Free Essay

Muscle Cars

In: Computers and Technology

Submitted By aleharrington
Words 642
Pages 3
Muscle Cars
It has been said that racing began once the second car was built. NASCAR started the “race” of the American muscle car in 1947. Due to the growing interest in power and speed, General Motors introduced the 1949 Oldsmobile Rocket 88. America’s first high compression overhead-valve V8 was put into the light body of the Oldsmobile, creating the first muscle car. American’s take pride in owning the biggest, most eccentric vehicles. Due to the gas prices in other countries such as Europe and Asia, they are less likely able to afford these large, gas thirsty vehicles. Americans have been infatuated with making cars faster and even more powerful since the Rocket 88, therefore, the muscle car is a huge symbol of American culture.
Muscle cars were being produced by many different manufacturers in the early 1950’s, including Chevrolet, Chrysler, Dodge, Ford and Pontiac. In the 1950’s bigger was considered better. These muscle cars gained weight and inches with every year that past. Gaining weight meant losing speed, the cars required larger engines, but still weren’t fast enough for the buying market. Each manufacturer had a different idea to enhance performance and boost power. Chevy only offered fuel injection, Pontiac offered fuel injection and “tri-power”, and Ford offered supercharging. Dodge went in at a different angle and offered a power up “D-500” engine for every 1956 model they had. In 1955, Chrysler C-300 AKA “America’s Most Powerful Car” became the star of NASCAR with its blend of hemi power and luxury.
Factory-sponsored racing and advertising came to a screeching halt in 1957. Though Automobile Manufacturers Association publicly agreed to ban everything muscle, they continued under-the-table engineering. After a short three years, the ban was lifted and “big blocks” were a must on and off of the track. The Pontiac GTO was invented in 1964and became the standard for muscle car imitators. Pontiac expected to sell 5000 cars but instead sold over six times that in just one year. It is clear that Americans were in love with muscle. Each car reached for more power and personality than the next.
Muscle mania struck a chord with the US, it was uniquely American. As our cars grew, our rival country cars got smaller. In Japan, WWII greatly impacted fuel availability. Unable to use his car, Soichiro Honda came up with the novel idea of putting an engine on his bicycle. In 1964, Due to oil restrictions and cost Honda Motors had become the worlds’ largest motorcycle manufacturer and Asian car companies focused on fuel efficient cars. When looking around at the cars in America you do find a big Japanese and European market on the road. I asked a couple of people why they own Japanese and European cars. "I like European cars because they handle better and give you the classy look American cars lack. However, I did own a mustang and if you are looking for pure power and fun you have to go American we are second to none In the power to price category" Joel Edmunds.
The muscle car is as American as Old Glory. Our culture including, music, movies and ads have including muscle cars since the 1960’s. Many classics such as “The Dukes of Hazard”, “Bullitt” and “Vanishing Point” were inspired by these cars.
In conclusion, American cars are big and powerful and I find that our citizens have the same attitude. Our culture does not accept second place and neither do our cars. We see something we want, we get it and when you mess with America the power and pride ring true. Just like our citizens, we make cars that you can be proud of. Muscle cars are a large part of American culture, the pedal hits the metal and we show other cars what power is.

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Comparing Muscle Cars

...Apples to Oranges; Comparing muscle cars to sport utility vehicles Have you reached a point in your life where you had to sell your favorite car for something not so appealing? In this essay, I am going to analyze then explain some of the differences between two cars I have owned. One car is a 1979 Chevrolet Camaro and the other is a 2014 Subaru Outback. I will cover three subjects that contrast or show differences between these two cars based on changes in my life and current needs. Both muscle cars and sport utility vehicles make excellent everyday vehicles, but an appropriate choice depends on the owner’s lifestyle, finances, and weather. Sport utility vehicles like the Subaru Outback are flexible and less expensive to maintain. When it...

