Obsolete Car Features of the 1960s 

Always enjoyable. ❤I love all of those old cars. Lots of good memories. I remember when you'd drive under overpasses your AM station would go silent for 5 seconds. I miss the front bench seats squeezing in 3 to 4 people. Thank you for these fun episodes. 😊

Wing windows were the best at getting air blowing right on you and I also had a 68 Galaxy fastback that had a lever down by your leg (passenger and drivers side) and when you pulled it open it would allow a great blast of air in at the lower level. My 67 Olds Vista Cruiser had a stem sticking out in the center of the speedometer and when you turned it, it would move a needle that you could set to see to it that you did not exceed the speed limit by a buzzer going off when you reached that speed.

Cars from the 60s are 🔥

Great video. @3:17 and @3:31 note the obligatory "Conelrad" frequencies of 640 and 1240 were clearly indicated on the AM dials.

Cars from the 60s was a time when car designers could sculpture beautiful angles to produce cars that were like a sculptured work of art. Unlike most of today’s boring shaped cars.

Biggest difference was that cars back then had character vs. "boxy" shapes today. They were also were all much larger vs. "tiny" vehicles today.

My first car was a used 1965 Buick Skylark Gran Sport (not a typo, there was no D, it was Gran) with a fire breathing 401 cubic inch V-8, and four on the floor manual transmission. When I blew the engine in a drag race, I replaced it with its sister the 425 cubic inch V-8 (bored out 401) Which I souped up into the baddest, fastest sleeper car on the streets of South Florida. Who expected a Buick to be fast, it was grandpa's car. Another feature of those old muscle cars was the rust that formed around the windshield chrome border, and at the bottoms of the fenders. If you had a vinyl top like I did, rust also formed under it causing blister like bubbles. Muscle Cars were beautiful, stylish, unique, noisy, fun to drive and honestly, not all that fast by today's standards, but you did not have to be a computer engineer to fix or modify them. Compare that to the 2023 Cadilac CT4V Blackwing. The suspension has electronically controlled shock absorbers which adjust the ride and handling. The accelerator pedal is attached to a control module which sends signal to the fuel injection system. The brake pedal is attached to an electronic module which sends signals to the brakes and artificially produces resistance in the pedal. Even the engine sound inside the car is artificially produced in the speaker system. It's the perfect car for today's youth because it is more like playing a video game than driving a car because the driver is completely detached from the car, relying on computer simulations for control and feedback. Not only that, but the computer does half the driving by taking control of traction, acceleration and braking if the driver does something stupid. In other word, the computer does all it can to prevent the driver from making mistakes. These cars are perfect for today's namby-pamby snowflake youth who are pampered and protected from the harsh realities of the world (they suffer MICRO-aggressions and think words are violence for God's sake). I long for the day when power was generated by real engineering not by bolting on turbochargers, you actually DROVE the car not the other way around, and an ordinary guy could work on his own car.

FUN video! Chuckle! 😂 Brought back tons of memories! Peppy music! ❤

Pushing a button to start the car is pretty common today. There are even push button transmissions in some modern cars.

Many cars in the 60's, including the '66 Impala I currently own, had power steering that was much easier than today, you could spin the wheel with one finger. And you failed to even mention the one feature on my Impala common in those cars, one that I really miss in today's cars; the high/low beam button on the floor to the left of the break pedal, you could change from high to low and back again with a tap of your foot, it was so easy and very cool...how could you leave that out??? And as others have posted; vent windows!

The 60s cars are my favorite. I own 2 of them. 👍

beautiful cars!!!

It's a great feeling driving down the highway in a vintage auto. But it's even better topping it off with a vintage travel trailer. To me it's the ultimate time machine. I have 4 vintage campers & enjoy using each one with my 62 Plymouth 4DSN or my 62 Plymouth wagon. Great video! I couldn't said it or done it better my self.

Just as the 60s was the best decade for music (imho) so it was with cars.

Great video but a little correction... @2:35 'push button starts' went out in the mid '50s in favor of a 'key turn start', the 'push button transmission came out in the late '50s and stayed in until the early '60s. Pust button start emerged again in the 2010s with the keyless fob and certain car companies, Honda for example, have also re-introduced the push button transmission.

I had a 1968 blue Camaro.Everthing in the parking lot looks the same today.

I’ve never owned an automatic and never will (unless the auto industry dumps them altogether)

5:24 I can FEEL the muscle behind that car! I'm sitting in that car like it was yesterday. Man do I ever miss these beauties. My brother had a 57 vette with a double stamped frame, a 64 vette, a 55 chevy and a 67 Firebird to name just a few. His friend had a 63 split window vette. That was my first ride and started my love for corvettes.

My mom and dad had a new Plymouth Fury. She hit a light pole in the middle of the Big M’s parking lot in Middletown Pa. It is still bent to this day.

The closing shot of an MGB interior is special to my heart! 👍👏

The’58 DeSoto FireFlight had all the luxuries that today’s cars have, power windows, seats, steering, brakes which were also disc, and a 361 cu. in. engine that made 305 BHP. And it even had a/c in the back seat. They were so far ahead of their time.

