When someone is talking about muscle cars, chances are they are referring to high-performance vehicles that were produced between 1964 and 1971 in America.  By definition, a muscle car is a mid-size car that has a large, powerful engine and special trim.  The engine is usually a V8 engine and is intended for maximum speed on the street or in a drag racing competition.

When muscle cars were factory produced, they were given a larger engine than the original design called for.  Pontiac is generally credited with creating the muscle car trend with its production of the 1964 GTO.  This marked the trend toward factory performance.  One of the biggest appeals of muscle cars was that they offered people with a variety of affordable cars that not only had a strong street performance, but that could also be used for racing.  In 1967 and 1968 Plymouth introduced the Road Runner, and Dodge made the Super Bee.  These were lower-cost versions of the standard muscle cars.

Muscle cars brought young people into the show rooms and got them into purchasing the car they really wanted to drive.  The power that muscle cars offered peaked in 1970 when a 450 hp engine was introduced.

Politics claimed that producing muscle cars with this much power was very irresponsible, especially since they targeted a younger crowd.  Because of this, the car insurance industry started charging punitive surcharges on all of the high-powered models.  This soon pushed these cars out of the price range for the younger buyers.  In 1971, the power of these cars began to drop and some cars were discontinued.  One of the last muscle cars remaining on the market was Pontiac’s Trans Am.  Even it was discontinued after 2002.

The muscle car has become a dying breed, but if you visit car shows the world over, you can still appreciate the beauty of these cars.  Car enthusiasts do their best to keep the love of these cars alive by restoring them for everyone to see.