Curbside Classic Archive: Automotive Histories

The following are full-length features on a wide range of subjects that are non-brand/company specific and/or are not archived in the other Archive Portals.


United States Automotive Histories

The Ford Model T In World War I   Jason Shafer

Celebrating V-J Day: When Cars Came Home From The War   Jeff Nelson

“That Special Time”: The U.S. Auto Industry During The Korean War   Jeff Nelson

The Cars Of President Harry S Truman    President Truman’s 1972 Chrysler Newport   Jason Shafer

The First Wave Compacts: The Pioneers Take The Arrows   Jeff Nelson

The Longest Left Turn In History   Jason Shafer

A Brief Illustrated History Of The Station Wagon   Paul N

The Sedan Delivery   Tom Halter

A Tale Of Two White Wagons (Kennedy assassination)   Imperialist

“Unsafe At Any Speed” Turns 50: The Most Influential Book Ever On The Automobile Industry   Paul N

Who Killed The Big American Car?   Paul N

The Brougham: An Indictment And A Defense   Jason Shafer

Death By Station Wagon: The Fall Of Jessica Savitch   Lynne Vogt

Auto Magnates And A Gloomy Day On Woodward Avenue   Aaron65

 

International Automotive Histories

Advancing Backwards: The Front-Drivers That Went RWD Part 1: 1930-1960     Part 2: 1970-present   Tatra87

The 1959 Mini Did Not Have The First Transverse FWD Engine, And The Autobianchi Primula Did Not Have The First Inline Transverse FWD Transmission  Paul N

GT Malzoni, Willys Interlagos, The Factory Racing War Of The 1960s And The Birth Of The Puma   Rubens

A Brief Glimpse At The Brazilian Alcohol Program   Rubens

Caminhões do Brasil   Robert Kim

The Wild Cars (And Planes) From Peronist Argentina   Paul N

American Classics Of Sweden  Robert Kim

The Road Fund Licence From 1747 To Paperless (UK)   Roger Carr

The Rise, Decline And Fall Of The Rootes Group   Roger Carr

Did Badge Engineering Actually Work?   Roger Carr

Who Made The First All-Steel Station Wagon?   Tatra87

Mazda, Bertone And The Alfa That Wasn’t   Don Andreina

The Dolmus: Forgotten American Classics of Turkey   Robert Kim

Anadol: Back When Turkey Built Its Own Cars, Before They Built Ours   Paul N

No Magic Carpet Rides – The Curbside Classics of Baghdad   Robert Kim

Tempo – From Motorized Wheelbarrow To World Speed Record Holder To Immortality In India   Paul N

American Cars In Pre-Communist China – The East Is Red White & Blue   Robert Kim

Ford Model T Road Trip, Pyongyang   Robert Kim

Harley-Davidson in Pyongyang   Robert Kim

North Korea, Land Of Lincolns   Robert Kim

Historic Vehicles of Saigon   Robert Kim


Biographies

Jack Brabham: You Make Your Own Luck   Don Andreina

Paul Bracq: Neither A Knife Nor A Potato   Part One     Part Two   Don Andreina

John Z. DeLorean, The BMW Turbo And The Birth Of The DeLorean   Don Andreina

Ian Fleming: The Man Who Loved Thunderbirds   Don Andreina

Andy Granatelli: Born Supercharged   Kevin Martin

Mike Hailwood: Mike The Bike   Lee Wilcox

Bill Hickman: Stunt Driver Extraordinaire   Jason Shafer

Sir Alec Issigonis: The Designer Of Britain’s Favourite Cars, Britain’s Favourite Car Designer   Roger Carr

Sir William Lyons: One Man’s Passion For Gracefulness, Beauty And Speed   Roger Carr

Cal Rayborn: The Life And Death Of An Icon   Lee Wilcox

John Riccardo: Old Chrysler’s Last Act   JP Cavanaugh

Eddie Rickenbacker: Honestly, What DIDN’T He Do?   Richard Wayman

Sir Frank Williams: Formula One’s Great Survivor   Roger Carr


Popular Culture And The Car

Bosozoku-style   Don Andreina

The Cars Of Elvis Presley   Jana Lingo

The Cars Of Frank Sinatra   JP Cavanaugh

Green Tortoise: “Nothing Like Your Last Bus Ride”   Paul N

Oldsmobile Rocket 88: The Car That Changed Music   Jana Lingo

The Pinto’s Brief And Tragic Life As An Airplane   Paul N

The Rolling Stones Mobile Recording Studio (RSM): Arguably The Most Culturally Impactful Road-Going Vehicle Ever   BEO

The Swedish A-Traktor: Regional Car Culture Explained   Ingvar Hallstrom


CC Cinema (cars in movies)

