I spotted an (insert obscure car name here) classic car today!

ab348 · January 2021

Yes, from that angle the '70 Chevy front end really shows off those pointy-ended fenders. I always thought that front end reminded me of a '64 Caddy, but hadn't realized how sharp the fender ends were.

Funny how you can still learn things about cars from 50 years ago. Earlier this week I watched the latest Wheeler Dealers episode which featured a '65 Coronet. It was a pretty mediocre episode overall, but I found myself really appreciating the styling of the Coronet. I'm not sure that the Coronet was even sold here in '65 since I don't recall seeing them until '66. But this one had some nice creases stamped into the sheet metal and the tips of the front fenders had little emblems on them which I know I had never seen previously.

uplanderguy · January 2021

I remember those LS Monte Carlos weren't available at the beginning of the '86 model run. My guess is that once they were out, the old-style Sport Coupe went away, but I don't know for sure. But I doubt they'd be building three styles of Monte Carlos in 1986. Outside the SS, I think sales were down on the line already.

tjc78 · January 2021

fintail said:
I just watched a 1986 episode of The Price is Right, and the cars were pretty decent - not the rental spec stuff usually seen these days.

First up was a nicely equipped Trans Am:

Then a Monte Carlo LS:

Then a very loaded Town Car - moonroof, leather, wire wheels, etc:

IIRC all the cars were won by their contestants.

I would take any one in that group!

andre1969 · January 2021

I have some stock shares of Cedar Fair, the parent company of Cedar Point, so I'd always use the excuse that I'm "checking on my investment", to partly justify the trip out there. We'd stay through a couple days, and make a mini vacation out of it. Then, we started going out to Cedar Point, then we'd go down to King's Island, which is owned by the same company, and then come back home. One thing that was kinda cool, at King's Island, we stayed at the "King's Island Resort", which they showed the exterior of in that episode of the "Brady Bunch" where they went to King's Island. I don't know if I'd call it a "resort" though...it was really just a motel, by the time we stayed there. I remember there was a small pile of tires in one of the back parking lots. And apparently it closed down and got razed. The google street view just shows it as a mostly overgrown field now. The pavement is still there, but the buildings are all torn down.

That's good that someone is at least trying to make use of that old Lordstown plant. Seems like a huge waste to just let it sit and rot.

uplanderguy · January 2021

My sister's first car was a '65 Coronet 440 four-door sedan; light turquoise metallic with white painted top. Bought in 1970. 318, automatic. The cloth seats were very padded and comfortable; I distinctly remember that. But in a year the top of the LF fender began getting holes (PA state inspection was fussy about that) and my Dad did the most embarrassing, hillbilly, Red Green-style fix you could imagine. Black filler over red primer on top of the fender there.

Similarly, my sixth-grade teacher (1969-70) had a maroon '65 Satellite convertible I admired back then. About three years ago I saw one in my hometown big Heritage Days car show that looked just like it. I walked around front and the owner's name on the windshield sign was my teacher's name! I'd never seen it since middle school. Her husband was showing the car that day. She lived in Long Island, NY and went to college about 25 miles from my hometown in western PA; the new Satellite was her graduation gift from her parents. She'd met and subsequently married her husband while they were in college.

I told her husband that Hemmings Classic Car would love a story like that--one woman-owned car all these years and that I knew someone who worked at Hemmings. He smiled and didn't seem interested in that. I'd have loved to have seen it.

The other thing I remember most about that teacher was that she loved the 1969 Mets and had stuff over half her blackboard about them.

fintail · January 2021

Air date of the episode I watched was 8/21/86, which supports the LS being a later addition. This one was also well-equipped - V8, power equipment, etc, not sure how much of that was standard.

I think the tide was turning away from cars like that by that time. It looked pretty fresh in 81, but Ford's aero movement made other cars look old fast.

In the late 90s, a friend/college roommate had an 83 CL, which in that trim I called a "Peggy Hill" car (that character actually had a G-body Regal sedan).

uplanderguy said:
I remember those LS Monte Carlos weren't available at the beginning of the '86 model run. My guess is that once they were out, the old-style Sport Coupe went away, but I don't know for sure. But I doubt they'd be building three styles of Monte Carlos in 1986. Outside the SS, I think sales were down on the line already.

andre1969 · January 2021

uplanderguy said:
I remember those LS Monte Carlos weren't available at the beginning of the '86 model run. My guess is that once they were out, the old-style Sport Coupe went away, but I don't know for sure. But I doubt they'd be building three styles of Monte Carlos in 1986. Outside the SS, I think sales were down on the line already.

