History Making Muscle Cars

Muscle cars—they all have a certain allure that has garnered attention around the world for decades. They’re depicted in movies, used in commercials and raced in venues across the globe. There are many history making muscle cars, but for this week’s post, we’re focusing on three all-time favorites that we see all the time in our auto restoration shop. While there is a blurry line for many between muscle cars and hot rods, we love both—so one of these may just fall into the hot rod category for some classic car lovers.

These are just three classics among many that had an impact on the culture and manufacture of big engine cars. Tell us your favorite history makers if you think we missed some important ones.

1. '49 Oldsmobile Rocket 88 - You have to give credit to a pioneer even if it doesn't stack up against later generations. The Rocket '88 was built in response to the post World War II hot rod craze. It took 12 seconds to reach 60 miles per hour. If we had dyno tested it, we bet it would have topped out at 135 bhp. But in its day, it was a beast.

2. '68 Dodge Charger – You can ask someone who doesn't know a single thing about muscle cars to name one and there is a good chance they will say, Charger. This bad boy cut the Rocket 88's 0-60 time in half. It was the bad guy’s car in Bullitt, and a year later, it became the one and only General Lee. History on top of history.

3. 2013 Shelby GT500 - We started with something old and we'll finish with something new. This car is an embarrassment of riches; 662 horsepower supercharged V-8, 0-60 in 3.5s, a top speed of over 200 miles per hour. Many consider it to be the most powerful vehicle ever produced by an American automaker.

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image: mygenerallee.com