Muscle Car Mania -- 1969 and 2019

Some really major things happened 50 years ago, in 1969. I know because I experienced 1969 as a young serviceman just back from our country’s l-o-n-g mess in Vietnam. Some of these things happening in 1969 changed our society forever.  Some of those events included: The Beatles' last public performance, the first Concorde test flight was conducted In France, the Boeing 747 jumbo jet made its debut, the Woodstock Festival in New York state attracted more than 350,000 fans, an evil cult led by Charles Manson murdered five people in Southern California (Tate-LaBianca), the mysterious Chappaquiddick affair of Senator Edward Kennedy resulting in the death of his young passenger, the Public Broadcasting System was established, and, as we just celebrated a short while ago, the first man, Neil Armstrong, landed and walked on the moon in the Apollo 11 mission by the United States’ NASA organization.

I went online and did some research as to what the economic conditions were back then. You’ll be amazed at these figures below.

 Economic Indicators in 1969:

Yearly Inflation Rate USA:  5.46 %

Year End Close Dow Jones Industrial Average:  815

Average Cost of new house: $15,550

Average Income per year: $8,550.00

Average school teacher pay: $5,900 (L some things never change)

Average monthly rent : $135.00

Average cost for a new Chevy or Ford:  $3,270

Average cost for a new Toyota Corona: $1,950

Average cost for a lady's pair of dress shoes: $8.90

Average cost for a gallon of ‘regular’ gas: 32 cents/gallon

Average cost per semester of college (state school): $1,100

But for you “car guys and gals” out there, have you ever reflected on what a pivotal year 1969 was for the muscle car era?  If you are a person who believes cars are only for transportation, then you might as well sign out of LinkedIn right now and get on with your day.  But if you’ve had a love affair with cars (as I have) my entire life, 1969 and 1970 were the absolute peak years for muscle car performance of “the classic years.” (Since 2015, the muscle car phenomena have resurrected themselves in ways never dreamed of before … but that’s another story, another post, another time).  Admittedly, this article is for the old car guys and gals out there (take that any way you want … and it’s true). The year 1969 was an unbelievable year for American Muscle. If you’ve never reflected about just how many high-performance cars were offered in 1969, here’s your chance. As I combed through some old articles of my Hemmings Muscle Magazine stash, I was smacked in the face of what a surreal year 1969 was for heavy-duty-suspended horsepower, wrapped in cool looking body panels. The incredulous offerings for 1969, even compared to today, is nothing short of breath-taking.  Performance on the boulevard, i.e. stop light to stop light, abounded alphabetically from AMX to Z/28, including just about every letter (and number combination) in between.

 Below is a long list of what was offered, broken down into a few categories for easier reading. Of course, some models and engine combos qualify for multiple categories. And this, readers, is only a synoptic review of what really was offered. When considering the length of this list, also keep in mind that it doesn’t even include specialty dealer muscle builders like Yenko Chevrolet, Baldwin-Motion, Nickey Chevrolet, Jerry Alderman Ford, Shelby Mustangs, Mr. Norm’s Grand Spalding Dodge, and so on.

If you had a little extra jingle and the desire to go fast and wanted to look good doing it, you had a lot of choices in 1969. Personally, I wanted to buy a new one, but I had to blend my money between paying for “life” and paying the bursar, so it was impossible for me to buy new (I was the farthest thing from a trust-fund baby but went to school with some of these kids whose daddy bought them a new Z-28 and a free ride to school …. Not me for certain.) The lists are below. If you’re old enough and you knew then what you know now, which one would you have purchased and why?

Classic Muscle Cars

Buick GS 400

Chevrolet Chevelle SS 396

Oldsmobile 4-4-2

Pontiac GTO

Dodge Charger R/T

Dodge Coronet R/T

Plymouth GTX

Ford Torino GT

Budget Muscle

Buick GS 350

Oldsmobile Cutlass S and F-85 W31

Pontiac Tempest, Custom S, Le Mans

Plymouth Road Runner

Dodge Super Bee

Mercury Cyclone CJ 428

Pony Cars and Hot Compacts

AMC Javelin SST

Chevrolet Camaro SS

Chevrolet Camaro SS Indy Pace Car

Chevrolet Nova SS

Pontiac Firebird

Dodge Dart Swinger

Dodge Dart GTS

Plymouth Barracuda Formula S

Plymouth ’Hemi Cuda

Ford Mustang Mach 1

Ford Mustang Boss 429

Mercury Cougar

Mercury Cougar XR-7

Mercury Cougar Eliminator—Boss 428

Shelby GT350

Shelby GT500

Two-Seater Sports Muscle

Corvette Stingray

Psychedeli-cars

Hurst/Olds—guys … remember Linda Vaughn? (Who could forget her?)

Pontiac GTO Judge

Dodge Super Bee 440 Six-Pack

Plymouth Road Runner 440 Six-Barrel

Mercury Cyclone Spoiler 428 CJ

 For certain, 1969 was strongly indicative of changing times.  There were all sorts of things stirring in this big land – Vietnam protests (including burning some college ROTC buildings publicly), the dawning of the “Women’s Lib Movement” (including burning some bras publicly), protests against music as we knew it … and the introduction to psychedelic, hard-rock music.  There were massive protests on college campuses and on the Mall in Washington, D.C. This year, 1969, unequivocally proved that muscle cars would never be the same. Their influence on American culture was broad, deep, and lasting. Because of EPA influence, the muscle car movement “went to sleep” from the mid-70s until just a few years ago. But similar to crabgrass, it has come back with a vengeance! Believe it or not, you can get a really nice factory muscle car these days (producing the better part of 800 horsepower) for right under a hundred grand (you did not misread) And, lastly, similar to 1969, the country is as divided today as it was back then. Maybe things do work in cycles.

 About the Author: Tom Tucker is an honorably-discharged Vietnam veteran who retired as Director of Development Services for the City of Goodlettsville. Prior to that, his career consisted of being a senior executive for two Fortune 200 corporations. He has earned B.S., M.B.A. and Ph.D. degrees. He is a three-decade aviator whose hobbies are late 60s muscle cars and golf. He has been married to Janet for 46 years.

P.S. Tom still drives his 1969 Corvette 427 Stingray Convertible. The car is 50 years old and has never been restored ... only has 53,000 original miles on it.