2012 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 vs 2012 Ford Mustang Boss 302 Laguna Seca

It was the 1960s. The Baby Boomers were in their 20s; we had the technology to put a man on the moon; and social change was the new social norm. Fords idea guy, Lee Iacocca, decided it was time to go after the youth market with a small, performance-oriented fashion piece built from off-the-shelf parts that would turn heads on the streets and profits in showrooms. The plan was not only simple but brilliant. The 1964 Mustang was born to instant success, with dealers taking 22,000 orders on the first day. Ford hoped to sell 100,000 cars in the first year of production, but after extending the model year to meet orders, more than 600,000 1964-1965 Mustangs galloped off lots. Clearly, this Lee guy was on to something, and that something would later be dubbed the ponycar.

Chevrolet was not about to let Ford run away with this new market. Within two years of the Mustangs launch, GM had its own ponycar headed to showrooms and eventually racetracks. The Camaro was bigger and heavier and had more powerful engine options than the lithe Ford. The trend of bigger and faster would continue until the gas crunch of the 70s, and, even then, the quest for power continued as expectations for comfort and convenience were rising.

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