A classic car connaisseur tells you the story of the kitschy personal luxury car, as well as the origins of the Ford Thunderbird. Remember to like, subscribe and share if you want more of this! Enjoy!
Hahahaha ikr? My parents want to buy a GLE Coupe and I’m like: no no no, please no. I also think the Coupe SUVs look really bad, don’t get me wrong, but I don’t like their designs.
When I was a little kid, my parents bought a '66 (gen 1) Toronado. God that car was awesome. The engine could have come from a tank and the body from an episode of Star Trek. Gas was like 35 cents a gallon and the Feds were building Interstate Highways like there was no tomorrow so, what the hell.
Yep. That Olds was really neat - first post war front-wheel-drive production car. My folks bought a '67 T-Bird. Both of these were "personal luxury" cars but our 'Bird served our family of 5 just fine - heck, I didn't know any better.
Great! As a single guy I went from the Corvettes to the pony cars to the personal luxury cars then to vans and now SUVs. I want to go back and start over.... Well done, Thanks...
Good lord GM made some downright BEAUTIFUL coupes from the mid-sixties to early seventies, the Riviera, Toronado, Monte Carlo, Eldorado, etc., all of them drop dead GORGEOUS!!!
That was the first front wheel drive I ever saw. A man brought one in the garage I worked in back in 77 and wanted chains on the rear wheels . Big snow on and all and we could not convince him it wasn't gonna do no good lol
i had a 1985 Olds Toronado. It had a 5.7 litre V8 that made about 150 horsepower. It was, admittedly, beautiful inside and out. It had an all-digital dashboard, including the speedometer and fuel guage, and it TALKED. It would say things in a robotic speak-and-spell voice like "FUEL LEVEL LOW" or "DOOR OPEN". The leather was very, very comfortable -- a whole lot cushier than the leather seats in modern cars. Performance-wise, it was about as quick and nimble as a garbage truck, and got similar gas mileage. In those categories, it was very very similar to my previous car -- a Lincoln Continental Mark V. This was an absolutely STUNNING vehicle. Gorgeous beyond words, and very comfortable and luxurious, but a steaming pile of trash mechanically and engineering-wise. THIS car had a monstrous 7.5 litre (460 cid) V8 that got, no exaggeration, about 8 miles per gallon. That engine claimed to make 200hp, but was so achingly slow it seemed like it really might be faster to walk to wherever you were going. Seriously, this thing would be straight dusted by the hypothetical garbage truck i mentioned earlier, and its cylinder heads chronically leaking oil all over the engine block ensured that it smelled just as bad too. Look up pictures of the Continental Mark V, though, it really is one of the prettiest hunks of junk ever crapped out of Detroit during the Malaise Era. Mine was black with a grey quarter-top and porthole window. so, so pretty. (and slow, and crappy)
My father, a decorated World War Two Vet, was an American automobile connaisseur. I always marveled at the magnificent cars he brought home, everything from a 1956 Ford Thunderbird to his stately Mercury Marquis and many, many Lincolns. He also bought several offerings from GM as well but was mostly a Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury man. I inherited his love for massive American 'Luxo-Boats' and have owned many American classics in my day. I still have, among others, his 1980 Lincoln Versailles, a wonderful yet much-maligned car. Thank you for this, a fascinating look at the American automobile experience!
Growing up in the 1970's, personal luxury cars were so extremely common that they often outnumbered sedans and pickup trucks. My mom had a turd brown Chrysler Cordoba. It looked like a two door bordello.
The 1st gen Toronado is jaw dropping. The low slung design, sloping truck, massive wheel wells, pointed front... The whole thing is a vision. GM had nice personal luxury cars in to the mid 80s, the Eldorado Biarritz especially. I actually had an 81 Oldsmobile Omega coupe when I was like 19 and it was like a mini PLC, it was so much fun to drive
As a long-time Saab owner, there's an interesting story regarding the Toronado that taught them (Saab) a lesson in hubris. When it was obvious that emission regulations spelled the end of the 2-stroke engine in cars, Saab was looking around for a replacement that would fit under the hood of the 96. They found an industrial Ford V-4 that fit, but it made (gasp!) like 80 HP and the current 3 cylinder in the 96 made about half that. To help develop a beefed-up transaxle to handle that much raw power, they cobbled together "the monster" consisting of two of the 3 cylinder engines (in Monte Carlo trim, no less!) end-to-end that put out on the high-side of 90 HP. They treated it like it was nuclear powered and confidently predicted that no front-wheel-drive car could ever be driven safely with more than 100 HP. The next year the Toronado came out, 400 + cu inches and 350 HP. I'm sure there were some sheepish faces in Trollhättan that week.
