The Plymouth brand first appeared in 1928, an American automobile produced by The Chrysler Company. Chrysler intended for Plymouth to compete in the lower-priced end of the market, which was at that time dominated by Chevrolet and Ford. At the 1939 New York World’s Fair, Plymouth promoted their convertible coupe as the first mass-produced convertible with a folding top. In 1941 Plymouth ranked as the second most popular automotive brand in the U.S., above Chevrolet. In the late 1960s Plymouth dove into the high-performance muscle car market with the Barracuda fastback, fitted with a 426 Hemi in 1968 and a 440 big block engine in 1969. Legendary race icon Richard Petty saw great success with Plymouth in NASCAR.