007 The Cars That Never Were: Goldfinger (Morris Minor GPO Van)     Moonraker (Ford XD Fairmont Ghia)   Don Andreina

Australian Falcons In Movies And TV   JohnH875

At Close Range   Chris O’Bryant

Black Lightning (Чёрная Молния)   Robert Kim

Blake (1969)   DougD

Driving Miss Daisy   Tom Klockau

The Fast and the Furious (1955)   Kevin Martin

Ford v Ferrari   Dman

Grand Theft Parsons (1966 Chrysler Newport)   BigOldChryslers

The Great Outdoors   Gerardo Solis

It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World   Tom Klockau

John Hughes’ Movies   VinceC

The Junkman   Jason Shafer

The Karate Kid   Robert Kim

Le Cercle Rouge   Aaron65

On Her Majesty’s Secret Service: Mrs. James Bond’s 1969 Cougar   Robert Kim

Smokey and the Bandit   Jason Shafer

Star Wars: YT-1300 Millennium Falcon – A Long Time Ago…   Don Andreina

That Darn Cat   Jason Shafer

Two-Lane Blacktop: A Road Trip Back in Time   AmazonRay

Walking Tall: The Cars of Buford Pusser and the Movie   Jason Shafer


CC TV  (cars in TV shows)

Archer   Robert Kim

The Beverly Hillbillies   Jason Shafer

The Brady Bunch   Perry Shoar

Fargo, Season 2   William Stopford

Hawaii Five-O: 1972 Mercury Marquis   Jason Shafer

Mannix   JP Cavanaugh

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Seasons 1 & 2   Edward Snitkoff

The Mary Tyler Moore Show   Tom Klockau

The Rockford Files   Kevin Martin

The Rockford Files Revisited: The Case Of The Two Rear Firebird Windows   Kevin Martin

Star Trek   Tom Halter

Fifty Years Of TV Cop Cars   Jeff Nelson

Our Favorite P.I. Cars   Jeff Nelson


TV Commercials

The Chrysler Commercials of Ricardo Montalban   Robert Kim

The Best TV Commercials     The Worst TV Commercials   Jeff Nelson


Advertisements & Brochures

Ad Classic: 1923 Jordan Playboy – The First Car Ad To Sell The Sizzle, Not The Steak   Kevin Martin

Ad Classics: 1960 Buick-Olds-Pontiac Advertisements – Being Our Best Selves   Aaron65

Ad Classic: 1966 Ford Country Squire – Better Than Traveling In Bulgaria   Eric703

Ad Classic: 1971 Plymouth Sebring – It’s Not A Sedan, We Promise!!   Perry Shoar

Ad Classic: Allstate’s Studebaker Clunker (1971)   Eric703

Ad Classic: 1981 Chevrolet Monte Carlo Turbo – One Of The Rarest   Perry Shoar

Ad Classic: 1992 Fords – Have You Remembered An Early ’90s Ford Lately?   Perry Shoar

Ad Classic: 1992 Oldsmobile – The N-Body Goes Racing   Perry Shoar

Auto Typography Part 1     Part 2   Jim Grey

Brochure Classics: The Ladies of Broughamville   Tom Klockau

Brochure Outtake: 1968 Volkswagen At The Afghan Embassy   Eric703

Peugeot Ads: Remember When You Could Buy A French Car In The United States?   Tom Klockau

Selling The ’63 Studebaker Wagonaire   JP Cavanaugh

The Lost Art Of Painted Automobile Ads   Brendan Saur

World War II Auto Advertisements   Tom Halter


Photography & Art

Classic Cars On Black-and-White Film   Jim Grey

Classics From The 2014 CC Auburn Meetup In B&W     In Color   Jim Grey

1969-70 Custom Paint Vernacular   Kevin Martin

Imagining The Stories Behind Old Photographs Of Cars That Weren’t That Old Yet   Jim Grey

Legendary Automotive Artist Art Fitzpatrick Dead At 96   Paul N

The Amazing Miniature Streets Of Ken Rouet      More Amazing Miniatures   Paul N


Automobile Dealerships

Dealerships With Dad: The 1985 Chrysler LeBaron GTS   Aaron65

Paul’s Official CC Sales Lot – Today’s Special: 1974 Vega for $1495 (It Runs!)   Paul N

Planning Automobile Dealer Properties: GM’s Postwar Vision   Robert Swartz

Springfield Buick: The Little Dealership That Time Forgot   Paul N


Highways, Roads, Bridges, Etc.

