What's in a name? PonyCar?

[Dennis Smith]

In a recent message someone said "there's only ONE true pony car, the
Mustang..." Well, t'aint so. One of the (few) advantages to being old(er)
is remembering the origin of things. In the '60s the fun cars to drive were
Muscle Cars and Pony Cars.

The muscle cars were intermediates with big block engines. These were great
for going fast in a straight line, and not much else. Handling and braking
were for wusses. I remember a test of a '66 SS396 Chevelle in which they
repeatedly stopped from 60 mph. After a few stops the car took over 300 ft.
and ran right off the end of the airport runway where they were testing. I
did the same thing to a '69 Chevelle chasing an MG-B down a winding road at
night (real fun?)

The original muscle cars were (Ford) Fairlane GT and Comet GT, (GM)
Chevelle SS396, Olds 442, Buick GS400 and Pontiac GTO, (Chrysler) Plymouth
Roadrunner and GTX, and Dodge R/T and Charger. Forget American Motors (the
Rebel was much later, and a pitiful thing.)

The pony cars (called that for "obvious" reasons) were more balanced.
Usually equipped with small block engines, these cars stressed total
performance. A few "things" were built from time to time (like the Hemi
'Cuda, SS396 Camaro, and the 428 SCJ and Boss 429 Mustangs) that were
worthless in the handling department, but overall, the pony cars were the
best the era had to offer. The pony cars included (Ford) Mustang and
Cougar, (GM) Camaro and Firebird, (Chrysler) Barracuda and Challenger, and
(AMC) Javelin and AMX.

To those of you who think that only the Mustang is a true "pony" car, think
about it. How much must it bug a Camaro owner to have his car referred to
as a "pony car?" In short, a "would-be Mustang?" How would you like to have
your Mustang commonly referred to as a "Camaro Car?)

Dennis

[Kirk Rafferty]

Dennis Smith (dsm...@eng.uab.edu) wrote:

: To those of you who think that only the Mustang is a true "pony" car, think

: about it. How much must it bug a Camaro owner to have his car referred to
: as a "pony car?"

A friend of mine has a Camaro. Let me tell you, it doesn't just bug him,
it makes him climb the walls! Needless to say I ask how his ponycar is
doing just about every time I see him! ;-)

(unfortunately, it's doing better than my "true" ponycar (96 GT) right
now. This winter I should be able to save for a supercharger tho, which
should even things up a wee bit come next summer)

--k

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kirk Rafferty (raff...@lewan.com) ## "You can't find a hermit to teach you #
Lewan and Associates, Denver CO # herming, because of course that rather #
Phone: (303) 759-5440 x355 # spoils the whole thing." ###############
http://www.lewan.com/~rafferty # ######## (Terry Pratchett, Small Gods) #
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Jim (cheater8) Stoltz]

Dennis Smith wrote:
>
> In a recent message someone said "there's only ONE true pony car, the
> Mustang..." Well, t'aint so. One of the (few) advantages to being old(er)
> is remembering the origin of things. In the '60s the fun cars to drive were
> Muscle Cars and Pony Cars.
>
> The muscle cars were intermediates with big block engines. These were great
> for going fast in a straight line, and not much else. Handling and braking
> were for wusses. I remember a test of a '66 SS396 Chevelle in which they
> repeatedly stopped from 60 mph. After a few stops the car took over 300 ft.
> and ran right off the end of the airport runway where they were testing. I
> did the same thing to a '69 Chevelle chasing an MG-B down a winding road at
> night (real fun?)
>
> The original muscle cars were (Ford) Fairlane GT and Comet GT, (GM)
> Chevelle SS396, Olds 442, Buick GS400 and Pontiac GTO, (Chrysler) Plymouth
> Roadrunner and GTX, and Dodge R/T and Charger. Forget American Motors (the
> Rebel was much later, and a pitiful thing.)
>
> The pony cars (called that for "obvious" reasons) were more balanced.
> Usually equipped with small block engines, these cars stressed total
> performance. A few "things" were built from time to time (like the Hemi
> 'Cuda, SS396 Camaro, and the 428 SCJ and Boss 429 Mustangs) that were
> worthless in the handling department, but overall, the pony cars were the
> best the era had to offer. The pony cars included (Ford) Mustang and
> Cougar, (GM) Camaro and Firebird, (Chrysler) Barracuda and Challenger, and
> (AMC) Javelin and AMX.
>

> To those of you who think that only the Mustang is a true "pony" car, think
> about it. How much must it bug a Camaro owner to have his car referred to

> as a "pony car?" In short, a "would-be Mustang?" How would you like to have
> your Mustang commonly referred to as a "Camaro Car?)
>
> Dennis

Regardless,
Lee Iacocca started the whole PonyCar era with the introduction of the
Mustang, and the Mustang is the first true PonyCar. All the others
were attempts by the other manufacturers to cash in on the success
of the Mustang.