Words: 1508 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Fan Shroud Research Paper

...Chevrolet Chevelle, GM made some design changes that gave it a longer hood and shorter deck for a sleeker body. In 1969, the Chevelle was heralded as the most popular mid-sized car in American. These cars are still as popular now as they were then, and the audience is about the same; it is those who love power who still drive and restore these cars. When you restore your Chevelle, then replace worn out parts like the fan shroud. H&H Classic carries restoration parts for your Chevelle, Malibu or El Camino. The fan shroud protects the fan from flying debris and protects you from whirling fan blades when you have the hood open. This part can become damaged...

Words: 1962 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

American Muscle Speech

...Title: American muscle Purpose: After listening to my speech my audience will be familiar with the three American muscles of the 60’s. Thesis: Although there were many American Muscles cars created in the 60’s only three were widely recognized. I. Introduction A. Attention Getter: A loud roar is heard in the distance as the driver revs his engine. Eight cylinders of Intense power with its five speed transmission. Cars that are meant to be raced and compared to each other. In an adrenaline pumping race of performance. According to Fast Muscle by Gabbard and Gabbard, “The decade began with Ford, GM, and Chrysler in an expanding cubic inch and horsepower war. C. Thesis statement: Although there were many American Muscle cars created in the 60’s only three were widely recognized. D. Credibility statement: 1. I have worked and studied American muscles since I was 11 years old. 2. I have read and have done further research to develop this speech. E. Preview of main points: 1. Today I will discuss the muscles cars of Ford, 2. GM 3. and Chrysler Transition: “Now let us start our engine with Ford in the American muscle race.” II. Body A. Ford motor company 1. History I. Ford motor company was created in June 16, 1903 when some investor decided to sign article of incorporation for Ford motor company. II. The company was founded by Henry Ford Sr. ...

Words: 970 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Networking

...A PART OF ME Hello, my project is about classic cars, and trucks restoration. This project may seem to some as a simple project to report on. If you have had the opportunity to be a part of a restoration project directly or indirectly, you may understand the passion that comes with a project like so, if you do not have the passion before the project it is likely you will develop it sometime during. I want to take this time and explain to you how easy it was for me to figure out early in life how much I love muscle cars. I really like some of the newer aero dynamic looking vehicles, but combining the new look and the old muscle car look really brought back a feeling of a personal touch “a part of me” to something special to be admired by many. There use to be a time when men and boys did things together that women and girls would not do. And there use to be a time when women and girls did things together that men and boys would not do. I remember a simple little game me and some of my friends use to play, it was called counting cars. Every time a car came by that I was passionate about I would say hot diggady dogg that’s my car. As time went by daily we would get a friendly honk from various drivers and an occasional burn out, to me and my friends this was well worth the all day waiting and waving. During the early 70’s computer games were at a early stage of development, the graphics were not at a mature stage as they are now. In this era families manufactured sources of...

Words: 1492 - Pages: 6

Free Essay

Product Critique

...that is versatile across the entire automobile spectrum. Chevrolet offers any type of car that is on the consumer market, with the Camaro as their affordable sport car selling at a basic price of $23,000. The Camaro is an affordable and economical rear-wheel-drive performance sports car with a V-6 or V-8 engine. The Camaro is a two door coupe that seats four people comfortably with an estimated 30 miles per gallon. The Camaro can be classified as a red ocean as it competes directly with other retro-inspired muscle cars, including the Dodge Challenger and Ford Mustang. This car is geared for optimal customer user experience. The powerful engine and old American muscle car style gives the user a full exclusive sports car experience. For Chevrolet, safety is extremely important to their brand. The innovation of having high performance headlights with multiple air bags helped give the car the rating of a perfect NHTSA Crash Test Ratings of 5 stars. II. The Chevy Camaro is targeted and segmented to a specific market because there is a particular customer group who is interested in this product. For starters, Chevy cannot start marketing and targeting families with children because this car would be impractical for that situation. It would be just as impractical for Chevy to target businesses and market this car as a flexible all work condition vehicle. This car is clearly a sports car, and should be marketed and presented to customers as so. Chevy does The intended...

