Top 5 American Car Designs of the 1950s - 1970s: Full-Size Trendsetters of Their Time
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- čas přidán 23. 07. 2024
- Learn more about 5 seminal car designs from the 50s-70s:
Timecodes:
Introduction: 0:00
1957 Plymouth lineup: 1:01
1961 Lincoln Continental: 3:40
1966 Oldsmobile Toronado: 6:40
1967 Cadillac Eldorado: 9:28
1976 Cadillac Seville: 12:22
Video with former Cadillac Chief Designer Wayne Kady detailing 1967 Eldorado design:
• The 1967-70 Cadillac E...
Video with former Cadillac Chief Designer Wayne Kady detailing 1976 Seville design:
• 1976-79 Cadillac Sevil... - Auta a dopravní prostředky
I think the 1963 Buick Riviera belongs here.
I think Adam didn't put first Riv in this list because it was influenced itself heavily by European luxury coupes in particular Ferraris) though it doesn't means it wasn't beautiful and don't deny that it outsold probably all European competitors worldwide combined)
Agreed!
I totally agree with you ! What a beauty ! McNamarra was wrong about Lincoln AND the Viet Nam War ! I actually always thought the 1966 Riviera was a far more attractive car than the Toranado. I owned cars 1976 Seville in White w/Red leather. I loved that car !
My favorite car from the 1960's!
Absolutely
I would have thought the 1964 Ford Mustang a shoe in for this list. Surely one of the most influential vehicle designs in history.
A friend of mine's grandparents bought a 76 Seville. It is black on black. When they passed he got it. It has been garage kept its entire life. He only drives it on Sundays to church and out to eat after church. Also to local cargoes. It's got 67,000 miles on it and he washes and wages it once a month. It is one beautiful and beautifully kept up car!
67Siville great car powered by oldsmobile
The 1963 Riviera definitely belongs on this list. Bill Mitchell himself considered it his greatest design. It was arguably the most beautiful domestic car ever built. The 63 Avanti should have also been considered. Raymond Loewy designed it in a record amount of time on a shoestring budget. Only the financial failing of its parent company kept it from being as commercially successful as the others
I agree about both the Riviera and the Avanti. They may have been left of the list because the '63-5 Riviera was really more of a mid-sized (yet still personal luxury) car, and the Avanti was probably even smaller still. The influence of the Avanti can't be overstated - it was what I call the proto-pony car, beating the Mustang to market by over a year. It didn't have the low price of the Mustang, but it reoriented sporty small car styling to a more angular and clean look. I suspect that car designers referred back to it for inspiration over the following decades.
@Kaye NineTwo Yes I agree on the Riviera and the Avanti But I still think that everyone is still overlooking the elephant in the room !, 1963-67 Chevrolet Corvette!!!!.
The cleanest and most timeless design of that era was the 1963 Riviera, which should have made your list.
My top of the list of big luxury cars is the 56 and 57 Continental Mark II. One of the best looking cars ever made.
An honorable mention should go out to Raymond Loewy and the 1953 Studebaker Starliner.
My parents were trendsetters! 😎 '57 Plymouth bright green with white.
In 1966 I was 18 and turned 19 in June. I MRch of 16 I bought A 1 family owned 1957 Plymouth Fury. Have so many great memories from owning that car even though I got ridiculed for having a car with tailfins in the beginning era if muscle cars. The Fury was the beginning of muscle cars in the 50's. I paid $500. For my Fury in 1966!!!
I think it's interesting that Adam is showing a pre-production photo at 5:22 where the LC sedan was pillarless. A lot of the car mags at the time of its introduction posted this photo and testers were surprised when only a pillar-ed hardtop came out, seeing that the convertible was of course without a pillar. To my eyes it made no difference to the purity and beauty of the original design. It wasn't until the '64 stretch with the flat windows that it started going downhill. As a child I rode in the '63 LC sedan quite a lot and it was so beautiful. Great video!
I always wondered if Lincoln planned to offer that pillar less hardtop as shown in that pre-production photo. The service manual, when discussing the auto-drop rear windows states that "in models other than the sedan". Of course this only included the convertible but at some point I wonder if they planned on it being an option.
Everyone always seems to use that photo and I have no idea why (?)!
@@jeffsmith846
I have read that they did indeed plan to have the hardtop and pulled it very late into the planning. I read that Lincoln didn't think people would want to pay it's extra cost due it having to have that rear window mechanism. I've also read that four such hardtops were built.
