Ah, the Malaise era. That bit of time when there was very few, if any, good vehicles from American manufacturers. OPEC oil embargos and stringent fuel economy and emissions regulations meant that the average American car from 1975 to 1983 or thereabouts was not particularly good when it came to speed and handling, which were not priorities anymore. Isolation? Now that they could do.
Maybe it was the fact that America had realized its collective lifestyle was full of privilege and could easily be shattered if hit in the right place. Maybe it was the new wave of social responsibility that would only increase as years went by. Or maybe it was just the tastes of the era. But, exceptions like the Vega, the Mustang II and other economy and sporty cars aside, an American car was a place to isolate yourself from anyone or anything, a cocoon to keep you safe from the horrible world and its troubles. Never mind the repercussions of Vietnam, and the fact you can only buy a couple of gallons of gas at a time. You’re safe here in your world of comfy button-backed leather seats, column shifts and plastiwood. Hairpins? A spirited drive through the canyons? Nah, that’s far too racy and besides, you could get hurt. It really is the best to keep those roads straight and that cruise control on.
For all their shortcomings however, they were really good at that: Coupe DeVilles and Continental Marks that epitomize the personal luxury car, in designer editions for those that wanted their clothing and their cars to have matching labels. You could have a car in any color that would take your fancy and if that wasn’t enough, there was no shortage of people wanting to fit waterfall grilles and huge headlights to whichever car you bought.
I’m sure a lot of us appreciate the comfort and plushness of the cars of the Malaise era. In fact, one of my favorite cars is from the Malaise era. However, if I had the chance to own one I’d have to give it a lot of thought. Would I be able to put up with all its drawbacks and limitations? It’s not like they were all completely terrible–just mostly. But what about you? If that malaise sled of your dreams shows up with a nice price tag and some flash on its opera lights, would you take the plunge? Or would you conclude that those dreams were actually nightmares?
I do and I love it, flaws and all.
With a front plate saying 1981 in that styling, I feel I saw this car on Craigslist more than a year ago. And I remember a same model in same color showed up with a Ford LTD coupe too.
Seeing how I bought and put the 1981 plate on myself years ago, no, you didn’t see this car on craigslist. In fact, this is the only 1981 Chrysler New Yorker Fifth Avenue still out there on the road with aluminum road wheels and factory sunroof. Doubt you saw a 1981 R body on craigslist, probably the more common 1979.
Corey that car is awesome. Absolutely stunning. I love the lit back window, what an elegant touch and it still works! That body style was always classy. It’s a shame that it had such a bad reputation and sold poorly. I bet your car is rare with the factory moonroof, too.
+1
As someone born in the malaise era, yes
Awesome car, Corey. Please post more photos!
Absolutely. I own a ’74 Thunderbird and it is loaded with style and comfort. Compare it to today’s shapeless hard-riding blobs and which would you want?
Actually, I’ll take my 09 Mazda6, thanks. Decent mileage, good acceleration, the engine actually runs right, more back-seat space and trunk space than my 75 Monarch. Yeah it’s a little harder riding, but at least it doesn’t bottom in back going over freeway undulations or railroad tracks.
A surprising rational analysis (IMO) of the Dodge Aspen, which is really representative of the Malaise Era as a whole, came from Regular Car Reviews, of all places (mind you, he might be a little off-color even if he doesn’t use any “obscene” terms):
Two cars I’d gladly own from this era: 1978-82 AMC Concord wagon, and 1979 Lincoln Versailles. Yep, my taste runs from practical to baroque, go figure.
And the Concord.
It took me a long time to get used to wagons that didn’t have real tailgates, but I’d take this Concord Wagon in a second.
I’ve always found the 1978 AMC Concord to be the best looking of the Concord production cars.
I see your Lincoln Versailles and raise you with two Mercury Monarchs plus one Ford Granada and a Continental kit trunk bump and vinyl half roof…
Yer on!
Your choice of the poor unloved Versailles is one of my fav.’s, too!
I’ve come close a few times to buying a Granada (strongly prefer the 2 door) but prefer the Monarch. I once owned a 76 Pinto and a 73 Capri…I would buy another Capri, a Pinto? No.
I’ve often thought I wanted a “Jim Rockford” Firebird, but memories of my 77 Nova temper my desire
To be honest, 70s may be “Malaise Era” for cars, but the 80s are worse.
Oh? I’ll take pretty much any of the Ford performance cars from the 80s (Mustang GT, T-bird Turbo, Merkur XR4-Ti, Taurus SHO) over pretty much anything from the 75-80 period.
Yes, for sure. I own a 79 T-Bird and I love it! There isn’t a decade of automotive history that I couldn’t find the definition of “malaise era” car or two…
That’s one sharp T-Bird – glad to see that it looks like it’s being well-taken care of.
Love the T-Bird. yeah, the malaise era just had it widespread amongst american manufacturers
Uhh, probably not. I had enough experience with malaise era cars during the actual malaise era.
I do appreciate seeing these cars at cruise nights though, even though it’s a little jarring to realize how old they are now, and by extension how old I am now.
Exactly the way I feel. As someone who came of age in that era, it’s great to go back and reminisce – I love seeing the old cars. But driving them? No thanks!
Well, ok maybe a Hornet hatchback or Capri II….
Agreed. Age certainly did not make malaise ear cars suddenly get better; quite the contrary.
yeah, I guess I would, I’m looking for a 77-85 GM B Body now, have an 88 but want a cleaner, tighter ride n drive, the 88 is an ex PD then Cab car, good parts though
I’m going to drop a 6.2L detroit in her n ride n style at hopefully high 20s to 30 mpg 
my other sled is a 82 300SD 
but I do like my GM iron, have idk how many 73-85 trucks
Heck yeah. I have one and it’s awesome, my favorite old car and I’ve had some nice ones. Malaise era cars are probably the most owned models on this site.
Unlike today’s cars that do everything well but nothing truly outstanding the American luxo-cruisers excelled at two important things — pampering and looking cool. Some of them like the 77+ Cadillacs were well built and reliable. Did you know that Cadillac’s single best sales year was 1977 and that the 77-92 Brougham is considered one of their best cars ever?
Some people lump the 80s in there too but I think peak Malaise was 72-76. 77-89 was the golden age of cars if you ask me. I think we are in a malaise era now with all of the boring, me-too cars, crossovers and Priuses. It’s why trucks keep getting more popular, they have the swagger American cars had back in the day.
This new Chevy Colorado ad says it all.
Yep, this commercial and the AC/DC one.
I’m not a fan of the Colorado, but I do like their commercials.
