Growth of the Muscle Car Trend

Hudson Hornet - Rocket 88's only competitor

Muscle Car 1949 Rocket 88 engine

In early 1960s, the popularity and performance of the muscle car grew, and Mopar (Dodge, Plymouth and Chrysler) and Ford battled for supremacy in drag racing. The Dodge Dart 1962 413 cu in (6.8 L) Max Wedge, for example, could run a 13 / 2 1/4-mile dragstrip at over 100 mph (161 km / h). 

1955 Chrysler C-300 - America's most powerful car - had 300 horsepower

America's fastest 1957 sedan - Rambler Rebel had lightweight unibody construction and V8 engine

In 1964, Chevrolet and Pontiac muscle cars, General Motors' lineup boasted Oldsmobile, Buick and fielded an entry Muscle Car, a year later. Ford had its 427 cu in (7.0 L) Thunderbolts, and Mopar unveiled the 426 cu in (7.0 L) Hemi engine in 1964 and 1965. 

The Pontiac GTO was an option package that included Pontiac 389 cu in (6.4 L) V8 engine, floor changed from transmission with special finishing and Hurst shift link. The GTO became a model in its own right in 1966. The project, spearheaded by Pontiac division president John DeLorean, technically violated the GM policy limiting its smaller cars to 330 cu in (5.4 L) displacement, but the new model proved more popular than expected and inspired GM and its competitors to produce many imitators. The GTO itself was a response to Plymouth and the Dodge Polara 500 Sport Fury, which had been reduced to intermediates in 1962, at a time when greater was considered better.

1970 Plymouth GTX 440

factory-modified 1970 AMC Rebel ran 14.4-second quarter mile in stock trim

Though late to enter the market for muscle cars American Motors was produced "an impressive array of performance cars in a relatively short time," said Motor Trend. "The first signs of AMC performance came in 1965, when the dramatic if ungainly Rambler Marlin fastback was introduced to combat the Ford Mustang and Plymouth Barracuda." Although the Marlin was a failure in terms of sales and initial performance, AMC muscle car gained some credibility in 1967 when he made both Marlin and "more pedestrian" Rebel available with its new 280 hp (209 kW; PS 284), 343 cu in (5.6 L) "Typhoon" V8. In 1968 the company offered two pony car muscle car contenders:. The Javelin and its truncated variant, AMX

Road-legal drag racer - with 427 V8 in lightened midsize Ford Fairlane body

1966 Pontiac GTO is an example of a classic muscle car

By the standards of the total production of Detroit, which had value in publicity and bragging rights, sales of true muscle cars were relatively modest. Competition between manufacturers meant that buyers had the choice of more powerful engines of power, in 1970 a war was ended, with some models of advertising, as much as 450 hp (336 kW, 456 PS).