The demise of the muscle car...?

**MosportGreen66** · #1 04-10-2006, 03:17 AM

Let’s get a good sticky discussion going on here guys...

What caused the demise of the muscle car?

Soaring gas prices and the major gas crisis?

Increasing insurance prices that lead to a decrease in consumer demand?

The increase in pollution and smog in major cities causing new technologies to installed on cars?

I'm curious to see if any period magazines reported the change in performance or decrease in sales?

Does anyone have the Super Stock and Drag Ill. from 1972 (I think) where they ask the question, "Is the Super Car Dead?" The article has a second generation Camaro on it (a purple ish color) and it’s on a field with people around it -- Sort of a grave yard theme. Someone should post it up!

Anyone else know of any publications that reported the downfall of the hi-po car?

This should be interested...

-Dan

**427TJ** · #2 04-10-2006, 03:55 AM

I think the insurance companies led the charge through the mid to late '60s, followed by the onset of state and then federal pollution control regulations, and then the 1973 gas crisis helped nail the coffin lid closed.

**kwhizz** · #3 04-10-2006, 04:10 AM

Depending when your "Time" was, we got Spoiled with the pre-smog days when pollution control was the addition of a PCV valve, and when the Smog stuff came on the cars, air pumps, Vapor cannisters, TCS etc, it just wasn't the same.......Then the Insurance Issues,and finally the Gas Crunch.........Nowdays it seems that the Pollution stuff is worth it's weight in Gold.......My $.02

Ken

mr396 · #4 04-10-2006, 04:13 AM

Low compression.

SBR · #5 04-10-2006, 04:42 AM

[ QUOTE ]
Low compression.

[/ QUOTE ] Which was required with the cleaner and lower octane unleaded gasoline.

joey · #6 04-10-2006, 06:34 AM

babby boom no money for fast cars just milk money

indyjps · #7 04-10-2006, 04:39 PM

didnt live it but i think the emissions and gas prices combined. when the factory went to low compression it killed the performance, then came all the landua kits, focus on handling instead of straight line perf. and luxury to make up the difference.

**ANDY M** · #8 04-10-2006, 07:14 PM

Thank Nationwide Insurance Co.

They decided, based upon statistics they kept, that they weren't on your side when it came to HiPo cars. Too many wrecks, too many tickets, too many lawsuits.

Life comes at you fast.

The other insurance companies all followed soon after.
High risk=low profits. The price of insurance was often as much or more than the monthly payment, and unless you were in the higher income brackets, the reality of economics took first position.
The baby boomers who bought these cars also got into the family mode, as attested to many times by members of this site who retired their rides.
The van craze of the 70's also contributed, because trucks had different emission rules that were much easier to skirt.

You could still tweek a truck with a small block, and there were other things you could do with a van...

I am sure there were other things, but I forget what they were, or was, or whatever.

Canucklehead · #9 04-10-2006, 08:06 PM

With the demise of the muscle car also brought the covertable to an end. I could understand that the insurance companies killed that for safety reasons, but why was it ok to bring them back?. Are they really any safer or was there another reason why they were axed?

**ANDY M** · #10 04-10-2006, 08:24 PM

They just weren't selling.