A lot depends on what is meant by malaise era. Beginning with the 1973 models, exhaust gas recirculation was introduced, which did not improve performance, and then the bumpers. I think that the 75-76 models with catalytic converters were better, but not much, for fuel consumption, but performance was degraded. Electronic fuel injection would make a difference, but this was slowly being added.
But this may have been the peak of the so called Brougham era, when interiors were exceedingly cushy. This was also the time that we got the 8-6-4 Cadillac V8 and then the ever popular 4100.
Maybe Peak Brougham would be more true to what we are talking about. Malaise era to me includes the imports and I think most people lump the 80s in there.
Peak Malaise would have to be when emission and bumper regs first hit hard and that was 72 and 73. By 77 things were changing quickly so I would call 76 the end. The VWs got fuel injection and suddenly became fast and smooth running. Compare the bumpers on a ’78 Fairmont to a ’75 Granada.
Around this same time the 4-door Accord took off and Toyota introduced that killer line-up. Volvo and Saab offered reliable, high volume Turbos. The domestics caught up briefly in ’86 with the Taurus.
That’s why I say 77-89 was such an interesting time, there was never more change in the industry than in those 12 years. 1943-55 doesn’t count because of the dark war years.
Put me down for a Peak Brougham car. I would love one!
A 1974 Fleetwood Talisman see here (link)
I really, really want to like the Talisman, but every time I look at the interior of one…I can’t shake the feeling that the Michelin Man crawled in, laid down on the seats and died.
“…the Michelin Man crawled in, laid down on the seats and died.”
Having looked at the interior pics, I understand exactly.
I agree that big changes started in the 70’s and continued through the 80’s and even into the 90’s. GM did get into overhead cams by the 90’s. Tuned port injection came in the mid 80’s. Digital fuel injection by 1980 (only Cadillac) but Buick’s 3.8 V6 got it for mid 80’s FWD.
But those who want to experience the big block V8 muscle cars probably get more from the 60’s. But the 1965 GTO (389 V8) would do about 100 at the end of a quarter mile in about 14.5 seconds. My 2014 CTS with V6 (not turbocharged) does the quarter in about 14.5 seconds and 95 MPH. It uses about half the fuel for normal driving.
No matter what Gerardo picked the perfect pics. Hard to imagine anything more malaise than a Granada and with Lee in the pic, wow. Design-wise my young eyes thought it looked more Mercedes than LTD now it’s the other way around. I’d love a Ghia, 302 with floor shift.
The 250 “6” is another story. One of the magazines tested one and it had to stop at a railroad crossing. When it was time to go the Granada didn’t have the power to pull over the train track, which stuck up about an inch. He had to back up and get a running start!
Though I prefer the Mark IV over the V there is nothing more peak brougham than a Mark V.
The GM B/C lines, including that lovely Coupe DeVille, were outliners for me. They were brougham style cars without the malaise issues. Until the early 80s.
the Malasie era didn’t start until 73 and reached its peak in 75-79. The begining of the end of the Malasie period was the introduction of the 1982 Mustang GT which marked the beginning of specific out put, ie horsepower increasing instead of decreasing.
I mostly agree. The “traditional” malaise did start in ’73, with the first “safety bumpers, seat belt warning lights and buzzers, then got worse in 1975, with the advent of catalytic converters, and unleaded gas, and then they just kept adding on more and more emissions crap. But it was mechanical and could be removed, just like the dreaded cat con. The bumpers looked worse on some car than others. The 1974 Corvette t-top was my favorite year of the C3 by a long ways. The ’77 was the last year Corvette I ever actually liked. The Camaro did good all the way through ’81 This “malaise” era did not end all at once for all American cars.
But, this is not what I consider the “malaise” era. This was the last of the “classics” era. By that I don’t mean they are worth a fortune, but prices are going up. To me the “real” malaise era started with egg shaped 4 door cars, FWD, computers, and EFI, has continued to get worse with more complex EFI, ABS, airbags, side impact door beams and crumple zones. As all these things came along, style went completely away for most cars. Combined, this meant the end of cars that appeal to most car enthusiasts. I have one car from “my” malaise” era. a 2001 Malibu. A cheap POS transportation mobile, not even deserving of being called a car. My “real” cars are my ’72 Pinto woodgrain wagon, with a manual shift and weber carb, my ’64 Fairlane 4 door, with a 265 V8 automatic (complete with a four barrel, headers, and a real dual exhaust) and my ’93 Chevy S10, which I had to turn into a non malaise truck with a V8 engine, absolutely no emissions crap, dual exhaust, four barrel, and NO electronics (it had a computer and a TBI V6, that went into the dumpster a long time ago. Trucks have never had safety bumpers, and I’ve never understood why, though it is a good thing. What group was powerful to win over DOT, NHTSA, and especially the evil IIHS?
I do not believe the current “malaise” era will ever end, only get worse. That’s why I believe so strongly in hanging onto ANY RWD non computer car.
I mostly agree with that too. When the malaise era started and whether imports are included is not important but fun to talk about so let me argue why it’s ’72. That was the first year for the low compression engines from Detroit. Drivability was very poor because the emission systems were new and complicated. It was the year dual exhaust went away on cars that previously had it. Wasn’t the ’72 Mark IV 100% single exhaust?
Things got better in ’75 with the cats (not worse) since they could be used as after-treatment and give the engines some breathing room. Dual exhaust slowly started coming back, even if some systems were fake dual exhaust. I believe the Mark IV got it in ’75.
When I put it all together — drivability/performance, fuel economy, reliability, bumpers and the US economy ’74-’76 have to be the peak years. Even the Porsche 911 and BMW 5-series were lousy back then (thermal reactors). Completely agree with Junkyard about the late 70s and 80s being great years especially if we include the imports (except maybe those from England).
As for the disco/Brougham imagery that isn’t malaise to me! But it was a little bit back then…
The ’90 on egg thing is right on too. It’s why guys are trucking themselves up. It’s why Millennials aren’t into cars as much as they should be. One very cool sedan that I’m glad is still around is the Dodge Charger. If only it was available in a diesel
not sure I agree with slagging side-impact beams, and besides, I may be dreaming, but I’m sure I saw them in a 50s cutaway ad. Just cant recall the make.
True… although, a RETURN to power did come in 1982 or so, it was STILL the Malaise Era… just a turnaround on the manufacturers part, for more power less restriction.
Now, the 1974 Pontiac Trans Am Super Duty was one of the most powerful muscle cars… I think available in 1974 and 1975. With it’s big block 455, that broke the mold of cars that had low compression engines from 1972 and on.
