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Home1940s

1940s

1966 Studebaker brochure cover
Editor's Note

Reader says design critique of 1966 Studebaker is ‘simplistic’ and ‘unkind’

October 17, 2022 Steve 3

Readers can communicate with Indie Auto either by submitting a comment or sending a message to the editor (go here). The other day I received a message from a displeased reader. What follows is his […]

Readings

Charles Hyde’s AMC book doesn’t get why automaker failed

July 8, 2022 Steve 6

(UPDATED FROM 10/16/2020) Charles K. Hyde’s history of American Motors and its constituent companies is a valuable scholarly addition to the literature. His book, Storied Independent Automakers: Nash, Hudson and American Motors, offers considerably more […]

Letters to the Editor

Interstate highways were a product of new technologies and ‘urban renewal’

March 17, 2022 Steve 5

I was pleasantly surprised that so many Indie Auto readers have offered comments about our post, “Negative aspects of interstate highways received little initial attention.” Geeber took the time to write a lengthy and thoughtful […]

Jaguar XKE rear
Links

‘Driven To Write’ offers European take on a noncommercial auto website

February 28, 2022 Steve 2

I have mentioned before that monitoring the American automotive media reminds me of the Bruce Springsteen song, “57 Channels (And Nothin’ On).” The buff magazines and websites spend so much time trying to mimic each […]

Quotes

Virgil Exner Jr. on his father’s approach to tailfins

December 28, 2021 Steve 0

“He liked the cleanliness of the idea. He liked the aerodyna­mics of the idea, and in his mind they were genuinely aerodynamic. Later on, Chrysler proved that in wind tunnel tests. They ran cross-wind tests […]

Thomas Bonsall's Studebaker book
Readings

Thomas Bonsall’s Studebaker book is useful but flawed

December 27, 2021 Steve 0

(EXPANDED FROM 11/13/2020) Thomas E. Bonsall wrote one of the better Studebaker histories, but it suffers from flaws that undercut the book’s usefulness. More Than They Promised, which was published in 2000, is a refreshing […]

1959 Cadillac front end
Design Notes

What’s the most excessive American car design of all time?

October 18, 2021 Steve 6

(UPDATED FROM 5/1/2020) American automakers have always had a penchant for extravagant designs that can look overwrought compared to imports. Of course, this has been changing of late as foreign automakers — particularly the Japanese […]

1959 Lincoln Continental
Auto Paedia

‘Lower! Longer! Wider!’ fixation of US automakers left opening for imports

September 22, 2021 Steve 13

(EXPANDED 10/24/2022) “Lower, longer, wider” was the domestic automakers’ dominant design approach until they were forced to downsize their fleet in the late-1970s due to federal fuel-economy standards. Since that time automakers have at least […]

1959 and 1955 Studebaker rooflines
Fake Design

1959 Studebaker: Throwing the baby out with the bath water

September 10, 2021 Steve 14

(EXPANDED FROM 5/22/2015) The 1959 Studebaker Lark’s design was initially so successful that it was described by historian Robert Ebert as a “miracle” (2013, p. 55). Studebaker-Packard Corporation, which was on the verge of liquidating […]

1965 AMC Ambassador sketch
Multimedia

Joe Ligo is overly kind in Nash/AMC Ambassador film

September 9, 2021 Steve 3

(UPDATED FROM 7/3/2020) Joe Ligo’s (2020) film about the Nash/AMC Ambassador is well-researched but overly kind in discussing the car’s dying decade. The “History of the Nash/AMC Ambassador” walks viewers through the unusually long life […]

Posts pagination

« 1 … 7 8 9 … 13 »
  • 1965 Studebaker Cruiser proposal
    Car Life speculates about why Studebaker shut down its South Bend plant
    July 17, 2026 8
  • 1956 Lincoln
    The 1956 Lincoln’s styling proved to be a one-year wonder
    July 17, 2026 18
  • 1975 Mercedes-Benz 450 SL
    1975 Mercedes-Benz 450 SL lacked the taut brilliance of its predecessor
    July 14, 2026 6
  • 1988 Oldsmobile Toronado
    Did GM go too far in downsizing the 1986 Riviera, Toronado and Eldorado?
    July 10, 2026 16
  • J. 'Kelly' Flory Jr.
    J. ‘Kelly’ Flory Jr.’s American Cars series is pricey but valuable
    July 10, 2026 4
  • 1968 Pontiac Firebird green convertible
    1967-72 Pontiac Firebird shows limits of ad illustrations
    July 7, 2026 10
  • Miscellaneous ramblings about being on the road
    June 25, 2026 5
  • 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 141
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  • Geeber on Car Life speculates about why Studebaker shut down its South Bend plant
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  • Geeber on Adam Wade’s top-10 ugliest ‘classic’ cars list is decidedly quirky
  • Geeber on Miscellaneous ramblings about being on the road
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