My Grandpa bought a 66 Toronado brand new. He was a farmer in mid western Canada. It really blew people’s minds and when I tell people from back home who my Grandpa was some of the older people mention this car.
Great selections, Adam. I guessed 4 out of the 5 you picked for this (I had the Riviera instead of the El Dorado). In 1992, I took my late mother shopping for what turned out to be her last vehicle. I tried to influence her to buy a fully loaded Mercury Sable, but she fell in love with and purchased a fully loaded Dodge Dynasty. She liked the angular lines over the “jelly bean”! Cheers. 👍👍👍
In the eighties my parents bought a Dodge 600 for the same reason--they loved that square styling.
Your Mom had good taste. Those jellybean cars were hideous. 😆
Oddly enough, the Dynasty was Dodge's best selling car for several yrs.
@@adamtrombino106 I don't find it odd at all. I rented dozens of these for business trips back then and found all the K-car based cars up to the Imperial to be quiet, very pleasant to drive and a dream in big cities. Their only drawback-maybe-was simply that they didn't have the width of Ford and GM bodies, but for one person of course that wasn't important. I loved driving them.
I succeeded in talking my mom into a 1988 Sable LS.....she special ordered the champagne gold with mocha leather interior and the beautiful "snowflake" aluminum wheels.....the car was absolutely gorgeous. I remember being so impressed by the assembly quality, the quality of materials and especially the incredible ride and driving characteristics. It was a far cry from the utterly hideous 1982 Thunderbird she traded in.
Balanced and insightful design commentary. Thank you!
I agree with the choices. Well done!
I really do think the 1963 - 1966 Thunderbird should be included on your list. These cars were very well made, easy to drive and maintain. An aunt of mine would only drive Thunderbirds
and got one every two years! I brought a 1963 in 1990 and just could not believe how well in ran at that age. The styling is still a head turning to this day.
Couldn't agree with you more! I have 2 1966 Thunderbirds and the styling is just magnificent to me, although my favorite is 1964 with that gorgeous taillight design.
Agreeing, As a young man, Thunderbirds always had some _special_ features.
I was amazed (I was also young) at how the controls for the windows were in the center console! And the T-Birds had a lever which opened a vent out the back deck. And the tilt away steering wheels when you got out. And the famous "chrome pedals with black horizontal rubber bars," and the "tail light" that was the entire width of the rear end ... on and on, such a lot of GREAT special features on the T-Birds.
(and, even the short form, T-Bird ... how many cars have _that_ ??)
ONE MORE THING: Who else remembers the "Secret AGENT Man" vid with the tail lights of a T-Bird pulling away. Another CLASSIC moment from my youth.
@@josephgaviota Or Murderer's Row with a 1966 Thunderbird Town Landau driven by Dean Martin (accompanied by a very young Ann-Margret) in Monte Carlo...
Those T-birds were truly luxury vehicles......built in the Wixom plant with the concurrent Continental, the T-Bird had the same outstanding materials and assembly quality. Proof of the integrity of these cars is the high number of survivors that still exist.
Hi from the UK. Am a huge fan of 1950's American cars, my favourite is the 58 Chevy Impala. I find your videos very entertaining and informative. Keep 'em coming!!
I love the much-circulated image of the never-produced pillarless hardtop 1961 Lincoln Continental (at 5:15). Such a natural, but the added complexity of the necessary auto-drop rear-window programming was reserved for the convertible.
The '61 Continental and '67 Eldorado are masterpieces of American design😍
Your right on with the 66 Olds Tornado, the 67 Cadillac Eldorado and the 76 Cadillac Seville for sure!! I would have added the 71-72 Buick Rivera.
Adam, great job of showcasing your top 5 picks. Sure, many will say there could be others that should be on your list and those vehicles too are note worthy. You would have to create a top 25 list to mention them all.
As always, thank you Adam for sharing your insights.
8:01 Thats pretty cool to see that Double/Split clay model and to know it was an actual "practice" to create something like that for closely related models.
I really like the fact that the Oldsmobile design somehow incorporates the FWD layout in a way cars rarely do.
Surgically accurate. These are absolutely the most significant designs of the period, and arguably the most beautiful as well.
The 1961 Lincoln has always been my favorite car style. I look at it as the floating brick.
Excellent video. Thanks for posting. 👍💯
Can't quibble with any of the choices. Personally, I'm not a Virgil Exner fan, but you can't deny his importance.
