What time period would you live in, and where, if you had to for one year?

[jamespowers]

The automotive history of the '70s

Yes, there were very few good looking cars in the 70s. Some of the sports cars weren't so bad though:

 

[Zombie_61]

Maynard was dealt with.
Because he didn't work, he was shipped to a desert island, via a 3 hour tour...

He wasn't shipped there, he sabotaged the S.S. Minnow so that he could live the rest of his life relaxing on a deserted island. Why else do you think he screwed up every rescue plan?

...No decade has as many mistakes as the 70s. From clothing to politics---it stunk.

I'd love to respond to this, but political discussions are frowned upon.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

I love opera windows, opera lamps, burlwood dashboards, button tufted seats, vinyl tops, hood ornaments, white walls, spoke wheels/hubcaps, and all those goodies.

Mechanically they were ok. Cosmetically they were fat and understyled. The 80s brought around the mechanically useless luxury car due to CAFE standards etc. Fortunately they eased near the end of the decade and some of those are powered ok. I like the Broughams from the 80s styling better than the fat, round weird opera window things they had in the 70s and believe me, I know because I own one. Now if you want both then you go to the later 50s and early 60s versions.

 

[Gregg Axley]

Tom that was the height of the Brougham era, and the Mark III was a great example.
To move that much weight, the 1970 model had 365hp. If you had the money for the car, you had the money to feed that engine.
Back then the car even had anti-lock brakes, and rosewood in the interior.
Yeah, the Pinto was a bad idea, and the Pacer, and the Gremlin, and even the weird electric car.

 

[jamespowers]

I love opera windows, opera lamps, burlwood dashboards, button tufted seats, vinyl tops, hood ornaments, white walls, spoke wheels/hubcaps, and all those goodies.

Then you love the 70s junk that they were putting out. I won't argue with the engines but the cosmetics?! The burlwood was fake. They cut out real wood in the 60s. Opera lamps are a pain in the butt to change the bulbs in where they are. Hood ornaments are a concept older than the 70s, so are white walls and spoke wheels.
Vinyl hippie tops just attracted rust. Just ask me how big the holes are in my 75 Eldorado. :doh: Vinyl tops are for Carriages like the original Broughams where it was used to cover and water proof wood roofs that don't rust. I have seen so many messed up cars because of the vinyl that I have grown to hate them with a passion.

 

[Metatron]

People are actually voting for 1939-1945?
Ok...

 

[jamespowers]

Tom that was the height of the Brougham era, and the Mark III was a great example.
To move that much weight, the 1970 model had 365hp. If you had the money for the car, you had the money to feed that engine.
Back then the car even had anti-lock brakes, and rosewood in the interior.
Yeah, the Pinto was a bad idea, and the Pacer, and the Gremlin, and even the weird electric car.

Hmmm...


1959



No contest. The 70s was a styling toilet bowl.

 

[Gregg Axley]

What about Suede for a top?
I saw that on Car Crazy today.
John Wayne had several station wagons for his family, but needed the roof raised in order to get in them (while still wearing his hat).
One wagon was a Pontiac, with a suede roof.

As for a hood ornament, those are missing on today's cars.
The last one I saw was on a 1983 Olds my dad bought.

 

[jamespowers]

What about Suede for a top?
I saw that on Car Crazy today.
John Wayne had several station wagons for his family, but needed the roof raised in order to get in them (while still wearing his hat).
One wagon was a Pontiac, with a suede roof.
View attachment 4120
As for a hood ornament, those are missing on today's cars.
The last one I saw was on a 1983 Olds my dad bought.

I have seen some moron put an alligator skin top on his car. :doh:

Hood ornaments stayed around for a while in the higher end cars but by the late 90s they all went on the cheap and got rid of them---tightwads!

 

[Gregg Axley]

Those pics are from Cadillac.
This isn't Tom you are talking to, I hate Cadillac!
Now a 1969-1970 Mark III is more my style.
The whole reason Cadillac lost out to them in the late 60's and early 70's was because of style and options.
Here is a pic of a 1969 Mark III interior.
Cadillac could only aspire to make this kind of car back in the day.


BTW I like to call hood ornaments "sites" for the driver.

 

[vitanola]

People are actually voting for 1939-1945?
Ok...

Yes. There was even one vote for 1914-1918.

Yipes!

 

[Gregg Axley]

Yes. There was even one vote for 1914-1918.

Yipes!

The only thing worse would be the civil war, as far as survival rate.
I thought about this when I chose the period I wanted to live in.
Several decades had wars either starting or ending, which made it hard to choose.
Who knows? One day James Powers might invent time travel and we can make this thread happen.

 

[jamespowers]

Those pics are from Cadillac.
This isn't Tom you are talking to, I hate Cadillac!
Now a 1969-1970 Mark III is more my style.
The whole reason Cadillac lost out to them in the late 60's and early 70's was because of style and options.
Here is a pic of a 1969 Mark III interior.
Cadillac could only aspire to make this kind of car back in the day.
View attachment 4121

BTW I like to call hood ornaments "sites" for the driver.

Ok, let's try it with stinky Lincolns:

Ugly as sin



Still ugly but less so


Still ugly but less so.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

Disagree with you. All good looking cars.

 

[V.C. Brunswick]

The Ugliest Lincoln. Whenever I see one I keep thinking Grassy Knoll.

 

[LizzieMaine]

The only thing worse would be the civil war, as far as survival rate.
I thought about this when I chose the period I wanted to live in.
Several decades had wars either starting or ending, which made it hard to choose.

On the other hand, name me a decade when there *hasn't* been wars either starting or ending, crimes against humanity going on, or, somewhere in the world, something future generations will very much regret.

When people run this same poll on the Backwards Fashion-Colored Baseball Cap Lounge in 2063, I wonder if anyone will pick "2010-2019." Or, god forbid, "2000-2009."

 

[Gregg Axley]

Ok, let's try it with stinky Lincolns:

Ugly as sin



Still ugly but less so


Still ugly but less so.

I think we are in agreement that the late 70's had awful styling.
Luxury is what I look for.
There is a disturbing trend I noticed, after looking at design through the years.
We went from this in 1969....

To this by the mid 70's....

Thank goodness the second one was never built!
BTW I got these images from an interesting site.
It has designs ranging from various years, with plenty of pics.
http://www.carstyling.ru/en/year/1969/

 

[AtomicEraTom]

I'll go with the Cadillac LeMans lol if we're going with stuff that never hit the streets. A '59 Cyclone would be neat, too.

 

[jamespowers]

I'll go with the Cadillac LeMans lol if we're going with stuff that never hit the streets. A '59 Cyclone would be neat, too.

I saw one of those for sale recently out here. I am guessing they mocked it up rather than it being real.

 

[jamespowers]

Disagree with you. All good looking cars.

You need :rofl: