The Cars were at the forefront in merging 1970s guitar-oriented rock with the new synthesizer-oriented pop that was then becoming popular and which flourished in the early 1980s . Robert Palmer , music critic for '' The New York Times '' and '' Rolling Stone '' , described the Cars ' musical style by saying : " they have taken some important but disparate contemporary trends — punk minimalism , the labyrinthine synthesizer and guitar textures of art rock , the '50s rockabilly revival and the melodious terseness of power pop — and mixed them into a personal and appealing blend . " The Cars were named " Best New Artist " in the 1978 '' Rolling Stone '' Readers ' Poll and won " Video of the Year " for " You Might Think " at the first MTV Video Music Awards in 1984 . Their debut album , '' The Cars '' , sold six million copies and appeared on the '' Billboard '' 200 album chart for 139 weeks . As of 2001 , the Cars have sold over 23 million albums in the United States
MTV Video Music Awards
1984 MTV Video Music Awards
The Cars