The Automobile And The American Highway   Jim Grey

The Automobile And The American Road Bridge Part 1     Part 2   Jim Grey

Viaduc de Millau (France): Entre La Terre et La Ciel   Roger Carr


Racing

1958 Indy 500: The Salih and Epperly “Laydown” Roadsters   Kevin Martin

Victory Is Sweet: Vintage B&W Drag Racing Photo Gallery   Paul N

When The New 1960 Compacts Went Racing: The 130 MPH Valiants Cream The Corvairs & Falcons   Paul N

1965 Indy 500 Part 1: The End Of An Era     Part 2: The Novis And The Rear Engine Revolution     Part 3: The Rear Engine Explosion   Kevin Martin

Sunday! Sunday! Sunday! Great Lakes Dragway 1970   Kevin Martin

The Danbury Racearena 1971: Saturday Night Flathead Fever   Kevin Martin

1977 Pikes Peak Hill Climb: Broughams To The Clouds   Kevin Martin

Broughams Go Vroom: 1984 Goody’s 500   Kevin Martin

The Vanished Speedways (& Film Locations) Of Southern California   Ex Eugeniac


Junkyards

The CC Graveyard Tour Part 1     Part 2     Part 3     Part 4     Part 5     Liquidation   Paul N

Junk Yard Tales   Daniel Stern

Opal Creek Mining Camp Survivors: They Rust In Pieces   Paul N

Requiem For A Junkyard: G.I. Auto Salvage   Poindexter


Other History

113 Years Of The Chicago Auto Show, Decade By Decade   Paul N

The Jazz Age on the Road to Art Deco: The 1925 Springfield Rolls-Royce to the 1937 Cord 812 Phaeton, Bookends of an Era   Geelongvic

1946 Lincoln Continental: Customized and Updated by George Hurst   VinceC

1948 Davis Divan: Curbside Couch Potato   Imperialist

1955-56 Gaylord Gladiator: Falling On The Sword   Imperialist

1968 & ’69 Chicago Auto Show Part 1   Part 2    Part 3   Kevin Martin

1978 Michigan State Police Patrol Vehicle Test: The Beginning And End Of An Era   VinceC

Some Unusual Or Unexpected Police Cars From The United States And Canada   Jason Shafer

1980 Duesenberg: One Last Run at Exploiting a Hallowed Name   Gerardo Solis

Ford Falcon And Continental Mark II Skyliners   Don Andreina

Fourth Generation Lincoln Continentals Used In Official Roles   CadillacPhilip

History of the Sliding Sunroof and Moonroof, Part 1, Part 2  Tom Halter

History of the Vinyl Roof  Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 Tom Halter

London Motor Show, 1948: The Start Of A New Era   Roger Carr

Manic GT: The French Canadian Sports Car   David Saunders

My Checkered Career With Checker Cabs   Kevin Martin

JC Whitney: The Rise And Fall Of An American Icon   Tom Halter

Road Trip History: Dodge Power Wagon True Tales of Adventure   Robert Kim

Rusty Jones: The Face Of Rustproofing  Eric703

When Front Turn Signals Changed Colour:  Amber Waves of Pain  Daniel Stern

 


Indianapolis 500 Pace Cars
   by JP Cavanaugh unless otherwise noted

Part 1 (1946-1949)          Part 2 (1950-1954)

Part 3 (1955-1959)          Part 4 (1960-1964)

Part 5 (1965-1969)          Part 6 (1970-1974)

Part 7 (1975-1979)          Part 8 (1980-1984)

Indianapolis 500 Official Trucks: Special Editions 1974-1984   VinceC

1979 Ford Indianapolis Speedway Official Truck Package   VinceC


Muscle Cars To Malaise Era Series
   by Greg Olotka

The Transition Years, 1969-74     Part 2     Part 3     Part 4     Part 5


Obscure Rebadges From Around The World
   by William Stopford

Part 1: Mitsubishi Dignity; Lonsdale; Sao Penza; Lancia Pangea; Fiat Sedici; Nissan Ute

Part 2: Mazda Roadpacer; Isuzu Statesman de Ville; Honda Crossroad; Alfa Romeo Arna; Ssangyong Kallista

Part 3: Alpheon; Fiat FreemontSEAT Exeo; Bitter Vero

Part 4: Innocenti Regent; Alfa Romeo Dauphine; Saab-Lancia 600; Daihatsu Altis/Mebius

Part 5: Daewoo Arcadia; Suzuki Swift+; VW 1500; Proton Tiara

Part 6: GMC Chevette; Chevrolet Lumina & Venture (Philippines); Subaru Traviq; Chevrolet Forester

Part 7: Rebadges From India, Malaysia and South Africa


The Most Obscure Special Editions And Forgotten Limited-Run Models
   by William Stopford

Buick Part I     Buick Part II     Cadillac Part I     Cadillac Part II     Chevrolet Part I     Chevrolet Part II     Oldsmobile Part I     Oldsmobile Part II    Pontiac Part I     Pontiac Part II    Other GM Brands  Other GM Brands Part II    Ford Part I     Ford Part II    Lincoln-Mercury Part I    Lincoln-Mercury Part II     Mopar Part I     Mopar Part II     Mopar Part III     Mopar Part IV    Dodge     AMC


Shockingly Low Volume Production Cars
  by Jason Shafer

Buick     Chevrolet     Oldsmobile     Pontiac     Ford     Mercury     Dodge     Plymouth


Forgotten Future Series
   by Tom Halter

1957 Packard

1960 Edsel Comet

1990 Pontiac Fiero Prototype