Mystery car pix

fintail

I'd rather watch the first several seasons of that than almost anything made today, but I am an odd duck.

tjc78 said:

Man two references in one day.... 

Michaell

fintail said:

I'd rather watch the first several seasons of that than almost anything made today, but I am an odd duck.

tjc78 said:

Man two references in one day.... 

I actually attended a taping of an episode, back in the day.

andys120

Good old days?

stickguy

Nice Volvo 122 in the middle.

Lots of old cars considering this must be about 1967 or 1968.

ab348

That's a '71 Fury police cruiser in the line. I would guess the pic is from '73 when the first gas shortage hit after the OPEC embargo on shipments to the USA.

stickguy

That new on the cop car? I thought it could have been late 60s, so assumed this picture was before 73.

stickguy

Actually, way up front, looks like a newer (early 70s squared off style) Chevy PU, and a Datsun or Toyota station wagon. So probably is that time period, but lots of 50s and early 60s cars still.

kyfdx

36.6 cents/gallon?

stickguy

Yeah, but you only made about $5/hour.

kyfdx

stickguy said:

Yeah, but you only made about $5/hour.

Ha.. my first job in 1974 paid $1.75

stickguy

Well, $5 was for real jobs. I’m sure minimum wage stuff like fast food was less.

Heck, I graduated college in the early-mid 80s, and one of my job offers paid a whopping $12,000/yr. and this was in the NYC burbs. Even then couldn’t live on that.

kyfdx

stickguy said:

Well, $5 was for real jobs. I’m sure minimum wage stuff like fast food was less.

Heck, I graduated college in the early-mid 80s, and one of my job offers paid a whopping $12,000/yr. and this was in the NYC burbs. Even then couldn’t live on that.

My mother was a school teacher in the '60s. Not sure that she made $10K/yr (equivalent to $5/hr)

Michaell

stickguy said:

Well, $5 was for real jobs. I’m sure minimum wage stuff like fast food was less.

Heck, I graduated college in the early-mid 80s, and one of my job offers paid a whopping $12,000/yr. and this was in the NYC burbs. Even then couldn’t live on that.

Stick, I graduated college in 1985, and a job offer of $24k was considered stellar. I think my first job started at $18-19k.

IIRC, minimum wage then was $3.35/hr

stickguy

That’s about what the job I took paid. But, even though white collar, got OT. I felt rich.

Michaell

stickguy said:

That’s about what the job I took paid. But, even though white collar, got OT. I felt rich.

OT? Nice for you ….

I was able to purchase a year old '85 Accord Hatch on my salary. I felt like I had made it.

30+ years later, I'm still on the same treadmill....

stickguy

Better than my 1985 Colt.

omarman

On the right side of pic, 1966 Impala 4-door sedan and ahead of that a 1957 Chevy 150.

1973 time frame looks right. Cigarette ad shows 35 cent price.

kyfdx

Michaell said:

stickguy said:

Well, $5 was for real jobs. I’m sure minimum wage stuff like fast food was less.

Heck, I graduated college in the early-mid 80s, and one of my job offers paid a whopping $12,000/yr. and this was in the NYC burbs. Even then couldn’t live on that.

Stick, I graduated college in 1985, and a job offer of $24k was considered stellar. I think my first job started at $18-19k.

IIRC, minimum wage then was $3.35/hr

Minimum wage was around $3.15/hr in 1977.

I basically worked blue-collar, hourly jobs my whole life. I had a union job with a railroad construction company in 1980 that paid $8.XX/hr. Which was pretty decent money for the time. Not GM/Ford assembly line money, but not bad. The recession that hit about then made it very rough, though. From late 1980 to mid 1984, I never had a job that lasted more than a few months, before layoffs.

Generic mac n'cheese with a stick of cheap margarine, and no milk, would fill you up for 25 cents.

berri

I like the 58 Chevy wagon pumping gas

andys120

I'm guessing the oldest car is the two tone mid 50s GM below the word "SERV" on right.
Newest? Maybe the mid-70s cop car on left.

This is a picture from the Arab Embargo gas shortage of 1973 which created gas lines all over the US and caused prices to rise to an unheard $.50/gal before it was over. Location is Martinez CA in the East Bay near Vallejo, Richmond and Livermore.

lostwrench1

Gas station was across the street from my work place. Had to be at work at 08:00, got into the gas line at 06:00. Gas pumps were shut down at noon. Gas line went down the street then turned around the corner for another block. Large signs at many gas stations, "No Gas". Saw a car having gas pumped into it at a "No Gas" station. I pulled in behind it. Gas pump attendant said "we have no gas here". I said I just saw a car getting gas. He yelled "WE HAVE NO GAS HERE!" Liar. There was something fishy about gasoline availability then.

The state then went to a system of your being required to buy gas only on certain days depending if your license plate had an even or odd number. I don't remember if Vanity Plates were considered even or odd.

tmart

andys120 said:

Good old days?