Those were the days when cars had character. You knew from a distance the make and model. Unlike today where cars look so much alike. One thing amiss in your description of cars in that era; power steering and power brakes. I recall a big ole Chrysler that my dad had, and I was fortunate enough to drive. Power steering so sensitive that you could turn the wheel by blowing on it. And power brakes where only a slight touch will bring your car to a screeching halt. Let’s not forget about power and awesome sound. Nothing like a big block V8 with its deep throat rumble, with that exhaust crackle that gave you goose bumps. What do we have today? Youngsters with their little 4 bangers and obnoxious sounding fart mufflers. Foot to the floor with 0-60 timed by a sun dial. Cars today maybe more reliable stuffed with tons of unnecessary techno gadgetry, but give me the cars of the past any old day.

Let's not forget that in the 60s, we had self-adjusting brakes. Just find a quiet parking lot, alley, or stretch of open road, then put your car in reverse & back up about a city block, &, voila, your car's brakes were nearly as touchy as today's power brakes.

Do the 70’s cars please

I laughed at the push button auto transmission. My first car, a 1956 Plymouth Suburban station wagon, had push bottons on the dash. But then I remembered - so did my 2020 Aston Martin Vantage! Plus c'a change...

Exterior styling is something of the past

When I was very young I thought the bigger the taillights, the faster a car could go. I can also attest that you could ID a car by the taillights and headlights, the year, make and model. Now they all look the same, UGLY. Great memories MM.

Yeah, some designs are going back in time. My new Ram has push button start, and instead of the Chrysler designed push button transmission, it has an electronic selector knob, which did essentially the same thing by eliminating the column mounted shifter. My favorite car of all time is the 1958 DeSoto FireFlight. We had one from ‘58 to ‘63, and if I could find another one just like I’d buy it.

“sweat equity” 🤦‍♀️😂

Correction on your comment about push button start. You show the photo of my late buddy’s black 1961 Chrysler 300-G coupe that was featured in Hemmings Classic Car several years ago. Although it does have push button transmission controls, it has the conventional turn-the-key start. Only the 1957 and 1958 Chryslers had push button start as you describe.

They had ashtrays also.

They always talk about the older cars being gas guzzlers, well I had a 1957 Pontiac V8 engine, with a factory one barrel carburetor sitting in the middle of the engine, also had a 1963 Chrysler Newport, big V8 engine 2 barrel carburetor, and on top of that gas was 28 cents a gallon.

My aunt had this gigantic Chrysler New Yorker in the 70s that I washed for her on the family front lawn - mainly to give me an excuse to get behind the wheel and drive a short distance! That car not only had large ashtrays in the back, but each one on the passenger sides also had their own lighter! Quite fancy! Speaking of Chrysler, people have debated in the pilot episode of The Brady Bunch how Tiger was able to roll the power window down on Mike's car to get out when there was a hand crank on the door and others pointed out that these cars actually had both in them!

Don’t forget cigarette lighters. Every car had one. My Brothers and I as opinionated teenagers once laughed at the fins on a family friends new 60’s era car. He thought for sure he would impress us but was very disappointed. Sorry Bif.

The Car was even part of The Family... We gave our cars names based on their personality 🤣🤣🤣

Give me any car from the 1960's. From the 1969 Dodge Charger R/T with a 440 with two 4 bbl carbs; to a 1968 VW Beetle; to a 1963 Ford Falcon with a 170 cu six. ALL of them had charm, magic, and personality. They were like a member of the family, with all their quirks and issues. But we loved them. Unlike today's cars that are just computerized, plastic, efficient machines that we use, and then sell or trade in after a couple of years. And speaking of manual steering, especially in a big car, we called it Armstrong steering. And that was OK.

the america that i loved. the best and most beautiful car I ever had was a dodge monaco 1967, 2 doors. From france.

Styling was so good. Real American steel. Real moters. People were better Drivers. 64 Chevelle.

I hate to say this, but power steering was introduced in 1951. By the 1960s, virtually all large cars had it. My dads 1960 Chrysler, 1965 Cadillac, and my 1970 Plymouth and 1973 Dodge all had/have power steering. And push button starters were considered old fashioned in the 60s. Most, if not all, cars had the starter switch integrated into the ignition key. Push button starters went out in the 50’s only to re-emerge relatively recently. The push button transmission was a Chrysler feature from about 1956 until 1963; and only for auto transmissions.

Yes my 63 Chrysler Newport had push button drive, I paid my buddy $200 for it and I drove it 15 years and never put a nickel in it.

Sleek and efficient? The cars today are horrifying ugly!!!

I Still know How to work on these Cars and Drive Them . I Miss Doing all the Work and Inspections Myself . I Still Like The Gas Cars of Today . I Hope I Never have to Drive an EV . Make Sure you Look at the Great Cars of this Realm before you Go :) QC

good stuff here

Some some things you said here are not true, the cars were made to steer easy without power steering, and you did not need no Superman strength to stop either.

WMCA best music.

They don't make cars like dids anymore They are so pretty I remember them 🙏🚗🚘

After so many years the clock on the dashboard was finished and wouldn’t work anymore. Even if it was electric.

👍

vent windows

Rolling down windows was a workout in itself?Did you really say that?Pathetic.

5:20 My 2008 Cadillac CTS still has an analog dashboard clock which is set by way of two buttons one to set it forward and the other back. I love the nostalgia of pushing the button and watching the hands progress around the dial until it is set. Unfortunately, kids today don't know how to read an analog clock.

1960 cars were safer. New cars have "safety " features that kill people. Airbags kill children, one example.

Improvements in flo thru ventilation cooled down the hot women drivers in the day.

Like the fuel -injection todays....those are long gone all electric.

00:39 not obsolete

I love the 60s.VW. Vans🚘

Your second clock is a tachometer Doark.