When men put their muscle cars on the road, it might seem a part of their spirit runs alongside the power system of their machines. They fall totally in love with them. You know this because they praise them in any available forum. This machismo leads them to explore and experiment, even more, each time pushing their muscle cars to perform harder. It’s said that if a man’s muscle car sneezes, the man catches a cold.
In the history of American muscle cars, some have left without so much noise (which any muscle car should make anyway) while others inscribed an indelible mark. If some of these little-known American muscle cars roared back for modern-day motoring, they would still perform competitively.
In the years following World War II, the automotive industry changed drastically. Performance was now a focal point. Each manufacturer tried to outwit the other through overwhelming engine power, incredible car designs, speed, comfort, and advanced technology all around. Coming down to the 1960s and 1970s, a new era in muscle cars blossomed. Nearly all big American brands such as Ford, Chevrolet, and Chrysler can reflect on a muscle car that outwitted its counterparts on several features
We went back in time to smoke out some American muscle cars that remain unbeaten and would competitively give modern cars a hard time on any head-to-head competition.
Here’s what we found.
10 Ford Mustang Boss 429
Ford built the Mustang Boss 429 to challenge a hitherto unbeatable engine built by Chrysler, dubbed the 426 Hemi. Chrysler was using this engine in NASCAR and had proven unequivocally unchallengeable.
When it was all ready and roaring, the Mustang 429 became a highly sought-after performance car and one of the rarest, adorable, and most capable muscle cars of its time. It was in the market between 1969 and 1970, with only 1,359 examples being built.
According to Classiccars.com, a Ford Mustang Boss 429 fetched as much as $200,000 in the modern market, making it one of the unbeaten classics of all time.
9 The 1970 Dodge Challenger
To exemplify just how capable the Dodge Challenger was in its heyday, it was the star car of the 1971 movie Vanishing Point. In this classic action movie, two motorcycle police officers chase a car delivery driver across Colorado in a purely dramatic road race. He is delivering a white Dodge Challenger to San Francisco and has all the time to do outrageous stunts with his Dodge Challenger.
The “Challenger” nameplate was perfectly befitting for the Dodge that carried a 6.4-liter V8 engine producing at least 290 hp, which was at the time considered puzzling. The special Road/Track (R/T) edition had a 7.0-liter Hemi V8 engine producing 425 hp, making it one car that enthusiasts cannot forget. With some tweaking to the engine, the 1970 Dodge Challenger could still take up a challenge against some modern drives.
8 1970 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am
If you got a 1970 Pontiac Trans Am with a standard engine, it would be pushing 345 horsepower. This made it one of the most fantastic muscle cars of this season. Working through a four-speed transmission, it was hailed for perfect road handling despite most of its weight laying on the wheels.
The standard V8 engine was good enough to push the Pontiac Trans Am from 0-60 mph in only 6.4 seconds.
7 1970 Oldsmobile Rallye 350
The 1970 Oldsmobile Rallye 350 was available on just a single powertrain option which was a V8 engine displacing 310 horsepower. It also came in a single color tone dubbed Sebring Yellow, which was strikingly catchy and among the coolest affordable cars. This approach was a pioneering idea that took shape continuously over the years.
The Oldsmobile was offered as a budget muscle car that didn’t compromise on performance. Buyers got hooked ecstatically to it because it bridged the gap between excellent performance, great looks, and affordability.
6 1970 Buick GSX With The 455 V8
Buick was a rather late entrant into the muscle car party but still managed to outperform some of its counterparts. The predecessors of the Buick GSX include the Wildcat, Riviera GS, and Skylark GS.
The GSX 455 was initially known simply as the GS-455. However, additional performance options such as front spoilers, heavy-duty cooling, and a four-speed manual transmission pushed this car to a different category, hence the renaming.
This Buick became one of the fastest and most beautiful muscle cars of its season. The standard engine was a cubic inch V8 producing 350 horsepower.
5 1969 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
There is so much to admire about the Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 that it still attracts a mind-boggling price on the modern market. Enthusiasts expressed excitement and surprise when a 1969 Camaro ZL1 sold for $1,094,500 at Barrett-Jackson’s Scottsdale sale in January 2020.
The ZL-1 draws its magic powers from a 427-cubic-inch V8 engine generating 430 horsepower. Back in the day, this was impressive power coming from a four-speed manual transmission. The styling is iconic inside and out, which is easy to see why it attracts a handsome price.
4 1968 Pontiac GTO
The Pontiac GTO pioneered an automotive revolution that spread across the industry unstoppably. The Gran Turismo Omologato (GTO) or grand-touring became a lineage of massively powered cars for competition and road legal driving.
Although General Motors had a rule that prohibited building engines beyond 330 cubic inches, a group of engineers took a different direction and gave us the Pontiac GTO. The GTO went ahead to become one of America’s indomitable automobiles. Never mind that it produced merely 348 horsepower from a 389-cubic-inch V8 engine.
3 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle SS 454 LS6
By the time of its arrival in 1963, the likes of the Pontiac GTO had already made a mark with engines doing well above 350 hp. The 300hp coming from a 32 cubic-inch V8 engine on the Chevelle SS 454 LS6, therefore didn’t attract much attention. Things would, however, change over time as this Chevy got larger and more powerful engines. Eventually, the Chevelle got an LS6 power plant that generated 450 horsepower, placing it among muscle cars that caught the industry’s attention.
In those days, a vehicle that rose from 0-60 mph in just 6 seconds was an incredible performer and the Chevrolet Chevelle SS 454 LS6 rightfully earned its position.
2 1955 Chrysler C-300
Chrysler designer Virgil Exner introduced revolutionary all-new designs for 1955 that have come to be referred to as “The $100 Million Look.” Indeed, these designs helped overturn the corporation’s fortunes for the better. Among them was the Chrysler C-300 that was a high-end, exorbitantly-priced car back in the day. The base price was $4,100, with just 1,725 examples coming out of the production line.
This was a monumental car that went on to register 18 NASCAR wins in 1955 alone. It was a highly sophisticated machine with jubilant luxurious features exuded in its interior, including the leather upholstery.
1 1968 Ford Mustang GT500 KR
The GT500 is known for power, and Ford has unapologetically pumped as much power into their lovely Mustangs. The GT500 KR moniker refers to "King of the Road," a calling to which this car has lived up to. The ‘68 GT500 KR has become one of the most powerful production road icons using the V-8 power plant dubbed the Jet Cobra 428-cubic-inch engine.
Ford produced only 1,044 Shelby GT500 for the 1968 model year. The moniker was dropped in 1969 but found its way back forty years later, thus continuing a legacy of its superb performance. This time, it's adorned with a 5.4-liter V-8 engine that is nothing short of breathtaking.