Photos from the Cohort by Jerome Solberg.
On a recent visit to California, it was nice to see in person that the Golden State is still one place to find segments of a curbside stuck in the automotive past. This, I know is fairly common knowledge about the West Coast and the Southwest. Still, it was nice to experience it again.
Now, it’s even better when such stuck-in-time finds are made in pairs, as in the case of this recent Cohort posting by Jerome Solberg. Two survivors on this occasion, a nicely preserved ’71 Coronet and an ailing ’68 Pontiac GTO. Together they give this bit of California tarmac a sense of being stuck in the ’70s. Or the ’80s? The Coronet’s condition certainly gives me Cannon era vibes, but the Pontiac looks beater-condition late ’70s. Or even ’80s.
Whatever the time frame, let’s take a look at these two, starting with the Coronet. Not many of these fuselage-era ’71-’74 Dodge B-bodies are to be found on the streets nowadays. Though thinking some more about it, a natural byproduct considering their numbers paled against the smaller and more popular A-bodies (Dart/Valiant) back then. The ’70s were, after all, the period when the Dodge-Plymouth divisions had become A-body compact-dependent, with their mid-size and full-sizes failing to ignite much the marketplace. But heck, that makes any random old B-body survivor all the more interesting, right?
And about those fuselage loop bumpers, in all honesty, I’ve always loved them. How come the idea never made it back in later “retro” obsessed periods? Not even in concept cars? (Or did I miss something?)
More styling language of the period with that bumper-in-taillights touch. Meanwhile, the lack of Brougham trim might suggest this was a base model, though hard to tell since the car most likely has been refurbished by this point.
For a 50+ year old car, that’s a pretty good looking interior. Sure, it’s got that blanket-as-upholstery trick going, but it could be far worse. There’s some wood trim, however, so the base idea might be off, and this may be a Brougham whose exterior has been de-trimmed at the paint shop?
The instrument layout on the Coronet is far more Detroit-conventional than its corporate Satellite sibling, though the paneling is basically the same. I was going to argue the steering makes a good emulation of Dodge’s logo of the period (the “fratzog”), though I see Plymouths used the same. Those A/C vents below the dash are strictly aftermarket, of course.
Back to car number two of this post. Quite the worn out one, but if this goes back to life it will most likely be in some customized form. Without much trim to go by, hard to tell if this is a ’68 or a ’69. At least from this angle.
There! The taillights tail-telling us this is a ’68! With that out of the way, let’s move to the interior.
No blankets on this one! Pretty well preserved, and with a manual! From this distance no way to know if it uses a 4-speed or the available 3-speed heavy duty (Update: It’s a 4-speed). And perhaps this GTO carries the model’s standard 400CID V8 under the hood? At least, that’s my sense.
In any case, looking at how complete this is, I would think someone will bring back this GTO to full-life sooner or later.
It’s curious to see this pair together. In this shot, one can glimpse they both share a good deal of swoopy styling even though they belong to wholly different family trees. Vibes of the era, on that aspect. However, each shows different spirits of the period; the daily driver, and the attainable dream machine.
I would dare to guess that if the GTO goes back to life, it will become a later version of a dream machine. Meanwhile, I’ve no worries the Coronet might be customized into some dubious hot-rod. After all, 4-doors rarely attract that crowd (only 4-door Coronets in sedan and wagon bodies during that ’71-’74 period). So I would think this fuselage once-humdrum machine will remain as such, reminding all of what car life in the early ’70s was once like.
Related CC reading:
Reader And Craigslist Classic: 1974 Dodge Coronet – A Tall Glass Of Water
COAL: 1972 Dodge Coronet – 1970 – Slant Six Powered
Curbside Classic: 1968 Pontiac GTO – Redpop!
Curbside Classic: Is This 1968 GTO A Royal Bobcat? You Be The Judge
Love the authenticity of these pics. They could have been shot in 1971. Or 1977. Or 1984. Often the first nose and tail interpretations, on a new auto design, remains the best. Clean and well integrated, and appearing as the original designers intended. See the Olds Toronado, as a best example.
I rode in a number of early 1970s Coronets, as my mom used to call cabs to take us shopping at the local mall, whenever it rained. They were always black, with dark blue vinyl interiors. As the vinyl always had the same distinct smell. The colour scheme was that of the primary local taxi company. Guessing they all had 318s, with Torqueflites.
I still distinctly remember one ride, on a humid and rainy afternoon in 1974. Waiting in traffic at a busy intersection, headed to the mall, and the then very popular ‘Rock the Boat’ was playing on the cab’s AM radio.
I could daily that Coronet as seen, right now. Even with a Slant Six (if so equipped) and the TorqueFlite, that would be a great daily commuter.
I wonder how rare is a three-speed GTO today? I’d hope someone would return it to it’s original state, but it seems doubtful.