To me, Exner's best work was the '55-56 Mopars with the "100 Million Dollar Look". It's such a tragedy that the advanced '57 cars were trashed with poor quality combined with bad execution, particularly rust as a result of bad underlying design. Not Exner's fault.
Something has always been amiss at the Chrysler Corporation, at least for the last 60+years.
Somewhere around the time that Virgil Exner downsized the full-sized Dodge and Plymouth cars, it has been difficult for Chrysler to survive. They did some things really well, notably with powertrains and transmissions, the hemi engines, and muscle cars. But they never could compete with GM and Ford large cars due to poor quality control, and subjectively, a noisy and harsh ride as compared to the big Two. This led to their financial troubles in mid to late 70s, and then bankruptcy. Under Lee Iacocca, the two bright spots became minivans and K cars. (Hard to believe the unremarkable at best, K car could help save them). The auto industry during the malaise era was so anemic, that probably helped the reorganized Chrysler achieve some of its gains.
Today, as a corporation owned by Stellantis, Chrysler has imo, lost whatever identity they had, except that questionable to poor quality continues, or at least a reputation for same. I loved the Chrysler products of mid to late 60s, the styling was impeccable, and they theoretically were on a good path. Sadly, success has never been realized, except in a couple of niche products, for short time periods.
For impact the 1964.5 Mustang created an entirely new class of vehicles.
“Design team was a bit unhappy that they had to use a round wheels on the car.”😂😂😂 Perfect Adam👍
As a kid, I _LOVED_ the look of the '61 Continental. AND, I loved the '64 Imperial!
The Continental (to me) exuded an understated elegance; the Imperial had an "in motion" elegance I liked.
GM 68-72 every model was beautiful,every one
I would argue for a few exceptions.....the Olds Toronado beginning in 1969. The Buick Skylark and the Chevy Nova were ok in coupe form, but the sedan versions made even mid-fifties Studebaker sedans look svelte.
Sweet selections, Adam. Haven't owned any of the cars on your list, but I did own a 1979 Caprice Classic sedan (my "winter warrior") and a 1989 Caprice Classic Brougham (my "summer cruiser"). The styling cues sparked by the 1976 Seville are wide and deep.
The ‘67 Eldorado is an incredibly stunning car, basically it’s my car fantasy.
I’d agree with you on all featured cars.
Cannot argue too much with the selections but I will anyway. 😉 The '63-'65 Riv would have been my choice over the Eldo. Both are beautiful but the Riv was stunning in the fall of '62 when it was introduced, while the Eldo had less of an impact because the equally striking '66 Toro and Riv had been out for a year already. Also IMO the '57 Plymouth was the least attractive of the '57 Chrysler line, especially up front. I would have selected the entire '57 Chrysler lineup, as the Dodges and Chryslers were even more striking in their own way..
Couldn't agree more. '57 Chrysler 300 would have fit the narrative better, but the '57 Plymouth stole much market share, a huge chunk from GM.
Nice compilation of some trendsetters. The 67' Eldorado really does exemplify a car that had every possible look, shape, and form possible for a car to demonstrate sportiness with luxury in a modern way. The hidden headlights seal the deal. I would go as far as to say it is timeless. The one you own is also a beautiful color combination. To think the Sergeant Pepper album came out that same year makes this car even more historical. The summer of Love it was I am sure..
Again, another video from you that I've truly enjoyed!
Hey Adam, these 5 cars are stunning!!! I'm glad that you gave the Buick Riviera an honorable mention, it actually deserves to be on the list but I know that you have to draw the line somewhere!!! 👍👍🙂
Sad that good taste isn't a prerequisite for American automotive design. The '63-5 Riv deserves anything awarded to any other US car designwise.
@@UberLummox I think you could throw another GM car into this discussion 1969 -72Pontiac Grand Prix 🤩🤩🤩🤩
@@mikeweizer3149 I understand the attraction Mike, but in my opinion it's not quite of top 5 caliber.
@UberLummox At first it was the Riviera Next came the Tornado and belive me I'm not forgetting bout the Earliest Pontiac Grand Prixs either ( years 1962-1964) Another era of sharp Pontiacs Then Came the El Doradro in 1967 and Finally the New Grand Prix in 1969 do you see a pattern here?.Each GM division took a wack at the personal luxury market even Chevrolet did with the 1970 Monte Carlo, What the difference was was that the Grand Prixs and Monte Carlos were based on a stretched out intermediate wheelbase whereas the Riviera Toronado and El Dorado were on a longer body and wheelbase!!!!.
@@mikeweizer3149 I realize all that Mike. It's simply that it doesn't rate as a top 5 design-wise, beautiful as the SJ 455 was. Cars in the personal luxury category don't automatically make them a design milestone.
Thank you great job and commentary your the man !
Thank you Adam. This was well put together and thought out. I liked the selections. It is interesting Cadillac did that Opel thing years later with the Catera which was a Opel /Vauxhall Omega. I thought about the Chevrolet Cavalier and Cadillac Cimarron as well. It is true all those vehicles influenced so many cars. The Lincoln Continental did and the Taurus did but some say Audi 5000 came first. With the Seville you see the 1980's GM G Body sedans big time and the roofline of the C bodies and the influence on the B Bodies and more. I really enjoyed your effort. I smiled when you talked about Oldsmobile Toronado. I liked you mentioned the connect to the Cadillac Eldorado and Buick Riviera. It really became apparent with the 1979-1985 models. Thank you so much Adam.
Adam, some really fine picks, the 67 Eldorado and 65 Riveria would be my top two for the 60's. Great job...... The old B&W Highway Patrol tv show sure used a lot of Dodge and Plymouth cars around season four. Thanks again for posting.
Enjoyed!!!
The proportions of front to rear doors is interesting. The rear door of the ’61 Continental almost looks small, as if passengers would have to duck around the C pillar to avoid knocking their heads-but the back seat of the 1976 Seville appears to be so much larger than the front seat. So much legroom! I don’t have measurements for either vehicle, so I don’t know how they really fit around their occupants.
After the Seville was well received GM was wise to expand the styling for the larger models of the other divisions.
The rear entry into a 61-63 Lincoln is indeed very tight. Was changed in 64 (and just a little bit in 63) for more room and they added flat door glass in 64 to give more headroom, thus losing the almost sporty appearance of the 61-63 greenhouse.
The 61-63 convertibles are even harder to get in and out of in the rear due to the top supports protruding slightly into the rear shoulder area.
But once you are in and close that thick rear door, it is a very comfortable place to be.
Just FYI Adam, the longitudinal front-wheel-drivetrain was named the Unitized Power Package. Also, I don't think you ever told us if your black Eldo has a cable operated trunk pull-down... 80)
What if the 57 Chrysler design had been reliable mechanically? Imagine that would have really been a spring board into being GMs main competition. Elwood Engel was genius. Love his slab sided Lincolns and Imperials. 67 Eldorado is great. Wayne Cady is genius and thanks to Adam video will be known well into the future. Now ... I love the sheer look AND the 86 Taurus. How about that?
The 66 Toronado was a stunner when new. I'm always surprised that these cars have never been in the Barrett Jackson auctions. Maybe like the 1937 Cords they will be discovered later.
I wrote a comment before that if the Toronado came out today I would buy one, that IMHO is the greatest of the personal luxury cars. Standing still it looks like its going 200 mph
It's interesting how there's no way you could look at a 76 - 79 Seville and think "wow, it looks like it's based on the Nova", yet, if you take the 75 - 80 Granada and put it next to a Lincoln Versailles, ALL you see is what the former is based upon. Given the success of the Seville, you'd think Ford would have put much more resources behind the Versailles.
I agree. But as they say, time was "of the essence" so not a moment to lose getting a competitor on the market. IMO, tho, I think that the 1979 roofline would have gone a long way in differentiating the Linc from the Merc and Ford, had they started out with it.
You're right on the money.
From the day the Versailles came out I called it a Glorified Granada... and I was only in middle school at the time!
The Corvair, as an influince for european and even soviet block cars (ZAZ)
Excellent! I agree on all these cars.
1977 Chevy Impala/ Caprice game changers. CB
Great job! Couldn't agree more.
Your choices are beyond controversy, each a true milestone that still holds up. Even the Plymouth, most radical of them by today's standards, shows organic integrity to itself.
I think the 1957 Ford deserves an honorable mention on this list. Like the Chrysler products that year, the Ford was long and low and, unlike the Chryslers, was tastefully restrained. The hardtop coupes, in particular, were quite futuristic looking with their arched rooflines and their 45 degree slanted tailfins.
