A young man loved his cars fast, furious…or astute. The Lamborghini Countach would soon replace Farah Fawcett on some bedroom walls, but even Journey or Rush couldn't yield to a difficult-to-drive Italian supercar. As we began to attain our licenses, we pondered the possibilities of where it would take us. Rather, in what vehicle would we get there?
There are now generations of Americans who have forgotten that there was a mighty production facility in their community. Though some of them have not seen the wrecking ball, others either resemble a lay of wasteland or have been built to unrecognizable specifications.
That is a 50-year old question that has scratched the heads of those of us who lament and laugh of these cars. In particular, how do we map the advent of a new class of American car to today’s automobiles?
The year 1977 was a watershed moment in the automotive industry. The OPEC Oil Crisis was already over. However, the lessons learned from the crisis began to trickle down into the products North American automakers rolled out.
The turn of the 1970s was a time of transition. It was clear that Richard Nixon wasn't going anywhere. His administration oversaw the first landing on the moon by human beings, but the escalating war in Vietnam dogged his leadership. In 1968, many thought Nixon was the peace candidate for President. He would end up sending more USA troops into Southeast Asia.
TweetIt sounds like a myth, but it is true: I was brought home from the hospital in my mother's 1955 Oldsmobile Ninety-Eight Starfire convertible. A fact that would otherwise be trivial is an indicator of what my future would hold. Let alone a point of historical reference that denotes a heritage of car ownership. Perhaps …
I try to be a positive person when it comes to the automobile. But, sometimes, you end up getting a heap of scrap. What can an automotive person do after experiencing a piece of…garbage?
Do participation in the glamorous life mean one has to balance the silver spoon with bad behavior? When has success become so ugly? Is being a member of the A-List mean being less than human in some relevant traits?
On Amigo Avenue, the street where I lived, our corner lot at Gilmore Street offered plenty of curbside parking for any of the cars our family owned and any car I would take home from a rental car lot. As with many days in the Valley, when the sun was setting in the west came this shimmering white light across the mulberry trees that would give any of those vehicles a shimmery gleam to our property. In the early years, Mom’s Oldsmobile Ninety-Eight Luxury sedan would catch that sheen when she arrived home. On most days, that meant things were OK in the world – even when they were not.
Since then, I had my share of heavy duty pickup trucks from the Detroit Three. The summation I have made over time is that the typical owner either use these trucks for work or trailering. They are designed as intended because they have the capacity to do so.