62 and 61 Ford wagons.

fintail

I think the white Ford wagon nearest the camera is a 64.

I'd trade gas lines and/or the wages at the time for period Seattle area housing price relative to wages.

berri

Is that a maybe 61 Ford wagon ahead of it along with an older gen Volvo?

Mr_Shiftright

Staten Island Ferry -- I see 5 foreign cars. How many do you see?

andys120

Better get new glasses Mr. S. I count six VW Beetles + 3 0r 4 boxy little sedans that look Datsun or Toyota-ish.

Picture is from early 70s. I see a Vega toward the left.

fintail

I see at least 6 foreign cars, I will pick off 2 - early Saab 99 2nd row right, what looks like a 2 door Fiat 128 at left in a diagonal row, backed in.

omarman

Lower right, looks like a Saab 99 nose to nose with a gold Mustang Grande.

edit: Near the center of pic a red Opel Kadett, second car left of the light colored VW Bug.

stickguy

In the center point toward us, 2 over from a light green beetle, is an opel. And over toward the left, a Volvo 142.

and there are 2 vegas, making a T with each other.

Mr_Shiftright

andys120 said:

Better get new glasses Mr. S. I count six VW Beetles + 3 0r 4 boxy little sedans that look Datsun or Toyota-ish.

Picture is from early 70s. I see a Vega toward the left.

Well I didn't say I saw ALL of them---LOL! I see one that you missed. Omarman got it--the Saab.

What else do you notice about the----umm....striking characteristic that these cars have in common?

Say, compared to this parking lot? ====>

fintail

I think you are right on the Volvo, now that I zoom in, it's not a Fiat, but a 2 door Volvo.

stickguy said:

In the center point toward us, 2 over from a light green beetle, is an opel. And over toward the left, a Volvo 142.

and there are 2 vegas, making a T with each other.

stickguy

I don't know much, but I know Volvo 140s!

Michaell

Almost all cars in the first pic, and likely a majority of minivans, trucks and SUVs in the second n

stickguy

that and majority foreign in the 2nd.

omarman

The old car pic had style and color but the newer pic could be titled, "All things dull and ugly."

tjc78

So much silver in the second picture.  

Look at how the 88-94 Maxima and Volvo wagon(heck even the Seville next to it) look seriously dated even then.  I’m guessing that picture is 2003-4?  Jeep Liberty was 2002 so it’s definitely after that.  

stickguy

omarman said:

The old car pic had style and color but the newer pic could be titled, "All things dull and ugly."

nothing says still like a bunch of dented beetles and a couple of Vegas!

ab348

omarman said:

The old car pic had style and color but the newer pic could be titled, "All things dull and ugly."

Yep. The epidemic of black, white, grey and silver cars had pretty much taken over in the newer pic, with just a few outliers showing any kind of vibrant paint color. A late 2000s Corolla in white or silver is pretty much the prototype for public taste (or lack thereof) in cars of that time.

I remember when I was a kid in the 1960s we had a new '67 Pontiac in white with a red interior, and the white paint was not particularly common then for private vehicles. It was fairly easy to spot in crowded parking lots because of that.

lostwrench1

Aerodynamics.

fintail

That dull colored newer pic shows how styling trends have slowed and normalized a bit (save for the faux aggression of some makes in the past few years), and how cars last longer. I'd wager that pic is 10 years old, yet nothing there seems particularly old, and most are still normal sights on the road.

omarman

stickguy said:

omarman said:

The old car pic had style and color but the newer pic could be titled, "All things dull and ugly."

nothing says still like a bunch of dented beetles and a couple of Vegas!

Lol! I really liked Chevy's "baby Camaro" style with the Vega. I've never had anything good to say about VW bugs - dented or not. But I recall being told that even bad taste is better than no taste.

texases

I have no problem with the Prius. It looks that way as part of its goal of getting max mpgs. Nothing wrong with that.

Mr_Shiftright

I think some people's "problem" with the Prius is that function tended to dictate form a bit too much. Early hybrids let the drivetrain and batteries dictate the shapes--both the Prius and Insight were awkward to look at.

If we had "mystery photos" of early EVs, we'd see the same problem.

RE: Staten Island Ferry Photo:--- the thing that struck me was the differences in colors of cars, but of course it is also true that the newer cars are more aero and more foreign-made in number.

texases

True, but also I think a lot of people had a problem with the Prius owner 'attitude', real or imagined, which flowed into their thoughts about the car itself.

Mr_Shiftright

Prius was an amazing technical achievement for Toyota but not much progress in the Art of Styling. .

texases

Particularly the last restyle, it went from 'quirky, but with a purpose' to 'just plain odd!'.

andys120

stickguy

Jaguar. 1959 XK150

andys120

stickguy said:

Jaguar. 1959 XK150

Yes, a 1959 XK-150 DHC , a pretty car and a good performer, somewhat lost in the glamor of it's predecessors (XK-120/140) and it's gorgeous and very fast successor (XK-E)

andys120