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Muscle is back, and this time it's not just American cars. What do you think qualifies as "muscle?" Mercedes AMG cars? BMW M models? What about super-coupes like the Chevrolet Corvette ZO6?  

wow, this message board does not see much action! Anyway, to me a muscle car is a mid-sized sedan or coupe with a bigger engine( or at least power upgrades) shoved under the hood. So, yes to AMG and M models, but the Z06 is a sports car.  

The Mustang is a muscle car. The GTO is is muscle car,.But GM styling killed its soul.
Also it almost all ways be rear wheel drive.
Another sport/muscle car is Nissian Skyline.
You can put the Evo and WRXin here too  

muscle cars are metal boxes with big engines.

if it has suspension designed to turn, its not really a muscle car. in that sense muscle is gone for good. on the flip side, we will soon be able to buy cars with more engine than they ever put in a metal box in the 60s.

the good times are here again.  

First off it has to be American made. It has to have a V-8 or a high rated V-6. Has to be a sedan or a coupe. No V-tech in it. Best ex are the Vette,Camaro,Mustang,Trans Am, and other fine cars. Has to have a loud exhaust. Most of all it has to have either a hood scoop, be loud, colorful,stripes,pins,or big grill.  

Yes back in the 60's and 70's it had to be a V8. But today 4 & 6 cylinder engines make more power than some of the old V8's I remember.  Let's put it this way, I remember when the Cosworth Vega was suppose to be such a hot ride because the boys at Cosworth racing designed this engine for Chevy.  The 2.0 fuel injected four banger at the time churned out 110hp.  Now consider how Subaru manages to squeeze 293hp out of their 2.5 four banger in the WRX STi.  If engines like this were around back in the muscle car days, they too would have been considered part of the muscle car crowd.    

A muscle car is built AND designed in the US. It is inexpensive power with great style and an "I will eat you" attitude. As far as I am concerned there are very few true Muscle cars left. While the current GTO and Mustang make a good effort, they lack that certain something. They just dont have that Attitude. If it has leather, a 20 disc changer, a holder for you ipod, or less than 8 cyls (GNX exempt from last statement)... it is NOT a muscle car. If it has a name other than Chevy, Ford, Dodge, AMC, Pontiac or the likes... it is NOT a muscle car. If it has more than 2 wheels driving it, or if those two wheels are not in back... it is NOT a muscle car! As for "super coupes"... not really. I never considered the  'Vette a muscle car, it was above that.  

bandit:
A muscle car is built AND designed in the US. It is inexpensive power with great style and an "I will eat you" attitude. As far as I am concerned there are very few true Muscle cars left. While the current GTO and Mustang make a good effort, they lack that certain something. They just dont have that Attitude. If it has leather, a 20 disc changer, a holder for you ipod, or less than 8 cyls (GNX exempt from last statement)... it is NOT a muscle car. If it has a name other than Chevy, Ford, Dodge, AMC, Pontiac or the likes... it is NOT a muscle car. If it has more than 2 wheels driving it, or if those two wheels are not in back... it is NOT a muscle car! As for "super coupes"... not really. I never considered the  'Vette a muscle car, it was above that.

Not even close!  Those who say muscle cars can only be designed and built in the US and inexpensive are close minded and refuse to give into the new breed of muscle cars built overseas.  The 4 bangers put in the hoods of some of the muscle cars today would have been just as easily used way back when too, to keep the costs down in the original muscle cars.  They just didn't have tiny engines that packed that much punch then.  Even the engine used under the hood of WRX STi, walks all over the Cosworth Vega's 4 cylinder engine.  

A sigh of relief everyone, knowing "bandit" hasn't been placed officially in charge of defining "muscle car".  

It doesn't have to necessarily be American, because Australia has made some really nice muscle cars.  It has to have a nice growl to the exhaust, car must look agressive and bold.  Most muscle cars will have a nice scoop on the hood.  Car must produce in the 1/4 mile, when I say produce I mean around 13 or 14 seconds below.  

I like Pontiac GTO and its a classic example for a muscle car.
It's an intermediate sized, performance oriented model at a moderate price.  

Well, as the owner of a 2007 Mustang GT/CS (California Special), I have to say that the current Mustang is indeed a true muscle car.  Rear drive, V8, 300 hp and reasonable inexpensive.  American car companies created the muscle car and will continue to do so.  All the others are just copies.  While some of them make impresive hp numbers, they are NOT true muscle cars.  BMW, Mercedes, Jag and some others are fine automobiles, just not true muscle cars.  Only in America boys, only in America!!!!!