Glory Days: When Horsepower and Passion Ruled Detroit

I like the book.

Glory Days is a window to early days of me youth. While I was only 5 in '55, I saw plenty of the early "performance" cars and lived through the "muscle car " era which is why I can relate so well to this story. This a a Book not a "coffee table book" well written and very hard to put down. Here are the early days and the mainstream of those Glory Days of Detroit. Jim Wagners is an amazing fellow who rarely blows his own horn (and then only when it is a fact) and relates his failures as well as his triumphs. Anyone who was "there" or loves the idea of "yesteryears rides" will LOVE this story. Another key factor in making this book readable is it's price, less than $20...I would very much like to read "Best Damn Garage in Town" and "We were the Ramchargers" but folks are proud of those tomes and require a very high tariff to acquire.The follow up I would like to see written would be a Modern Glory Days of how performance cars got to current levels which are far and away better than the old iron from the Olden Glory Days. Hats of to Jim Wagner, brother you are a Mensch!

If you're a Pontiac enthusiast,  Glory Days: When Horsepower and Passion Ruled Detroit (Pontiac)  is a must for your collection. Jim Wangers was part of the Pontiac culture during Pontiac's best years. His perspective and involvement during the 50's-70's is invaluable. It's also important to note that this is a history of Jim's career in the auto industry, so even though most of the material covers Pontiac, it also covers his work with other auto makers such as Chevrolet, Ford and Keiser.Though this book is not a marketing/advertising book, it's very insightful for that purpose. If you work for an auto maker today and are involved at some capacity in marketing, this book is a must. The same rules Jim learned in the 60's and 70's apply today.One other take away is product involvement. Jim not only marketed Pontiac, he drove and hot-rodded them too. This put Pontiac ahead of the curve during the 60's. This applies to any industry; if you sell ice cream, your marketing department better love to make and eat ice cream too. Sad to say but no one who markets cars today live a car life style and it shows in the marketing.

This was an interesting insight from an individual who was involved with the inception of the muscle car era. However, it appears to be somewhat self-serving and definitely one man’s (Jim Wangers) point of view. The book is worth the read to gain perspective of the times and perhaps a level of understanding the egos and motivations of some of the most notable GM icons.

'Glory Days' by Jim Wangers is a really fun read, provided you have a keen interest in the 60's and early 70's muscle car era. I"ve been photo-copying excerpts and mailing them off to my gear head and muscle car buddies, and encouraging them to read the book. Jim Wangers chronicles the 'Glory Days', while explaining the marketing and advertising moves that made Pontiac outsell all other muscle car brands combined in 1966. Jim shares all the fun he had with Pontiacs outside of business hours also, at drag strips, Royal Pontiac, and Woodward Avenue.'Glory Days' is also an educational read for students of marketing and advertising.Overall an excellent read for 'car guys' of both genders.

I loved this book. Having worked for Chevrolet Engineering div. of GM in the mid-60s, I can say that Wangers' biography rang true to me all the way through. His depiction of the corporate suits at GM, their conformist, play-it-safe, don't rock the boat attitudes sure brought back memories. On a personal level, it brought back to me the reasons why I left that stifling work environment. Wonderful reading about the many successes he had when he was left free of obstructions and able to use his talents to do what he was paid to do, i.e. increase sales (particularly at Pontiac). Great read for anyone wanting to gain insight into the automotive industry of those mid 20th century years.

This book is a must for any car lover that grew up in the 60's - the Golden Era of American Muscle. Wangers was a key figure in building thePontiac legend, and his insider insights are invaluable. If you only read one "car book", this should be it.I rarely read any book more than once, but I've read "Glory Days" twice, and it probably won't be long before I revisit it.

Na

Excellent page turner written by a true car freak! Lots of great behind the scenes stories+pics, by a wonderful guy who loved what he was doing!