The Americans – Beautiful Machines: The Most Iconic US Cars and their Era

The automobile is, undeniably, the backbone of the last 100 years of American society.

The likes of Ford, Plymouth, and Chevrolet, defined a new era for the United States, from transcontinental travel to suburban family transportation. From the mass production of the Model T all the way through to the electric age of the Tesla, the automobile has been a staple in American culture for generations.

But these cars were not just practical machines. For many they projected an image of cool, represented a way of life, or was a means to make a living. The great American road trip was born behind a wheel, the Dodge Challenger ripped up the screen in Vanishing Point, and the city of Detroit rose and fell dramatically off the back of the American automobile industry.

The Americans - Beautiful Machines celebrates the likes of the Mustang, Gran Torino, Corvette, and many of the other classic models that put American automobiles firmly into the 20th Century American zeitgeist. It tells the story of the most iconic cars, their makers, and their era. The book also touches upon the art deco elegance of the Cord, post war optimism, the surf and muscle era, and much more, celebrating the most emblematic, visionary, and iconic automobiles in the history of United States manufacturing.

Blake Z. Rong is an editor and journalist who has covered historic cars for major publications both in Europe and the United States. His previous work for gestalten includes Beautiful Machines: The Era of the Elegant Sports Car and The Italians – Beautiful Machines. He holds an MFA from the Vermont College of Fine Arts and lives in Brooklyn.