Ahhh, fond memories of the “Land Yachts” of the '60’s and '70’s when you’d sink into the crushed velour, oooooz down the street with one finger on the wheel and we’d joke that it took 3 tugboats to land in a parking spot.
Then we got ahold of the British sportscars. $300 - $500 for a heavily used MGA, Bugeye Sprite, TR3 or the Italian Spyders and the light shined down. Yeah, in comparison to today they were absolute crap and the joke was that “You could run over a quarter and tell heads from tails” but what a revalation and what fun!".
So if if I hit Lotto or anyone sees fit to give me a Cadillac Fin, Olds Tornado convertible, Corvette Stingray, MGA, early Jag XKE, early GTO, MG TD or Morris Manx Dune Buggy, please be assured that I’ll be more than willing to accept it.
All great cars for their time but totally impractial for today.
Well, @Old-Days-Rick has one thing right. The luxo-barges of days past have no comparison to what’s available today as far as smooth and comfortable ride. I had a last-generation Town Car, and as nice as that car rode, it was still less comfortable than the 69 Olds Luxury Sedan or 70 Coupe DeVille I had in my youth. Those big old cars would slide and glide along the interstate so gently they would rock you to sleep. I miss that ride.
On the other hand, I don’t ever recall hearing my Town Car tires squeal around corners. I’ve never had to stand on the brake pedal with 2 feet and wonder when the car will slow down on a modern day car.
Big 'Ol land barges that did one thing partly correct and nothing else. Flexible body on frame cars that would dance like jello on typical broken up secondary roads and flop like the dead whales when required to corner.
Nope, modern cars are better. Period. There are modern cars with rigid structures, well controlled damping, flat cornering and the ability to absorb bumps better than anything created in the 60s and 70s. These cars are measureably better. This comprised 25 years of my career as a vehicle development engineer.
The closest thing to a 60s land barge is a GM Suburban. Big V8, body on frame, 125 inch wheelbase, 22 ft long, very plush ride but it is more controlled, rigid, and handles far better. It is also faster, stops better and gets better mpgs.
Maybe I just adapt to the times. I have no complaints for newer cars since my 61 olds dynamic 88. Maintenance is less now, miles expected out of a car more. I do not think we have fallen.
+1
One of my co-workers thought that she was giving me a thrill when she handed me the keys to her brand-new Mark IV. That behemoth’s brakes were–more or less–a slight suggestion that the car should slow down. After having driven my Volvo for a couple of years, I was used to brakes that actually… braked.
We had a 1964 Series 62 Cadillac hardtop when I was a teen. It was a great highway cruiser until I exceeded 70 mph. Then the front end floated. It was unsettling enough that I stayed under 70.
Yes. My first car was a 1988 Toyota Corolla. I have also owned a 1991 Tercel, 2004 Corolla, 1995 Dodge Caravan (3.0L), 1995 Dodge Caravan (2.5L), 2002 Daewoo Lanos, and 2000 Chevrolet Silverado. In addition, my family owned, and I drove a 1991 Toyota Camry, 1998 Toyota Camry, and a Toyota Avalon (don’t remember the year, as I only drove it a few times). Currently, I still own the 2004 Corolla, 2002 Lanos, and 2000 Silverado.
Out of all of these, my favorite, by far was the 1995 Dodge Caravan with the 3.0L engine. I literally cannot think of a more comfortable vehicle at any price, and the performance and fuel economy were very good, even by today’s standards. In fact, the only one of these which I wouldn’t want again was the 1988 Corolla, and that’s only because of the troublesome carburetor. The 1989 model was basically the same, but with fuel injection. Other than the fact that the carburetor required adjustment every winter, the car was not bad.
If I could have any car right now, I’d get another 1995 Dodge Caravan with the 3.0L engine, or a Dodge Spirit with the 3.0L and 3-speed. Nothing sold today offers the same kind of performance, fuel economy, comfortable seats and driving position, and well thought out interior.
Some of the complaints about older cars are also self inflicted. A couple of examples…
Every car now has sway bars; front and even rear. Back in the 60s a sway bar was a 6 dollar option which many felt was “dealer gouging”. Ask yourself how much of that swaying was caused due to someone declining that 6 dollar option.,
Back in the mid 60s (memory is bit fuzzy on this one) 65 Corvettes were offered with a 4 disc brake as standard. I think (?) in 67 4 piston discs were a 12 dollar option. Even with that, many opted to keep the drum brakes as a delete credit or 50 -60 dollars.
If sway bars, disc brakes, and so on were options now instead of being fitted to everything I wonder how many of the buying public would turn down those “dealer gouging add ons…”…
My girlfriend later wife, came into our marriage with a beautiful black on black 72 Monte Carlo and it was fitted with discs and a sway bar. The car saw a lot of highway use/interstate road trips and it held the road solid as a rock. It also got far better fuel mileage than advertised; 21 MPG at a highway cruise while keeping in mind it had a TH350 transmission with no overdrive. Another car we wished we had back and the only thing that would have made it better would be the 454 option instead of the 350. More cubic inches of grunt the better…
My grandmother, who was born in 1885, once tartly told someone extolling the virtues of “the good old days” that she’d lived in those days and that the whole world stank of horse manure.
My parents had a 1965 Oldsmobile 98, the epitomy of a sixties era land yacht. Comfortable to ride in and comfortable to drive but thinking back on it the play in the steering wheel we took for granted then would really bother me in present time.
Despite that, it was a surprisingly easy car to snake into tight parking spots and to parallel park.
It also managed to hold the road surprisingly well going a bit over 90 mph on the NJ turnpike one day back in 1979 … speaking ahem hypothetically and rather white knuckled, of course.
The several times I had my 1987 Olds Ciera up to somewhere around 90 to 95 mph it had significantly better handling than had the technology of twenty-two years earlier.
Fast forward to my current 2014 Camry that I had cranked up to 95 mph on an Illinois interstate a few years ago. The difference in stability and secure handling was amazing compared to the old land yacht. In part, that was due to the original Michelin tires which had the very best traction of any tires I’ve ever driven on. The Pirelli tires I now have I won’t repeat when they need replacing and would not care to drive over 90 mph on.
