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Popular Science pans premium cars for cost cutting and impractical styling
Popular Science’s Jan P. Norbye and Jim Dunne criticized the quality and practicality of four 1972 premium-priced big cars. They road tested the Buick LeSabre, Chrysler Newport Royal, Mercury Monterey and Oldsmobile Delta 88. “It’s […]
History
1969-77 Plymouth: Fuselage wasn’t so bad compared to anti-fuselage
(EXPANDED FROM 5/13/2022) Ponderous styling of the so-called “fuselage” Plymouths has been pointed to as the biggest reason why sales were smaller than the well-regarded platform it replaced (e.g., auto editors of Consumer Guide, 2022). Output for […]
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Even Motor Trend complained about the 1967 Cadillac Eldorado’s brakes
Motor Trend was hardly known as the toughest of the car-buff magazines, but it nevertheless complained about inadequate brakes on the 1967 Cadillac Eldorado. A road test found that the Eldorado’s stopping distances from 60 […]
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New Yorker story shows difficulties of an outsider reporting on auto industry
Industry coverage by journalists from outside the automotive media can be a mixed bag. They are less likely to succumb to the groupthink that can undercut reporting from the likes of Automotive News or a […]
Data Dive
The 1965-73 Ford LTD may not have impacted Mercury very much
(EXPANDED FROM 1/28/2022) Indie Auto commentator Geeber recently discussed how premium-priced big cars did better than their lower-priced brethren as the 1970s progressed. His comment, which is worth reading in full (go here), spurred me […]
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Car Life tries not to yawn when road testing the 1964 Chevrolet Chevelle
Car Life wasn’t hugely excited about the 1964 Chevrolet Chevelle. Even so, the magazine tried to present the new nameplate in a positive light: “At this writing, Chevelle accounts for 18% of Chevrolet sales and […]
Quotes
In 1980 General Motors showed the greatest promise of the U.S. automakers
“General Motors would have the most remarkable year of the four major manufacturers, selling two out of three new 1980 model year cars on the road. In fact, GM was down only about 3 percent […]
Media Analysis
Collectible Automobile’s take on the decline of big cars gets partway there
Collectible Automobile’s June 2024 issue does an unusually good job of discussing why low-priced big cars took a nosedive in sales during 1970-74. However, the magazine’s article by Sam Fiorani (2024) didn’t say much about […]
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Car and Driver gives Roy D. Chapin royal treatment in 1970 AMC Hornet story
Car and Driver under David E. Davis gave the royal treatment to American Motors’ head Roy D. Chapin Jr. A case in point was a story about the 1970 AMC Hornet, which treated Chapin’s marketing […]