Do you not call that a Malaise Era car, because it HAD power?
Facts are, ANYTHING made from 1973- 1983 IS a Malaise Era car… American, European and Japanese.
If only they had offered a 455 SD stick shift in a Grand AM
now THAT would have been the ULTIMATE malaise era car.
Is that the truck that had technology and stuff in it?
Yes it has WIFI. They used it in the “disruption” ad to bring the Superbowl back to viewers. It’s a great marketing campaign and I like that AC/DC spot too Phil.
I just saw the condensed version of this commercial the other day… can’t believe it’s a commercial FOR a pickup truck and not a parody of one. I’d say I hate the shit out of it, but at least they’re being completely honest about why people buy these ridiculous things.
Yep, you’re more of a man if you drive a pickup. Pickups, the vehicles for guys with phallic insufficiency issues.
BREAKING NEWS: Herb Lamestreamer Takes Off Glasses, Takes Pic w/Manly Chevy Truck; Okcupid.com Hits Among Vapid Female Demographic Increase Tenfold:
He “trucked up” his profile, grew a beard and his online dating “views” went from 3 to 97 lol! Hadn’t seen that one.
Guys, all of these spots are HIGHLY tongue-in-cheek and freaking hilarious. Come on a focus group of “guys with beards”? In the AC/DC spot just because the guy drives a Civic he listens to the Carpenters? GM is having fun with stereotypes at everyone’s expense including their own. They make nerdy small cars too.
As for the phallic factor, just about any Brougham mentioned today with its big 8 footer (hood) puts the Colorado to shame. The sportier models even had bumps and bulges on their hoods.
Around 1990 three important things happened. Broughams died, jelly bean cars came in (and never left goddammit) and trucks took off.
Sure that truck popularity was mostly due to how boring cars had become but also, just maybe, because we missed something about our old Broughams.
Obviously tongue-in-cheek, but this only works as a piece of advertising and not a parody of it because they’re playing off of the way people actually do think. “Buy this truck cuz it makes you look like more of a fuckin’ MAN!” is the message regardless of how it’s delivered.
Can someone please wake me up when that idea seems just as embarrassing as buying a Ford Granada to make yourself look wealthier? If Chevy wants to prove me wrong, they can go “truck up” the Grindr.com profile of the twinkiest gay man alive and show America how many hott hunk hits the 2015 Colorado yields. I’m sure that would go over just wonderfully with most pickup truck buyers.
That’s just it Sean the Granada wasn’t embarrassing at all. They really did look European back then, even to a young car nut like me. The car was a huge seller and that doesn’t happen when you are embarrassed of your car. It was a smart purchase — European looks for $5,000.
Same thing for the Colorado. For the same price as a compact sedan you can look more handsome and resourceful. People will think you own a timber-wolf or rattlesnake.
If you buy some small foreign 4-door even an eight-year-old kid will think you own birds and sit home all day watching TV. That’s what the kid said you can’t blame Chevrolet.
Chevy is betting their target audience values affordable swagger and I think they do. The comedy is just to catch their attention.
Yeah but it’s embarrassing now. Pickup trucks-as-cars are a fashion statement and like all fads, they will one day go out of style. I anxiously await the day that we speak of them in the same tones reserved for opera lamps and pillow seats.
It’ll be really interesting to see how much people in the future judge the current press positively comparing the Fusion/Mondeo styling to Aston Martin. The Granada trumpeting in the 70s pretty much mirrors it.
Hey, not everyone speaks in “tones” about opera lamps or pillowed seats.
We’ve discussed pickups ad nauseam in here before. Believe it or not, it’s not about compensation or fashion. Pickups are still the real deal, some of the last vehicles on earth that are. Spacious, capable, stylish, comfortable, versatile, and available in a dizzying array of configurations.
If they don’t appeal to YOU, that’s fine. Discussing different tastes is what makes this site fun and interesting. Ironically the smug quips do a better job of stereotyping you than pickup drivers.
+1 there are malaise cars in every decade: examples: 90 -95 Grand Prix
+1 Cadillacs were well-built & reliable 77 -79 (all B-bodies, really)
I own the first generation Seville (a Malise Era car often unfairly maligned here); yet a friend who owns a ’67 T-Bird (a car that is pretty ‘well isolated’ for a non-Malaise’ car!) recently drove my Seville, he was surprised with it’s ‘handling’. Likewise those who attended the CC Heartland Gathering in 2014 were all impressed with the Seville that attended the event.
Ergo, not all cars from the Malaise Era are trash and likewise, there are cars in every decade that are worthy of a Malaise Trophy.
I’d submit the Grand Prix from 1990 -95 or the ’97 -2003 Chevy Malibu (and their respective GM stablemates) are excellent candidates for Malisedom.
The 76-79 Seville has always been one of my favorite cars and I am always on the “LIke” side when it comes up for discussion at CC. Yours is a beautiful example.
It’s not a bad looking car at all, just resembles a Caprice a little too closely, reminds me of a Cavalier/Cimarron, except bigger. Also, calling a ‘Gramada’ (as we used to call them) “European” styled is pushing it…never fooled me for a second, even at 8 years old.
I actually get the truck. But not that one. 4 doors and feels like a car? HUH, did I miss something? If you are going to turn a truck into a car, why not just get a car. The car probably gets twice the mileage, so you CAN actually go somewhere. Though they are so modern, fancied up, over refined, and over sanitized neither appeal to me at all
I would love to have a truck 1972 and back, though here it would have to be a ’66 and back to avoid emissions. I would want it stone stock (including a regular truck cab) In my current condition I would need A/C, and cruise control if I were going to travel in it. I wouldn’t mind a straight 6 at all. It’s a truck not a muscle car. But then, I wouldn’t mind having one of those either.
By the way, I wished they still made the Colorado, like it did when it first came out. Standard cab work truck model. I was still working for the fleet department when GM killed the S10 (REALLY stupid move) but the base Colorado wasn’t half bad. Then almost as soon as it came out, it was gone. Now they have put the name on this monstrosity. No thanks.
I would and do happily drive my 86 Pontiac Parisienne Base, it should count as it was designed in the malaise era. Its got a mild performance cam in its LG4 305 and some exhaust tweaks but its otherwise stock and i love driving it in the nice weather. And its nice that 80s cars are old enough for haggerty classic insurance now, i pay $196 per year for my full coverage on it. My Daily driver is 7 times more to insure.
Excellent choice. I drove a beautiful 86 Parisienne Brougham demonstrator equipped with the 305, most 86’s were equipped with the 307
(slightly audible engine compared to 305 and less power).
Count me in on the Ponty!
We had an ’86 Parisienne Brougham with the 307 in the family. Not a bad car, though it did have a few quirks. But overall it looked good, had *very* comfortable seats, and handled well enough for a car of its massive dimensions!
If it was a weekend cruiser, then yes, I’d take one in a heartbeat.
Tops on my list is the mid-70’s Ford Gran Torino with a 460. My neighbour had a brown one and despite there being prettier cars on the road at the time, to my Kindergarten eyes, it was a nice looking car.
Or a 1975 Electra 225 with the 455. Go big or go home.
I’d like another 75 Electra/Limited for certain, I’d still have mine and drive it had it not been rear ended.
For the all “style”, absolutely no performance segment:
Me wants the Corvette which no one wants – 1980 California Spec 305ci Corvette with the smaller tires/wheels too.
When listed by Time Magazine on their “50 Worst Cars of All Time” list, you know it is an unappreciated P.O.S. in the land of Corvette enthusiasts..
http://content.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1658545_1658533_1658522,00.html
And as a consolation prize put me into an 1982 Camaro/Firebird with the 4 cylinder motor/automatic… also on Time’s list of the 50 Worst Cars of All Time.
http://content.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1658545_1658533_1658527,00.html
Yeah, it’s sort of the ‘Edsel effect’, cars that are so unloved that you want one just for the pity factor. Maybe that’s the reason they’re worth seeking out at car shows. Considering how poorly they were built (and how hard it would be to keep an original one running, what with all the Rube Goldberg emission controls), I dare say they’re as rare as the much more popular cars from the halcyon days of the sixties.
And, man, are there lots of unloved Malaise choices, most notably might be AMC products such as the Matador coupe, Pacer, and Gremlin.
Maybe it’s just the socialist in me, but I rather fancy the ultra-strippo, barebones Chevette Scooter, the one with smooth carboard door panels and no armrests. It was like the American version of the East German Trabant.
There’s a bunch of mid 1970’s malaise I’d own in a heartbeat.
A short list:
1971-1977 Cougar XR-7s, (I know the 1978s and 1979s are similar but there were some details I’ve always found off-putting). The same era of Mercury Montego (only the MX) would work, too.
1975-1976 Chrysler Cordoba. Not really crazy about the stacked rectangular headlight ones, but I wouldn’t kick one out of the garage. Similar, the same years Dodge Charger or Plymouth Fury. Also, the Dodge Magnum, too!
1969-1977 Pontiac Grand Prix, especially the ones with Landau roofs and T tops. I took a 1976 to my high school prom, one of the most fun evenings of my life…
There are a lot more, especially if we get into the compacts and some of the bigger cars, but we don’t have enough pixels to cover all of that ground…
Ahem – if I am going to buy a ‘classic’ car – more than 25 years old- then I am going to buy a classic car from the 50’s or 60’s. The maliase era cars offer less power, less quality, and less beauty than their 60’s equivalents. I can understand that some here may have a fetish for a particular model because of some childhood experience in one (I don’t want too much information about that please!) but my memories of the maliase era are not so pleasant automotively. Mostly they involve needing to buy a car and only having ugly poor running stuff to choose from – at 16 – 18% interest rates if you had good credit, and with the option of buying used squeezed by the fact that people were keeping their old, better cars, rather than trading them in.
TL/DR: Hell No!
But most of the beautiful old classics are expensive and common. Any schmoe with the money can find a nice, run-of-the-mill, tri-five Chevy or first generation Mustang. Hell, there’s even a whole cottage industry devoted to reproducing damn near every part of those cars.
It’s much more of a challenge (but a lot cheaper) to keep a malaise-era car going. Plus, it’s going to be a lot more rare. For a car show ride, honestly, I can’t think of a better choice. It’s rare to see more than even one malaise era car at just about any generic car show.
I do , I’ve had it for four years now and I love it. I love excess hedonism and decadence and nothing exemplifies more than one of these lol. And since I live in a part of the country that never recovered from the malaise era, i , like my forebears also find solace in the complete isolation.
Sorry pic didn’t load.
Something like that would be one of the most looked-at cars at a local Cars & Coffee. Gorgeous!
Sweet Town Car
That is simply outstanding. Beautiful Lincoln!
No opera windows and dark blue–that’s a special edition of some sort, isn’t it?
Collector’s series, with fixed glass moon-roof. It’s a special model to commemorate the end of the line before the downsized 1980 models came in. Every option was standard and it has color keyed wheels, gold grille, thicker carpets both in the cabin and trunk and more sound deadening.
I put custom made duel stripe whitewalls from diamondback on mine like the car in this press photo. Mine has been sleeping in the garage since about November lol.
Beautiful car! Looks great without the opera window. One thing that I think would also look great on this car is suicide doors.
Oh baby, that’s nice!!! A buddy of mine’s father bought your car’s twin from a funeral home back in ’80, got to ride in it a couple of times. Made me a confirmed Continental fan for life!
“…bought from a funeral home…”
That’s it! This stray sentence fragment caused me to realize the one reason why I hated these cars the most– they looked like coffins!
Quick, I want you all to imagine three golden handles attached to each boxy flank of an LTD, and six superhuman pallbearers to carry the thing…. but that reminds me of a sedan chair, which is a different, equally disturbing image. That aside, the gilt trim and tufted upholstery of these broughams maintained the casket look for the interiors, too.
Funny that my little furrin’ cars were called “deathtraps” by drivers of these rolling mausoleums…
Now that bias real presence! I’d happily ride in that if I had a chauffeur, but I don’t think I’d want to park it myself.
Let’s see,
1975-79 Trans Ams with 400 or 455
1977-81 Z-28’s
1982-83 Mustang GT
And many other cars
+1 on these cars.A Smokey and the Bandit Trans Am has been on my wish list for nearly 40 years.
A Volare Roadrunner or it’s Aspen R/T relative would be nice.
I was writing out my list and realized yours is the same, so +1 lol
The 82-3 Mustang GT is not Malaise, it was the watershed car that officially marks the beginning of the end of the Malaise era.
Those 82 GTs however were basically put together with parts, both mechanical and aesthetic, that were rooted in the malaise era. Many the engine’s ingredients to make it a H.O. for example were in production for marine applications for several years prior, and the exterior of the 82 was basically a mix and match of 79 Cobra and Pace Car parts. I’d say the true watershed moment came with the 85s where the horsepower jumped to a huge for the time 210.
