I was reading an article this week about Tom Peters.
"Who the heck is he?", you might be asking. Tom Peters is a GM executive who designed the 2005-13 C6 Corvette - one
of the more beautiful vehicles of this millennium. He is also
credited with the butt-ugly design of the Pontiac Aztek. In reality,
however, Peters designed the original Aztek
concept, which if you remember back to the late 90's, was a cool looking cross between an SUV and a station wagon. The concept is actually considered to be one of the first CUV designs that are so prominent today. So what happened? How did it go from cool concept to one of the ugliest cars produced in 40 years? People are human - other people got involved and screwed things up. First it went from a design team to a development team. The development team assigned the Aztek to the Chevy Venture mini-van platform. That meant the wider concept had to be narrowed so it would fit the chassis, which also resulted in an awkward high roof and beltline as well as a more slab-sided look. Then things really nose-dived when the developers went absolutely overboard with the "modern and innovative" crap. Everything from the modified front nose & hood design to an interior loaded with useless features. When the vehicle finally debut in 2001, consumers already hated it and went on to be a total flop.
The same type of concepts happen in the high performance and racing world - humans get involved and we screw things up. People think they know better, or some bit of unproven thought becomes gospel. Innovation gets put by the wayside and mediocrity sets in. And the folks who screw it up have a blind eye to it until it's too late or it's way after-the-fact. A classic example of this is the first death of the muscle car beginning in 1972. Enter the people who thought they knew better - the EPA. Before we go down this rabbit hole, I want to reiterate that I love modern technology when it comes to high performance. And yes, there's only so much air we can all breathe and I want farms, wildlife, and the forests to be around for generations to come. But unfortunately back in '72, the federal government was force fed a boat-load of fear along with statistics. Back then, the EPA howled about global cooling (not warming like they clamored 25 years later or climate change as it's known today) and we're all going to die; how the automobile of the consumer was the cause of almost all smog-related problems (not corporations and their factories) and we're all going to die; and the fact that there was only 20 years worth of oil left in Mother Earth (also not true) and we won't need cars anyways - and we'll all be dead. As a result, the feds gave the EPA a blank-check green light to force mandates down the automotive manufacturers throats in very short order which left them scrabbling year after year for quick fixes and make shift solutions instead of creative problem solving. That creativeness wouldn't kick in for at least 15 years.
The first targets were the fire-breathing big blocks like the 426 Hemi and 440 Six Pack, Ford's Cobra Jet motors, and any 450+ cube mill from GM. According to the automotive insurance industry, these engines and muscle cars in general were the root of all evil, so it was as good a place as any to start. Besides - now you've two huge organizations breathing down Detroit's neck. The problem was, vehicles optioned with these potent engines made up such a small percentage of the total amount of vehicles manufactured in a given year that it didn't make a difference. Since that idea didn't work, the solution was to kill all big block engines in passenger cars in general. When that didn't make a difference by 1974, enter the ever-revolving emissions changes. Everything from catalytic converters to lean-burn ignitions. We've come a long way in 40+ years. High performance is red hot and it will fly with all the safety and emissions mandates the feds can throw at it. Keep the faith, people - because we won't know how good we had it until it's all gone.