My Mom's '86 Monte Carlo was the base model, which I think they just called "Sport Coupe." I don't know what its build date was, but she got it in September of 1986. However, that might not be an indication that they built them the whole year...hers could have just been sitting around for awhile.

Sales of the Monte Carlo were definitely down, by this time. For some reason, it seemed like the Regal and Cutlass Supreme kept their popularity a bit longer. GM's personal luxury coupes all got a momentary reprieve in in 1981, when the aero restyle helped sales in an otherwise down year. But then in '82 they all fell. The Regal and Cutlass Supreme seemed to suffer less though, than the Monte Carlo and Grand Prix, and when the economy got better, the Regal and Cutlass Supreme seemed to bounce back more. By 1986 though, the personal luxury coupe market in general was starting to contract, and buyers of those cars seemed to prefer the T-bird and Cougar.

uplanderguy · January 2021

I always say, the last time I remember seeing a Monte Carlo TV commercial or even a magazine ad, was 1981. The campaign was "YOU....and Monte Carlo".

It may have been because I started my first real job in Sept. 1980 and travelled frequently, but I seem to remember other '80's Chevy ads, just not Monte Carlo.

I'd still like an '86-88 LS with checkerboard wheels and NO body side moldings.

I like that the LS model lost the hood ornament.

I love this two-tone, but I'd honestly have to see if that glue-on body side molding could be removed with no permanent damage, LOL. I also like the last interiors (CL) of this era--definitely a non-cool thing by then.

uplanderguy · January 2021

I haven't seen one in awhile, and we've talked about it before, but I think this is bold and yes I really do like it! In the age of lots of solid velour, this is rather unique. It's just....different. '77 Bonneville:

andre1969 · January 2021

uplanderguy said:

I'd still like an '86-88 LS with checkerboard wheels and NO body side moldings. I like that the LS model lost the hood ornament.

My Mom's '86 Monte Carlo base model lost the hood ornament. It was in the glovebox, by the time she gave me the car

That Bonneville Brougham trim level was called "Valencia", I think. That red/white/black pattern is a bit much for me, but they also had it in a gold/tan/black/white combination that I find easier on the eyes...

explorerx4 · January 2021

King's Island had some weird stuff happen there.

andre1969 · January 2021

explorerx4 said:
King's Island had some weird stuff happen there.

Did something happen recently, or do you mean in the context of the Brady Bunch? I remember hearing about how they had set up their roller coaster, "The Racer", with a camera mount on the front, so they could record the family riding the train. But Robert Reed was worried about safety, so they sent the train out on a test run, empty, and it came back without the camera. There was a rumor going around that, if they had gone out that first time, the camera mount could have decapitated them all!

Oh yeah, I do remember they had a coaster called "The Son of Beast", that was supposedly the only wooden coaster with a loop. While that sounds like an incredible engineering feat, the loop itself was all steel, so it was a bit of a hybrid. I recall one of the trains fell out of the loop. By the time I went to King's Island, the "Son of Beast" was closed down, but you could still see it standing. The original Beast is pretty cool. Especially at night, as most of it is in the woods, and towards the end it gets going so fast that it feels downright dangerous!

uplanderguy · January 2021

Did Alice ride the coasters?

andre1969 · January 2021

uplanderguy said:
Did Alice ride the coasters?

Well, she rode the Racer, at least, albeit under duress...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88VchSMpbVQ

kyfdx · January 2021

Racer anecdote..

In 1974, I sat next to Dave Concepcion on the Racer.

andre1969 · January 2021

The Kings Dominion (near Richmond VA) version of the Racer is the first "big" roller coaster I ever went on as a kid. It was called the Rebel Yell back then, but it was recently renamed because that's a dirty word nowadays.

Edit: just checked the Roller Coaster Database. Looks like Kings Island only had two coasters back when the Brady Bunch was filmed. The second one was a small one geared more towards kids, called the Scooby Doo coaster. It went through several name changes, and is now called Woodstock Express.