But it is more than the sum of its parts for one thing. The big thing however is the fact that HP actually increased rather than going down like it had been for the preceding decade. No it wasn’t huge HP but it did mark the point where the tide turned.
1982 was significant for other reasons:
the return of the american factory convertible(K car)
the new camaro/firebird
the corvette ceased to exist
renault takes over AMC
The same could be said about the Trans ams in the heart of the era. They were rated at 180 horsepower in 1976, 200 horsepower in 1977 then jumped to 220 in 1978.
For many people the Malaise era began in America in 1973. It was hard to overlook those huge ugly safety bumpers. But everything is relative. ’70s era cars may have had those awful safety bumpers, some looked way better with them than others. Then came more safety stuff, and a ton of emissions crap. The Ford Pinto weighed almost twice as much in it’s final model year than it’s first. It got so heavy that Ford had to put as V6 engine in it just to be able to keep up with traffic. That made it even heavier. So while there was no doubt that some very undesirable things happened to ’70s model cars, in most cases poor styling was not one of them. To me the ’70s produced some of the most beautiful cars ever made, in spite of their bumpers, and in some cases, actually because of it. The urethane bumpered Corvette, Camaro, and Firebird actually looked better than the chrome bumpered ones. I owned both a ’77 Corvette and a ’79 Camaro, and thought they looked great with the urethane bumpers. My opinion is that GM ruined the Corvette design in 1978, but it was not due to malaise issues.
My favorite 1970s cars were the Vega, Pinto, Gremlin, Pacer, Camaro, Firebird, Corvette, Mustang II, Monte Carlo, Grand Prix, Cordoba, late ’70s Thunderbird, and though it is not American, the air cooled VW beetle.
I loved the looks of all these cars, bumpers and all. Yes they were a bit slow, but these days that can be easily fixed, even legally if you wanted. Drop a Turbo LS1 into a mid ’70s Corvette or Camaro, and I guarantee it will move.
But the original malaise era was just the beginning, As things progressed into the ’80s and ’90s, it really began to get bad. Styling has disappeared altogether. And it shows no signs of ever getting any better. 2 door vehicles have almost completely vanished. Today’s vehicles consist mainly of little egg shaped FWD 4 door sedans with EFI, ABS, airbags, onstar, navigation systems, smartphone connectivity, car based suvs and minivans with all the same crap, and crew cab trucks. The main enemy of cars today is the computer. It is what has made all the other crap possible. Oh, and not only that, but manufacturers have done all they can do (which is a lot) to complete the driver from the driving experience. I complained about the “floating on air” feel of ’60s and ’70s era Cadilllacs, Buicks, and Lincolns that would make you seasick. I had no idea how much worse it was going to get. And I can see no end in sight.
That is why I recommend to everybody who cares anything about cars to but a RWD car without any type of computer. If you have the money, then you can afford to buy what you want. If you don’t, there are still quite a few such cars out there, especially 4 doors, that can be had for cheap. If they are not already, fix them up so that they are roadworthy (basing that on the year of manufacture) My Fairlane has manual 4 wheel drum brakes and manual steering. But it works as it was designed. I would have no problem going to 4 wheel power discs, as long as there was no computer. Again, there is no real reason that it have style. It is going to feel and sound the same regardless of what it looks like. If you have a pre emissions car and the money, you can make it as fast as you want it, using old school real car parts.You can either restore it, partially restore it, or leave is as is, as a patina car. I personally love “sleeper” cars, cars that look like they barely run, with 1500 HP under the hood.
Please save all the RWD pre computer cars you can. There will never be anymore. And for those of you who don’t like rough rides, many of these cars, especially ’70s models, had very comfortable rides without totally insulating the driver.
During this era I did own a 1976 Riviera (after a 71), then a 1978 Oldsmobile diesel (98 Regency), and an 83 Skyhawk. The Skyhawk may have been the best of the three. I would not want any thing from this era, or for that matter anything from about 1973 through about 2003. I really think that my current 2014 CTS is about the best car ever that I have owned.
I did drive a 1950 Buick for a number of years, and then a 1963 Impala, but these were not my cars. Still, I have driven cars from the 50’s, the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and 90’s. Been there, done that, don’t want to go back.
Sure, I would own a Malaise era car. In fact, I once owned a ’72 Ford Torino and ’80 Triumph TR7 (British, so I guess that one might not count). My wife once owned a ’82 Chevy Camaro. All were actually good cars for us. And I would own them again, if I found the right car at the right price at the right time. Others I would consider are the ’77 Pontiac Trans-Am , the ‘75-’77 Chrysler Cordoba, and a DeLorean DMC-12.
In the ’70s, even at the near bottom of mainstream market, we still had rwd Chevrolet Malibu, Ford Fairmont, and Plymouth Volare, but coming to the ’80s it became Chevrolet Citation, Ford Tempo, and Plymouth Reliant K ( there is always a “who let this K car in” feeling when a Chrysler K car showed up in classic car cruise ) and obviously ’70s was better in this way.
The maintaining cost of those three ( or cars such as B-Body after downsize, Ford Panther platform and so ) is rather low among older cars. Unlike a ’50s cars require parts book, those cars can get the common parts easily from NAPA and ebay, as we can borrow a lot parts from rwd G-Body Chevrolet Monte Carlo, all fox derivatives, and Dodge Diplomat/Chrysler Fifth Avenue.
And because of CAFE, certain cars with better MPG appeared, making everyday driving affordable ( but I don’t really want a stick with optional overdrive though ) like many 6-cylinder models. F-Body Volare with slant six can get 18-24 in daily driving and I am very satisfied with that for a car eligible to Hagerty Insurance.
And more people were finally getting AC and radio with many convenience options across the line( ps pb delay wiper ) makes it easier to drive ( compared to a ’71 Valiant, no pb and no AC. ) Many of them are a good blend of practicality and styling ( but have to choose wisely ) before getting too practical in the ’80s.
1973 Chevelle SS Station Wagon 454
Good luck finding one. I did find a 350 version in Richmond though:
While I’ve enjoyed my 85 Grand Marquis during the past several months, I want to sell it soon as I have a chance to buy a one-owner 77 Granada two door with a 302 V8, PS, PB, AM radio and what’s left of a quarter vinyl roof. Only 49,000 miles (we hadn’t changed to metric speedos yet). A little easier on the wallet as the Merc with its 351 is quite thirsty.
I have a soft spot for many cars of the Malaise era. I just something a little smaller.
Mmmm … in my experience the 302 is pretty thirsty too. I probably averaged around 10-12 mpg in around town driving, and 16 or so on freeways. A friend once got 18 on a straight flat freeway in South Dakota driving exactly 55. And the 302 had absolutely no power and no drivability (it felt like it was going to stall when you put your foot down from a complete stop).