Words: 289 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

Camaros

...preview of their next generation car, the Camaro. There were two main reasons why General Motors came out with this car. First, General Motors was trying to create a new type of car to satisfy consumer’s desire for a strong and faster type of car. Second, it was General Motor’s way to compete with Ford’s new Mustang. When the Camaro first came out, it was classified as a compact car. However, they later changed the classification to a pony car, and it has been seen more as a touring car, sports car, or muscle car. Along with the changes in names, there have also been many changes in style, technology, features, and specifications. General Motors is now in production of their 5th generation Chevrolet Camaro. On January 6th, 2006, General Motors started brainstorming ideas and concepts for this new generation car with a new body, wheelbase, engine, transmission, suspension, and much more. After two years of designing, engineering, manufacturing, and problems, on July 21, 2008, General Motors officially unveiled the production of the 2010 5th generation Camaro. This new generation Camaro was able to enhance or surpass most, if not all, of the 4th generation’s features. Starting off with the body, the 5th generation created a slicker, more aerodynamic, and arguably a more appealing body. Then they created a 110.5 in wheelbase, which was 9 in longer than the previous generation, which gives more stability at higher speeds as well as helps the car preform higher on inclined and...

Words: 818 - Pages: 4

Free Essay

Cars

... What I find to be awesome is cars. Cars are the best thing to ever happen to this world. Where would we be without cars? Cars are the signature to most advancement. Cars are fast. Cars are classic. Cars are just amazing. I’m sure most people don’t ever stop to admire a car. Cars are amazing if you actually know about them and know what you like. There is amazing cars all over the world I have lots of cars I really like. Cars are an art. Nothing is better than the bond you can make by building your own car. It’s a whole other feeling. Cars are amazing. For three reasons. First reason is that they are fast. In my opinion of a good fast car. I would get a 1967 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500. Just because that’s my style. This car is rolling fast yea there is faster imports, but this is classic, friendly but crazy fast. This is a beast on 4 wheels. 271 horse power you bet its fast. This car goes from 0-60 in 4.3 seconds. This is just one of the millions of cars out there. Cars are legit the best past time because of their incredible speed. Another fast car is the 1987 Grand National. This car is fast and slick, you need a getaway car this is your car. Its precise steering with the right driver you can drive miracles. It goes from 0-60 in 4.8 seconds. No matter what car you have you get or are thinking of getting how fast is it or how fast does it go is always one of the questions you ask. Okay so the second reason I think Cars are amazing is because they are...

Words: 676 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Benefits of Regular Exercise

...The Effects of Exercise on Health The Benefits of a Regular Exercise Program Abstract This paper will provide information pertaining to exercise and the benefits of regular exercise on health and wellness. The information provided will describe the health benefits and identify the physiological responses that occur from participating in a regular exercise program. The importance of warm up and cool downs before and after exercise, flexibility, and resistance training will be the focus for this paper. Each topic will be explained to provide a basic knowledge of each topic. This paper will also analyze the health consequences of a sedentary lifestyle. Health Benefits Regular exercise provides many physical and mental health benefits. Exercise decreases coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and some forms of cancer. It also lowers blood pressure, increases coronary heart disease biomarkers, enhance insulin sensitivity, and weight management. Exercise in older adults preserves bone mass and lowers the risk for falls. Prevention of and improving mild to moderate depressive disorders and anxiety are some mental health benefits from exercising. Engaging in a physically active lifestyle enhances feelings of “energy”, well-being, quality of life, and cognitive decline and dementia (American College of Sports Medicine, 2011). Physiological Responses Exercise intensity is an important determinant of the physiological responses to exercise training. The...

Words: 950 - Pages: 4

Free Essay

Understanding and Preventing Back Pain

...common medical issues that people have, affecting most people at least once in their lifetime. The spine consists of two main parts; the spine and the back muscles. Your spine consists of bones called vertebras which are joined together by facet joints in which each vertebra has four. Separating the vertebras are soft intervertebral discs. These discs allow your spine to move as well as act as a cushion to absorb shock and vibration that is caused by walking, running, and jumping, among other daily actions. Inside the vertebrae, is your spinal cord. The vertebrae helps to protect the spinal cord from getting damaged. Nerves branch off to various organs within the body, carrying signals from the brain to the organs, muscles, and extremities. Nerves also carry signals from different parts of your body to the brain when it sensation. Then you have your back muscles which are attached to the spine to help keep it stabilized. So as you can see, your back is very important, and keeping it strong will help to protect your spinal cord. Back pain can be caused by a variety of different reasons. The most common cause of back pain is muscles spasms. Muscles spasms are caused by an awkward movement of the back creating a spasm causing the back to lock and cause severe pain. (The Patient Education Institute, Inc., 2011) A muscle spasm can occur by an awkward bend or twist, simple sneeze or cough, or lifting a heavy object incorrectly. Back pain tends to get better over time, but...

Words: 1226 - Pages: 5

Free Essay

Zach

...Zach gateley B.1 10/13/14 Life of Zach Being Zach has its advantages and its disadvantages. Zach was born 6 weeks early his body was not fully developed. When he came out of his mother he had a big bubble where his belly button is and it had some of his intestines in it among other parts. Once he was born he had to get surgery right away. He was in urgent car for 2 weeks his parents could only visit him 2 minutes every day because the doctors said they can bring illnesses in that can kill me. After I got out of urgent care the doctors said Zach has a rare syndrome called beckwith-wiedemann syndrome. This syndrome is an over growth syndrome, now before you say that’s why he is so tall it’s not true. Zach wasn’t supposed to be this tall at a young age. He was going to be tall no matter what. But with the syndrome affected his eleventh chromosome. That is his muscle chromosome. It effected everything that involves muscle and makes it stronger and bigger. Zach got lucky that it only affected that. But not as lucky as most people are. He still went to the hospital every month for checkups and stuff like that. When Zach turn 2 his tongue grow ginormous so big actual it couldn’t even fit in his mouth. His parents were told if anything was to happen like this they have to let it be until my body grows into it. But Zach’s tongue was getting so big and strong it was pushing his jaw out words. His parents were worried so they took to the hospital. The doctors didn’t know what to...

Words: 861 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Science

...Regular exercise can reduce the risk and symptoms of more than 20 physical and mental health conditions, and can also slow down how quickly body ages. Exercise is, without a doubt, one of the most powerful ways to improve health. Exercise also slows down the rate of aging itself, providing perhaps the closest example of a real life fountain of youth as we will ever find. Research shows that regular physical activity can help reduce your risk for several diseases and health conditions and improve overall quality of life. Regular physical activity can help to protect from the following health problems. * Heart Disease and Stroke. Daily physical activity can help prevent heart disease and stroke by strengthening the heart muscle, lowering blood pressure, raising high-density lipoprotein (HDL) levels (good cholesterol) and lowering low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels (bad cholesterol), improving blood flow, and increasing heart's working capacity. Optimizing each of these factors can provide additional benefits of decreasing the risk for other vascular disease. Inactive people have almost double the risk of having a heart attack compared with those who are regularly physically active. * High Blood Pressure. Regular physical activity can reduce blood pressure in those with high blood pressure levels. Physical activity reduces body fat, which is associated with high blood pressure. It can also help to prevent high blood pressure from developing. High blood pressure is one...

Words: 997 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Fun Stuff

...Over the past few years, I’ve really begun to feel age. I feel it in my left eye, which sometimes leaks spontaneously—I swipe at it with the back of my wrist and people take me to be weeping. I feel it in my new habit of swinging both legs out of the car at the same time, apparently in unconscious response to a directive from the part of my brain that monitors muscle strength and balance. Having risen to my feet, I feel it in an embarrassing arthritic hobble that takes me 10 seconds to walk off, hoping all the while that other parking lot crossers aren’t noticing, though several of them seem to be suffering from the same condition, or worse. I hasten to add that though my muscles may be weakening and my joints stiffening, I’m not infirm. I’m as vigorous as I ever was, and reasonably healthy. Mentally, I’m quite intact, though my memory, always bad, grows worse. People tell me I seem younger than my years. But as I say, I’m feeling age. I feel it in my invisibility to strangers. I haven’t been nubile for many years, and never got many glances when I was. I didn’t mind that, or told myself I didn’t. I saw my ordinary looks as protective coloration, a duck blind behind which I could comfortably observe and take my shots. But I’m not at all sure I like this new kind of anonymity, which is an absolute dismissal. Even in contextualized situations like readings and receptions, eyes slide past me; internal shutters fail to click. When I was 30, I felt sure that a paradoxical...

