Dodge Viper Pictures Location South Bend Motor Speedway, South Bend, Indiana 2018

“Muscle car” describes an American automobile with lots of power, modest weight, and blazing acceleration. The term was coined in 1964 for midsize Pontiacs equipped with a new performance option featuring a potent 389-cubic-inch V-8. The option turned a tame Tempest into a snarling GTO. Right off the showroom floor, a properly equipped “Goat” could run 0-60 mph in under 7.0 seconds — awesome performance in 1964.

America had produced fast, powerful cars since well before World War II. So had various European automakers. But most of these were expensive rarities, purchased by monied upper-crust types with a need for speed. The muscle car was a mass-market child of 1960s America, when youth was king and Detroit ruled the automotive world.

That world was changing radically by 1970, and muscle cars nearly vanished. But they came back in the early ’80s to begin an exciting new high-performance era that’s still going strong, thanks to huge technical progress since the 1964-70 “golden age.” Indeed, many modern muscle cars outgun their revered 1960s ancestors yet are thriftier with fuel, pollute much less, and are far superior for handling and safety.

This article tells the muscle car story, from the inception of the breed to its near disappearance to its revival in the form of today’s road rockets. The article also places the muscle car in the context of American culture and examines how Baby Boomer nostalgia for these factory hot rods is driving the price of some restored versions into six figures, and sometimes above. Here’s a sneak peek at the various sections:

The Birth of Muscle Cars
Learn how the speedy 1949 Oldsmobile Rocket 88 fired the public imagination and ignited a Detroit horsepower race that produced a slew of “factory hot rods.” In the 1950s, Chrysler unveiled its Hemi engine, and Chevrolet its small-block V-8. It was all a preview of muscle cars to come.

Early Muscle Cars
Follow the escalation of the performance wars into the early 1960s, as automakers vied for supremacy on racetracks, drag strips — and sales charts. Muscle cars broke into pop culture as the Beach Boys celebrated Chevy’s “real fine” 409, and there was no stopping the phenomenon.

The Golden Age of Muscle Cars: 1964, 1965
Gas was cheap, the economy strong, and change was in the air. Young hotbloods turned on to the fast, good-looking Pontiac GTO; competitors took note, and muscle cars soon rumbled out of most every showroom. This period delivered to the automotive world such hallowed names as the Mustang, 4-4-2, Barracuda, and Chevelle Super Sport. Read all about muscle cars in 1964 and 1965.

The Golden Age of Muscle Cars: 1966, 1967, 1968
Find out how big V-8s in midsize bodies became the defining muscle car formula. The mighty Street Hemi in intermediate Dodges and Plymouths was the recipe at its most potent. Pony cars also rose to the task, with the likes of the Shelby Mustang, Camaro Z-28, and even the AMX from American Motors. And the muscle car scene was shaken up with the arrival of the budget-priced Plymouth Road Runner.