Why do you think people prefer Chevrolet

[JimNolan]

I sit here watching Barrett Jackson and some real truths become evident. People that collect cars prefer anything except a Ford. People that invest in old cars pick anything except a Ford. Chevrolets seem to dominate the hot rod, collector car and car show circuit. I was wondering why you guys think this is so. My belief is that it started in 1955 when Chevrolet introduced the small block V8. I think that motor influenced generations to come by being so versatile. But, if memory serves me correct Chevrolet outsold Ford when they didn't have a V8 also. So, why do people prefer Chevy's guys. Jim  PS Tasteless, stupid and uniformed can't be an answer. LOL

[geraldchainsaw]

never liked chevies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!,   but the new camaro is nice,   still wouldn't buy a chevie

[57 imposter]

there is just no accountin for taste. You must remember that if everyone had good automotive taste and judgement, there wouldn't be near enough Fords to go around. I find that the seemingly endless streem of Camaro after Chevelle after camero as well as some of the mindless "facts" from the talking heads has made the program almost un-watchable ,for me. I Tevo the thing and cover most of it in fast forward, stopping if anything interesting comes along. I was able to view the first two 5 hour shows in 40 min. ea.

[57AGIN]

Guys:

It is definitely an interesting question, especially since Ford did out sell Brand X in 1957.  I do think it comes down to the small block Chevy's versatility and ease of getting more horses out of it than in the Y-blocks and even the later FE's.  The Y-blocks could be made to run really strong, but it took more skills, savvy and $ to do so.  Whether the design flaws in the Ford's cowl drain and other areas leading to rusting didn't occur in the Chevys or not could be another question or answer.  Personally, I loved the lines of the 57 Fords from day one.  I was in the 8Th grade and just starting to read Hot Rod and get interested in cars.  Plus my folks had just bought a 57 Del Rio that I got to throw papers off the tailgate when it was raining (you know it rains so much in So Cal and I was a pampered lad). lol

But who cares??? Let them collect the Chevys and sell them at the auctions.  Remember, they are just Chevys and we DRIVE a CLASSIC that not everyone has.  Anyway, just my 2 cents.

[glen b henderson]

The american public can be sold anything if you keep pushing the product in front of them. GM used the press and after market to convince the consumer that the small block scrub engine was the best thing since sliced bread. I worked at a Ford dealership in the 60's/70's, right down the street was the Chevrolet dealership. I had a buddy that worked for the scrub dealer and I remember going down there and looking at the mountain of blocks and engines that they had replaced under warrinty. I can only remember two engines that we replaced and one of them was a 70 Boss 302, and the other was a 352 that was using quite a bit of oil. To keep the customer happy we replace the engine rather than reringing.

[mtwilsonboy]

Ya know , I like Chevys, But there is something about an old ford  that just draws me to them. I dont know what it is but I cant help it.

[JimNolan]

In Eastern Kentucky where I grew up the family's I grew up around were partial to Fords. We lived in shacks and had new cars sitting in the drive way. I kid you not. My Grandfather was like that. People bought Fords or Mercury's. If a young man with a family bought a new car it was more than likely a Ford with a Z code engine and 4 speed.  But, the hot rods were more than likely Chevy's. I remember in 64 the GTO's started popping up and then the Chevelle's a couple years after that. The big Galaxie's seemed in decline and the intermediate size GM products started taking over. Jim

[F570RD]

Moderator.....Please destroy this thread ...lol

[57chero]

I do what 57 imposter does  record it and buzz through all the crap, as far as whats more popular there has always been more fords out there from the twenties through the  forties a lot of them have chevy motors , which brings up a point , the guy up on the auction block describing the cars was definably a ford guy when ever there was a chevy in a ford he was a little disappointed . There was a 56 f100 with a big block chevy tilt bed tilt front end  chrome everywhere sold for 53k and a 56 f100 that he was sure to point out had  a ford in a ford with a 351 Cleveland that sold for 78k . It was also pointed out that there were 50k 57 birds produced and 15k 57 vettes produced and the birds were bringing more money. One more thing a 67 mustang fastback (Elenore) look a like sold for 220k  compared to a real 68 shelby GT500 convert for 190k ?

[JimNolan]

As someone else pointed out volume has a lot to do with recognition. I think maybe the small block motor keep the old chevys from being crushed. And, once saved from the junk yard it was just a matter of conveniance and availability that led to popularity. After all, the consumer in 1957 gave resounding approval to the 1957 Ford over the 1957 Chevy. So the 57 chevy sure as _ _ _ _ didn't start out as popular. As far as style,comfort and engineering acomplishments were concerned the 57 Ford surpassed the chevy by leaps and bounds.  Time doesn't take that away. So, it's got to be the engine that led to availability by numbers that resulted in the chevys popularity among later generations. Jim PS. Now you can take the thread off if you want to James. I'd hate to see someone google " why people like chevy's" and end up finding us. Would look a little odd coming from a 57 Ford web site.