Would a 302 from that era be exempt from smog checks? I know if I had an American malaise era car, first thing I’d do would be to chuck out all the stone-age smog gear and get it to run right. Good drivability is primary safety, no?
The “malaise era” differs so much from today’s “recall era”. In today’s “recall era” the Japanese imports paved the way for this remarkable period in time. Innovations such as cars that accelerate out of control on their own (total driver isolation) and cars that launch grenades out of the steering wheel will be remembered as highlights of this Japanese dominated era.
Yes I would. Caveat: I’d do some minor upgrades to the running gear to up the reliability, power, economy and performance. Gone with the tired old springs, on with new variable rate jobbies and nice new shocks. Upgraded brakes with materials that were only science-fiction in 1973. And maybe even the major upgrade, engine swap. Like a friend’s M-Body Dippy with a Magnum injected V8; same basic engine family with 20+ years of refinement.
Until then, I’ll just live with my beloved Panther and pretend it’s a proper malaise-mobile.
I agree- among the cars built in the last few years, a Panther is probably the closest you could get to malaise-era motoring. At least in my experience, there are fewer differences than you’d think between an upgraded ‘proper’ malaise-mobile and a Panther – after having owned one of each – a 78 Ranchero upgraded w/HD shocks and swaybar, and an 01 Crown Vic – they seemed more like different flavors of the same car than completely different vehicles.
The Ranchero had a bit more old-school Ford float and seemed like a nicer highway cruiser – maybe the big long hood helped? – but the Vic had much better braking and acceleration, not to mention better performance offroad because it didn’t have such a giant front overhang. There is no comparison between the stock 351 and 4.6 though in terms of economy and performance. I bet fuel-injecting that 351 would have really woken the Ranchero up.
In short, yes I would love to own a Malaise Era car.
Since I’m a Volvo man at heart, I would start by looking for a ’77 through ’82 240 and if possible, a 262C Bertone as well. Despite the reputation it received for having the infamous PRV V-6 engine I think those can be made to run well these days.
Also, has anyone here owned a Malaise Era Jeep CJ? I’m also a Jeep guy and would love to try to find a stock CJ-5 or CJ-7 (preferably ’78-up) because I’d like to see what all the fuss is about with those rigs, in terms of their bouncy ride and susceptibility to flipping over.
A friend’s Mom had a Volvo 240, and in the mid-80s he and I took it on a long road trip. I never had given Volvos a second look before, but I was really impressed with how roomy and solid it was. Really great handling for such a big car.
Based on my memory, it seems like they would feel much less out of date today than most cars of that era.
Now there’s a sign of the times – calling a Volvo 240 ‘big’.
I confess to having ties like Lee’s (although with the stripes going the other, European, way), so I guess the answer is yes.
Yes, definitely, a Cordoba would do fine!
WHAT? Euro stripes go the other way?There’s some sort of international date line of tie patterns? Forget the cars, this is blowing my mind!
I do have one stylish number covered in upside-down fleurs de lis. Would that get me thrown out of some places in France?
Just stand on your head, you’ll be right!
LOL!
An English gentleman’s tie has stripes running from top left to lower right.
Don’t ask me why though!
I’ve owned a ’75 Ford Elite and a ’74 LeSabre convertible. The Ford was an overstyled slow barge that handled and drove badly. The LeSabre even with just a 350 2bbl could chirp the tires and had a majestic land yachtness to it.The most troublesome thing about it was the finicky scissor top mechanism.
The interesting thing about the “Malaise Era” is that when we were living thru it, it didn’t seem like a horrible stagnant time at all. I was born in ’64 and remember the excitement of the years 1976-’83 when GM introduced the downsized full-sizers and caused a sensation; the introduction of Ford’s Fairmont/Zephr “cars of the 80s” and later the aero T-bird, GM’s second and third wave of downsizing, Chrysler’s K-cars and AMC’s new lease on life with it’s Renault tie-in. As a teenager living during this time, car mad and reading all the auto magazines, it seemed like an exciting time of massive change and opportunities. Did not seem like the stagnant period we now look back on with regret.
Perspective, I guess, and my particular late-boomer age group. Those of us born in the mid 60s have always been in a strange kind of time warp.
I was just the opposite. My dad thought I was nuts for wanting to buy something used from the sixties. His refrain was always, “Save your money and buy a new car”. But, even at that young age, I knew that every domestic car during the malaise era sucked. It wasn’t until 1980 that I bought my first new car, a Ford Fiesta, followed by an ’82 RX-7, then a Mustang GT.
After a few years, the truly awful malaise stuff was pretty much gone and, while I mostly bought foreign, I would still pick up an occasional domestic car.
No.
Succinct.
I still have a soft-spot for the downsized 1978+ GM A bodies and the Fox body Ford sedans. For all of the virtues of front-wheel-drive, I feel like something’s missing from our automotive ecosystem when you can’t get an affordable, midsized, rear-wheel-drive car with a V8 (or smaller but similarly torquey boosted engine) under the hood.
If I had to choose one, it would be a ’78 or ’79 Grand Am with a four-barrel carb perched on top of a Pontiac 301 or Chevy 305. The Pontiacs were the least floaty of the A bodies, and the Grand Am had additional suspension upgrades compared to the Le Mans.
That said, I haven’t driven a malaise-era car since the malaise era. Maybe I’ve been spoiled by fuel injection, ABS, stability control and all the other advances of the last 40 years.
Like many of us, I am attracted to cars that are part of my history. As such, I would deeply enjoy owning a 1973 Chevy Impala four door post sedan. It would have to be dark green metalic, dark green interior (vinyl) and dog dish economy hubcaps. A 350/350 drivetrain too. This was the only “new” car my family ever purchased. I was 6 years old the evening we picked it up at Stewart Chevrolet in Colma, CA (suburban SF)—sitting next to my older brother in the back seat, I will never forget how rich..and lucky…I felt. I can still feel the vinyl seats……. It was pretty much like this:
Hmm. My Dad had a green ’74 4-door hardtop. I think I’d like one. Thanks for the reminder.
I have managed to get through life with but a single malaise-era car, a 77 Chrysler New Yorker Brougham. It was not the best experience. That car is the only one in the gap from model year 1971 to model year 1984 among cars I have owned.
I started driving during the malaise era, when there were lots of well-kept 60s cars available for the picking. So I picked, multiple times. By the 90s, I would either find one of the dwindling number of prime 60s cars or move up to 80s stuff with fuel injection, disc brakes and modern safety equipment.
