I discovered this gem of a book at the Revs Institute. When I looked at the chapter listing, I knew I was in for a treat. With chapter titles such as “When Henry met Sallie,” “Turning a ‘Librarian’ into a ‘Sexpot’,” and “The Innovative Car (the Prius), Its Insufferable Drivers (the Pious), and the Advent of a New Era,” I knew the Paul Ingrassia had a sense of humor. Have you ever seen chapter titles like this?  I certainly haven’t.

The book is all about how cars reflect the times we are in or does our culture play off of the cars? Sometimes it is hard to tell which is the chicken and which is the egg.

“When Henry met Sallie” goes all the way back to the beginning of the United States automobile industry with Henry Ford’s development of his automobiles including the Model T. Ford dominated the landscape until 1927 when LaSalle became part of the General Motors line of vehicles. The LaSalle was designed by Harley Earl to appeal to a younger generation than the top tier Cadillac. With the introduction of the LaSalle, Ford lost its place as the top automobile producer in the United States. Earl became one of the driving forces behind General Motors.

Later, Harley Earl was responsible for America’s obsession with fins on a car which first appeared on the 1948 Cadillac. Suddenly, cars started appearing with larger and larger fins which peaked with the 1959 Cadillac.

Zora Arkus-Duntov, who grew up in Russia during the Russian revolution, is responsible for the great success of the Chevrolet Corvette. When he arrived at General Motors, the Corvette, which debuted in December 1953 with an anemic engine, was about to be dropped from production. Arkus-Duntov made it into the sports car we know today by installing a powerful engine, improving the suspension, and adding a fuel injection system.

A recession in 1958 ushered in an era of compact cars including the Chevrolet Corvair and the Volkswagen Beetle. The Corvair was introduced in 1959 to much fanfare. The Corvair’s rear engine altered the car’s stability in part because the weight of the car turned out to be 38% in front and 62% in the rear instead of the planned 40%-60% leading to disastrous crashes. The Corvair made Ralph Nader famous and the ensuing litigation reshaped the U. S. legal system ushering product liability lawsuits and changed the relationship between corporate America and our government.

The chapter titled “Turning a “Librarian” into a “Sexpot”” is about the development of the Ford Mustang. It signaled a change from marketing to middle aged people to the young. The Mustang was driven by Lee Iacocca who was the head of Ford Corporation’s Ford Division and his protégé, Hal Sperlich. Other Detroit manufacturers followed with “muscle cars” including the Plymouth Barracuda and the Chevrolet Camaro.

Twenty years after the introduction of the Mustang, Chrysler introduced the Minivan which was introduced by none other than Iacocca and Sperlich who had been jettisoned from Ford. No longer would the station wagon be a mode of transportation for families with children. At the time Iacocca and Sperlich were fired from Ford, Chrysler was on the verge of collapse. Iacocca would guide the resurgence of Chrysler.

The book not only covers American automobiles but also how Honda, which entered the American market with motorcycles in 1959, expanded to include the Civic. There were 5,000 Civics sold in 1970 which ballooned to 100,000 in 1975. With the addition to the line-up of the Accord in 1976, sales grew to 278,000 in 1978. Suddenly, they were challenging the American automobile manufacturers whose autos weren’t well built.

The 1980s were also the time of the “yuppies,” young well educated urban professionals who frequently defined themselves by their materialism. All of a sudden, the BMW became the “had to have” car of this group of drivers. BMW was started during World War I making aircraft engines for Germany and barely avoided bankruptcy in the 1950s. Its turnaround was engineered by half-brothers Herbert and Harald Quandt. Herbert Quandt wanted the company to produce small, sporty cars.

The book also covers the ascendency of Jeep. Although its roots were in the military, by the 1980s, the Jeep was being mainstreamed to appeal to urbanites. It ushered in SUVs during the 1990s. Likewise, historically the pick-up truck was generally used by farmers, ranchers in the middle of the country and workmen. When country music started making inroads into the mainstream, the pickup truck also became upscale. When gasoline surged around 2008, the pick-up truck lost its luster to many who did not need it for their jobs. Instead, this group migrated to the Prius which offered improved gas mileage.

Ingrassia’s book is full of corporate stories and behind the scenes intrigue. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am sorry that Ingrassia died several years ago because he probably had other tales to tell.