Drag racing experienced huge changes in the early 70's, but the feds had nothing to do with it. The NHRA has struggled at various times throughout it's lifetime with inner politics that is for the most part monetarily driven. When money gets involved, humans screw things up. Innovation goes out the window and doing what's popular becomes king. Case in point - when the Mopar faithful got screwed especially in Pro Stock racing. Don't get me wrong; I'm a huge fan of Bill "Grumpy" Jenkins, "Dyno Don" Nicholson, Malcolm Durham, Shirley Shahan and many others from the GM, Ford, and AMC camps. We have to remember it was not the drivers or teams fault - it was the NHRA brass. In a nutshell, by the end of 1970, the NHRA grew tired of the dominance by Chrysler, their 426 Hemi engine and the skilled drivers who wheeled them. For 1971, enter the term "handicap" - in other words, extra weight was added to the vehicles that had the Hemi between their fenders in order to even things out. When that didn't work and Mopar teams kept winning, more changes came about for 1972. Remember back then, Pro Stock contained one key
ingredient - stock. In other words, if a driver wanted to compete with a certain automobile, the engine they ran had to be offered by the manufacturer in that particular model, either as standard or optional equipment. That went out the window for 1972 - at least for the Ford and Chevy camps. Ever see Chevy or Ford offer a small block V-8 in a Vega or Pinto from the factory? Neither have we, but that didn't matter to the NHRA. The smallest car the Mopar camps were allowed to run were Plymouth Dusters and Dodge Demons. Over the years, up to 1975, Chrysler and other teams tried every innovation they could to make their cars more competitive and to win. As soon as they did, more changes to the rules came down. Conspiracy? Hardly. The simple fact has been told over and over - the NHRA knew the majority of the fans in the stands by the early 70's were Chevy and Ford aficionados. The fans pay the admission, which pays the bills, and they want to see Chevy's and Ford's win. And that's what they got.
NASCAR experienced the same thing - by the end of 1970, Chevy fans grew tired of the Mopar / Ford battle (never mind GM still had it's own racing ban in effect since 1963), so NASCAR tipped the scales in their favor. It's the main reason why the Chrysler winged race cars disappeared along with the aero-nose Ford Torino's. Innovation and creativity took a back seat, the factory teams opted out of a no-win situation, and sponsorship money for the first time took over. It would take several years, but by the mid-70's, GM vehicles and drivers started winning the lions share of races. And NASCAR, as we know it, lost it soul.
It may sound like I'm picking on the Chevy or GM people (and the Ford folks a little) - when in fact I'm not. I can see the fans point of view. It's like watching your hometown sports team lose season after season not because of talent, but because of poor choices made by management or the higher-ups. I like to see hard work, creativity, and innovation win the battle - not a bunch of whining or the threat of money. Unfortunately, because it worked in the past, it has become common place in far too many aspects of our lives today.
Time to pause and prioritize, people. Until next time, peace out.
Dave
I was reading an article this week about Tom Peters. "Who the heck is he?", you might be asking. Tom Peters is a GM executive who designed the 2005-13 C6 Corvette - one
of the more beautiful vehicles of this millennium. He is also
credited with the butt-ugly design of the Pontiac Aztek. In reality,
however, Peters designed the original Aztek concept, which if you remember back to the late 90's, was a cool looking cross between an SUV and a station wagon. The concept is actually considered to be one of the first CUV designs that are so prominent today. So what happened? How did it go from cool concept to one of the ugliest cars produced in 40 years? People are human - other people got involved and screwed things up. First it went from a design team to a development team. The development team assigned the Aztek to the Chevy Venture mini-van platform. That meant the wider concept had to be narrowed so it would fit the chassis, which also resulted in an awkward high roof and beltline as well as a more slab-sided look. Then things really nose-dived when the developers went absolutely overboard with the "modern and innovative" crap. Everything from the modified front nose & hood design to an interior loaded with useless features. When the vehicle finally debut in 2001, consumers already hated it and went on to be a total flop.
The first targets were the fire-breathing big blocks like the 426 Hemi and 440 Six Pack, Ford's Cobra Jet motors, and any 450+ cube mill from GM. According to the automotive insurance industry, these engines and muscle cars in general were the root of all evil, so it was as good a place as any to start. Besides - now you've two huge organizations breathing down Detroit's neck. The problem was, vehicles optioned with these potent engines made up such a small percentage of the total amount of vehicles manufactured in a given year that it didn't make a difference. Since that idea didn't work, the solution was to kill all big block engines in passenger cars in general. When that didn't make a difference by 1974, enter the ever-revolving emissions changes. Everything from catalytic converters to lean-burn ignitions. We've come a long way in 40+ years. High performance is red hot and it will fly with all the safety and emissions mandates the feds can throw at it. Keep the faith, people - because we won't know how good we had it until it's all gone.
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