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HomeLee Iacocca

Lee Iacocca

1980 Ford Thunderbird and 1956 model
Drive-By Musings

Ford’s design talent in the 1970s wasn’t enough to halt a dramatic slide in sales

August 14, 2026 Steve 13

Recently a retired Ford designer stopped by to offer a response to our story, “How 1960s car design reflected the good old (boy) days.”  “I started my career at Ford styling in 1960. Retired in […]

1965 Rambler Marlin ad
History

Historians differ on origins of 1965 Rambler Marlin

November 18, 2025 Steve 14

(EXPANDED FROM 8/14/2019) Histories about the 1965 Rambler Marlin’s origins show how even basic facts can be difficult to nail down. Authors differ over when and why the Marlin was developed as well as what […]

1977ish Lincoln Continental Mark IV
History

Five ways Lee Iacocca contributed to the decline of Ford and Chrysler

September 4, 2025 Steve 15

(EXPANDED FROM 7/18/2023) Our discussion about the Ford Maverick got me thinking about Lee Iacocca. More than any other car, the Maverick reflected how Iacocca’s sensibility differed from that of Robert McNamara, the father of […]

1972 Lincoln Continental Mark IV
Links

Knudsen’s favored 1972 Mark IV design borrowed from the Eldorado

April 16, 2025 Steve 10

(EXPANDED FROM 8/5/2022) A few years ago Dean’s Garage posted a fascinating story about the battle over the 1972 Lincoln Continental Mark IV’s styling. Jim and Cheryl Farrell (2022) described how a design proposal championed […]

Quotes

Henry Ford II driven ‘crazy’ by call for smaller cars

April 5, 2025 Steve 2

“. . . Henry was himself growing a little dizzy with everything happening around him. And the more disoriented he became, the angrier he got. During the late 1960s and early 1970s, Ford sat through […]

1972 Chevrolet Vega
History

US automakers made vain promises in early-1970s to beat back imports

February 18, 2025 Steve 3

In response to soaring import sales in the early-1970s, US automakers made brave promises of a counterattack. In retrospect, many of those promises sound decidedly hollow. For example, in the wake of a critical review […]

1965 Ford Mustang
History

Lee Iacocca got lucky with the 1964-66 Ford Mustang

December 27, 2024 Steve 13

(UPDATED FROM 11/18/2022) The original Ford Mustang was the automotive equivalent of The Beatles rock band. The U.S. auto industry had never seen anything like it — a small sporty car that proved so popular […]

1971 Mercury Cougar XR7
Media Analysis

Collectible Automobile sheds little light on why 1971 Mercury Cougar was ugly

August 6, 2024 Steve 17

When I saw that the 1971 Mercury Cougar was on the cover of the latest Collectible Automobile issue, I was particularly curious about one thing: Did Semon Knudsen have much influence on the car’s huge […]

1976 Mercury Bobcat
Design Notes

Why did the Ford Motor Company’s styling go downhill in the 1970s?

May 8, 2024 Steve 12

We’ve had an interesting discussion in a comment thread about Ford Motor Company styling in the 1970s (go here), so I wanted bring some additional information and ideas to the table. This will be a […]

Parody ads about the auto industry and media
Our Sponsors

Obsess over the classic cars of Lee Iacocca!

October 10, 2023 Steve 0

Posts pagination

1 2 »
  • Is Jaguar smart to run away from its design heritage?
    October 8, 2026 20
  • AMC Pacer clay model
    Why does Joe Ligo’s PBS series sanewash AMC’s mid-70s recklessness?
    October 6, 2026 20
  • 2026 Ram pickups
    A pyrrhic regulatory rollback and how poorly the 1978 Matador coupe sold
    October 2, 2026 12
  • 1962 Chrysler 300
    Did the 1962-65 Chrysler 300 ‘dilute’ the letter series?
    September 29, 2026 7
  • 1968 Ford Mustang
    Three rules led to a stultifying level of conformity in 1960s U.S. car design
    September 24, 2026 12
  • 1976ish Toyota Corolla
    Data on imports sheds light on their dramatic gains from 1964-80
    September 18, 2026 5
  • 1974 Chrysler New Yorker
    1974 Chrysler New Yorker was a tragedy that played out on four levels
    September 16, 2026 16
  • Internet problems reminded me of U.S. automakers in the 1970s
    May 2, 2026 1
  • 1956 Buick hood scoop
    Readers brainstorm ideas for future Indie Auto stories
    October 14, 2022 141
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