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Is It a Car or a Truck?
During the heyday of automobile manufacturing in the United States, the”Big Three” of American automobile manufacturing endeavored to offer something for everyone. Engendering brand loyalty was a big part of their marketing strategy, and these companies didn’t want to lose customers because a competitor was offering a type of vehicle that they were not. Ford and General Motors were more inclined than Chrysler to engage in this tit for tat, and General Motors usually had the edge because they would often times design a competing vehicle from more than one of their divisions. For example, after the stunning success that Ford had with the Mustang, General Motors countered with the Chevy Camaro as well as the Pontiac Firebird.
Jay Leno is not only one of the most successful talk show hosts in the history of network television; he is also an avid car collector. He maintains a garage in Southern California housing over 200 fine collector cars and motorcycles. Leno has a passion for automobiles and does not simply house them as museum pieces; you can catch him tooling around the So Cal area in a different car, every day of the week.
Plymouth and the History of the Name
In 1928, Chrysler decided to create a low-price name badge to compete with powerhouses Ford and Chevrolet. The idea was that this line would have features that the other low-priced badges did not. The badge that Chrysler created was Plymouth, which lasted until 2001 when DaimlerChrysler decided to end the brand due to low sales.
Not Named for the Town, but for Farmers’ Twine
Some people dream of getting their hands on one of the brilliantly designed cars by Carroll Shelby, but their dreams fall short when they look at the price tag of his famous Cobras or Mustangs. There is good news for them; Mr. Shelby designed the Rootes Group Sunbeam Tiger, as well! In 1964, the Rootes Group was looking for a way to revamp the Sunbeam Alpine’s image from a “touring” car to a “sports car/roadster”. They wanted the car to be modeled after the recently successful Shelby Cobra. After some research and the decision to use the Ford’s 164hp 4.3L Windsor V8 engine, who was better to ask to design their car than the man himself, Carroll Shelby? Shelby agreed to design the car for $10,000. His prototype, along with the prototype built by racer and previous employee of Shelby America, Ken Miles, were sent to England for production.
1951 Chrysler Saratoga
From 1939 to 1960, with a few interruptions, Chrysler used the Saratoga nameplate as first the most expensive, full-sized eight-cylinder model, then as the least expensive eight-cylinder, and finally somewhere in between. The 1951 Chrysler Saratoga was positioned at the bottom of the company’s eight-cylinder cars, but was also made available with the famous HemiV8 engine.
In 1951, Chrysler introduced the Hemi to replace the basic straight-eight that had been in place as far back as 1930. The Hemi was not meant to be a racing engine, but soon enough its high-performance capabilities were realized and cars like the 1951 Chrysler Saratoga were being used in road races and drag races and eventually on the stock car circuit.
Personal Luxury Cars 101
Caught between a luxury car and a sport sedan, the personal luxury car was a favorite in the post-war era. The personal luxury car is typically a two-door sedan loaded with gadgets and goodies. It’s less expensive than the luxury cars typically made by manufacturers like BMW, Mercedes, and Bentley. Most of the personal luxury cars were made by American car manufacturers, although the luxurious Lincolns and Cadillacs were considered luxury cars.