Old Muscle Cars vs. New Muscle Cars

[GMTool]

Old cars are for collecting. New cars are for driving. I got to have new. With a good A/C.

[Joseph1LE]

Both is the way to go... Each are going to have pros and cons. So it's best to just enjoy both.

[ChocoTaco369]

People these days buy muscle cars from the 60's and 70's for two reasons:

1.) Nostalgia
2.) Ease of labor. People from older generations often like working on their cars and don't want to deal with computer tuning and today's engine bay clearances and countless added pounds from safety and emissions equipment.

No one is buying cars from 40+ years ago for raw performance. Today's cars are nothing like the cars of yesterday, and that is not a bad thing. There is a coolness factor to the muscle cars of yesterday, but there has been no better time to be alive than right this second for horsepower enthusiasts.

[thunderkyss]

Originally Posted by WoodBoss

I was there for the tail end of that Era. I'm 51 and had a 68 Mustang w/289, 1969 Camaro 350 4 Speed, 1972 El Camino 350 4 Speed & a 1972 SS Camaro 396 with a 4 Speed. I loved them all especially the 69 Camaro, that is why I like this 2010 SS I have now. These newer cars have more power, handle way better are way more reliable and are a lot more user friendly .

That said, I always thought (& it's just my personal opinion) that there was a definite distinction between "Muscle Car" & "Sports Car."

I never thought of the Vette as a Muscle Car. It's a sports car. To me (& may very well be just to me) a Muscle Car was about drag racing. Putting the biggest most powerful motor you could find into a car to go as fast as possible for 1320 feet.

Today's cars are more sports cars than Muscle Cars. Some of us take them & maximize them for the strip, others for the track, others still for the street.

Originally Posted by WoodBoss

We live in a great era right now for the Muscle Car, it took 40 years for automobile manufacturers to start turning out muscle cars again. The crap they built from 1973 to 2009 was pitiful. Back then it was changing carb options, today it's a download from a tuner. This is a great time for the Muscle Car and I am delighted to see them, Ford, Chevy Dodge, Plymouth all have great options and should be appreciated. Fart Cans not so much!!!! They will just always be fart cans no matter how much "Fart Can Juice" is applied. Here is a pic of my 69 Camaro (Z/28 Clone) from around 1980. This was just before it went in for paint...I will have to find some of those pictures, cameras back then did not produce images like today unfortunately.

Now see, this is where I disagree. From the factory, no, not a lot of power. But just like your Z28 Clone, you could do anything you want to the cars made between 73 & 2009. My favorite car of all time was my '79 Z28. It weighed 4,000 lbs, much like today's Camaro, & the built 350 in it had it running in the 12s.

[sscamaro]

My first muscle car was a 1969 SS396, L34 350HP. I bought it in 1971 with 9800 miles on it. Never moded it. I had it for 34 years and gave it to one of my sons in 2005. It is still an unrestored original car today. I still like my 69, but I would rather drive my 2010 SS.

[sscamaro]

Originally Posted by 2010SSRS

i sold my 72' Chevelle project so my wife could have this Camaro. i love the car too, don't get me wrong.......but i'd rather have my Chevelle.

as far as the folks who are buying these Camaros.........even in the forums you can tell who the gearheads vs. fanboys are. to each there own, but i find it repulsive (my opinion) to put 24" wheels on it. guess i'm in it because of the 67', 73, 80, and 84 Camaro's i've had........Camaro = performance muscle.........not a "unique whip".

one thing i will say, is that an LS3 driveline in a Chevelle might be a future project down the road!

The picture in your avatar is the 54"X60" picture sticking on the wall of my garage.

[Norm Peterson]

Originally Posted by thunderkyss

That said, I always thought (& it's just my personal opinion) that there was a definite distinction between "Muscle Car" & "Sports Car."

I never thought of the Vette as a Muscle Car. It's a sports car. To me (& may very well be just to me) a Muscle Car was about drag racing. Putting the biggest most powerful motor you could find into a car to go as fast as possible for 1320 feet.

Today's cars are more sports cars than Muscle Cars. Some of us take them & maximize them for the strip, others for the track, others still for the street.

That's pretty much the way I see it, and I was there for it the first time around.

Today's cars offer a far better balance among the various performances - braking, cornering, and overall "feel" as well as straight-ahead acceleration.

Now see, this is where I disagree. From the factory, no, not a lot of power. But just like your Z28 Clone, you could do anything you want to the cars made between 73 & 2009. My favorite car of all time was my '79 Z28. It weighed 4,000 lbs, much like today's Camaro, & the built 350 in it had it running in the 12s.