We have the same coaster at Kings Dominion. I remember going on it as a kid, and even as a teen/young adult. I tried to ride it in my early 40's though, when I was on a bit of a nostalgia kick. Let's just say the old saying is true...you can't go home again! That thing was cramped as hell, and really not made for adults. At least, not tall ones.

uplanderguy · January 2021

All of the daughters on that show were cute.

explorerx4 · January 2021

Kings Island had a few strange deaths.
One time 2 people got electrocuted touching the water while crossing a bridge, at about the same time someone fell out of a ride and didn't survive. Another person got killed by an Eiffel Tower elevator.

fintail · January 2021

The TC made me think of you. They named several options, including premium sound and trac-lok. I wonder if the car survives. It was in a lavish showcase that was over 50K total, a princely sum in 1986 dollars.

tjc78 said:

I would take any one in that group!

stickguy · January 2021

out driving around today (pretty chilly here too), a flat back rubber spoiler Alfa spyder Graduate. Red, tan top. Looked to be in pretty good shape. Looked quite dainty in normal traffic, and such skinny tires!

andre1969 · January 2021

fintail said:
The TC made me think of you. They named several options, including premium sound and trac-lok. I wonder if the car survives. It was in a lavish showcase that was over 50K total, a princely sum in 1986 dollars.

tjc78 said:

I would take any one in that group!

I like all three of those, too. When the Monte Carlo LS was new, it took me awhile to warm up to that aero look, but now I rather like it.

The Trans Am is nice, too. When I was a kid, those things seemed all the rage, although once I actually got closer to driving range, I started lusting after larger cars like the Monte SS, and Grand National. This particular example is interesting, in its subdued gray/silver color scheme. Back in the day it seemed like most of them were black with gold trim, or red with silver.

The Town Car is nice, too. Especially with the moonroof!

imidazol97 · January 2021

imidazol97 said:
Here's the Futura that was a concept car for Lincoln.

http://1966batmobile.com/history/futura/

If anyone wants a Batmobile similar to this stylish Futura design, they are available in various levels of finish from near here in Dayton Metro.

https://gothamcruisers.com/66cruiser.htm

tjc78 · January 2021

fintail said:
The TC made me think of you. They named several options, including premium sound and trac-lok. I wonder if the car survives. It was in a lavish showcase that was over 50K total, a princely sum in 1986 dollars.

tjc78 said:

I would take any one in that group!

It’s a Signature Series for sure. Those wheels were a pricey option too. There are still a lot of 80’s Town Cars on the road. I’d bet there would be even more if Ford didn’t use a plastic grommet on the transmission cable. You could destroy a trans in a few miles if that popped and you drove it.

andre1969 · January 2021

The guy I bought my '76 Grand LeMans from said he was in the process of having a Batmobile replica built. I wonder if that's the company he used? I might still have his email somewhere; I'm half-tempted to hit him up and see how he's doing?

He also had a Grand Am coupe; a '74 I'm thinking. He had originally bought the '76, and while he liked it for the most part, wanted something with more guts to it, so got the Grand Am and put the '76 up for sale, which is how I found it.

imidazol97 · January 2021

I saw a Batmobile like car at a weekly cruise-in a few years back here locally.
I wonder if they were connected.

Another time a guy in a black costume with a black Mercury Marauder was there,
and I don't know what character that was to portray. But he got a lot
of attention from folks.

fintail · January 2021

Yep they mentioned it is a Signature Series. I think also mentioned was digital gauges and "puncture seal" tires or something like that, I guess an early runflat.

For the Batmobile talk, I noticed something fun, on a Google street view of the Christmas Story House in Cleveland, A Batmobile is in front of it

tjc78 said:

It’s a Signature Series for sure. Those wheels were a pricey option too. There are still a lot of 80’s Town Cars on the road. I’d bet there would be even more if Ford didn’t use a plastic grommet on the transmission cable. You could destroy a trans in a few miles if that popped and you drove it.

imidazol97 · January 2021

Likely not a mystery car to many on here, but I would like to know what it is. It's from a video of a
coffee cruise-in down Cincy way. Mostly exotic vehicles at the cruises there from what I've seen.

fintail · January 2021

Early 70s Nissan Skyline. Not sure if it is a now-expensive GT-R. These are nicknamed "Hakosuka". Never officially imported here.

imidazol97 said:
Likely not a mystery car to many on here, but I would like to know what it is. It's from a video of a
coffee cruise-in down Cincy way. Mostly exotic vehicles at the cruises there from what I've seen.

xwesx · January 2021

uplanderguy said:

The 52-year-old tires are indeed scary.