As a kid working at my dad's garage, the first time I saw the wheels on those Toronados and Eldos, I couldn't _believe_ it! They were like heavy metal TRUCK wheels! I guess that big V8 and big transmission all bearing down on the front wheels required such heavy-duty wheels to support it all.
Agreed with all statements for these 5 cars. The 66-67 Olds Toronado and 67-68 Caddy Edlo are 2 of my favorite GM cars of the 60s in terms of styling. And pretty much nobody had FWD, let alone smooth torquey V8 power. As for the 76 Seville, it still amazes me how many designers copied that car. Every GM B car all the way through the late 80s, the Lincoln Versailles, and several Chrysler products including the 82-89 5th Ave all took styling cues from that original 76 car.
The 76 Seville is a very underrated car. Simultaneously regal and understated. It says, “I am a king and I also don’t have an insecure bone in my body.”
Agree on the ‘63 Riv, and don’t understand the omission of the 1963-1966 full size Pontiacs that kicked off the “coke bottle” design trend. It was used in muscle cars as well as Adam’s beloved ‘68 Mercury’s!
I can't quibble with any of your choices; all beautiful and certainly trend setting. However, one car that often seems to get overlooked as a style leader is the first generation Corvair. Its "Bauhausian" (to borrow your term) simplicity and horizontality predate the '61 Lincoln by a full year and was radically different than anything else on the American market. Oddly, while you can find plenty of domestic large cars that copied the '61 Continental, the '60-'64 Corvair is a one-off relative to other American compacts. At the same time, the Corvair design was widely copied by the Europeans, particularly the Italians and Germans. I'd love to know more about why this is.
Was the Porsche 914 a design cue from the Corsair? 🤔🧐🤨 Maybe. 🤷♂️😏
Winthrop Thurlow I am a little more Partial to the second Generation Corvairs of 1965-69,Talk bout an American car that looked very Italian!!!!!.
@@mikeweizer3149 The second generation is definitely sexier, but both generations were real style leaders. I don’t think they get enough attention in that regard.
The 76 Seville started the greatest car design theme ever. Which went all the way to the 1990 Caprice Classic. The 1977-1990 GM B-Body platform is my favorite platform of all time. And the 76 Seville started it all. I have the final year of the GM B-Body platform with the 96 Buick Roadmaster sedan. It's not as good as the 77-90 cars. But until I can find a 77-90 model. I'm gonna have to live with my 96.
Not as good in what ways? I am looking for ONLY a 1991 or 1992 Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser.
The C body cars that same era, along with the G body mid-sized and even a couple of X bodies, (Olds Omega and Buick Skylark) were all with that same basic design motif.
I sold Sevilles in 1978 and 1979. The Elegante was in high demand and the owners were meticulous about how they were maintained. I also drove the first 1980 Seville with Len Renick (Renick Cadillac) as we directed the car under cover of darkness to the rotating display for unveiling the following morning. That 1980 had the 368 V8.
I had a 1980 Coupe de Ville with the d'Elegance package.. A fine automobile with the aforementioned 368 cubic inch 6 liter V8.. It was sadly underpowered, but looked great and handled reasonably well for its size.
@@MarinCipollina Last December I bought a 1979 Cadillac Coupe deVille with 54,000 miles from the original owner's family. It is in mint condition as it was garaged since March of 1979. Of course it is the last year for the 425 V8!
@@jeffshadow2407 Of course the 368, 425, 472 and 500 all share the same block.. Want more performance out of the 368? Bore it out and use higher compression cylinders..
I am from Germany and remember the Opel Diplomat & Admiral.The designers introduced a purely American design.Unfortunately they did not sell very well.Not only because they were competing with the ultimate luxury status symbol of Mercedes but because Opel itself was a run of the mill car company.Hence Toyota,Honda & Nissan (for example) created their own stand alone luxury brands.
But the Diplomat & Admiral were top notch in regards to reliability.Though i am not 100% sure but i believe they have hired one or more American designers.
Holden EH of 1964 was very flat sided also, designed in America for Australia. Love the Lincoln look.
I'm not very familiar with Australian cars so had to Google the EH. Looks like it was influenced by Studebaker and the Rambler American! 🤓
@@trudygreer2491 given its a GM product I see Chevy ii more in it myself.
Thanks Adam. I agree with most of your choices. I would have included the 63 Riviera though. Even if it was inspired by the Thunderbird, the sharp, minimalist design no doubt also influenced the 67 Eldorado and the 75 Seville with their sharp, clean designs. I would also rate the 66 Riviera and the 64 and a half Mustang with the long hood, short deck styling inspiring almost 60 years of pony cars still seen today.
