- Description
- Car nut with a soft spot for classic Lincolns and early automotive air conditioning.
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Curbside Classics Archives
About Author: Tom Halter
Posts by Tom Halter
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![It has been an accepted idiom for generations that the dashboard of modern cars had two distinct head units – one for climate control, and one for entertainment (radio/CD/cassette, etc.). […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/2022-Honda-Civic-Interior.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "QOTD: Where Have All The Radio Controls Gone?")
QOTD: Where Have All The Radio Controls Gone?
Posted on May 2, 2021 | 46 CommentsIt has been an accepted idiom for generations that the dashboard of modern cars had two distinct head units – one for climate control, and one for entertainment (radio/CD/cassette, etc.). […] -
Automotive History: 1958 Argentine Export Packard Pickup Truck – The Last Packard Badged Vehicle?
Posted on April 27, 2021 | 10 CommentsI stumbled upon this 1958 export-model Packard-badged Studebaker pickup truck recently while researching another piece, and figured it was too good not to share. -
![1957 was an interesting year for the US auto industry. This was the year that many (but not all) states began to allow cars to be sold fitted with four […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Chryslers.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "Curbside Face Off: All The 1957 Cars With Alternate Quad and Single Headlight Front Ends")
Curbside Face Off: All The 1957 Cars With Alternate Quad and Single Headlight Front Ends
Posted on April 27, 2021 | 76 Comments1957 was an interesting year for the US auto industry. This was the year that many (but not all) states began to allow cars to be sold fitted with four […] -
![Model names are some of the most valuable assets that an automaker has: Companies spend millions of dollars per year on advertising in the hopes of building a durable brand […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Re446b9ad1b2a420f23b9944a65c51936.jpeg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "Automotive History: U.S. Model Name Debasement from the 1950s to 1970s – And The First Shall Be Last")
Automotive History: U.S. Model Name Debasement from the 1950s to 1970s – And The First Shall Be Last
Posted on April 24, 2021 | 39 CommentsModel names are some of the most valuable assets that an automaker has: Companies spend millions of dollars per year on advertising in the hopes of building a durable brand […] -
Wordless Outake: Truth in Advertising Edition
Posted on March 29, 2021 | 8 Comments -
![We’ve already observed how GM was unique among the Big 3 US automakers in having bespoke V8 engines for each of its five automobile divisions. Contrast this with Ford Motor […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/1961-Buick-215-V8.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "Automotive History: When Did Each GM Division Stop Making Their Own V8 Engines? A Brief History of V8 Engine Sharing at GM")
Automotive History: When Did Each GM Division Stop Making Their Own V8 Engines? A Brief History of V8 Engine Sharing at GM
Posted on March 27, 2021 | 99 CommentsWe’ve already observed how GM was unique among the Big 3 US automakers in having bespoke V8 engines for each of its five automobile divisions. Contrast this with Ford Motor […] -
![Everyone seems to love these vintage family road trip stories, so I figured I’d contribute one of my own from my family (actually my wife’s family, but close enough). This […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/IMG_1581.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "Vintage Road Trip: Summer 1936 Cross Country in a Packard Club Sedan")
Vintage Road Trip: Summer 1936 Cross Country in a Packard Club Sedan
Posted on March 2, 2021 | 25 CommentsEveryone seems to love these vintage family road trip stories, so I figured I’d contribute one of my own from my family (actually my wife’s family, but close enough). This […] -
![Clearly, I’ve got showroom mileage, time capsule cars on the brain lately, as my recent posts will attest. And why not? These unicorns are fun to speculate about: Why would […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/B3606-R152-0003.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "QOTD: What Current New Car Would You Save In Your Time Capsule?")
QOTD: What Current New Car Would You Save In Your Time Capsule?
