1931 Duesenberg Model J Convertible Victoria

Luxury cars offered the greatest in comfort and the latest in technology. They also provided status -- a large part of their attraction. Builders like Rolls-Royce specialized in extravagant cars with corresponding prices, while mass-market manufacturers like General Motors and Ford offered Cadillacs and Lincolns for customers of more modest means. Sport sedans and SUVs may have replaced carriage-inspired Victoria bodies, but luxury still sells.

This car symbolizes 1950s America: a time of exuberance, self-confidence, excess, and self-indulgence. Cadillac designers drew on jet aircraft for ideas, from the sharp, swept-back tailfins to the front parking lights that resemble B-52 bomber air intakes. Under that jet-inspired skin is a 345 horsepower engine, air suspension, and a host of luxury options, including an automatic headlight dimmer. We are unlikely to ever see such cars again.

Americans didn't invent the automobile, but we embraced it and quickly made it our own. Cars cruise through our music, movies, and dreams. They drive innovation and create frustration. They are objects of beauty and sources of blight. The vehicles in the "Driving America" exhibit reveal how the car reshaped our culture and landscape. The decisions we make now, individually and collectively, will define our automotive future.