Ditto on the GTO, it was the first true MuscleCar, the rest were
attempts to muscle in on the market (pun intended).

If you're old enough to remember the origin of things, you should
certainly be able to remember who and what started it all. The
Mustang and the GTO. Sure, the rest are great cars, but the Mustang
is the genuine article.
Jim

[Dennis Smith]

I wrote:
> > The pony cars (called that for "obvious" reasons)...

You wrote:
> If you're old enough to remember the origin of things, you should
> certainly be able to remember who and what started it all. The
> Mustang and the GTO. Sure, the rest are great cars, but the Mustang
> is the genuine article.
> Jim
>

Huh? I thought that's what I said; "pony cars...for 'obvious' reasons'" I
guess not so obvious to some. Duh.

Dennis

[Shannon P. Muncy]

Mustang....pony. Mustang....pony. Mustang....pony. I think I have
something here!!!!!!!
--
Shannon P. Muncy ...mun...@ix.netcom.com
1996 Mustang GT Convertible

It's not how fast you go, it's how well you go fast

[SJMike35]

In article <321BB1...@ix.netcom.com>, "Shannon P. Muncy"
<mun...@ix.netcom.com> writes:

>Mustang....pony. Mustang....pony. Mustang....pony.

PINTO....pony. PINTO....pony. PINTO....pony. They didn't have ANYTHING
there. ;-)

Odd, too, is that Ford always designated the "lowest-end" cars of its
various smaller models as "PONY" editions, e.g., the PINTO "PONY" and the
Escort "Pony"... kind of makes you hope you don't drive a "pony" car by
definition.

Mike
'96 GT Convertible (Laser Red/Saddle Tan)
'93-1/3 LX 5.0L Feature Car Convertible (Canary/White)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
----
BUCKLE UP! A MIND IS A TERRIBLE THING TO TASTE . . .

[Matt Tiemeyer]

"Dennis Smith" writes:

> In a recent message someone said "there's only ONE true pony car, the
> Mustang..." Well, t'aint so. One of the (few) advantages to being old(er)
> is remembering the origin of things. In the '60s the fun cars to drive were
> Muscle Cars and Pony Cars.

> The pony cars (called that for "obvious" reasons) were more balanced.

> Usually equipped with small block engines, these cars stressed total
> performance. A few "things" were built from time to time (like the Hemi
> 'Cuda, SS396 Camaro, and the 428 SCJ and Boss 429 Mustangs) that were
> worthless in the handling department, but overall, the pony cars were the
> best the era had to offer. The pony cars included (Ford) Mustang and
> Cougar, (GM) Camaro and Firebird, (Chrysler) Barracuda and Challenger, and
> (AMC) Javelin and AMX.

Please keep in mind, however, that the Mustang
predated all of them, and forced the other
car manufacturers into hurried production to grab
a slice of the huge market. The Mustang was not
the only, but it was the first.

Matt

[Pantera Da panther!]

Matt Tiemeyer <mtiemeye@helios> wrote:

>"Dennis Smith" writes:

>Matt

well, it certainly doenst matter to me, if you call my car a pony car.
All other drivers can see is my tail lights, and the aweful smell of
fresh mustang tires being lay on a road ner you! My mustang ( pony
car ) can kick lotsa asses! and i am a proud owner of a real PONY CAR.

[Jeremy L. Rosenberger]

Shannon P. Muncy wrote:

> Mustang....pony. Mustang....pony. Mustang....pony. I think I have
> something here!!!!!!!

Okay, now, with that logic in mind, let's practice a little...

Pinto....pony. Pinto....pony. Pinto....pony.

Do we still have something?

Regards,
Jeremy

--

Jeremy L. Rosenberger
mus...@henge.com
`94 Cobra #302