American muscle! Everybody knows what this particular phrase refers to. It’s not about American jocks on steroids, no it’s about that good old brawny cars that doesn’t need any aftermarket kits to leave you in the dust. We have seen these types of cars in countless movies usually paired with a rough and rugged actor. Muscle car is a term used to refer to a variety of high performance automobiles. The term principally refers to American, Australian and to a lesser extent South African models from the late 1960s and early 1970s and generally describes a 2-door rear wheel drive mid-size car with a large, powerful V8 engine and special trim, intended for maximum torque on the street or in drag racing competition. It is distinguished from sports cars, which were customarily considered smaller, two-seat cars, or GTs, two-seat or 2+2 cars intended for high-speed touring and possibly road racing. High-performance full-size or compact cars are arguably excluded from this category, as are the breed of compact sports coupes inspired by the Ford Mustang. Other factors used in defining classic muscle cars are their age and country of origin.

The term "muscle car" did not enter common usage until after production of the cars had essentially ended. It is generally accepted that popular, widespread usage of the term took hold by the early to mid-1980s. During their heyday, print media usually referred to this class of vehicle as "supercars". There are many types of American muscle car to be had. Top choices are usually from ford, Chevrolet, Dodge and GM. We all know and love those GTOs, Mustangs and of course who could ever forget the Camaro.

There was a strange time warp at the 2006 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. The calendar said it was January 2006 but the cars on display made many think the clock had been turned back more than three and a half decades.

On display were a new Shelby Mustang, a new Dodge Challenger and a new Chevrolet Camaro. The last time all of those constellations aligned were a quarter-century plus 11 years ago.

But it appears the pony car era, created in the mid-1960s with the birth of the original Ford Mustang and then resurrected a couple of years ago with the rebirth of the '69 Mustang as a 2005 model, is galloping again. Not only did Chevrolet unveil its Camaro concept but the Chrysler Group unveiled a very retro Dodge Challenger concept.

While the smoothly curvaceous Challenger looked like it was simply reissued, though in a somewhat more modern size because of its Chrysler LX underpinnings, the Camaro concept had a more contemporary and angular appearance that looked cutting edge, and we mean that both literally and figuratively.

This was not a retro or reissued '69 Camaro. In fact, some might have wondered if this car was designed in the Chevy studio at all. It's edginess looked Cadillac inspired, and if all you caught was a quick glance through the crowd around the car, you might have thought you'd wandered out of the GM display and into the Mitsubishi stand.

GM says the Camaro concept is a "thoroughly modern interpretation of the classic sport coupe" with "dramatic design" and "responsive performance."

GM still is working on the rear-wheel-drive Zeta platform on which a future production Camaro would be built. The concept version was based on the same architecture as the Pontiac Solstice, though that platform was modified to accept a 400-horsepower, small-block V8 powertrain borrowed from the Chevrolet Corvette.

By using Active Fuel Management to shut off cylinders not needed for highway cruising, GM figures the modern Camaro could achieve 30 miles per gallon in such circumstances, yet still provide the off-the-line muscle that made the pony cars appealing in the first place. Putting that power to the pavement in the concept cars are huge 22-inch rear wheels, with 21s up front to provide steering control and with 14-inch disc brake rotors to provide stopping power.

While the exterior has a modern edge and attitude, the interior has more retro styling cues with two large main gauges and with other gauges located at the front of the center console.

GM says the concept "is intended to explore customer reaction to design and engineering elements that might lead to an all-new version of the Camaro," the Chevy pony car that ceased production after the 2002 model year.

The Camaro concept was unveiled at the 2006 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. We're looking for production to resume as soon as 2008.



Source:

autopartswarehouse.com

 

um....i think a repost...but info none the less