Well you have answers from some authentic rodders, but I will add my two cents. Put on a graph "acceleration experience" from a '31 Ford Model A 4 cyl sedan, a '36 Plymouth straight six low gear, a '47 Ford Convt. 59-AB V8, a '49 Merc 4" stroke V8 sedan, a 272 Ford Y-block in a '55 wagon, and then a '69 Chev 350 V8 two door and it's a little like counting 1,2,...,infinity! Until the Chevy 350 (maybe '69 was the BEST year for SBC) the 4" stroke Merc would have rated an "awesome" and the Ford had a good low gear (subject to breakage at any time), but that '69 350 was the high water mark for me. It is a shame that emissions and fuel limitations "throttled back" the muscle car era, but many of us were already hooked by then. In my case I helped my dad do at least two "driveway rebuilds" on a gravel driveway and I was the one who held the light while he put in rod bearings with the engine in the car (upside down of course). I learned that "clean carbon and grind valves" meant that I scraped crud off the engine before he would hand lap the valves. I am sure that we added a number of moths to the crankcase oil since they flew around the light and then got stuck in the oil. Part of this is familiar to a certain economic class and part of it is due to the carry over from the days when home repairs could be done on simpler machines. Now we are hooked and would still like to think we can be self sufficient. A lot of that is American individualism, and a lot is just being hooked on the acceleration rush, but maybe it is the last vestige of "Yankee Ingenuity" (we can't say that much here in Virginia), but note that U.S. patents have been decreasing in recent years so Hot Rodding and NASCAR may be a last vestige of an American mechanical heritage while the modern technology becomes totally digital. Well that's already too much but maybe I captured some of the situation. I do actually marvel at the soundbite skill of other members of this Forum, but I usually use fifty words when only ten are needed. Are you writing a book?

Best wishes,
Don Shillady
Retired Scientist/teenage rodder