Excellent video. From my perspective, the genesis of the American Personal Luxury Car was the Letter Series Chrysler 300's. The 57 and 58 models were just spectacular.
That, is so true ! That is the reason I fell for the "love or hate" Ford Flex ! I'm on my forth one (2019 the last year) .......and I love it ! It's the only one of it's kind, no other vehicle looks quite like it ! Yes sir, back in the day each car had it's own personality that was shared by it's owner !
Today's cars have no 'soul'. They are all simply appliances meant to be driven till used up, then thrown away. Nobody makes a car you can love, cherish, and keep for as long as you want to anymore, and that is by design. I refuse to play that game; I'll always drive older cars.
@@P_RO_ I recently bought a Saab 92x. Cool looking little car with 165 hp flat 4 and a 5 spd., all wheel drive of course. It was fun for a day. It looks so bland mostly. It scoots and is fun in the snow. Do i have any desire to "do it up". Naaww. It has no soul really. You are right. looking forward to getting back to my 78 Grand Am and its 4 door sister, 81 Lemans. Just don't want to see them encounter our salty roads.Now if i could find a nice Tempest maybe......
@@P_RO_ The vast majority of old cars were throwaway articles that rusted away after just a few years or became impossible to repair economically. Contrary to what you believe, the average age of cars is going up and higher than ever before in history. There are a number of reasons for this. One is that cars today are more durable, more reliable and higher quality than in the past. Another is increasing wealth inequality, of course, which forces people to stay with or buy older cars not out of choice, but out of necessity.
@@no1DdC I've been driving for over 45 years. My newest vehicle was 18 years old on acquisition and the oldest 42. My ownership and per-mile costs are the lowest I know of because I do all of my own mechanic work save for auto-transmission rebuilds and machine work on engines I'm rebuilding. That's really not hard to do on older vehicles. Nothing built in the last 20 years will be on the road 25 years after it was built but my current vehicle is 30, and with care could do 30 more years economically. I've spent several years working on vehicles for a living too, including newer ones. Today's cars are junk dear heart, unable to sustain major damage and be repaired. Unable to handle poorly maintained roads without breaking and rattling apart. They are no more reliable when compared to a well-maintained old vehicle but therein lies the rub; with the old cars the average person did not maintain them well. Now there is little you can maintain so it all wears out and has to be replaced instead. My 30-year-old still has all the original front end parts complete with grease fittings which get used, and there's no wear in anything. You'll replace every ball-joint and tie-rod end on any new car before half that time goes by because you can't grease them. And of rust, today road salting has been replaced with brining- more effective, easier to apply, cheaper, and far less corrosive to cars. Plus there are better anti-rust coatings such as "Fluid Film". So that has nothing to do with the cars. And of your concept of quality- Lexus is considered to be one of the best with that, yet a person I know just junked his beloved 19 year old Lexus because the cost of replacing several sensors needed for it to pass inspection and a brake job would have exceeded the value of the car once done. After 4 years of ownership and including a transmission rebuild, mine is still worth what I have in it, holding it's value as a classic as well as being practical transportation. I've got some piston-ring wear but otherwise mine still meets it's pollution requirements with it's original equipment. And it has only a couple tiny places where there's surface rust on the body where the paint got chipped. BTW that original paint is still shiny and can be kept that way without a respray for as long as I'll maintain it. I did replace the window seals on the doors to ensure it stays this way; just over $20 in parts and a 5-minute job per door. When I do an engine rebuild (about $2K) I should get another 15 years out of it without any repairs it needs exceeding $150 in parts per episode and by then it will still have at least half the value of it's cost or perhaps exceed that if the market determines it to be a 'collectible'. Not all of the older vehicles are this good, but NONE of the vehicles made in this century are. And not just my current vehicle like this but all that I've owned. The newest ones burned, were crashed into, or were replaced by better ones which would be more economical to keep in the future. Some were driven to the point where they needed to be scrapped after decades of service with major repairs forthcoming. And I killed a few in my youth too. Do yourself a favor and learn, then come back here in 20 years and let's see who is still driving the same vehicle and why, as well as what shape it's in. I already know the outcome of that- you apparently don't.
You're right, clearly documented. T-Bird as partly an answer, partly a contrast to Corvette developed classier features, the impetus toward personal luxury cars.
The coupe SUV is a crime against sensibility, style and automotive history. No wonder the styleless and affluent flock to it in droves, like their mid market counterparts do to the endless crossovers that plague our roads.
When I saw this title, I thought you were going to have a new subscriber. Being a Thunderbird aficionado, I did not expect the backhanded slap. I have several Thunderbirds, including the "stupid" retro model, which I bought new. My '66 Thunderbird is every bit as unique and handsome as the Buick Riviera (which I also love), and as far as the retro Thunderbird, the sales issue stemmed from the fact that Ford management had a major change and with all the egos involved, advertising and marketing ended because the contemporary management team didn't have a hand in its development. In addition, the dealers tacked buyers' premiums approaching a 100% markup. I do agree that the personal luxury coupe was focused almost exclusively on style, and had little (if any) focus on practicality. I also agree on your evaluation of SUV coupes, but then I really dislike SUVs in general. Call me a dinosaur, but I would really enjoy more emphasis on style than practicality again. Not much style out there these days!
When my dad turned 54 he bought his first '63 Thunderbird on 12/24/62. Never bought another Galaxie/LTD after that first Thunderbird. For the next 35 years he only bought Mustang GT's ('65 '68) and Thunderbirds ('63 '65 '69). His last car was an '87 Mitsubishi Starion Turbo with a manual transmission. Still had it 11 years later when he passed away at 88.
I owned a 96 t bird. In fact I’m selling it right now. It’s an interesting car. Slow af though. A school bus would probably out run it. 205 horsepower out of a 4.6 v8 is really poor especially for 1996 there were cars making the same horsepower and similar torque with a N/A v6. No to mention it handles very bad. The brakes also suck. It’s no surprise it didn’t sell very well. Also the 19 mpg city 20 highway is bullshit it’s more like 12 city 16 highway. They completely destroyed the looks in 96. Just look at a 89-90 thunderbird they look like they’re going 100 mph standing still. Even the 95 thunderbird looks cool with the big front bumper vents. where the 96 thunderbird looks like a boring grandpa car.
@@EconomyElk I did like them better before '96, but I liked those, too. Funny yours was so slow. Might have been the gearing. Mine has the 4.6L and has enough torque to keep me from being dissatisfied. I also have not had problems with handling, even after owning Trans Ams before my '94 T-Bird. My mileage has averaged 20 mpg mixed city/hwy. Again, your problem sounds like the way it was geared. Maybe was set up for towing?
I have owned 63 64 Riviera, 67Toronado and 70 Eldo in that order. The Buick and Caddy were beautiful and fun to drive, The Olds was a "monster" , a staggering mass of metal and only owned for a short time. The issue of luxury was not at issue it was the styling that drew me to car.
Ed, you created an addict - as I started with the "'Weird Chrysler '60s....", and now find myself watching an eighth "EAR" video. You certainly did your research, otherwise, "Corinthian Leather", and "New Jersey" would forever remain forgotten, and not-linked.
The 55-57 thunderbird was incredibly beautiful. I still consider it to be a sports car. Of the genuine “personal luxury cars” the 64 Riviera and 67 Eldorado were the most beautiful of the mass produced but if you’d consider the 53 Buick Skylark and 56 Continental to be the first they are stunning
Your channel is one of the most entertaining and informative among my recent RU-vid discoveries. And you’re absolutely right about SUV coupés - plenty of this junk driving around recently. I never understood the idea behind it… greetings from Poland !
I'm 30 years old born and raised in Milwaukee WI U.S.A and no joke I said out loud why did caddy shut down that design concept because that is one sexy s.o.b!!!! Then seconds later you said it as well.... Just more confirmation this is the best auto history channel on RU-vid no one ever covers these unique chapters like you. I swear I'm the only one who wants to own a excalibur car or even knows about Excalibur cars amongst my peers. Long story short you are dead right about the American gt McDonalds concept and cant no one get mad at you for it... Thank you for this video and all your love and effort put into it. PIMP MOBILES FOR LIFE!!!!!!
Bahaha. I had a 1980 Chrysler Cordoba in high school (early 2000s; my classmates called it the Goldmember car). I cracked up at "model name that's some way related to the Mediterranean coasts". I never thought about that until this video!
Indeed. Me, too, was curious about all these Spanish-style names - but always thought it was a nod to Texas, California etc. Never connected them to the Mediterranean, too, although the Riviera was quite a clue.
eally glad to see AMC included, their influence is often overlooked. But going back in AMC history I think the video leaves out the 1953 Studebaker Commander Coupe and later Silver and Golden Hawks. This is a miss, the 53 was a real PLC. The Commander was style, style, style. Wow! Also, the video misses the 90s TBird (a MAJOR hit and a big influence).
Haha. That video was absolute gold. As an Aussie Ford fan, I'd love you to do a history of the Aussie Falcons. There's one standout car you'd love. The 1971 XY GTHO Phase III Falcon. It will probably leave you shaking your head how they sold basically a race car to the public as a four door grand tourer. 😄 And they're valued at well over a million bucks now. Subscribed and looking forward to more vids. 😁👍
I owned a 1984 Chrysler LeBaron convertible. It was one of the later "personal luxury cars." It was really just a glorified K car, but I have to say, it was one of the best cars I have owned, reliable, very comfortable, a great car for long trips. It would sit two adults very comfortably in the front seats, and one adult sideways, or two kids comfortably in the back seat. You didn't even mention the LeBaron. Even the NAME says "personal luxury car."
Very enjoyable and informative. The market in Australia seemed more American than European, but it wasn't really like America either. Most of the American cars in Australia are full size, not 1960s and 70s American compacts and intermediates as Australia already had that market filled. In the early 70s Ford , Chrysler and GM (Holden) introduced new models that were a little larger and heavier than before and were the largest mainstream cars made in Australia (though only by a small margin). There were sedans wagons, utes, & vans and coupes, but the price of fuel was on the rise, and smaller cars were beginning to steal the sales of the big 3. The 2 door coupe suffering the most and and around 1975 Ford and Holden desperate to dispose of the last coupe body shells, introduced limited editions to create em out. Chrysler had more success with its Australian Charger though. Some of the coupe market was taken by the car based panel vans, later in the 1970s, but with ever rising fuel prices, that was over by the end of the decade. Who, but say tradesmen, really wanted a gas guzzler that seated only 2 or sometimes 3 people and had compromised handling. Two Rare (even in their day) Australian PLCs to note are the Ford Landau and Chrysler by Chrysler hardtop. Though not the fastest car in Australia Most of these rare Chryslers have a 360 engine, the largest ever fitted to an Australian designed car & quite a different vehicle to say a Mazda R 100 or a 1st gen Honda Civic hay?
Ed ,great series,going to watch them all,grew up in the 70,s and 80 s running different repair facilities here in Ontario,Canada and can relate to the issues of the big 3 vehicle service issues,thank you ,roger
These are great videos Ed. Informative, entertaining, concise. Wonderful graphics/photos, editing and narration. My older brothers had a few of these... '72 Buick Electra, '80 Chrysler Cordoba, '84 Buick Riviera. My buddy had a navy blue '83 Grand Prix with T-tops his junior year in high school. For us it was like the Batmobile. Smooth ride, but no power.
Hey Ed! Great job on this video series buddy. Thanks for producing them. I grew up in a “car“ family and had many of the Lincoln’s from the 70s in our driveway. I’ve looked at them for years, always liking them of course, but never associated the design keys with the older car styles. The comparison of their mark threes grill to the rolls Royce is obvious now, but I never made the connection. Thanks for opening my eyes young man!
Loving these videos. Like how you are squaring off the tires. Just wanna say I still think a 1978 Monte Carlo with black t-tops is one of the dopest looking cars ever.
Ed, you are one of the best you tubers ever. I watch shit I'm not even interested in just because of the way you present it. Love your work. From Australia 👍👌
When I was 19 I bought a '71 Riviera with an impeccable body and a decent interior for a $1,400 bargain. 455, 4bbl Rochester mated to a TH400 with a crisp shift kit. Buckets and console up front made choosing gear a dream. Power everything, cruise, cornering lamps, A/C and so many other goodies I have forgotten over almost 40 years. It was heavy as hell but had more than enough power to make up for it (the air pump had been bypassed and it there were no cats in '71). I was the proudest wannabe pimp, cruising with a Detroit lean. 😁 An older Riv enthuiast made me an offer I couldn't pass up. I tripled my money in a mere 18 months., Buick nailed the personal luxury concept in that car.
