Is this the end of the second muscle car era?

All this talk about rationing and lines at gas stations is crazy. I filled the mustang up and put $50 freaking dollars into it!!! I'm sure the classics will be mostly immune from this (considering they aren't driven regularly), but what about the new ones (svt fords, hemi, etc.). Gas prices made our muscle cars obsolete in the seventies, will it happen to the new generation of muscle cars?
 
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eventually the automakers will step in, they have a lot of influence with the oil companies. if they start taking a real hard hit from weak sales they will call in a trump card and prices will at least stabilize, doubtful they will ever go down much if at all though
 
yeah, & DB (Daimler Benz) has the displacement on demand for its big v8s that gives mileage like a 4cyl on the freeways. It is going to hurt my plans for a 65 Daytona Race Coupe kit, though.

~Critter
 
Insurance did as much to kill the musclecar era the first time around as fuel prices did.

In 1980, 5% of new vehicles could be considered SUVs. In 2005, 56% were SUVs.

That is more of a problem than musclecars.
 
I think technology will play a bigger part in saving the late model muscle car craze.

I agree more about it killing the SUV craze.

The problem is I'm sitting on HP Mustangs, an SUV and a F350 diesel.

I up $#it creek!
 
If these gas prices continue for months, it will have a major negative impact on all parts of our economy due to the inevitable inflationary effects. All businesses will be forced to increase their prices to remain profitable, but the workers (consumers) paychecks can’t possibly increase at an equivalent rate, thus, my bets are that we are now sitting at the beginning of a recession.

End result for muscle cars = lower demand = reduced production.
 
Well first of all, the handwriting has been on the wall for years that gas was sooner or later going to skyrocket up to what the rest of the world pays. This will probably result in another re-evaluation of what of muscle car is. You might wind up seeing things such as DOHC supercharged V6s showing up as more common alternatives. Just look at what Ford accomplished when they went from 302 cubic inches down to 281 cubic inches of supercharged Cobra.
 
Realmongo said:
Well first of all, the handwriting has been on the wall for years that gas was sooner or later going to skyrocket up to what the rest of the world pays. This will probably result in another re-evaluation of what of muscle car is. You might wind up seeing things such as DOHC supercharged V6s showing up as more common alternatives. Just look at what Ford accomplished when they went from 302 cubic inches down to 281 cubic inches of supercharged Cobra.
Makes me wonder what engine provides the most HPG (Horsepower Per Gallon)?
 
I have to aggree that I think the SUV market will be the hardest hit this time around. I am feeling the hit of increased prices considering that the 4.6 in my 02 GT is the smallest, most fuel efficient engine I own. $40 buck to fill that up. Our 2000 E-150 Van with the 35 gallon gas tank will take over $100 to fill up from "E" (yikes). But we will soon have 5 kids and we pull a camper, so our choices for the family vehicle were limited. So like most, unless I want to throw in the towel and buy a peppy little 4 banger that gets 40 MPG I will just have to suck it up and drive on.
Like others have said, the writing has been on the walls, so now things are balancing out, gone are the days of cheap gas. Sure prices may come back down under $3 a gallon but I am not going to hold my breath. I guess This years raise at work will just about ofset the increase in the cost of getting to work. At least my wife has started working again, and she works from home so no commute for her.

Sorry to ramble I guess the point to all this is, all the complaining isn't going to do any good. Pay the price or stop driving. I for one am going to pay the price.
 
Yes the SUV market will be the hardest hit, but it is a market that should not have existed in its current state. Most but not all people driving SUVs have them for the wrong purposes and now they are going to pay the price for buying them when they should have been in the car market. Plus the automakers saw it as a loophole to begin selling inefficient oversized vehicles again and now they are stuck with a surplus they can't unload and a production capacity for them that pushed fuel efficient vehicles aside. It's not like the 1970s did not exist.

jes72mustang said:
I have to aggree that I think the SUV market will be the hardest hit this time around. I am feeling the hit of increased prices considering that the 4.6 in my 02 GT is the smallest, most fuel efficient engine I own. $40 buck to fill that up. Our 2000 E-150 Van with the 35 gallon gas tank will take over $100 to fill up from "E" (yikes). But we will soon have 5 kids and we pull a camper, so our choices for the family vehicle were limited. So like most, unless I want to throw in the towel and buy a peppy little 4 banger that gets 40 MPG I will just have to suck it up and drive on.
Like others have said, the writing has been on the walls, so now things are balancing out, gone are the days of cheap gas. Sure prices may come back down under $3 a gallon but I am not going to hold my breath. I guess This years raise at work will just about ofset the increase in the cost of getting to work. At least my wife has started working again, and she works from home so no commute for her.

Sorry to ramble I guess the point to all this is, all the complaining isn't going to do any good. Pay the price or stop driving. I for one am going to pay the price.
 
mdjay said:
I think technology will play a bigger part in saving the late model muscle car craze.

I agree more about it killing the SUV craze.

The problem is I'm sitting on HP Mustangs, an SUV and a F350 diesel.

I up $#it creek!

the diesel should get like 18mpg like our f350...and with diesel averaging 25 cents cheaper a gallon...it cant be too bad
 
I agree. I too am hoping this does kill off the SUV and "poser consumer" performance car buyers. There are simply far too many folks buying inefficient performance cars and overgrown road hogs that use up our precious fuel. I mean how many people really need an 18mpg WRX or 14mpg Suburban? The more folks buying fuel efficient vehicles prolongs the fuel supply for us and our classics. Don't get me wrong, there are always folks that need full-size SUVs and trucks for business or lifestyle use (i.e. regular hauling or off-roading) and real performance car enthusiasts that will always need a dual purpose driver/performance car to be satisfied, but there are way too many wanna-be and image fiends. I say save the fuel for those of us who drive our classics.
 
i seen a girl driving a full size chevy pickup yesterday, that could barely see over the steering, plus she had trouble judging where she was in the curve, which I met her in, I was in my Dad's truck which is an 85 F350, which I'm moving to a new house, so of course I need a truck, she's just out joyriding, and still dont' know how to drive what she's got. BTW this 85 is a 6.9 diesel, 20mpg empty, 16mpg loaded.

By 04 GT is getting 26mpg if I baby it, it doesn't sound nearly as good that way though.