I bought a stripped 1965 Rambler Classic that was a repossession with 7000 miles in 1965. It was the closest I had ever come to a new car. The price was great-$1750 because nobody but me wanted a “strippo”. For $37.50, I did have back-up lights and a windshield washer installed.
I thought Studebaker had the right idea with the Scotsman. A radio wasn’t even available through the dealer so that the dealer wouldn’t pack the car with accessories and raise the price. The only options available were overdrive, anti-slip differential and a passenger side sun visor. If one wanted other accessories such as a radio, there was always Sears Roebuck, Montgomery Ward and Western Auto. The Scotsman was initially offered in only three colors–dark green, blue, and gray.
Radio was an option in MANY vehicles in the 70’s. Then FM was an option…AM only. It was the Japanese that started to bundle packages and their stripped down vehicles had far more options then the American counterparts. It’s almost non existent now. But most American manufacturers were still piecing options into the 90’s. When I bought my 84 S-15…options I had to add (rear-bumper, reclining seats, cloth seats, rear jumper seats, intermittent wipers).
In the 70’s on some cars carpeting was optional. The rear seat was optional in the Chevette…
What happened is people wanted things like Rear Seats, radios/am/fm/cd and carpeting as STANDARD. Things like AC and Cloth seats which were only found in luxery cars 30 years ago are now standard in almost every car.
Wow; I will consider myself slapped upside the head, Ken! I have no problem with ordering what I want in order to be happy with my vehicle; it’s just that I consider this a safety feature and so wonder WHY it was omitted while side curtain airbags, ASB, and a/c WAS considered “important” enough to include standard.
The reasons for those is that the old Yaris was a deathtrap. One of the major faults of the old Yaris was the braking system. Without ABS the brakes were notriously bad and poorly modulated. Also side airbags were highly recommended due to the small size and lightness of the car, you at least want a fighting chance if you get broadsided. As for the AC, people just expect it these days. Have you ever tried to sell a used car without AC? It’s practically impossible. Granted this wouldn’t be a problem if you plan to run the car until the wheels fall off.
Yeah, but in those days, cars had those little triangle vent windows which could open and direct in a stream of air, even in rain. In today’s cars, opening windows in rain means getting wet.
It was offered on Taurus and some other models in the past. The cost was quite high and replacement in case of damage extremely high. It worked well but was not considered cost-effective on a bread and butter car.
If you don’t want to pay extra, your local parts store will probably have a 12v cigare lighter heater that you can install like the old VW beattles. Just a thought.