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HomeCAFE standards

CAFE standards

1974 Ford Galaxie 500 four-door hardtop
Current Events

Could the auto industry experience a wake-up call akin to the 1970s oil crises?

March 24, 2026 Steve 5

Oil experts have recently debated how big of a crisis the Iran war could cause. However, even if the impacts to the U.S. auto industry turn out to be relatively short lived, they still could […]

2025 Ford Maverick
Current Events

Debate over whether CAFE killed the small car in the U.S. may be moot

July 28, 2025 Steve 10

Indie Auto reader Troy linked to a provocative comment by bzcat (2025) at Blue Oval Forums about why small cars have disappeared from the U.S. market. Here’s what he has to say: “Americans like small […]

2024 Ford Expedition
Quotes

What impact could budget bill have on global efforts to fight climate change?

July 12, 2025 Steve 5

President Trump’s recently signed budget bill is big and complex enough that its impacts in just one area — climate change — have been subject to debate. For example, a Princeton University research group recently […]

1980 Buick Skylark
Links

New Yorker story shows difficulties of an outsider reporting on auto industry

April 25, 2024 Steve 5

Industry coverage by journalists from outside the automotive media can be a mixed bag. They are less likely to succumb to the groupthink that can undercut reporting from the likes of Automotive News or a […]

Current Events

Joe Ligo sheds light on why small cars have disappeared in the United States

April 5, 2024 Steve 4

Joe Ligo has written one of the most interesting automotive articles I have come across in quite some time. Over at The Autopian website he analyzes why the small car died in the United States. […]

1977 Monte Carlo
Fake Design

Was the 1973-77 Chevrolet Monte Carlo’s styling ‘honest’?

December 22, 2023 Steve 36

(EXPANDED FROM 12/24/2021) Curbside Classic commentator XR7Matt (2014) offered a fascinating justification for the stylistic excesses of the 1973-77 Chevrolet Monte Carlo: “Space efficiency is marketing buzz that everyone has fallen for in recent years, it’s actual day […]

1958 Ford Skyliner rear quarter
Auto Paedia

Bigger, glitzier, more powerful: The auto industry’s holy trinity

September 13, 2023 Steve 8

(EXPANDED FROM 11/1/2019) The dominant tendency of the U.S. auto industry has been to make its vehicles bigger, glitzier and more powerful. In recent decades both domestic and foreign automakers have embraced this practice. Indeed, […]

Kestner homestead hay cutter seat
Media Analysis

Commentators agree Keith Crain doesn’t ‘get it’

March 20, 2019 Steve 0

An overwhelming majority of commentators took Keith Crain (2019) to task for a recent Automotive News column where he questioned the viability of a rapid shift to electric vehicles. “The horse farriers of the 19th […]

Quotes
Quotes

Brock Yates: What to do about climate change

October 7, 2016 Steve 0

“I call forth the SUV as our savior. Want to warm things up? Easy. If fossil fuels are the culprit, burning more of them will keep Old Man Winter at bay. Thus, we must immediately […]

  • 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
Society of Automotive Historian award to Indie Auto

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