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Home1970s

1970s

1967 GM mid-sized cars
Letters to the Editor

Market fragmentation drove GM actions more than antitrust fears

December 22, 2021 Steve 3

Geeber’s comment on our antitrust story significantly adds to the discussion so I’m elevating it to the front page as a letter to the editor: GM had been pushing to centralize more functions at the […]

1960 Dodge Dart
Letters to the Editor

Chrysler’s dysfunctional dealer networks were rooted in early decisions

December 2, 2021 Steve 3

Geeber recently wrote one of the best overviews I have ever seen about why Chrysler’s dealer networks became so dysfunctional. His comment (below) was in response to, “Lynn Townsend failed to solve Chrysler’s warfare between […]

1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1 front quarter
Media Analysis

Older Ford Mustangs got too big but not the newer ones?

November 12, 2021 Steve 2

(EXPANDED FROM 5/11/2020) Automobile magazine is dead but its Facebook page continues to recycle old articles. Yesterday the one million followers of this page were blessed with a reposted history of the Ford Mustang. Aaron […]

1990 Dodge Caravan
Letters to the Editor

Reader argues that Lee Iacocca ‘worked a miracle’ at Chrysler

November 8, 2021 Steve 0

Below is a reader’s response to my critique of Lee Iacocca’s tenure at Chrysler (go here and here). Anybody can be a Monday morning quarterback. Yes to a degree I agree HOWEVER the minivan was […]

Saab 99
History

Saab 99/900: The box that crushed a carmaker

October 29, 2021 Steve 25

(UPDATED FROM 6/26/2020) The Saab 99/900 proved to be the box that crushed the tiny Swedish carmaker. I grant you that this platform was hardly an immediate failure. Even so, the design of the 99 […]

1965 Ford Mustang
History

How Lee Iacocca contributed to the decline of Ford and Chrysler, Part 2

October 20, 2021 Steve 11

(EXPANDED FROM 10/20/2021) My essay about Lee Iacocca elicited some interesting pushback, so I would like to offer some follow-up thoughts. Some commentators have pushed back against my criticisms of Iacocca by pointing to things […]

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 […]

1974 AMC Matador and Richard Teague
Satire

The untold story of how Dick Teague designed the 1974 AMC Matador coupe

October 4, 2021 Steve 3

Dick Teague nervously checked his fly and centered his tie as he heard the entourage of AMC executives march down the hallway toward his design studio. He’d made many presentations over two decades but had […]

Media Analysis

Collectible Automobile puffs up the 1971-74 AMC Javelin

September 24, 2021 Steve 8

Collectible Automobile’s overview of the 1971-74 AMC Javelin is a good example of what John A. Heitmann describes as auto history written by a car buff. Heitmann, who is the editor of the Automotive History […]

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 […]

Posts pagination

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  • 2006-7 Dodge Charger
    2006-2010 Dodge Charger: A cartoonish attempt at rip-roaring nostalgia
    June 5, 2026 5
  • 1950 Nash Rambler hood ornament
    Speedreaders.info is a rare source of book reviews, but quality varies
    June 3, 2026 0
  • 1958 Lincoln
    1958-60 Lincoln: Failing to beat GM at its own game
    June 2, 2026 15
  • 1957 Nash Ambassador
    Three videos: The death of car culture, rich people’s cars and the 1957 Nash
    May 29, 2026 6
  • 1963 Mercury Marauder
    1963 Mercury Marauder: Ford tries to do a premium-priced car on the cheap
    May 27, 2026 11
  • Did 1964 Ramblers share more parts between size classes than competitors?
    May 26, 2026 1
  • Patrick Foster shows how International Harvester failed to adapt
    May 13, 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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