FWIW, this one does have the 4-speed. But yes, 3-speeds were probably pretty rare then and even more so now.
I always found it odd that GTO’s and their ilk had the 4 speed, which it didn’t need and were usually 3-speeded to a blue collar job in traffic anyway, while a Falcon, Comet, Nova or Camaro six that needed a four speed was commonly issued the three speeds.
Love the Coronet it deserves to survive !!!
I’ve been saying that here for years. Unless one had a very peaky “race cam” engine, the 4-speed was wasted on big V8s. The only real advantage was that it had a syncro first gear which many 3-speeds didn’t until way to late.
If I remember correctly, the cost to upgrade a 3-speed to a 4-speed in this era was about $75. Not cheap, but not as expensive of an option as say, FM radio.
I imagine the 4-speed was common more for “street cred” than for usefulness. After all, when Ronny & The Daytonas sang about a “Little GTO” in 1964, they boasted about “three deuces and a four-speed, and a 389”.
Yes, very true. As a kid back then I really looked down on 3-speeds. My friend’s dad had a ’60 or so Corvette with a 3-speed and I thought that was so unfortunate.
I’ve really only begun to fully understand the origins of the 4-speed fad and its limitations in recent years. The Corvette started it of course, and it was strictly to address an issue in racing, to allow it to run at optimum rpm in certain curves. That had essentially zero relevance on the street.
I don’t know if such a combination was possible, but if one ordered a wide-ratio 4-speed one could get the same effect as an overdrive if a really tall final drive ratio was also ordered? That’s what I would have tried to do if it was possible – essentially use it like a 3-speed-plus-overdrive, so you could cruise on the freeway at really low rpms. Maybe only close-ratio 4-speeds were available.
Thanks for posting these pictures! I was so happy to find these parked together – pretty sure the same person owns both – unusual to find a dual Pontiac/Mopar enthusiast.
I have begun to like the fuselage B-bodies, they have enough curves in the right places, and the 4 door here is hard to tell apart from a coupe at a distance, which is a credit to it. Still find the fuselage C-bodies a bit too much.
The “normal” 4-speed on the GTO was a wide ratio, with 2.52, 1.88, 1.46 1.0 ratios. The tallest rear axle on the GTO was a 3.08, although the 2-barrel low-output version did offer a 2.56 economy axle. That wouldn’t have yielded exactly quite what we think of as an “overdrive” but it would certainly have been a lot more pleasant on the highway than a shorter axle ratio.
On the big Pontiacs, the lowest axle ratio was a 2.29, but not available with the 4-speed. But with the automatic, it offered low engine speed at freeway speeds.
The close ratio was available only on the high-output versions on the GTO.
Pontiac and Olds both offered big lazy V8s in conjunction with very low (numerical) rear axle ratios but with automatics. They did improve economy.
True for sure, my college roommate had a ’65 Tempest that he pulled a 6 cyl out of and dropped a punched out 421 into, bored out to about 430. It had a floor mount shifter 3 spd in it and so much torque it seemed to rarely requiring much shifting when just tooling around. Then he’d say “hold your spine”, floor it in 2nd, and you’d be forced back into the seat back like a Saturn V taking off. Of course that 3 spd didn’t remain intact very long. After it blew up he bought a used ’69 2002 from Schwing motors… just a slight change
There was a real purity of line on these early 71+ B body sedans. And I still remember my time in the back seat of our neighbor Mrs Bordner’s 68 GTO 4 speed, painted Verdoro Green (similar to today’s Coronet).
Your new Charger pays homage to this green Coronet, Jim! Liked the color back then as a kid and love it now!
The Coronet appears to have both factory A/C AND a hang on unit. Don’t think non A/C cars had the center dash vents. That avocado green was a very popular color on GTO’s of this vintage.
A closer look at the shifter ball shows that it’s a four speed.
The Coronet appears to have a Brougham interior, what with the brocade upholstery and the numerous woodgrain accents. The base Coronet sedan was very basic, with rubber floor mats and durable but ugly and uncomfortable vinyl upholstery. The mid-grade Custom was a big step up, but was still rather Spartan, despite having carpeting and optional cloth upholstery. Mom had a ‘71 Coronet wagon that was indeed very plain inside.
Interestingly, the 1968 GTO has a much nice interior despite being an older design. These pictures neatly illustrate just how far off the mark the Chrysler intermediates were back in the early Seventies, just as the market was making a hard turn toward Brougham “luxury”.
It’s not a Brougham; it’s a mid-level Custom. The Brougham had divided high-back front seats, as shown in the image below. This is the cloth version of the Custom. We had a custom wagon; same interior with “wood” trim on the door; the only difference was that the upholstery was vinyl.
Fun fact: the Brougham was a one-year only trim line for 1971. It sold very poorly and was gone for ’72.
Also, the Brougham had lots of extra brightwork on the outside.
