[1] The North American manufacturers most often combined engineering, design, and marketing to develop upscale, distinctive "platform sharing" models that became highly profitable.
According to Hemmings Motor News, Cadillac first entered the "personal luxury car" market in 1967, with a smaller high-volume model.
Personal luxury car designs emphasize comfort and convenience, often highly equipped with interior features that were either optional or not available on other models.
[2] The initial luxury cars of this category during the 1950s in the United States were expensive, niche market, low-volume vehicles.
[14] The Eldorado represented 0.5% of Cadillac's total sales in 1953, with 1,690 Buick Skylarks, 458 Oldsmobile 98 Fiestas, and 750 Packard Caribbeans sold.
[19][20][21] In the early 1950s, both Ford and General Motors were developing competitors to address what they perceived as the growing popularity of the European sports car niche in the North American market.
[22] The first-generation Thunderbird was a two-seat car with a V8 engine, a suspension designed for comfort instead of handling, and available in either convertible (folding soft-top) or roadster (removable hardtop) body styles.
[6] The redesign added a rear seat in response to Ford's market research that the two-seat layout of the first generation was limiting sales.
[6] Two competitors inspired by the continued marketplace success of the four-seat Thunderbird appeared for model year 1963, both shown at the October 1962 Paris Motor Show.
The Toronado provided the platform for the Cadillac Eldorado (eighth generation) to switch to a smaller high volume 'personal luxury' front-wheel drive layout the following year.
[46] For 1967, the AMC Marlin was increased in size but still considered an intermediate, a "larger 3+3 family coupe designed to appeal to the market's trend toward bigger cars with more appointments.
"[40] Also for 1967, the Ford Thunderbird (fifth generation) was released, moving further upmarket and with a four-door pillarless hardtop body style being added.
Styling features of the Mark III included hidden headlamps (with retractable body-colored covers), a Rolls-Royce-style grille, and a simulated spare tire on the trunk lid.
[51] The Marauder utilized Ford's redesigned XL hardtop's wheelbase that was 3-inch (76 mm) shorter than other full-sized Mercury models and included a 429 cu in (7.0 L) V8 engine.
Smaller than the Cadillac Eldorado and Oldsmobile Toronado, it was designed to be nimbler and more performance-oriented than the Ford Thunderbird and Buick Riviera.
[citation needed] Due to rising insurance costs and emissions standards in the early 1970s, the muscle car's decline coincided with a strong upswing in the personal luxury segment as American buyers shifted emphasis from performance to comfort.
[57] The Monte Carlo was marketed as providing "elegance and prestige", however, some reviewers found it more similar to Chevrolet's more utilitarian models.
The 1978 Plymouth Sapporo coupe (a rebadged Mitsubishi Galant Lambda built in Japan) was marketed as a personal luxury car,[70][71] featuring a vinyl roof with stainless steel targa band, velour interior, "luxury" wheel covers with whitewall tires, and various power accessories.
It was repositioned as the replacement for the Ford Elite and sold alongside the closely related Mercury Cougar (fourth generation).
[72] The 1978 Buick Regal, Chevrolet Monte Carlo, Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme, and the Pontiac Grand Prix were among the first of the personal luxury cars to be radically downsized, resulting in weight reductions of more than 900 pounds (408 kg)[73] and exterior dimensions similar to compact cars (e.g. the Chevrolet Nova, Ford Granada and Dodge Dart).
They also needed to meet the rising corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) regulations set by the United States Secretary of Transportation via the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The 1981 Imperial (sixth generation) by Chrysler Corporation marked a key milestone in the decline of the personal luxury car.
The 318 cu in (5.2 L) V8 engine produced only 140 hp (104 kW),[76] Reaction in the motoring press was especially vicious, with Car and Driver referring to this Imperial as an outmoded all frosting automobile.
While remaining a personal luxury coupe, the redesign of the Thunderbird and Cougar introduced highly aerodynamic body design to Ford vehicles in North America and significantly increased sales.
[84] For the 1988 model year, GM moved the Buick Regal, Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme, and Pontiac Grand Prix to versions based on its front-wheel-drive W-body platform.
In the early 1990s, the trend towards four-door sedans and SUVs caused the market for personal luxury cars to decline even more.
For the 1995 model year, the Chevrolet Monte Carlo was re-introduced and built on the front-wheel drive GM W-body platform.
To mark the end of the nameplate, a limited production run of 1,596 cars was produced in red or white—the colors available on the original 1953 convertible.
[89] The 2000 Chevrolet Monte Carlo (sixth generation) was also influenced by the retro trend, incorporating styling cues from its 1970s and 1980s predecessors.
The Monte Carlo was the final, american personal luxury car in production when it was discontinued at the end of the 2007 model year.