Now, quality 60s stuff is rare and expensive, so the malaise era is finally looking a teeny bit attractive. There is really only one car I really want from that era – a 70s Town Car. Maybe a Mark V, but it is a definite second choice. That’s it. OK, maybe a 75-78 Marquis or another big Chrysler C body just for giggles.
Yes i certainly would! I have owned a ’71 Riviera, ’75 Honda Civic wagon, ’77 Coupe de Ville, 77 Datsun 280z, ’84 Mercury Cougar (bought new). Would like to own some more. ’71-73 Mustang, Lincoln Mark 4 or 5, 79-80 Cadillac Eldorado of Seville.
Yep. I have one that I’m planning to restore, or at least get back on the road, someday (’79 Chevy Malibu). And there are plenty of others I’d love to have in my driveway if the price were right…Volvo 242GT, Mercedes 300CD or TD, Lincoln Continental Town Coupe or Mark V, Imperial FS (with Lean Burn removed, naturally), Cutlass Salon aeroback (yes, I’m weird). Just to name a few.
Would I want any of these as a daily driver? Probably not. (A well-maintained 300CD with working A/C might be a strong contender.) But would I own one? Already do. Would I own more than one? Sure.
Turns out many cars of the malaise era were quite good.
I’ve been driving a 77 Olds 98 for 15 years or so. Rust is finally rendering it a winter only car but it’s been great.
Biggest issue has been the lousy after market parts. They never last.
But, they have chrome and I LOVE Chrome.
Chinese aftermarket parts fail? Say it ain’t so…..!
There are some vehicles from that era that I’d consider owning as a daily driver because I wouldn’t feel as bad about it eventually getting beat-up or consumed by road salt. My list would include C-body Mopars, Ramcharger, or a pristine example GM with the 350 diesel. There are VERY few Malaise-era or newer vehicles that I’d pamper as I do my earlier Chryslers though.
I’ve always felt that Ford and Chrysler had the better looking cars for this period , at least they were trying. GM’s offerings looked stale , even in their time. As to powertrains , …what a sad lot, regardless of manufacturer. I would think finding a “cherry” from this era would not be easy as build quality also seemed below par. Here in the Midwest Fords in particular would start to rust usually right about the time you paid off that 36 month loan with Ford Motor Credit.
The barge is from ’73 and so am I. For those who call it the “malaise era,” I offer another phrase that no one used back then: “Haters gonna hate.”
Love that Imperial! . . . and gotta admit, I never heard the term “Malaise Era” until I came here. These cars have always just been called land yachts, battle barges, or boats.
http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2011/05/what-about-the-malaise-era-more-specifically-what-about-this-1979-ford-granada/
Credits to Murilee Martin
If I had the money, I would own a Malaise Era Chrysler vehicle, especially since the technology of today would allow me to turn it into a Pro-Touring/G-Machine vehicle. A Chrysler Cordoba comes to mind for such a project.
As an Attorney, and someone born in 1976, my answer is; HELL TO THE DEFINE THE MEANING OF ERA.
Our family didn’t buy new cars until the late ’80’s, when, exhausted by an endless series of malaise era junk that constantly broke, we bought new cars. I have terrible memories of ’74 Darts that didn’t start, a ’77 Century which fell apart quickly, an ’81 Spirit, a ’73 LeSabre with endless transmission woes, and everything that didn’t start when it was cold, didn’t start when it was wet, required warming up for 10 minutes, and smelled bad.
I HATE CARBURETORS. HATE, HATE, HATE, HATE THEM. I have no interest in learning how to use a timing light or a dwell meter and I do not care how easy it is to use. I do not want to do that. I think that the major reason that all the service stations flipped over to quik-e-marts was the demise of the carburetor meant that a car could go for months and years without expensive and irritating intervention.
So, clearly, I would NEVER drive a malaise era car? But, actually, I do? sort of? cos I have a 1991 Cadillac Brougham, which originated in the malaise era and has all the Broughamy features but NO CARBURETOR. Despite looking worse than the recently featured 1980 Brougham, it has gone over 4000 miles in the last month. These cars, with FUEL INJECTION, will basically run forever. It now has 268500 miles and shows no signs of flagging. I love it so much I bought a better looking one and am having it worked on.
So I would drive a Malaise era car, but not made in the malaise era itself.
Amen to that. Unless I am very hard up for money/a car, I will never have a carb car as a daily driver.
The car has to have at least fuel injection.
Now as an occasional driven car(aka garage kept) then yes I might own a car with a carb for that.
carbs are cheap and simple. They last 5-10 years and can be rebuilt for pennies. The really simple ones…single barrel, manual choke…last several decades.
I hate, loathe, and dispise anything with wheels being controlled by a computer, which means I obviously like carburetors. I have worked on them all my life, and could probably work on one blindfolded. I can also troubleshoot one with better than 95% accuracy. They are cheap to buy, cheap to work on, cheap to repair and tune. And they work perfectly when tuned properly. But don’t compare carburetors when they are using ethanol, and when they are using gasoline. Carburetors were never intended to be used with corn liquor.
Henry Ford would disagree. He intended the Model T to run on pure home made corn alcohol.
I love Malaise era cars! They have always been part of my life. Granted, they have had a lot of their kinks worked out, and I don’t mind their flaws. I wouldn’t trade my puke green, 6 mpg gas hog Dodge for anything else, save perhaps another clamshell Olds. While I now rely on a jelly bean Lexus ES300 as a commuter car, it is effectively a modern day, gently used Malaise era car: no frills, seems like an old people mobile, but very comfortable and reliable. I just wish it were about three feet longer : )
I drove an identical one in Driver’s Ed, same color same body style
That’s a sweet wagon – just don’t see many of these anymore. That 6mpg must have something to do with it!
I had a ’73 Polara wagon like that, except mine was Sheep Dip brown! Paid all of $30.00 for the car way back in ’80.
lol – Sheep dip brown. That is a true Malaise era color. The green on this one is part of what made me fall in love with it- my aunt and uncle had a green Buick Electra, and I learned to drive in a green Olds Ninety Eight. Years go by, this comes along, in the right shade of green, and I just couldn’t let it be parted out and then sent to the crusher, which is exactly where it was headed. Still have to laugh: the 1972 Dodge Wagons brochure claims that “Highly efficient V8 engines all run on regular or low-lead gas. . .” What a crock. At least the part about running on low lead gas is true. I wouldn’t call any 440 V8 remotely efficient. But, as the saying goes, there’s more to life than gas mileage.
