Muscle Car photos, images, pictures and wallpapers. Muscle car is a term used to refer to a variety of high performance automobiles. The term principally refers to American, Australian and to a lesser extent South African models. It generally describes a 2-door rear wheel drive mid-size car with a large, powerful V8 engine, and at an affordable price. Although opinions vary, it is generally accepted that classic muscle cars were produced in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Muscle cars were built for street use and in some cases racing. They are distinct from sports cars and also from GTs, which are two-seat or 2+2 cars intended for high-speed touring/road racing. These are not generally considered muscle cars owing to their small size, relatively high cost and specialty nature. (The two-seater AMC AMX may or may not be an exception: one source queries whether it qualifies as a true muscle car or pony car, but also lists it among vehicles that fit the general interpretation of both categories. AMC was "never shy" about describing the car as "a genuine sports car"as it was relatively inexpensive). For a definition from the muscle car era, Peter Henshaw's 2004 book Muscle Cars refers the reader to an extract from Road Test magazine’s June 1967 issue: "Just what is a Muscle Car? Exactly what the name implies. It is a product of the American car industry adhering to the hot rodder's philosophy of taking a small car and putting a BIG engine in it The Muscle Car is Charles Atlas kicking sand in the face of the 98 hp (73 kW) weakling." Henshaw adds that the muscle car was designed for straight-line speed, and did not have the "sophisticated chassis", "engineering integrity" or "lithe appearance" of European high-performance cars.
