The Muscle Car Craze

The Muscle Car Craze

by: Jason Tarasi

Somebody once asked me why I was so fascinated with muscle cars. You know, it’s hard for an outsider looking in to understand why we muscle car lovers are so fanatical about our cars. Until they’ve been behind the wheel of a newly restored ’66 Pontiac GTO, they just haven’t a clue.

Why is it that we can browse through muscle car advertisements for hours on end? Why do we have to go to every muscle car show that comes near our town? Why do we drive out of our way to see some of the hottest muscle cars around? Why do we seemingly pour all of our extra money into our muscle cars?

Some people think a passion for muscle cars comes from peer pressure – a need to impress other people per se. As a muscle car enthusiast I can honestly say that’s not it, at least not for me. My interest in muscle cars dates way back to before I was ever concerned about what anybody thought. I have always found muscle cars to be fascinating and exciting.

First, muscle cars are original. Those who collect or restore muscle cars put their heart and soul into their hobby which makes every muscle car truly unique. Second, muscle cars are powerful. There’s nothing that gets the adrenaline pumping quite like sitting behind the wheel of a classic, high-performance muscle car. Third, when you take a classic car, restore it and muscle it up, you really have something to be proud of. It’s a lot like an artistic ability for me – like taking a blank canvas and creating an incredible piece of art out of it.

One thing is for certain, regardless of the reason a muscle car devotee is interested in muscle cars, we all seem to talk the same talk and walk the same walk. Dealing with muscle cars is an incredible social outlet. Whether we collect, restore, show, or race our muscle cars, it doesn’t matter. We’re all on the same wavelength and we truly enjoy looking at and chatting about muscle cars.

Some enthusiasts have specific lines of muscle cars that they are interested in, while others are just crazy about muscle cars in general. Some like imports, others like exports, and most all muscle car enthusiasts have a strong interest in classics. We can look at them, talk about them, drive them, or just work on them. Muscle cars give us something to look forward to, something fun to invest our time and money into, and the muscle car hobby keeps us out of trouble – for the most part.

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