I turned 19 in 1972, and could legally drink then (yep! there was a window there when the drinking age was lowered to 19!), for what it’s worth. In college I saw an endless procession of malaise-era cars go by, in all their bloated, wretched excess. I watched the weatherstripping and paint on GM cars disintegrate, and the adhesive ooze out from under the side rub strips. The first fuel crisis was in 1973, and I was glad I didn’t have to drive all the time. Full-sized cars were notable for truly awful fuel mileage, and mid-sized and compacts weren’t that much better. And all one heard about was the poor driveability of the smog-controlled engines. For myself, I drove a ’62 Valiant through college. With its 170-cubic inch six and Torqueflite, it gave crappy mileage–about 17-18 mpg, when it was in good tune.
My next car, a 1970 Torino Brougham, was actually an improvement. With its 302 V-8, it still got 14 mpg in the city, and it had pickup. My 1977 Accord wasn’t bad, either, even with only 65 horsepower. I could still keep it tuned myself. The thing that did it in was probably poor maintenance before I bought it; it turned into a smoker. Next was a 1984 Mazda 626. It was OK, but the fuel system was a bit temperamental (NOT fuel injection), and its 2-liter engine put out only 85 hp. The next two cars, a 1993 Sable and a 2003 Civic Hybrid, have their own stories of strong points and surprising weak points.
Nope. I don’t want to own any cars from the malaise era. They’re fun to look at in car shows, but not to own. I’ll take our Camry Hybrid, thank you. It just plain works, uncomplainingly, and it gets up and goes, quietly and smoothly.
Well since the Malaise era did run till 1983 then yes I would own a Malaise era car.
I would choose a 1982-1983 Pontiac Firebird. With a fresh look and attractiveness, it was the car to own then.
Heck it was even in my favorite TV show Knight Rider. As a kid I wanted one of those badly.(the Yuppies could keep their 60 hp 240D Benzes)
Agreed!
KITT, Bandit’s Trans Am, and Doc Brown’s DeLorean get automatic exemptions!
I sometimes wax nostalgic for the ’76 Buick Century Wagon my family had when I was in high school in the early ’80’s. We called it the war wagon as by then we had done home-brew rust repair and painted it outdoors on a sandy driveway! With the 350 4BBL it seemed to have some get-up-and-go too, given its size, although when the secondaries kicked in it did seem like you could see the gas gauge move, and I don have to admit my point of reference was our second car: an Austin Marina! I recall the Buick being OK on the reliability front too, at least for the 1st 10 years of its life, needing only an alternator and maybe 1 or 2 A/C compressors beyond basic wear items.
Would I own one again? Probably couldn’t afford the fuel, but it would be a vehicle you don’t see every day and the antithesis of the Alticamricord.
At least the Buick’s piano-proof.
I had an ’81 Dodge Omni, ’80 Toyota Corolla and a just-under-the-wire ’84 Mercury Topaz in their waning cheap-beater years.
-The Omni was the only car that ever left me stranded but set a standard for space efficiency I still haven’t managed to match.
-the Corolla was dead-reliable but rusted to nothing and survived a sidelong skid off the road into a snowbank at 50 mph (as did I) despite what must’ve been severely compromised structural integrity from all the rust.
-the Topaz had been babied by previous owners but descended into clunkerdom with astonishing speed in my not-gentle-but-not-particularly-rough hands, had those horrible Ford seats that forced you to slouch (driver’s backrest broke while I had it)
Of the three, only the RWD Corolla would be, in good condition, weekend-fun-car material and even then only if tastefully modded. I wouldn’t say no to the right Shelby Omni either but those were EFI and thus post-malaise, holdover styling notwithstanding.
I would and I do – a ’79 Monte Carlo. In my eyes, the last of the classic V8, RWD Chevy coupes. And If I had the time, space and funds, I’d also gladly own a Volvo 240, a Fairmont Futura, a Caddy DeVille and perhaps a Toyota Supra from that era. Oh, and a ’78 Pontiac Grand Prix in two-tone green with T-tops and snowflake wheels, please. And a Pacer, just for laughs. And maybe a couple more.
These days, a clean malaise-era survivor is far more rare and far more interesting than any of those over-priced, over-restored and over-done Mustangs, Tri-Five Chevies and 1960s muscle cars. At every car show I’ve ever gone to, there’s always rows of those, while mine is the ONLY ’79 Monte.
I have plenty of interest in older cars as well, but even then I’d be much happier with a nice clean Dart hardtop over yet another General Lee clone Charger, and would much prefer a Packard over a Tri-Five Chevy.
The most interesting cars are those that make you do a double-take, because they look exactly as you remember such cars from 30 or 40 years ago and if you squint, you can almost travel back in time. And those are almost always just “regular” cars from back in their day. The sports cars and muscle cars and exotics don’t have that effect, because they stood out in same way then as they still do today, only now you’ve had several decades to get bored with them already.
Absolutely, even with emissions strangulation and railroad tie bumpers 70s cars still at the very least looked better and more distinct than 2015. I’m going to avoid sporty models since those choices are pretty obvious(F-bodies, Fox Mustangs, C3 Vettes) so here’s a short list of what I can think up:
77-79 Cougar XR-7
80-81 Mirada/Cordoba LS
Colonnade Grand Prix
Pontiac Can Am
79-85 Buick Riviera
77 Turbo LeSabre
Forgot about the Can Am Matt.Nice to see another fan
Still own my first new car a 1978 Thundrebird . Paid cash $6020! Still drives great and get lots of thumbs up where ever it goes. Love it.
My brother had a ’79 Chevy Monte Carlo until his wife made him get rid of it, probably from 06-11 ish, an eternity if you ask me. He bought it from an elderly member of his church. DON’T BUY STUFF OLD PEOPLE ARE SELLING! Many old people grew up in the era where they saved tinfoil and old screws and pantyhose and jar lids and such so when they are getting rid of something, that means that it IS COMPLETELY WORN OUT.
This car up and died on the test drive, from being carbureted. It had to be pushed. Alex bought it anyway. You know how you see cars in the junkyards and you feel a little sorry that it is going to be crushed? not this car. It kept begging to be allowed to die somewhere quietly.
I named it the “dysmobile” as in Dysfunctional and Automobile. I have to say that by the time fuel injection came to these cars, or even the computer controlled carburetors, they were much better cars but this one never ran, and the few times it did stank and chugged along miserably.
Can and do!
I would, but with modifications- our emission regulations were much more relaxed, so I would imagine a few modifications to a 1976 Chrysler New Yorker would free up a few ponies and bring fuel consumption down…