Words: 413 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

Chronic Back Pain

...wrong in this area, the nerves and tendons attaching to and moving through them are affected. Pain, numbness, tingling and loss of feeling or movement can result. How the damage occurs is key to treating the problem. Most chronic problems develop from acute or one time conditions that are not addressed. There are many contributing factors that increase the chances your spine can be injured and become a long term or chronic condition. Because our vertebrae are bones, they are made up of salts which are minerals. The tendons and muscles that attach to them are elastic and they need to be flexible yet strong. Many people do not take the time to “feed” their spine and stretch their muscles. Feeding your spine mineral supplements along with vitamin D can help keep your vertebrae strong. Over the years the bones can degrade, and these minerals and vitamin are the hammers and nails that keep your bones strong. What exercise does for the muscles and tendons, minerals can do for the bones. I believe the major reason an acute injury to the back becomes chronic is because of these deficiencies. Our bones are starving. Weekend warriors are often subject to back pain because of these deficiencies. The two days off become a marathon of sorts and the body is not prepared to move so much after five days at a desk. Trying to finish the “to do” list of...

Words: 939 - Pages: 4

Free Essay

Critil Care

...weakness of the skeletal (voluntary) muscles of the body. The name myasthenia gravis, which is Latin and Greek in origin, literally means "grave muscle weakness." With current therapies, however, most cases of myasthenia gravis are not as "grave" as the name implies. In fact, for the majority of individuals with myasthenia gravis, life expectancy is not lessened by the disorder. The hallmark of myasthenia gravis is muscle weakness that increases during periods of activity and improves after periods of rest. Certain muscles such as those that control eye and eyelid movement, facial expression, chewing, talking, and swallowing are often, but not always, involved in the disorder. The muscles that control breathing and neck and limb movements may also be affected. Myasthenia gravis is caused by a defect in the transmission of nerve impulses to muscles. It occurs when normal communication between the nerve and muscle is interrupted at the neuromuscular junction - the place where nerve cells connect with the muscles they control. Normally when impulses travel down the nerve, the nerve endings release a neurotransmitter substance called acetylcholine. Acetylcholine travels through the neuromuscular junction and binds to acetylcholine receptors which are activated and generate a muscle contraction.                In myasthenia gravis, antibodies block, alter, or destroy the receptors for acetylcholine at the neuromuscular junction which prevents the muscle contraction from occurring. Individuals...

Words: 7043 - Pages: 29

Free Essay

Ece 101 Learning Domain and Development Milestones

...with all domains and to help them with their developments. The physical domain is best reached in the dramatic play area the children are able to move large muscle groups as well as their small muscle groups and their affective domain. Their hands are cooking, mixing, setting table, or having dinner at the table. The large group has the possibility of use to set the table or change the clothes on the “babies”. The next best to help aid the children is the block area (this you will see in the bottom left corner). The block area has blocks of all textures, shapes, and sizes and sets on a rug with colors of blue, red, green and yellow shapes. While the children learn to use their small group’s muscles, more in this center, their image is boarding by the fact there is also cars and trucks in the area and they can make cities, towns, bridges, or racetracks. A good example of the physical development is when four of the students decided to “cook” dinner one afternoon while playing in the kitchen center. the first little girl said to one of the boys that it was time for dinner and he had better have had his homework done cause he had to set the table. The young and other little boy “helped” him clear the table and “set” the table for dinner. These students were able to use their physical development (large and small muscles) to place and lift items around the table. While at the same time them displaying their...

Words: 656 - Pages: 3