Changes

Some car enthusiasts cite the '57 [[Rambler Rebel]] or even the '49 Oldsmobile Rocket 88 and '55 Chrysler C300 as very early muscle cars, but the Rambler had four rather than two doors and lacked a sleek or "cool" design.

Some car enthusiasts cite the '57 [[Rambler Rebel]] or even the '49 Oldsmobile Rocket 88 and '55 Chrysler C300 as very early muscle cars, but the Rambler had four rather than two doors and lacked a sleek or "cool" design.

These cars fell out of favor due to environmental restrictions and oil and gas shortages in the 1970s, but more recently, there has been a renewed interest in the production of muscle cars in the [[United States]].  Environmentalists caused the end of the muscle car era by castrating these amazing vehicles and led the way to a series of limp-wristed imitations that paled in comparison with their competitors and led to a take over of Japanese and European vehicles, proving that government should stay out of automobile design.   

Muscle cars were regulated out of business as part of the emasculation of [[American]] society, and the oil and gas shortages of the 1970s put additional pressure against fuel inefficiency.  Environmentalists castrated muscle cars and led the way to a series of limp-wristed imitations that paled in comparison with their competitors, and led to a takeover of the American market by Japanese and European vehicles.  This illustrated that government should stay out of automobile design.   

These European and Japanese (rice rockets) vehicles were never as good as the muscle cars they replaced, using turbochargers to get more horsepower and looking ugly. The Ford Mustang, having had an unbroken line of production since its introduction in 1964, was redesigned with classic muscle car styling and enhanced performance for the 2005 model year. Since then, Chevrolet has reintroduced the Camaro and Dodge has resurrected the Charger and Challenger, all of which are high-performance vehicles with classic muscle car styling. Modern muscle cars, however, differ from their classic counterparts in some significant ways. Most of the modern cars are much lighter, thus enhancing the power-to-weight ratio of the vehicle, but this has come at the cost of building these cars on unibody platforms rather than body-on-frame, thus dramatically altering the handling, driving experience, and durability of the modern cars. Relative to the classic cars, modern muscle cares have few, if any, chrome elements.  

These European and Japanese (rice rockets) vehicles were never as good as the muscle cars they replaced, using turbochargers to get more horsepower and looking ugly. The Ford Mustang, having had an unbroken line of production since its introduction in 1964, was redesigned with classic muscle car styling and enhanced performance for the 2005 model year. Since then, Chevrolet has reintroduced the Camaro and Dodge has resurrected the Charger and Challenger, all of which are high-performance vehicles with classic muscle car styling. Modern muscle cars, however, differ from their classic counterparts in some significant ways. Most of the modern cars are much lighter, thus enhancing the power-to-weight ratio of the vehicle, but this has come at the cost of building these cars on unibody platforms rather than body-on-frame, thus dramatically altering the handling, driving experience, and durability of the modern cars. Relative to the classic cars, modern muscle cares have few, if any, chrome elements.