Oct. 16: Chevrolet launches the El Camino on this date in 1958

As much as some of us love the idea of this vehicle -- and as popular as they remain in Australia -- the original Ford Ranchero and the first-generation El Camino didn't sit well with Americans in the early '60s. It wasn't until Chevy put the El Camino on the Chevelle frame and turned it into the embodiment of rural muscle cars that it really took off. Even former president Bill Clinton had one, supposedly with AstroTurf in the bed. GM considered reviving it as a Pontiac, but today's buyers and fuel economy regulations would make it DOA. Some of us can still dream: