Bell-bottoms have been back for a while, so have gigantic sunglasses and big collars. When Karl Brauer brought in a stack of 70's-era brochures, I just couldn't resist using one of them for this week's Fun With Press Photos.
Personally, I thought the 1970's were the dark ages for automotive enthusiasts. Sure, you had a scattering of intersting muscle cars, but for the most part, I struggle to find anything from that decade that I'd ever consider calling a classic.
But the sales material? Classic (in the most campy way possible). So I present to you, a sampling from the 1974 Pontiac Accessories brochure.
Dressing up a mid-70's Pontiac? Gotta go with the Landau top. Classy, no? I got a kick out of how hard they tried to include a lady in some of the shots. For some reason, the woman in the rear window (center of the right-facing page) creeps me out.
Eight tracks. Perhaps the worst audio format ever. We had one in our 1978 Dodge Tradesman Van and it was just awful. Again, they were trying too hard to incorporate the ladies. Seriously, who sits like that (left-facing page)? I'm assuming that the woman on the right-facing page had to get that close to the speaker because the sound quality was so abysmal.
Nowadays, I get a chuckle from some overly protective parents. Somehow, I survived my childhood in an era where a child seat that would probably have done more harm than good. My infant seat was nowhere close to that molded plastic number shown above. In my memories in our green Ford station wagon, I was freely rolling around the cabin without a seatbelt. Sometimes I'd sit in the cargo area, which had a smooth metal floor. I got a kick out of sliding around when my mother would hit the brakes or turn. I'm pretty sure we'd get arrested for trying that today. Oh, and awsome mustache, man.
By 7driver
on May 14, 2010
10:38 AM
"Personally, I thought the 1970's were the dark ages for automotive enthusiasts. Sure, you had a scattering of intersting muscle cars, but for the most part, I struggle to find anything from that decade that I'd ever consider calling a classic."
Among American and Asian brands, I'd agree. However, the Europeans had a few interesting ones:
Lancia Stratos
Alfa Romeo Montreal
Lotus Esprit
Ferrari 512BB
By firstwagon
on May 14, 2010
11:54 AM
I survived that era bouncing around in the back of my Dads wagon too but a lot of kids didn't.
While you may get a chuckle from todays parents would you buy a new car now that didn't have ABS, multiple airbags, stability control, side impact protection and whatever else they have dreamed up lately?
Everyone is overboard on safety now, not just parents.
By blackadder5639
on May 14, 2010
12:08 PM
7driver, add the VW Golf GTI to that list.
Firstwagon, I woouldn't go as far as to say everyone is overboard with safety. I mean, these features do save lives, and aren't all that expensive these days. WHy not add them?
By katbrain
on May 14, 2010
12:33 PM
Have to say, rolling in the back of the station wagon was a good time! Also fun was discovering Armor All and applying it to the rear bench in my girlfriend's parents' new Caddy.
By blueguydotcom
on May 14, 2010
02:47 PM
Holymoly that lady in the window looking out has John Carpenter kinda etch-a-sketch on your head, last house at the end of the block, people under the stairs kind thing going on.
Child seats - way overboard in this age. And yes, way overboard on the safety features. Sometimes things slip through the cracks and that's good for the species...
By the_big_al
on May 14, 2010
09:00 PM
wow! Baby seats?? They actually had those in 1974?? I honestly didn't think they existed. I remember riding around the back of my mom's 1976 Firebird without an infant seat, my sisters next to me jumping up and down as we went down the road. This was probably in 1984?? Also on roadtrips, we took my dad's Datsun pickup. He'd put the campershell on and roll out a scrap piece of carpet and away we'd go. That was our mode of travel...
I guess I still have those habits ingrained in me. I was called in by a concerned citizen because my daughter (4 years old) was sticking her head out the window from behind the passenger seat as I drove through the middle of town from the park where we were playing to the store. Mr officer kindly explained that this was against the law and I shouldn't allow such errant behavior.
By sabastian
on May 15, 2010
07:08 AM
"Personally, I thought the 1970's were the dark ages for automotive enthusiasts. Sure, you had a scattering of interesting muscle cars, but for the most part, I struggle to find anything from that decade that I'd ever consider calling a classic."
The BMW 3-series started production in 1975, and the Honda Civic was born in 1973. Sure, they're not fire-breathing muscle cars, but original examples are definitely considered classics today.