I still have the original spare tire for my '69 C20. It is mounted on the original rim and is all aired up (50 PSI) and ready to go! I even used it for a week or two about 20 years ago when I had a flat. But, damn. No thank you. That is the roughest-riding tire I've ever experienced. Like riding on a rock.

Scary indeed!

uplanderguy · January 2021

The spare in my '66 Studebaker is still the original Firestone whitewall as well.

ab348 · January 2021

fintail said:
Yep they mentioned it is a Signature Series. I think also mentioned was digital gauges and "puncture seal" tires or something like that, I guess an early runflat.

About 20 years ago when I had my '78 Delta 88 I needed to get a new set of tires, and my preferred tire shop at the time sold me a set of Uniroyal "Royal Seal" tires for it. They were on some sort of special promo and were the same price as the cheapest name brand tire the shop offered otherwise. I don't think they sold well as I never saw them on any other cars around here, which you could tell because even though they were whitewalls, they interrupted the white line to insert a "Royal Seal" logo. They weren't run-flats in today's sense with a stiff sidewall, but instead had some sort of self-sealing qualities so that supposedly running over a nail or whatnot wouldn't result in a flat. Never had to test that.

andre1969 · January 2021

Chrysler offered a run-flat type of tire called "Captive Air" back around 1957-59. I'm not sure, but I think it was mostly seen on 3-seat DeSoto and Chrysler wagons, and gave them an excuse to do away with the spare tire. 3-seat Dodge and Plymouth wagons from that era tended to have a spare that was stored upright, in the passenger side rear quarter panel, and you accessed it from the outside. Here's a '59 Plymouth, with the access panel to the spare tire removed...

I think "Captive Air" might have been standard on the DeSotos and Chryslers. At least, I've never seen a DeSoto/Chrysler wagon with that access panel.

uplanderguy · January 2021

Three-seat Studebaker Lark Wagonaires also had no spare and utilized Captive Air Goodyear tires.

Man, that compartment cover sure must've left a pretty big visible seam!

I know that's a '59, but my vote for 'weirdest front wheel opening' goes to the '60 model Plymouth.

kyfdx · January 2021

imidazol97 said:
Likely not a mystery car to many on here, but I would like to know what it is. It's from a video of a
coffee cruise-in down Cincy way. Mostly exotic vehicles at the cruises there from what I've seen.

That's the one I tend to hit up, as it's only 12 minutes away. Have you been to that one?

andre1969 · January 2021

Yeah, the '60 was certainly weird, with that crease that kicks forward, from the back of the wheel opening, but instead of just going straight forward like in '59, instead angles up and over the headlights.

The 1960 Plymouth in general makes me question just what, exactly, the stylists were thinking. The rest of the Mopar lineup was fairly tasteful that year, I thought, but Plymouth just seemed to go off on its own tangent.

One feature of the '60 Plymouth that I do think looks good, from certain angles at least, are the tailfins. They're a bit much by 1960 standards, but they seem to have an expensive, upscale look to them, almost like they're too nice for the rest of the car! I've wondered sometimes, if the way Plymouth did their fins was Chrysler's way of taking a shot at Cadillac? Basically, taking their cheapest car and aping GM's most expensive? The '57-58 and the '60 fins always gave me a bit of a Cadillac vibe. Not the '59 though. For some reason, when I look at the rear of the '59, it seems a bit "European" to me. I think it's the low-mounted taillights and the strong crease that cuts across above them, forming the edge of the trunk lid. If you stretch your imagination a bit, it almost looks a bit Benz-ish.

uplanderguy · January 2021

You know me, in that era I'm mostly about Studebakers, but even the '60 Hawk still had large fins.

I sort-of think the '60 Dodge is a good-looking car, but only in the lower models. The longer ones have those elongated fins at the back.

When I was a kid, I had a model kit of a '60 DeSoto hardtop. Quite like a Chrysler. Good basic styling I think.

You seem to like old sitcoms. Did you ever watch "Gomer Pyle, USMC"? There was an episode where Pyle was looking after Sarge's '60 Dodge (identified as a "'61" on the show) and while parked near a construction zone, a crane crushed it. The construction company replaced it with a new '66 Dodge Coronet 500.

andre1969 · January 2021

I didn't watch "Gomer Pyle" religiously, but I've seen that episode. IIRC, Sergeant Carter's Dart was stolen by joyriders, and they left it under a suspended wrecking ball.

