Personal luxury car

Common card · No. 371710

Personal luxury car is a North American car classification describing somewhat sporty, sophisticated mass-market coupés that emphasized comfort over performance. The North American manufacturers most often combined engineering, design, and marketing to develop upscale, distinctive "platform sharing" models that became highly profitable. Although luxury coupes had been produced in North America for several decades, the beginning of the "personal luxury car" market segment is generally considered to have started in 1958. It was the success of the Ford Thunderbird (second generation) when it was redesigned from a two-seat car to a four-seat vehicle. These changes shifted the Thunderbird's emphasis from sporting to comfort and luxury, and sales increased by 50 percent. The Thunderbird was sold for eleven generations up until the 2005 model year. The longest-running nameplate of the personal luxury car was the Cadillac Eldorado, which had a 50-year production run that began in the 1953 model...

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