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HomePersonal coupes

Personal coupes

1971 Dodge Charger RT
Data Dive

1971-74 Dodge Charger: Making the most of a questionable idea

November 4, 2024 Steve 15

(EXPANDED FROM 5/16/2023) In response to the interesting conversation in the comment thread about Chrysler’s early-70s compacts, I thought it could be useful to expand on a data dive I did a while back on […]

1966 Oldsmobile Starfire
Data Dive

Why didn’t the Oldsmobile Starfire do better in a booming personal coupe field?

September 12, 2024 Steve 13

When I came across a 1966 Oldsmobile Starfire at this year’s LeMay annual car show, it got me wondering why such a nicely styled car failed to catch on in one of the 1960’s hottest […]

1969 Ford Thunderbird 4-door Landau
Gallery

Was 1969 the beginning of the end for the Ford Thunderbird four-door Landau?

September 6, 2024 Steve 3

When I decided to write about the 1969 Ford Thunderbird four-door Landau, I suspected that Indie Auto readers would find my resulting article controversial. That’s because this body style has sustained a fair amount of […]

1959 Ford Thunderbird
Gallery

1959 Ford Thunderbird was a gimmicky but hugely important car

August 16, 2024 Steve 10

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 while the T-Bird’s […]

1971 Mercury Cougar XR7
Media Analysis

Collectible Automobile sheds little light on why 1971 Mercury Cougar was ugly

August 6, 2024 Steve 17

When I saw that the 1971 Mercury Cougar was on the cover of the latest Collectible Automobile issue, I was particularly curious about one thing: Did Semon Knudsen have much influence on the car’s huge […]

1962 Ford Galaxie 500
Data Dive

Did the 1960-64 big Ford sell so poorly because of cannibalization?

July 30, 2024 Steve 16

Aaron Severson (2009) has argued that when Ford added the Falcon and Fairlane in the early-60s, they did well initially but “total sales during that period remained almost flat.” In other words, the brand suffered […]

1980 Chrysler Cordoba
Letters to the Editor

Reader defends Lee Iacocca and the second-generation Chrysler Cordoba

July 24, 2024 Steve 18

Indie Auto reader RI stopped by to respond to our story, “Four ways Lee Iacocca contributed to the decline of Ford and Chrysler.” You suggest above that Chrysler wasted money on the 1980 Cordoba/Mirada, when […]

1988 Oldsmobile Toronado
History

Did GM go too far in downsizing the 1986 Riviera, Toronado and Eldorado?

July 1, 2024 Steve 12

General Motors has been criticized for going too far in downsizing its 1986 E-body personal coupes, which included the Buick Riviera, Oldsmobile Toronado and Cadillac Eldorado. Sales fell off a cliff, but they didn’t recover […]

1957 Studebaker Silver Hawk
Letters to the Editor

11th-generation Studebaker owner calls his car ‘innovative’ and ‘patriotic’

June 27, 2024 Steve 5

DB stopped by to respond to our article, “The Studebaker Hawk reached its high point in 1957 — and fell rather quickly.” Well, I’m glad you gentleman have it all sorted out now. Whatever the […]

1991 Avanti 4-door touring sedan
Design Notes

1990-91 Avanti four-door sedan points to the road Studebaker could have taken

June 24, 2024 Steve 8

We have had a burst of discussion in a comment thread about the Avanti four-door sedan (go here), so let’s take a quick look at that tragic car. In its dying years Studebaker had developed […]

Posts pagination

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  • 1964 Studebaker Challenger
    Brooks Stevens’s rejection of brand continuity was bad for small automakers
    June 14, 2025 0
  • EVs need a George Romney to champion them in the next few years
    June 13, 2025 16
  • Citroen SM
    Citroen SM: A surprisingly conventional next step
    June 12, 2025 5
  • 1936-37 Cord 810/812 tried to do too much at once
    June 11, 2025 10
  • 1963 Studebaker Daytona convertible
    Classic film shows human side of Studebaker’s end
    June 10, 2025 15
  • Once upon a time, car wheels were 36-to-42 inches in diameter
    June 9, 2025 5
  • Ram customized pickup
    What would you think if it was 1965 and you could magically see this truck?
    June 8, 2025 1
  • Brooks Stevens’s 1965 Studebaker Lark concept: Almost a baby Continental
    June 6, 2025 5
  • 1949 Packard Super Eight
    Packard kept a bigger foothold in the luxury-car field than commonly assumed
    June 5, 2025 9
  • Exner bio offers mostly positive take on controversial car designer
    Peter Grist views car designer Virgil Exner through rose-tinted glasses
    June 3, 2025 9
  • 1970 Mercury Cyclone
    1970 Mercury Montego had a last-of-the-wine quality
    June 2, 2025 2
  • A query, a thank you and an update on miscellaneous stuff
    April 4, 2025 0
  • 1956 Buick hood scoop
    Readers brainstorm ideas for future Indie Auto stories
    October 14, 2022 124
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