That show was pretty cruel to old Mopars. I remember another episode where they blew up a '58 Dodge Coronet convertible...

For some reason, I'm also thinking of a '55 or '56 Dodge that ended up in a lake, but I couldn't find that on the IMCDB.

Apparently, Sarge's '60 Dodge started off as a nicer Dart Pioneer hardtop coupe, but a cheap Seneca 2-door sedan was substituted for the actual destruction.

https://www.imcdb.org/vehicle_231763-Dodge-Dart-Phoenix-1960.html

And, in typical Hollywood fashion, it looks like they had continuity issues. In the comments on that page, someone noted that Sarge was still driving that '60 in seasons 3 and 4!

fintail · January 2021

Wow, I bet that's a rust nest.

Speaking of car issues on old shows, we can't forget Barney Fife's "60 Edsel with a 61 grille", and how he actually drove a 58 on the show.

andre1969 said:
Here's a '59 Plymouth, with the access panel to the spare tire removed...

fintail · January 2021

You're right, probably a similar thing. I looked it up in an 86 TC brochure, "puncture-sealant tires" are described to have the ability to "seal tread punctures up to 3/16" in diameter".

ab348 said:

About 20 years ago when I had my '78 Delta 88 I needed to get a new set of tires, and my preferred tire shop at the time sold me a set of Uniroyal "Royal Seal" tires for it. They were on some sort of special promo and were the same price as the cheapest name brand tire the shop offered otherwise. I don't think they sold well as I never saw them on any other cars around here, which you could tell because even though they were whitewalls, they interrupted the white line to insert a "Royal Seal" logo. They weren't run-flats in today's sense with a stiff sidewall, but instead had some sort of self-sealing qualities so that supposedly running over a nail or whatnot wouldn't result in a flat. Never had to test that.

uplanderguy · January 2021

I gotta say, I enjoy old "The Andy Griffith Show" reruns, although I hate the first couple seasons. Andy is played as a hick instead of the sole wise person on the show as in later seasons. And while Barney is terrific, I even enjoy the color episodes, which almost no network ever shows. I can't stand Ernest T. Bass or the Darlings in the earlier seasons, or even how Floyd the barber is played. Apparently the guy who played Floyd had a stroke but Andy wanted him on the show still. That's why he is always seated in the later seasons. His speaking style slowed down, to greater effect I think too.

I remember the one where Barney had the Edsel, but haven't seen it in a long time.

There was a Gomer Pyle episode where Opie ran away to join the Marines with Gomer. I'm thinking this was in '67 or '68. Andy showed up just at the end to collect Opie. He did a lot with his five minutes--few words, look of disgust, then put his arm around Opie while they walked out of Gomer's barracks. Opie told Sarge how Gomer's letters back home made the Marines seem exciting and said he had the 'best sergeant in the Marines'.

Supposedly the most-watched Andy Griffith episode was I think in '68, when Barney offered to find a place for a US-USSR summit meeting and suggested Mayberry. This wasn't the original plan, but it ended up being at Andy's house. The episode had Barney visiting Mayberry from Raleigh. Apparently this was based on a similar thing that really happened the year before in the U.S.

My favorite episodes don't even have Barney--one is called "The Church Benefactor", 1968, where someone dies and leaves the church $500 and there are different opinions on what to do with it--just had my hometown written all over it--but the other is "Goober Goes To The Auto Show". Aunt Bee is looking to buy a new car and she, Andy, Opie and Goober go to Raleigh for the auto show, where Goober runs into an old mechanics school buddy of his, who puts down Goober owning his own station now and says he is an engineer with "Amalgamated Motors", LOL. It ends up that he's a grease monkey at a station in Raleigh.

In that episode, Aunt Bee and Opie are checking out some European sports car; the make escapes me. Aunt Bee accidentally sprays the stuffy salesman with the windshield washers, and Andy comes over and says "Let's look at American compact cars".

