1977 Honda Civic Hatchback

During the late 1960s and 1970s, many Americans reconsidered their relationship with the car. Widespread concern about the environment led Congress to regulate automobile pollution. Gas shortages led to a congressional mandate that cars get more miles per gallon. Public pressure diverted a portion of highway funds into mass transit. Cars had been growing bigger. But for many purchasers, small suddenly was beautiful. Foreign automakers who manufactured smaller cars began making inroads into the American market.

Air pollution became a major environmental and health issue in the 1960s, and automobile emissions were a major contributor to the problem. First California and then federal regulators set emission standards to limit pollution from cars. Though car manufacturers fought the regulations, by the 1990s new cars incorporated a host of new technologies that drastically reduced emissions. These included fuel injection, computerized engine-management systems, and catalytic converters.

To keep up with demand for gasoline, America began to import large amounts of foreign oil in the 1950s. In 1973, in an effort to raise prices and in response to American foreign policy in the Middle East, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries placed an embargo on oil going to the United States. Americans began to worry about where their fuel would come from. Congress called for more fuel-efficient cars, reduced speed limits to 55 miles per hour, encouraged carpools and mass transit, and pushed legislation to establish a pipeline to Alaskan oil fields. A lack of low-cost fuel threatened America's automobility.

America's automakers were known for their big roomy cars, but by the mid-1970s, many Americans wanted a small car. Women were entering the job market in record numbers, and many families bought a small second car. An economy car made sense in a time of recession, high gas prices, and gas shortages. By 1980, most small cars purchased in the United States were foreign imports, with Japan dominating that market. Nearly two million Japanese automobiles were sold in America in that year, about 20 percent of all cars sold.

1977 Honda Civic
The Civic, with its low-pollution engine and high miles per gallon, was one of the first popular Japanese imports. This example is on display at the National Museum of American History museum.