[JPotter57]

A lot of the reason, Jim, is that Chevrolet was a bit better at marketing.  They went after the youth market earlier, where Ford kept building cars for old people.  I can't remember the Ford exec that said it prior to the mustang's release, but he said, "you can sell a youg man's car to an older person, but you'll never sell an old person car to a young person."  Wise words, hence we got the 65 Mustang, and the tables were turned.  Another reason, is that Chevrolet supported their racers, with good hardware.  Ford never got a decent pair of heads for the small block until the Boss 302, and they were really overkill, and there weren't a lot of them built.  Ford has always been good about that:  build a total brute, but only make 6 or 700 of them.  How many 396-375 hp Camaros were built vs the 428 Mustangs that could compete with them?  Sorry, but the 390 Mustang couldnt compete with the 396 Camaro, mainly because of the sorry heads and exhaust manifolds that Ford put on them to fit those shock towers.  Instead of building cars for the masses that really performed well, they built a 5% heavy hitters that could slaughter the competition, and 95% donkeys that got trounced on the street.  Thinik about it, hown many 390 4V galaxies did Ford build compared to the brute 427 2X4v galaxies?, then how many regular 427 2X4 Galaxies did Ford build compared to factory lightweight 427 2x4?  See what I mean?  In `68, when Ford released the 428 CJ, it was an instant killer.  How many 428 CJ Mustangs were built?  Check the figures, there were more Shelby GT 500KR (428 Cobra Jet) cars built than regular Mustangs...that's right, a regular vanilla Mustang is more rare and valuable than a real Shelby GT 500KR...Ford didn't use gearhead logic when it built cars back then, and they haven't learned anything.  It seems they have been and still are more interested in building instant collectors items than building cars that people want....That's my opinion...

[JimNolan]

Good post. True

[geraldchainsaw]

to Jp,     now don't get mad Bill,   I'm not being sarcastic,  alot of what u say is true,   but look at who got the bailouts!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!,      don't forget i worked at fords for 32 years,            jerry

[JimNolan]

On December 8, 2008 Ford dropped a bombshell on Congress. They told the government they didn't necessarily NEED a bailout. They asked that Congress make up to $9 billion available in a 'bridge loan', but told Congress they may not use it. (It's actually a line of credit on a ten-year revolving account, and it must be paid back in regular installments.)

To date, Ford has not taken the money, and it looks like they won't have to, anyway. This happens when a company sees the future, listens to the public, and moves toward both with intelligence.

Ten Reasons Ford is Prospering in the Midst of a Recession:

1) They Saw It Coming - Ford did not wait for the economic crisis to hit before they started restructuring the way they do business. By the time the crisis hit, they were in much better shape than their competitors. They expect to make a profit, or at least break even, through 2011.

2) They Actually SUPPORT Their American Competitors - Eighty percent of the people who own a Ford dealership also own a competitor's dealership. Ford does NOT want Chrysler or GM to go bankrupt, saying this would hurt rather than help them.

3) No Wall Street Greed in Dearborn, Michigan - Ford is canceling all bonuses to be paid in 2009 for all management employees worldwide and foregoing bonuses for all employees in North America. The company also will not pay merit increases for North America salaried employees in 2009.

4) America First - The company is going American all the way, on a worldwide basis. Since 2007, Ford has sold their interests in Aston Martin, Jaguar, Land Rover and the majority of its stake in Mazda. They are actively pursuing selling their stake in Volvo as well.

5) Goin' Green For Real - They have committed $14 billion dollars in new funding for the development of alternative technologies to both power cars and make them more fuel-efficient. How efficient? From its largest light duty trucks to its smallest cars, Ford will improve the fuel economy of its fleet an average of 14 percent for 2009 models, 26 percent for 2012 models and 36 percent for 2015 models. They estimate a savings of 16 billion gallons of fuel for America over the next ten years.

6) Goin' Green For Real at a Realistic Price - In 2010 Ford will introduce an all-electric van suitable for fleet work, and in 2011, an all-electric sedan. They claim that by reducing overhead now, they can make these vehicles comparable in cost to gasoline vehicles. Ford is on the fast-track for this project, and they are investing heavily in electric. They have also heard the complaints about cost, lack of range, and small size. They say they are addressing these issues fully.

7) Slimming and Trimming - Ford is selling its five corporate aircraft. The CEO says he will work for a dollar a year. Enough said.

Painful, but Smart Restructuring - Ford has consolidated its suppliers by more than 50%. Although this did put some people out of work, Ford says they had too many parts spread out over too many companies. They tried to favor American companies when making the decisions about cuts, although they do build cars in other countries. Mainly, they tried to keep it local wherever they could. In addition, since demand for cars is down, especially gasoline-only vehicles, Ford has closed a total of six plants. They may re-open these later when the economy recovers and hybrids and electrics become the norm.

9) They've Seen the Future - Ford has announced that a full 80% of funding for all NEW vehicles will be for hybrids or full-electric vehicles. Basically, they are phasing out gasoline-only vehicles, which will soon be in the minority at the Ford dealerships.

10) Using Obama's Plan to Their Advantage - Half of the Ford, Lincoln and Mercury light-duty vehicles by 2010 will qualify as 'Advanced Technology Vehicles'. ? increasing to 75 percent in 2011 and more than 90 percent in 2014. This would qualify them for investments under President Obama's green technology plan. Couple that with their own $14 billion investment in green tech and you have a car company who is definitely going to emerge from the recession even stronger than before.

Jerry, you are right about how things are done today at Ford. Jim

[57 imposter]

I think a lot of the of the discrepancy  is due simply to size. +The chev small block is considerably shorter than the SB ford. to put a chev in any 30's vintage car you almost allways have to use a set back firewall. When doing that in a car with almost no leg room to begin with you really want to set it back the minimum required to clear the radiator. the other reason ,I believe, is just taking the easy way out. You will probably have to do a little more head scratching to put a Ford in your project. Before I started cutting up my 58 I finished a 61 unibody with a 4.6GT and a 4r75w transmission. I will guarantee you that a 350 would have been done in half the time.