We’ve all hear the term ‘muscle car’ and generally associate it with American performance cars that are all about guts and glory.
What some of us tend to forget is what some might consider a muscle car, is in fact, a Pony.
To tell the difference between the two lets look into the history of how pony cars came about and how to differentiate between a muscle car and pony.
Rewind back to 1964 where the world was first introduced to the Ford Mustang. This car revolutionised the car world.
With its relatively compacts, affordable and sporty appearance, the Ford Mustang was a magnet to young males.
It became so popular it effectively spawned its own class; the pony car class – because the Mustang is a horse and we want to keep it in the family and all.
Naturally, other manufacturers wanted a slice of the pie and of course started developing their own versions of the rival.
In this period we saw the conception of pony cars like the Plymouth Barracuda and Chevrolet Camaro.
When we compare pony’s to muscle cars, its evident muscle cars are much larger both interior and exterior dimensions, and equipment is found under the hood.
Looking at true muscle cars, we have names like the Dodge Charger, Ford Galaxie and Chevrolet Impala who are juiced up muscle.
In terms of handling sophistication, muscle cars didn’t take much care for it; they were all about shoehorning a massive engine into a coupe body.
To wrap this up in simple points we have
Pony Cars:
- American made
- Smaller in size
- Two door, four door passangers
- Styling that includes a long hood, short deck, and open mouth
- Built with mass production parts
- Affordable base price with an abundance of available upgrades
Muscle Cars:
- Also American made
- Larger in size
- Two door coupes four passengers
- Larger emphasis on performance and power
- Equipped with V8 engine
- Rear-wheel drive
