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HomeRalph Nader

Ralph Nader

1959 Imperial and Ralph Nader
Letters to the Editor

Reader lauds Virgil Exner and says Ralph Nader ‘destroyed style forever’

February 22, 2026 Steve 3

CW stopped by to respond to our story, “1959 Cadillac epitomized what was wrong with U.S. car styling.” Yes I get all this but it was [Virgil] Exner the visionary who put style in cars […]

Readings

Ed Cray’s ‘Chrome Colossus’ offers a masterful history of General Motors

August 25, 2025 Steve 2

(EXPANDED FROM 1/2/2021) Ed Cray’s history of General Motors is one of the better automotive books in my library. A big reason why is that Chrome Colossus: General Motors and its Times eschewed the usual […]

19465 Hudson
History

1946 Hudson shows what made automaker so important — and vulnerable

August 4, 2025 Steve 15

(EXPANDED FROM 4/22/2023) This story received an unusual amount of pushback in the comment thread when it was originally posted two years ago. A focus of reader criticism was my argument that Hudson’s demise had […]

Brock Yates
Readings

Brock Yates brilliantly analyzed fall of U.S. auto industry

June 17, 2025 Steve 1

(EXPANDED FROM 1/22/2021) The Decline and Fall of the American Automobile Industry is one of the most important automotive books of the last 50 years. That’s because Brock Yates presented what may very well be the […]

1965 Chevrolet Corvair
Media Analysis

Why hasn’t Consumer Guide Automotive fixed a discredited anti-Nader rant?

February 4, 2025 Steve 4

(EXPANDED FROM 11/1/2019) One way auto history websites can squeeze more profits from their content is to endlessly repost stories. That’s not a bad thing if the information is accurate, but it strikes me as […]

Media Analysis

Auto buff media are rarely renegades anymore

June 28, 2024 Steve 12

(UPDATED 6/26/2024) If you subscribed to car buff magazines back when you were a kid, do you do so anymore? As a young lad I subscribed to up to five different magazines, but I wouldn’t […]

Six Men Who Built the Modern Auto Industry
Readings

Richard Johnson showed what can happen when a journalist does auto history

May 18, 2023 Steve 2

(UPDATED FROM 2/19/2021) Histories written by practicing automotive journalists are usually engaging reads with lots of behind-the-scenes anecdotes. However, they can also be analytically superficial and grounded more in access than accountability journalism. In other […]

Media Analysis

Road & Track magazine’s 1972 Nader attack was disingenuous propaganda

April 24, 2023 Steve 2

(EXPANDED FROM 10/30/2020) When Road & Track decided to go after Ralph Nader in 1972, the magazine took unusual measures. Even before an “evaluation” of a Nader report hit the newsstands, Road & Track held […]

1962 Chevrolet Corvair front
Media Analysis

Larry Printz’s anti-Ralph Nader rant hurts reputation of The Detroit Bureau

June 6, 2022 Steve 8

A recent feature story by The Detroit Bureau illustrates the dangers of a current events website trying to get into the automotive history business. Executive Editor Larry Printz’s (2022) ode to the Chevrolet Corvair included […]

1966 Chevrolet Corvair
Fake Design

1965-69 Chevrolet Corvair: What if it had a front-engined companion?

September 3, 2021 Steve 18

(UPDATED ON 10/14/22) The second-generation Chevrolet Corvair was one of the best cars General Motors has ever built. Its styling was exceptionally clean for the mid-60s, which were dominated by fussy gingerbread designs. Meanwhile, the […]

Posts pagination

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  • 1972 Lincoln Continental Mark IV
    Is David Kiley right that Ford should replace Lincoln with a new brand?
    September 2, 2026 16
  • 1972 Buick Skylark Custom grille
    1972 Buick Skylark Custom represented the end of an era
    September 1, 2026 5
  • 1959 Ford Thunderbird
    1959 Ford Thunderbird was a gimmicky but hugely important car
    August 26, 2026 11
  • Compact cars became the neglected stepchildren of U.S. automakers
    August 21, 2026 21
  • 1980 AMC brochure cover with picture of American Center building
    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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