I had a 68 400 4 speed. I didn’t like green paint so I had the goat painted black. It was more fitting with that color than the “army green”!! Loved that car but I had to sell it to pay hospital bill when my daughter was born. I didn’t have much money then and I couldn’t build a humidity controlled shop either which is what it needed. I wish I had that car back now.
Nice find! To me, that Coronet still says “cop” even all these years later….
BTW, another way to tell a ’68 from a ’69 is the door vent windows. All ’68 GM intermediate 2 doors (hardtops anyway) had them. ’69s did not. It would be interesting to know this car’s story, with the interior in such nice shape and the exterior totally roached.
To me it is Polara as in the CHP. I really can’t picture what the locals drove but can clearly see in my mind the CHP Polara and had first hand experience twice. Oh, and experience with the CHP Harley.
Well, this did get a square headlight transplant and become the police package Fury/Monaco a few years later, mostly because the 440 fit. Most of them were creatively destroyed by the producers of “The Dukes of Hazzard”, however.
You got it about the vent windows on the ’68 vs. ’69 GM intermediates. Interestingly, the 1969 sedans still had vent windows.
The location looks like Oakland, CA, judging by the green street signs in the background.
As I have learned recently, which confirms sightings I may have had. the intermediates of many manufacturers are rare on the ground even in California. Could be Chevelle, Fairlane, Coronet, and Satellite especially. I’ll cut Cutlass out of that group a little.
A previously seen new patient called me up and out of the blue asked me to find him a classic car to drive. Put an upper limit at $50K and offered me a 10% finder’s fee. First he said a Porsche 911 up to the early 80’s. I said, for what your use is, you don’t want a stick. Use a couple of days down 680 to San Jose. He might be dreaming a bit but his money and thoughts.
He then mentioned Chevelle and I started to dig deep. You had your everyday Chevelle and your SS version. Today the universe is populated with the less made SS version and precious few of the family daily drivers so to speak with a 327. Same for a 302 or 351 Fairlane/Torino or 318 Coronet. I may not have an easy task finding one ready to drive. Although I saw a very nice 71 or 72 4 door Coronet, can’t recall, other than he wanted $65K for the car. Ridiculous.
The only problem is they’re parked in the wrong order!
The GTO is the getaway car, it should be in front with the Coronet giving chase, with a lighter-powered magnetic “gumball” light on the roof.
I can still hear the 70s era dodge vehicle’s starter from miles away! (Old Texaco guy)
Oh I know that sound as well! “Ford”, “GM”, “VW”, had their own distinctive, starter, sounds.”
Very nice find! The Coronet brings back memories of one of my first cars that I had in high school circa 1988-89. It was a 72 Coronet, base model with options except a 318/auto and PS (and maybe the AM radio, if that was optional). As William Hall pointed out, interior was very spartan with rubber mats and pretty plain vinyl seats. It didn’t have the large triangle center pad on the steering wheel, just the small horn circle.
That car was pretty much a cream puff for Vermont, with 60k miles and an repainted light blue finish that unfortunately concealed some deep seated rust. The interior was absolutely mint, though. I loved that! An acquaintance at school rode in it once and remarked that it was the cleanest car he had ever rode in, by which he meant not dirty. I think it was the shiny rubber floor covering and smooth vinyl seats that amplified the sense of sterility. The black rubber floor had blue specks mixed in to match the interior color and had a glossy sheen. I rather liked them, they looked good and were practical. Rubber floors are underrated, IMO.
The car had good but not overwhelming power, smooth running. Ride was pretty good, handling not so great with bias ply tires. Biggest problem driving it was rear visibility with that raised rear deck.
Where , in “CA”, is this? Bit of a “Berkeley”, vibe.
It’s in the East Bay, northern CA, but not Berkeley exactly.
Cheers!
For model years 1971-1974, the B-Body corporate sibling of the Coronet was the Plymouth Satellite. Fury was the name of Plymouth’s C-Body model for model years 1965-1974 and was moved to the B-Body platform for the 1975-1978 model years.
Right it is. A typo, the text will be amended.
The green Coronet brings back many memories. I had a distant aunt and uncle who were the spend thrifts of the city. They drove a ’63 two door Ford Falcon wagon with not one option. No radio, no power steering, no power brakes, no nothing. Smallest engine, three on the tree, that was it.
Once my uncle passed away in the early ‘70s, my aunt shows up at the house with same green Coronet with every feature imaginable for a Dodge. Power everything, AM-FM radio, cold as ice A/C, you name it!! My Dad got the biggest kick out it.
After that, she bought a new Dodge every two years. Her trade-ins had a max of 7k miles each. Talk about the good life!!
The GTO looks like it was well equipped when new, four speed and DELCO AM/FM radio…..
I much prefer the Coronet .
I’m no big fan of the loop bumpers but I very well know how robust and fun to drive these were, much better than that ‘sporty’ GTO when new .
-Nate