Cars from the 1970s vs today's cars (sedans, coupe, Japanese)
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I had a '77 fully loaded Cutlass Salon. Buckets, floor-mounted shift. Nicest car I ever owned. Not at all surprising that Cutlass was America's best selling car in those years.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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I hate to say it but I had a 1973 Pinto Squire Wagon, my first new car, due to the energy crisis. My favorite 70s car I only bought in the late 1990s, a 1972 El Camino 350 with 330 horsepower. I did a lot of upgrades such as front disc brake conversion, all new suspension, oversized dual exhaust.
yes... haven't we come a LONG ways in economy ....
So many great engine / ignition / fueling benefits and WORSE mileage...
'
Takes a Hybrid (or evil VW Diesel) to get 50mpg today in a 'Plastic's intensive' car.
Oh, come on. What you get with your fuel mileage today is WORLDS apart from what those cheap old tinny econoboxes could do. Power, speed, handling, braking abilities far above those older cars, and safety that is outstanding in comparison to the little tin boxes. Sorry, Stealth , but your old diesel Rabbits are nowhere NEAR as safe OR as quick as a modern economy car, And the pollution levels are incredibly low in modern cars. AND the luxury features that you get. No little penalty boxes now, even the worst of them (like the Mitsu Mirage).
I had a CRX that got 40 mpg. A modern 40 mpg car will be much larger, safer, faster, luxurious, handle better and stop better, and pollute way less. And that's not even getting to the cars like my Volt. The engineering it takes to do all that is vastly more advanced than any of those cheap '70s cars.
As for me, this is what I was into in the '70s (these were all mine then):
Comparisons are hard to make. The CRX was a pretty exceptional vehicle, handling extremely well, for being FWD. To find something comparable today, that also gets 40 mpg, would be difficult - at any price. Why? Weight! Today's vehicles are so much heavier, and thus, are just not as responsive.
The engineering is of course now vastly more advanced, but it isn't necessarily directed at making cars more driver-oriented. Safety is greatly improved, but handling-feel and nimbleness is in most cases worse. Compare for example a 70s economy car with fully manual steering, and today's numb and insulating electric power steering. I would much rather drive an entry-level compact BMW 2002, than today's decked-out M5.
there were a number of cars from the 70s that i liked. lets start with my 80 pinto, fun car to drive, had decent power, decent fuel economy, and a decent ride and handling.
when i worked for the city i got to drive the police versions of the 79 chevy nova and the 79 chevy caprice classic. wonderful cars to drive. handled well, the nova was called by car and driver magazine a four door Z28 camaro.
you want luxury? the 78 grand marquis or my friends 79 lincoln towncar fit the bill nicely thank you.
my 79 fairmont sedan and 80 fairmont wagon were both fun cars as well, the 79 had the V8 the 80 was the inline six. even the four cylinder fairmont was a decent car, it just lacked torque(i had one of those as well).
the mustang ll was a good car as well, contrary to popular opinion which was probably word of mouth garbage spewed by those that never drove the car.
and then there was the vega. not a bad car per say, they were in fact nice to drive. the only problem i ever had with the vega i got to drive was the brakes were always suspect. i preferred the monza clones, especially with the buick V6.
on the foreign car front, the datsun 240/260/280Zs were nice to drive, as was the datsun 510, and the datsun pick up truck, though i preferred the ford courier since it had more room inside.
i also liked the mazda RX3, a friend of mine had one. nifty little car, i wished i could have owned one back then.
I had a '77 fully loaded Cutlass Salon. Buckets, floor-mounted shift. Nicest car I ever owned. Not at all surprising that Cutlass was America's best selling car in those years.
If I remember correctly, did your buckets have the reversible seat inserts
Comparisons are hard to make. The CRX was a pretty exceptional vehicle, handling extremely well, for being FWD. To find something comparable today, that also gets 40 mpg, would be difficult - at any price. Why? Weight! Today's vehicles are so much heavier, and thus, are just not as responsive.
A modern Fiesta ST or Focus ST are much better handlers, are faster, stop better, and get nearly as good fuel mileage as that old CRX while being larger and safer, filled with more tech and polluting less. Even a modern Civic Si outdoes it in every arena (except the CRX looks better, especially in Si form).
Quote:
I would much rather drive an entry-level compact BMW 2002, than today's decked-out M5.
I had a 2002ti. Nice car, but you had to modify it to get any grip for cornering or acceleration (that M10 2 liter was pretty much a dog in stock form compared to even a basic economy car of today). The only reason I wish I still had it is due to values skyrocketing. But modern cars are just so. much. better. at the job of being cars. Old ones are easier to work on, though.
If I remember correctly, did your buckets have the reversible seat inserts
No, though I'm not sure I know what reversible seat inserts are. Mine were vinyl and all black, like the rest of the interior.
Mine looked like this one - same color, same wheels, but I didn't have T-tops (and didn't want them) and the half vinyl roof had been removed in a recent full paint job, so the entire roof was the same blue as the rest of the car. Looked much better that way, IMO.
These were the handsomest cars on the road and they drove and rode as nice as they looked.
No, though I'm not sure I know what reversible seat inserts are. Mine were vinyl and all black, like the rest of the interior.
Mine looked like this one - same color, same wheels, but I didn't have T-tops (and didn't want them) and the half vinyl roof had been removed in a recent full paint job, so the entire roof was the same blue as the rest of the car. Looked much better that way, IMO.
These were the handsomest cars on the road and they drove and rode as nice as they looked.
I had a girlfriend with one of those, dark red with the red and gold striped baroque interior. Identical to the pics below. I had the Grand LeMans version, mine is the black and silver one below.
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