Posted on February 4, 2021 | 66 CommentsClearly, I’ve got showroom mileage, time capsule cars on the brain lately, as my recent posts will attest. And why not? These unicorns are fun to speculate about: Why would […] -
![I gotta admit, I fell off my chair when I saw the result of this auction for a 1980 Ford F-250 over at Bring A Trailer the other day. $97,000! […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/F250.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "Auction Classic: 1980 Ford F-250 with 76 Miles Sells for $97,000")
Auction Classic: 1980 Ford F-250 with 76 Miles Sells for $97,000
Posted on February 3, 2021 | 55 CommentsI gotta admit, I fell off my chair when I saw the result of this auction for a 1980 Ford F-250 over at Bring A Trailer the other day. $97,000! […] -
![The transition to electric power in our automobiles just got a big boost with GM’s recent announcement that their entire fleet of cars and light trucks will be all-electric by […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/1910-model-63.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "QOTD: What Will Be the Last Internal Combustion Powered Car?")
QOTD: What Will Be the Last Internal Combustion Powered Car?
Posted on January 30, 2021 | 102 CommentsThe transition to electric power in our automobiles just got a big boost with GM’s recent announcement that their entire fleet of cars and light trucks will be all-electric by […] -
![Here’s something you don’t see every day. A pair of cream-colored 1979 Lincolns with as-delivered mileage: A 1979 Mark V with 10 miles, and a matching 1979 Continental with just […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/dsc0655-1610117000138%402x.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "Auction Classic: Matched Pair of Brand New 1979 Lincolns")
Auction Classic: Matched Pair of Brand New 1979 Lincolns
Posted on January 27, 2021 | 64 CommentsHere’s something you don’t see every day. A pair of cream-colored 1979 Lincolns with as-delivered mileage: A 1979 Mark V with 10 miles, and a matching 1979 Continental with just […] -
![There’s little doubt that electrification is the future of the automobile. Witness the bevy of EVs that are now for sale and coming soon, like the Mustang Mach-E. Cadillac is […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/32.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "QOTD: How Soon Until We Start Seeing EV Curbside Classics?")
QOTD: How Soon Until We Start Seeing EV Curbside Classics?
Posted on December 21, 2020 | 74 CommentsThere’s little doubt that electrification is the future of the automobile. Witness the bevy of EVs that are now for sale and coming soon, like the Mustang Mach-E. Cadillac is […] -
![Now that my youngest son is old enough to drive, it’s time to add yet another car to the Halter household. He wanted something small and sporty, with two doors […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/IMG_1409.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "COAL: 2005 Chrysler Crossfire – The Undercover German")
COAL: 2005 Chrysler Crossfire – The Undercover German
Posted on December 18, 2020 | 19 CommentsNow that my youngest son is old enough to drive, it’s time to add yet another car to the Halter household. He wanted something small and sporty, with two doors […] -
![My recent post on the 1953 Chrysler Airtemp air conditioning system and its rather unusual R-22 refrigerant spawned a little confusion over various A/C refrigerants, so I pulled together this […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/s-l1600-1.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "Cold Comfort: R-12, R-134a, and Beyond: The Alphabet Soup of Automotive Air Conditioning Refrigerants")
Cold Comfort: R-12, R-134a, and Beyond: The Alphabet Soup of Automotive Air Conditioning Refrigerants
Posted on December 15, 2020 | 53 CommentsMy recent post on the 1953 Chrysler Airtemp air conditioning system and its rather unusual R-22 refrigerant spawned a little confusion over various A/C refrigerants, so I pulled together this […] -
![After having covered most of the early GM and FoMoCo factory A/C systems, I’ll be turning my attention next to Chrysler, who made some truly interesting systems over the years. […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/a-ac.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "Cold Comfort: 1953 Chrysler Airtemp Air Conditioning")
Cold Comfort: 1953 Chrysler Airtemp Air Conditioning
Posted on December 14, 2020 | 29 CommentsAfter having covered most of the early GM and FoMoCo factory A/C systems, I’ll be turning my attention next to Chrysler, who made some truly interesting systems over the years. […]
