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HomeBusiness management

Business management

Langworth Studebaker
Readings

Richard Langworth’s Studebaker book is dated but mostly still the best

September 9, 2025 Steve 5

(EXPANDED FROM 4/13/2013) When I am trying to track down information about Studebaker, I am most likely to first reach for Richard M. Langworth’s book. The reason why it that his journalistic approach was refreshingly […]

1963 Studebaker Daytona convertible
Multimedia

Classic film shows human side of Studebaker’s end

June 10, 2025 Steve 20

(UPDATED FROM 6/20/2022) Documentary films contribute to automotive history in a different way than words on a page (either paper or electronic). In general, film can capture much better the human elements of a situation, […]

Quotes

The Economist points to origins of ‘the biggest industrial collapse ever’

February 28, 2023 Steve 15

“The problem in the 1970s was not really the arrival of better, smaller, lighter Japanese cars; it was GM’s failure to respond in kind. Rather than hitting back with superior products, the company hid behind […]

1969 Dodge Polara two-door hardtop
Quotes

Did Elwood Engel’s acquiescence ruin the 1969 Dodge’s styling?

December 21, 2021 Steve 7

“Designer Darin Yazejian recalled an approval meeting with top Dodge management when someone criticized the roof treatment of a proposed 1969 Polara hardtop. This particular roof had rear-extending sail panels that thrust out behind the […]

Readings

Avanti book by John Hull provides a useful overview

December 26, 2020 Steve 0

To my mind, the Avanti’s history has two major parts: Under Studebaker and as an independent automaker. Of the Studebaker histories, Richard M. Langworth (1993) arguably offers the most detailed and analytically sophisticated narrative. The […]

Quotes
Quotes

Designer Bill Robinson’s secret to his success

June 7, 2019 Steve 0

“. . . I always considered myself an average designer, because there were so many good designers. I was very successful because I knew that you had to sell the design to the manager and […]

Automotive News tends to emphasize access journalism
Auto Paedia

Access journalism: Did it help fuel U.S. auto industry’s decline?

April 1, 2019 Steve 0

Access journalism is what the Columbia Journalism Review (2014) defines as providing “insider information from powerful institutions and people.” This is a different kind of reporting — requiring “different skills, different practices, and different sources” that “produce […]

1955 Dodge Le Femme advertising
Current Events

Surveys find sexism still powerful in auto industry

January 1, 2019 Steve 2

When I started reading Automotive News in the mid-70s, one thing that struck me was how few women were in leadership positions. Only one or two would be listed on two-page displays of industry “all […]

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    1972 Buick Skylark Custom represented the end of an era
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    August 26, 2026 11
  • Compact cars became the neglected stepchildren of U.S. automakers
    August 21, 2026 21
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    AMC’s Roy D. Chapin Jr. succumbed to the illusion of bigness
    August 19, 2026 2
  • 1980 Ford Thunderbird and 1956 model
    Ford’s design talent in the 1970s wasn’t enough to halt a dramatic slide in sales
    August 14, 2026 13
  • 1973 Buick Riviera
    Why wasn’t the 1971 ‘boat-tail’ Buick Riviera shrunk to compact size?
    August 14, 2026 24
  • 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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