12 Muscle Car Stories You Can Tell at Any Car Show

Welcome to Muscle Car Fan. Every great muscle car has a story, and the best stories are the ones you can tell at a car show, a barbecue, or a family dinner. Today I have […]

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Welcome to Muscle Car Fan. Every great muscle car has a story, and the best stories are the ones you can tell at a car show, a barbecue, or a family dinner. Today I have twelve of them, from a rental car that raced, to a cartoon bird that sold a car, to a Dodge that lost its devil. You do not need to know anything about engines. You just need to enjoy a good story. Here is story number one.

#12: 1965 Ford Mustang

Story number one begins in April 1964, when Ford unveiled the Mustang to the world. Ford executive Lee Iacocca believed young buyers wanted a stylish, affordable, sporty car, and he was right. Ford took the humble Falcon underneath, wrapped it in a long hood and short deck body, and priced it low enough for almost anyone.

#11: 1966 Shelby GT350H

Story number two is the time a rental car company became a racing team. In 1966, Hertz teamed up with Carroll Shelby to offer a special Shelby GT350H, a black Mustang with gold stripes, for rent. For a price, an ordinary customer could drive a car that was close to a real race car.

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#10: 1969 Dodge Charger General Lee

Story number three belongs to a car with doors that never opened. The General Lee, the bright orange Dodge Charger from the TV show The Dukes of Hazzard, made its debut in 1979. The actors climbed in through the windows, because the doors were welded shut for the stunts.

#9: 1968 Plymouth Road Runner

Story number four is how a cartoon bird sold a car. In 1968, Plymouth wanted a cheap, no frills muscle car for young buyers. Instead of spending money on fancy trim, it spent on the engine, and it reportedly paid Warner Bros about fifty thousand dollars to use the Road Runner name and character.

#8: 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T

Story number five is a Dodge Challenger that became a symbol of freedom. In the 1971 film Vanishing Point, a driver named Kowalski takes a bet that he can deliver a white Challenger R/T from Denver to San Francisco in about fifteen hours. The car carries a big 440 engine and a four speed manual.

#7: 1969 Chevrolet Camaro Indy 500 Pace Car

Story number six takes place at the Indianapolis 500 in 1969, when a Chevrolet Camaro convertible in white with orange stripes led the field to the green flag. Former Indy winner Jim Rathmann drove the pace car. Chevrolet liked the moment so much that it offered a replica package to the public, with the same white paint, orange stripes, and a houndstooth interior.

#6: 1975 Ford Gran Torino

Story number seven is a red car with a white stripe that became a television star. In 1975, the show Starsky and Hutch introduced a bold red Ford Gran Torino with a big white vector stripe. Fans nicknamed it the Striped Tomato.

#5: 1968 Shelby GT500KR

Story number eight starts in 1968, when Ford slipped its new 428 Cobra Jet engine into the Shelby Mustang and called the result the GT500KR. The letters KR stood for King of the Road. Ford rated the Cobra Jet at 335 horsepower, a number many people believe was too low.

#4: 1970 Chevrolet El Camino SS 454

Story number nine is a car that was also a truck. The Chevrolet El Camino was built on the same platform as the Chevelle, with a pickup bed behind the cab. In 1970, Chevrolet offered it with the big 454 cubic inch V8, which turned a work truck into a muscle car with a cargo bed.

#3: 1968 Hurst Olds

Story number ten is a partnership between a car company and a shifter maker. In 1968, Oldsmobile teamed up with Hurst Performance to build the Hurst Olds, a special 442 with a big 455 cubic inch V8 rated at 390 horsepower. It wore white paint with gold stripes, and it came with a Hurst shifter, the famous brand that every drag racer wanted.

#2: 1971 Dodge Demon 340

Story number eleven is about a Dodge that lost its devil. In 1971, Dodge introduced the Demon, a compact muscle car with a 340 cubic inch V8 and a cartoon mascot of a little red devil holding a pitchfork. Some customers did not like the devil, and complaints led Dodge to rename the car the Dart Demon for 1972 and drop the mascot.

#1: 1970 Oldsmobile 442 W-30

And story number twelve is about three numbers. The name 442 started out in the mid 1960s as a code for what the car had: a four barrel carburetor, a four speed manual transmission, and dual exhausts. Later, when Oldsmobile added an automatic transmission, the company changed the meaning of the first number to refer to the engine size.

That is twelve muscle car stories you can now tell with confidence. Share the one you liked best with a friend who loves cars. Which story should I tell next? Leave it in the comments, and follow Muscle Car Fan so you never miss one.