Plymouth Roadrunner: The Two Faced Muscle Car

I miss the Roadrunner. Yes, I know it was produced in the '70s while I was born in the '90s, but I am very much a classic car lover and I love to look back at old models. I have seen many Roadrunners at car shows and have fell in love with their styling. They have a larger body style than most but compete nicely with the Charger and Chevelle of that time.

Then a new version of the Roadrunner was born. The Plymouth Superbird. As I remember it was used highly in the early days of NASCAR by Richard Petty. For those who don't know, the Superbird is a Plymouth Roadrunner that has a nose addition and a large wing for more downdraft in racing. Dodge had the same idea when the Charger went into NASCAR. The Charger got the nose addition, the large wing, and a name change to the Dodge Charger Daytona. Concept drawings have been made for a new Roadrunner and Superbird. But as of right now, the Roadrunner and Superbird are muscle cars that are dead. If your an auto enthusiast and collect cars, then they are very much alive.

Plymouth 'Cuda

'Cuda, Roadrunner, and Superbird.... you will be forever missed (by auto enthusiasts anyway). Plymouth was an auto manufacturer that was a division of Mopar, and had some of the nicest looking muscle cars, well to me anyway. Plymouth had three main models that were ll produced around the same time, but one that really stands out to me is the almighty Plymouth Barracuda. The Barracuda (also known as just the 'Cuda) was a beautiful car that I mix up with the Dodge Challenger at first glance. Don't judge me, they look alike. Although my brother begs to differ. I think the body styles look almost identical. That's my opinion and I'm sticking to it. The 'Cuda had its glory days in the early '70s with the '70-'71 'Cuda. It became even more popular with the infamous 426 HEMI as the powerplant in the upper edition.

As long as I live I will always remember the 'Cuda, even though I was born in the '90s I still know what the 'Cuda is. Plymouth may no longer be producing cars, but with the way many auto manufacturers are bringing back cars, with some whose names have not been on the production line since the '60s or '70s, with the retro styling of their older ancestors for one last go around. I believe that Plymouth could come back to life if a new model of the 'Cuda were to come out today. As of now the 'Cuda may be dead, but the concept art is certainly alive. I only have a few last words for this post..... BRING BACK THE 'CUDA!! That is all.

From High Powered Muscle to High Powered Family Cruiser: The Dodge Charger

Ahhh the Dodge Charger. One of my many favorites of the original muscle car era. The Dodge Charger had a great run with the muscle cars back in the late 60s early 70s. These Chargers were the powerhouses with the original 426 HEMI engine. The HEMI models were the high end performance package and are now VERY rare today. Good luck finding an original HEMI model at a car auction for very cheap. The First generation of Chargers started in 1966 and were produced up until 1978. The second generation, did not resemble the Charger at all. To me, the 80s were the major downfall in original muscle cars. The styling went to a whole new level and the Chargers ended looking like a cross between the Mustangs and Camaros of the time. I'm happy this generation didn't last long, but I was still hoping for the Charger name to come back with dominance.

So what do we end up getting? A Dodge Charger with four doors. I'm sorry but the original Charger was no where near having four doors. Chrysler Corporation, you failed on keeping the Charger a respectable muscle car, but I do have to applaud your idea to give the new "Family Cruiser" Charger the option to have a HEMI V-8 as the engine. Very nicely done on that part. I would say that overall, the Charger as a muscle car is dead.

The Mopar Challenge: The Dodge Challenger

The American auto industry wouldn't be with same without the Mopars. Ford, Chevy, and Mopar have always been competing against each other for years. Their competition with one another started back in the age of the muscle cars. Dodge had some nice muscle cars, but one that competed heavily with the Mustang and Camaro was the Dodge Challenger. The Challenger may have started in the 1970s after the Mustang and Camaro, but the car itself was enough to compete along side them. The Challenger did not live long though and only has three generations unlike the five of the Camaro and Mustang. The first generation was from 1970-74. The second generation wasn't even called the Challenger. It was named the Daytona. Then why exactly is it the second generation of the Challenger? I have no idea, the Chrysler Corporation can never make up their mind on anything and tend to confuse me. Although they have made some very one-of-a-kind muscle cars in my opinion. Back to the main topic... the second generation did not last long.

Only in 2008 will we see the ACTUAL return of the original Challenger name with a very retro styled car that has many of the same body lines as the original 1970 Challengers. With this the Challenger is able to compete with the new Mustangs and Camaros. The Detroit Three are able to compete with each other once again with muscle cars with their new creations. Which one will be more popular? You tell me. But overall, the Challenger remained alive as a muscle car.

Ford Mustang: The Camaro's Rival

The Ford Mustang is all around a pony car (if you don't know that is another name for muscle car). Like the Camaro, the mustang has five generations up to this day. The first generation of Mustangs were also produced in the 1960s with the first one being produced in 1964 1/2. Why they did half is beyond me but the "1/2" didn't stick long. The whole intention of the Mustang was to make it a sporty little car with a lot of power, but Ford designed the Mustang to appeal to women.

Like the Camaro, the Mustang's overall appearance altered over the years and the 80s and 90s brought a sporty little compact car that had the option of having a V-8 under the hood from factory. From the beginning, Mustangs were around before the Camaros were. Even the fifth generation Mustang was first produced in 2005 as compared to 2010 for the Camaro. Mustang really started the trend with bringing back old bits of design from the old Mustangs that people really liked. The Mustang has many distinctive body lines that resemble older versions. The grille, cabin area, side air intakes, and even the brake light design are all resemblances of earlier body designs. Like the Camaro, the Mustang has remained a muscle car and is still going on with that trend. Nice job Ford.

The Evolution of the Chevrolet Camaro

As of now the Camaro is a car with five generations. The Camaro was first produced in the 1960s with the first generation Camaro. Each new decade brought out a new generation. From the 1970 to 1981, The second generation Camaro was in production with the third generation going into production in 1982 to 1992. From 1993 to 2002 the fourth generation of the Camaro took over the production lines. The styling from generation to generation varied significantly with the third and fourth generations looking very sporty and futuristic for the time period in which they were produced.

The fifth generation Camaro is the newest to the family of the Camaros and started production in 2010. It was said that after the fourth generation that the Camaro would no longer be in production. In my opinion, you can't keep something as amazing as the Camaro off the street and let the Mustangs take all the glory. It would just be un-American to let Ford win. The great thing about the fifth generation Camaro is that the styling of the body was greatly influenced by older versions of the Camaro. Many similarities can be seen in the styling, but the overall design is still unique enough to keep it distinct. The Camaro was and still is VERY alive as a muscle car. Kudos to you Chevrolet.

Muscle Cars

As far as I am concerned, muscle cars are more than alive. They never really died. I know that back in the 60s and 70s, the muscle cars were cars like: the Dodge Charger, the Plymouth Barracuda, the Plymouth Road Runner, the Chevrolet Camaro, Ford Mustangs, and the Chevrolet Corvettes. Yes, Mustangs and Camaros were even considered muscle cars. Today the Mustang and Camaro fall under the Sports Car category to most people. Honestly to me, the Mustang and Camaro never stopped being muscle cars. Everything overall on the cars may have changed, like the material of the body or overall styling, but the cars still have options for higher performance like V-8 engines for example. The 80s, 90s and early 2000s brought many different style changes but now the auto manufacturers are starting to design the cars with the old styles in mind, using some of the old body lines. The 2010 Camaro, 2010 Mustang, and 2010 Challenger are just examples of cars with styling resembling some of the first generations.