Of course, Frances Bavier owned a '66 Studebaker Daytona Sports Sedan which her Aunt Bee character actually drove on the "Mayberry R.F.D." show. Even though I love Studebakers, I admit that Aunt Bee driving a '66 Studebaker seems totally believable. Someone on the S.D.C. forum worked at a dealer in L.A. and remembered Bavier bringing her '62 Lark in for service.

uplanderguy · January 2021

I saw a B&W episode not too long ago, when Barney and Andy were organizing their high school reunion--"Class of 1945". They were looking through their old yearbook and amazingly, the yearbook had Andy's and Don's real yearbook senior pics, you could just tell.

fintail · January 2021

I watched Andy Griffith a bit when I was a kid, I think my dad liked it. The cars were fascinating to me, as even by then they were oldies. IMCDB has a comprehensive listing for the show.

One I recall clearly was the car driven by Otis, a 33 Ford cabriolet. Early V8 Fords have always interested me, and this car is very rare today - amused me that it was seen as a relic when the show was new:

This might be the auto show car. Ferrari 275 GTB/4, 7 figure car today:

A fancy visitor to Mayberry:

Barney's Edsel, nice looking car:

Aunt Bee:

And of course:

andre1969 · January 2021

I seem to recall one early episode of the Andy Griffith show where Andy and Barney were sitting in the patrol car, talking, and from the interior shot it looked like a 1960 or so Mopar! From the camera angle, you could see the C-pillar on the passenger side, and part of the rear window, and rear door window, and it seemed to have that Mopar shape to it.

Of course, the exterior shot was of a Ford product. I guess it's possible the interior was of a '60 or '61 Fairlane, as they had a slimmer C-pillar, and more rounded rear window than the more formal Galaxie. But, they were still fairly upright, and a '60 Mopar is swoopier. I've tried to keep an eye out for that episode, but of course, now that I'm actually looking for it, I won't find it anytime in the near future!

Here's the IMCDB link for the 1958 Edsel: https://www.imcdb.org/vehicle_27628-Edsel-Pacer-1958.html

Down in the comments, someone mentions that the car still exists, and as of 2018 at least, was at a shop in Roanoke, VA. Apparently the car has two gear selectors...the original pushbuttons on the "Teletouch" steering wheel and a a floor shift, modified that way so that the cast wouldn't be confused as how to select gears.

I wonder if that's true, though, or if the reality was simply that the Teletouch gave out, and the car was converted to a floor shift? I can't imagine that pushbutton gear selection was *that* alien to people by then. That would have been the 1965-66 season, so that Edsel would only be 7-8 model years old. And Chrysler had pushbutton transmissions through 1964. You'd think they wouldn't be *that* hard to figure out.

uplanderguy · January 2021

That episode with the Ferrari is indeed "Goober Goes To The Auto Show".

At the ending, Goober, after being put down by his old 'buddy', is dejected. Andy is driving Aunt Bee's '55 Ford Sunliner and pulls in to get gas. They all complain how rude the attendant is compared to getting service at Goober's. Andy goes up to buy a bottle of pop and spies the "engineer from Amalgamated Motors" lubing a car in the grease rack there. He goes to get Goober and asks him if he wants to say something to his old friend. Goober says "I wouldn't want to embarrass him", and ends the show being the bigger man, of course.

Here's an episode of Mayberry R.F.D. (which suffered without Andy IMHO), where Aunt Bee is getting out of her own Studebaker. My previous Stude was the same year and model; just different color but with same black vinyl top. I wonder how many people actually drove their own cars on a TV series. The episode is from season 2 (1970), "The Mynah Bird". All the other cars in this series were Mopars.

uplanderguy · January 2021

P.S. Sorry for the 'Toenail Fungus' popup..

andre1969 · January 2021

uplanderguy said:
P.S. Sorry for the 'Toenail Fungus' popup..

Hey, at least you weren't on Pornhub. Oh, wait, what are those women BEHIND the toenail fungus ad doing?

I haven't seen "Mayberry RFD" in ages, so long, most likely that if I watched it now, it would be almost like watching them for the first time. I kinda wish they'd show it, throw it in with the Andy Griffith syndication package or something. From what I recall reading, it was a pretty popular show, even without Andy Griffith in it. But, like just about everything else with a tree, it suffered the fate of CBS's "Rural Purge".

I'll admit, I prefer the old black and white episodes of "Andy Griffith" to the color ones. I never really saw Andy as being played as a dumb hick in those episodes, but more like someone who had a cunning intelligence about him, but acted like a simple country bumpkin, and usually ended up showing up the smug city slickers. He seemed like he had more fun with the other characters too, and played off of them really well. In contrast, with the later episodes, he seemed more like he was getting annoyed with them.

