Vintage Sports Cars Illustrated: All the Sports Cars Available in the US in 1957-1958

It’s time to finish our perusal of the SCI 1958 Directory of Sports Cars. The original was sent to me by CC reader Zipster, and I want to thank him for providing me and you this very comprehensive look at the sports car scene in 1956-1957. These were peak years for the Great Sports Car Boom, a social phenomenon that had wide and lasting influence.

During these early years, the sports car was more likely to be used according to its name, for participation in sporting events, although by about this time, the market was increasingly bifurcating, as sports car road racing became increasingly competitive and as greater numbers of consumers bought sports cars just because of the image and the fun factor.

What’s remarkable is the wide range of sports cars one could buy at this time. The cars here are arranged in three categories, Readily Available, Limited Availability, and Plastic Bodies for DIY builders, which was another huge thing at the time.

 

To Zipster: I’m returning it to you now, a bit worse for wear. But it’s been preserved digitally for the ages.