/2021) When writing a story about the 1974 AMC Ambassador, I came across American Motors car brochures for 1979 and 1980 that took the unusual step of picturing the company’s headquarters in Southfield, Michigan. […]

1980 Ford Thunderbird and 1956 model
Drive-By Musings

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

August 14, 2026 Steve 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 […]

Readings

Patrick Foster’s Hudson book emphasized pictures and boosterism

August 14, 2026 Steve 3

(EXPANDED FROM 3/5/2021) Patrick R. Foster’s Hudson Automobiles: An Illustrated History lives up to its title. If you are mainly interested in pictures, this is your book. The 128-page paperback is dominated by photographs, artist […]

1973 Buick Riviera
Links

Why wasn’t the 1971 ‘boat-tail’ Buick Riviera shrunk to compact size?

August 14, 2026 Steve 24

(UPDATED FROM 6/16/2024) David Burrell has written what may be the most detailed account of how William Mitchell vainly tried to shift the “boat-tail” 1971 Buick Riviera to a mid-sized platform. Burrell’s story in Retro […]

Parody ads about the auto industry and media
Our Sponsors

Analyst Sam Fiorani lauds astuteness of Ram’s new high-performance model

August 7, 2026 Steve 0
Fake Design

Would the 1969 Ford Mustang have sold better if it had been smaller?

August 7, 2026 Steve 23

(EXPANDED FROM 8/27/2024) A major goal of Indie Auto is to question conventional wisdom — which will all but inevitably generate controversy. That was certainly the case with the following story, which argued that the […]

1974 full-sized low-priced cars
History

1974 AMC Ambassador: Was its styling ruined by bumper regs?

August 5, 2026 Steve 11

(EXPANDED FROM 7/15/2024) One of Indie Auto’s first harshly negative comments came from someone who was infuriated with my essay about the 1974 AMC Ambassador, where I criticized the car’s looks. “Worst stupid article I […]

Posts pagination

1 2 »
  • 1970ish Porsche 914
    Porsche 914 reflected an interesting theory that didn’t work as well in practice
    October 31, 2026 11
  • 2026 GMC Canyon
    The future of auto production capacity, affordable sedans and the Buzz 2.0
    October 27, 2026 8
  • 1955 Nash
    Would American Motors under George Mason have done more poorly in the late-50s?
    October 23, 2026 5
  • 2008 Nissan Titan
    What do automakers refuse to offer that car buyers actually want?
    October 21, 2026 16
  • 1962 Ford Galaxie 500
    Did the 1960-64 big Ford sell so poorly because of cannibalization?
    October 16, 2026 37
  • 1969 Ford Thunderbird 4-door Landau
    Was 1969 the beginning of the end for the Ford Thunderbird four-door Landau?
    October 14, 2026 9
  • 2026 Ram pickups
    A pyrrhic regulatory rollback and how poorly the 1978 Matador coupe sold
    October 2, 2026 12
  • Internet problems reminded me of U.S. automakers in the 1970s
    May 2, 2026 1
  • 1956 Buick hood scoop
    Readers brainstorm ideas for future Indie Auto stories
    October 14, 2022 146
Society of Automotive Historian award to Indie Auto

Recent Comments

  • Steve on Porsche 914 reflected an interesting theory that didn’t work as well in practice
  • Kalikiano Kalei on Porsche 914 reflected an interesting theory that didn’t work as well in practice
  • Jeff Kennedy on Porsche 914 reflected an interesting theory that didn’t work as well in practice
  • Constant Reader on Porsche 914 reflected an interesting theory that didn’t work as well in practice
  • Randerson on Porsche 914 reflected an interesting theory that didn’t work as well in practice
  • Steve on The future of auto production capacity, affordable sedans and the Buzz 2.0
  • Philco Ford on The future of auto production capacity, affordable sedans and the Buzz 2.0
  • Scampman on What do automakers refuse to offer that car buyers actually want?
  • Philco Ford on What do automakers refuse to offer that car buyers actually want?
  • Steve on The future of auto production capacity, affordable sedans and the Buzz 2.0
  • Jeff Kennedy on The future of auto production capacity, affordable sedans and the Buzz 2.0
  • Steve on The future of auto production capacity, affordable sedans and the Buzz 2.0
  • Scampman on The future of auto production capacity, affordable sedans and the Buzz 2.0
  • Steve on The future of auto production capacity, affordable sedans and the Buzz 2.0
  • Scampman on The future of auto production capacity, affordable sedans and the Buzz 2.0

Archives

Categories

Tags

1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s American Motors Auto culture Auto history media Auto media Automotive News Automotive Views Business strategies Chevrolet Climate change Compact cars Curbside Classic Design Design excesses Dodge Electric vehicles Engineering Fake advertising Ford Ford Motor Co. Full-sized cars General Motors Journalism standards Luxury cars Management culture Marketing Mid-sized cars Parody Patrick R. Foster Plymouth Premium-priced cars Public policies Reader comments Richard M. Langworth Stellantis Studebaker
Follow Us
  • Facebook
  • RSS Feed
Search
Archives
Categories
Help keep the lights on
Quinault at night

Copyright © 2022 Olympia, Earth Media, LLC | All rights reserved