The difference being that for the 73 - 2006-ish time frame you HAD to do it yourself (or farm it out to a shop), where for the 60's and very early 70's at least the power was already there from the factory. Not that you might have wanted still more, but you still had that much of a head start over the 73's etc. And (on edit) a whole lot more than you got when the first catalytic converter-equipped cars rolled out.

I'm cutting it off a little earlier because of the 505 HP Z06 (2006?) and the re-appearance of the GT500 for 2007 (this time in forced induction trim).


Norm

[JLSuperfly]

I would trade my kidney for a Superbird.

[Sandman1969]

I would love to have a garage and the time to look into getting an old 60s Camaro. As a kid growing up and to this day they are my favorites.

My first car in 84 was a 75 Camaro that needed tons of body work and engine work. I worked on that thing with my Dad and was a great memory of my Childhood. I never got it painted like I wanted and moved on to a 1980 Monte Carlo that I was able to work on as well.

I do miss those engines and the ease of working on them. However, I couldn't have one as a DD and I am not where I want to be to have a project or a garage queen. Someday I hope to have that, but until then I am going to have a blast with my DD. Nothing like modern amenities and performance to boot.

[ronss]

Originally Posted by pickwithaustin

I think today's younger car enthusiast feels that it's all only about how much power that can be cranked out of the car, whereas car guys appreciate much more than just how much horsepower, etc., a car can have programmed in or bolted on. There's far more to the whole car thing than just speed. For me, for instance, I don't feel a need to be "faster than the car next to me" kind of thing. I could care less if another car has more power, that really is not what it is all about. There is an element of that in there, but it is not the heart and soul of the whole car guy muscle car thing.

Im with you , i was a teen in the "old days" muscle cars were fast and cool but there was something about owning one , it was more than speed it was an indescribable feeling, getting out of work on fridays going down to the local car wash and shinning up your ride, filling up the tank (30c a gallon ) going home showering up putting on your best duds , then go looking for the ladies ,or your girlfriend , head out to the drive-in for late night fright , great fun , a little boones farm and lots of making out. What more could an 17 18 year old ask for.?

[lbls1]

The newer muscle cars are far more reliable, on average more powerful, faster and handle better than the sixties muscle cars. One more factor that's very hard to ignore; The newer muscle cars are more expensive. I haven't looked at it, but if you factor, lets say, 1968 dollars versus 2015 dollars that it might not be such a big difference, new v8 muscle cars will set you back 40 grand minimum brand new (some are a little less, some are way more). The muscle cars of the 1960s didn't cost a lot more than the regular editions of the model series.

Styling is another big factor between the old and new. The old muscle cars IMO were more exciting in terms of styling. The old muscle cars had swooping, daring lines, actual expressions at the front and rear fascias, and they had several design and trim features that were distinctive from other cars. The newer muscle cars, while much better in terms of design from the 80's and 90's versions, are still a tad less distinctive in their styling IMO (perhaps due to safety regulations which restrict styling, and wind tunnel resistance influencing styling). I also feel that we have less variety with the newer cars in terms of features, color and trim, and engine/power choices.

Another factor is model variation; There are fewer new muscle-like cars to choose from. Most of us know Camaro, Mustang, Charger and Challenger, but that's it after those four. In the Muscle Car hey-day, there were at least two model or trim choices from each nameplate! I would wager that the lesser variety of muscle or performance cars is a result of the change in automotive needs and wants; Not everyone can own or live with a performance car, so we have fewer models than we have had in the past.

[el ess A]

I loved the a la carte options you could do with the OLD muscle. You started with the base, put in the big block option for $500 and $100 for posi and the right gears and you said let's do it. Affordable, and adjustable to nearly every budget. And many times, you got several engine options. Not anymore.

Today, it's all pre-packaged stuff in comparison, just like Oscar Mayer Hot Dogs. You get some options, but you are extremely limited. Closest thing to a true throwback now is the Z/28, but then, your option list is basically nil.

All muscle is cool. I am fortunate to have lived to see both iterations. Too bad for the young ones. You'll likely never see another HP war again after this one comes to a close.

[williamp78]

IMO 67-74 muscle cars, everything else either falls hot rod/sports car depending on whats done to them. older would be classic

[GMfan454]

Camaros and Mustangs were not muscle cars. Not sure if you were referring to the 60's versions of them or not, but if you were, the term "muscle car" does not apply to them.