With all the talk of CAFÉ standards coming out of Washington in recent months, it’s easy to think that manufacturers and their customers have nothing but small cars, EVs and hybrids on their minds.  But, anyone who took a stroll along Woodward Avenue in Southeast Michigan this past weekend got a quick reminder of what so many people love about cars…a little muscle under the hood.

The Woodward Dream Cruise is an annual celebration of classic cars, the kind that used to cruise up and down Woodward Avenue in the muscle car heyday of the 50s, 60s and 70s.  But, there were still some current production cars gracing the roads this weekend.

The Chevrolet Camaro and Ford Mustang remain American icons and are having a nice resurgence in sales, according to Experian Automotive.  In Q2 2011, Camaro registrations were 28,330 while Mustang registrations were 23,411.

“There is still a huge segment of the market that values a pleasurable driving experience and these brands have a rich history as fun-to-drive vehicles,” said Jeff Anderson, director of analytics for Experian Automotive.  “From the 60s to today, these vehicles have made pulses race and that’s why you continue to see them in events like the Woodward Dream Cruise.”

It was no surprise both Mustang and Camaro were well represented at the Dream Cruise.  Overall, there are more than 2.2 million Mustangs and more than 825,000 Camaros on the road, according to Experian Automotive’s Vehicles in Operation (VIO) data base.

And for those folks who truly have gasoline in their veins, take heart.  Experian Automotive data shows 51 percent of Camaros on the road feature a V8 engine, while 42.8 percent of Mustangs are V8s.   That means there should be plenty of fun cruising on Woodward for years to come.