Still, there were a lot of good color episodes, as well. One other thing about the black & white episodes, though...it seemed like you really could lose yourself in them, and feel like they were taking you to rural North Carolina. But, with the color episodes, somehow, it just had more of a "Hollywood" feel to it. I don't know if it was that the color picked up the dry air and smog, or you saw the California mountains off in the distance more clearly, or what. But it just didn't seem quite as much "down home" I guess.

ab348 · January 2021

andre1969 said:
Yeah, the '60 was certainly weird, with that crease that kicks forward, from the back of the wheel opening, but instead of just going straight forward like in '59, instead angles up and over the headlights.

The 1960 Plymouth in general makes me question just what, exactly, the stylists were thinking. The rest of the Mopar lineup was fairly tasteful that year, I thought, but Plymouth just seemed to go off on its own tangent.

Well, I don't know. I don't mind the '60 Plymouth front end, in the context of the times. The wheel opening sculpturing up front actually looks good in some color combos and in monochrome paint jobs is just another bit of design. If anything, they overdid the tailfins IMO. The '61 rear end and bodysides were much cleaner designs, but of course the '61 Plymouth front end caused all of that to be overlooked.

I was reading an article recently about the '60 and '61 Dodges, where it said that Virgil Exner was not involved in the refresh of the '61s because of his heart attack keeping him away from work, and that it was a free-for-all among the designers who were left, with people jockeying for position and trying to impress the higher-ups in his absence. The results of the lack of leadership for not just Dodge but also Plymouth in '61 were some pretty strange designs going into production.

uplanderguy · January 2021

Who are we to say I guess--Lexus must've been impressed with the '61 Plymouth all these years later!

I guess I prefer the '60 Plymouth front wheel opening to early-fifties Nashes with no wheel openings!

Of the early sixties Dodge and Plymouths--I'm trying to think which I liked best. Probably a '62 Fury.

My Stude dealer friend was invited by the Dodge zone man to go with him to the dealer showing of the new '62 Dodges in Detroit as our town had lost its Dodge dealer owner and was looking to sign another up. Talk of big sales ensued. My friend got to Detroit and the zone guy said "What do you think?" and my friend replied, "Those look worse than Studebakers", LOL.

Needless to say, he didn't acquire the franchise, probably not a great idea.

He did pick up this Chrysler product in 1964. He later told me he thought the Chrysler 5/50 warranty would be a good sales advantage. I've heard of other Stude dealers that picked up Simca; I would've thought Chrysler dealers would've been first in a town to acquire them, but who knows.

The fellow on the far-left is still with us at age 88. He owned a new supercharged '64 Cruiser four-door sedan in black with red cloth buckets and floor-mounted Powershift (PRND21) automatic.

andre1969 · January 2021

A few years back, there was a '61 Plymouth parked out at the shop of the mechanic that worked on my DeSoto. It had been customized mildly, with '59 Chevy taillights. It was a look that actually worked!

This might be a bit of revisionist history, but here's an article that mentions for 1961, they were going for a more trim, compact appearance. https://www.motorcities.org/story-of-the-week/2020/the-1961-plymouths-were-iconic-looking-cars

I never really thought about that, because the cars were still about the same dimensions, overall. But, the front-end, while bizarre, didn't seem quite as bulky as the '60. And with the fins shaved off, and the rear rounded off and scalloped, the cars do appear a bit smaller.

andre1969 · January 2021

I used to theorize that they made the '60 Plymouth a bit extra ugly on purpose, to get people to pay a few extra bucks for a Dodge Dart. And in a similar vein, that was how I reasoned out that the '61 DeSoto got approved.

But, realistically, I don't think they put that much deviousness into it. In the case of the '60 Plymouth, it actually took quite a bit of effort to come up with that look, love it or hate it. The end result might be questionable, but you have to give them credit for trying, and letting their imaginations run wild.

With the '61 DeSoto, I think they just did the bare minimum to differentiate it from a Chrysler, in an attempt to use up some DeSoto-unique trim, badges, etc. And while that upper grille-bulge seems pretty awkward, they probably made it like that so it could share the same hood with a Chrysler.

I spotted an (insert obscure car name here) classic car today!

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