All three parts...You preached to the choir Really enjoyed your presentation of American Automotive Ingenuity at its most wonderful, and asinine BEST😝 Never fails...Does it🐻 Well done👍😁
Why am I just now finding this channel?🤯 Great & Interesting Content, Super Funny and Awesome Editing! I am once again neglecting my family to BINGE WATCH more videos!
You're making me self concious, I love the 60s and 70s Continental Mark series! But you're absolutely right, a Lincoln-branded Thunderbird is lame next to GM's ludicrous cars from the 60s, plus the Studebaker Avanti. That the Toronado got dumbed down in just 4 years was a crime. I also wish the US had more interest in GT cars. You can sort of say that's coming to fruition today with seemingly every car needing to be "sporty" and "luxurious", but I always find them to be too stiff and loaded with way too much junk, there's something to be said about a lean, beautiful driving machine that handles neither like a couch nor a roller coaster.
Ahh the coupe SUV - you're right! When my dad was getting older and needed a new car, he chose a 12 year old 1979 Monte Carlo because I think he said it "was totally stupid but looked really nice and I don't need anything more than that".
Really enjoyed the video. Nice job! Loved these cars. Had a 1974 Continental Mark IV. I would add to this category the 1956-57 Continental Mark II and the 1950’s - 60’s Studabaker Hawks and Avantis. Or would the latter be considered sport coupes?
Hi Ed, do you remember a commercial in the 70's extolling the ride quality of the Cadillac. It showed a Schleifer ( Yiddish for diamond cutter) successfully cutting a precious gem in the back seat of a moving Cadillac. It was an effective add, demonstrative and compelling enough. The funny part is Saturday Night Live spoofed it with a Mohel performing a circumcision in a moving car. Still gets me to smile.
Thank you very very much that was very nice I really enjoy all your video and I love cars and really my favorite other ton of birds from 67 to 71 with suicide doors these are fantastic cars thank you again you are very funny and very very wicked at the same time
That Toronado was the beast!! It was GMs first stab at front wheel drive. And what a great driving car!! Couldn't beat it in the snow. My X old lady had one and my first intro to that car was getting it off of a huge set of curbs she ran over!! LOL!!! I met 2 gr8 things that day!!!
Fun video. I agree 100% with your comment about the 1963 Riviera. Around 1970, as a sixth-grader walking to school, I looked forward to walking past a 1963 Riviera, and a mid-60's Jaguar E-type coupe, both of which I thought were gorgeous. Another neighborhood near mine had a 1964 Studebaker Avanti; I'd get on my bike after school to look at that one, too. I also agree 100% with the stupid SUV coupe trend. Every time I see one I can't believe someone spent money on it, but to each their own.
Great video, ty. I now drive the discontinued 2 seat Honda CRZ, can't omit practicality. As a Ford family growing up, the mustang gt looks appealing, oh well, maybe next time.
Sadly overlooked and rarely mentioned..... The 1956 Linconln Continental Mark Ii. They just took the Thunderbird....and made it bigger. Rode in one once back in its day. Very cool. Was always disappointed they didn't set the cabin aft more. They put a big trunk in place and that reduced the magical ingredient of leaping-forward-sporty with stately elegance.......but still.......a memorable and moderately rare car to have seen.
I might just be an old man trapped in a young man's body but even back when I was a little kid I've always wanted to own a big V8 caddy from the early 70's. It's so big and luxurious it doesn't need to be fast. And let me tell you after driving one I figured out why people preferred Cadillac over any other car in America. It's big, slow, and the most isolating car I've ever driven and I finally realized why we drove them. It doesn't need to be fast, it doesn't need to be small and sporty looking. It says "I'm here, I've made it." It doesn't give you wet dreams about going fast, the seats are big and cushy, the hood is so long you can put a Mustang on it and because the engine is so big but the car is so heavy the engine makes for the smoothest acceleration I've ever felt.
It's really interesting, as an American who has been a car buff his entire life and in particular, Personal Luxury Cars, to see the view of a European. Thanks for that .