My father ran a Shell service station for many years and one of the customers stored his 1962 Lincoln Continental on the lot for years. It was black with a black and white interior and was a high mileage car in need of many repairs. As a teenager at the time, I appreciated how clean the design was and remember how unique a luxury car this was with the suicide doors and a hood that opened forward. I also recall that the factory tint was blue-ish. I was too young at the time to pursue the car for a restoration but I wish I did.
Adam as usual, a great and informative video. Totally agree with all your picks. Personally, although I love the 56-57 Connie, if the front wheel arches were an inch higher in design. Definitely this stunning car, would be on my list. Though still a very beautiful design from the Lincoln stables. Just love your picks.
The 1966 tornado was a great car, the reel speedometer 0-130 was fast. Comfortable with the flat floor, no driveline hump. Wish I still had it, prefect touring ride.
It would have been even better, had the designers borrowed the rear transaxles from the earlier Tempests, using the Corvette's double-linked axles. The resulting torque tube would have required only a minimal floorboard hump, while keeping the engine's center of gravity lower and the vehicle's weight distribution more centered, for better handling
The only actual body component used on the Seville from 76-79, was the Nova trunk pan. You might already know this. The 15" rims also made this car look much bigger than it was. My neighbor worked for Simmons group in Newport News Va., A fuel injection engineer, Mr. LAURENT, drove the testbed home every day, with its computer set on the transmission hump. State of art in its day.
Collectible Automobile describes in detail the adapting of Nova into Seville, with much more than just the trunk pan incorporated.
@@arnepianocanada- I would think so as the a pillar and firewall are the most expensive things re-engineer that’s why so many gm cars and others have that element so visually in common
Great article Adam! It’s no surprise that the 76-79 Seville won top billing. I am, however, glad that you did mention the 77 Caprice. That was actually the first car I thought of when I saw the title of this article. Having owned both of these cars the one thing that plagued the early Caprices unfortunately were the camshafts that were used in the 305 V-8.
It wasn't just limited to 305s. It seemed like all of the new small V8s from GM had the issue.
Very interesting article but truly missing the greatest and longest styling change post WWII:
1963 to 65 Rivieras had the longest styling effect after WWII. The styling concept was born in 1959 via Bill Michelle's visit at the '59 London international Automobile show and a following trip to Milan Italys Ferrari Plant. The American automotive styling had gone from 50s fins to straight lines with all the manufacturers.
The Riviera broke the mold with a forward motion look and tapered waistline. It took all the American automotive makers by surprise and by 1967 everyone was basing their design and styling on the trend setting first generation Riveras. Examples are the complete GMs divisions after 1964, Ford after 1966, and most of Chrysler divisions starting in 1968. The basic forward design and slim waist stayed as a styling standard well into the 90s. The drastic styling change only came about with the push to fron wheel drive Automobiles.
Marty Matthes
Calgary Alberta CANADA
Great pics Adam. 👍✨😎
I think the best adaptation of the Seville look was the midsized GM group, including the Cutlass, Regal and Grand Prix. My parents had two Cutlasses, a '78 and an '80.
That slate grey 1961 Continental with the female model: I did not KNOW they made a pillarless version of this car. All the ones I have seen had a very thin B-pillar.
They made at least that one as a styling exercise, but it was not brought to production. Beautiful tho, isn't it..
67 Eldorado, 63 Riviera, 61 Continental, boattail Riviera, 57 Chevy, split window Corvette would be my picks😊
For 1968 there was a federal mandate for side turn signal lights as well as needing a solution for the cast plug on the Eldorado
The 61 Lincoln Continental was the used in Limo form for the Presidential Limo (X-100) for John F. Kennedy. It remained in service until 1977, which is kind of disturbing. That car is in the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn.
I'm old enough to remember JFK's murder. Did you ever notice that the back doors don't seem to fit well that day? I've often wondered whether it flexed a lot when none of the tops were on. Problem solved after the killing when H&E put the permanent top on. So grateful to Ford for preserving these presidential vehicles.
I might argue for the 1958 Thunderbird as a Trendsetter as it brought in the new concept of the personal luxury car, which GM countered with the 62 Grand Prix and 63 Riviera.
Your choices are fantastic for styling until you arrive at your last choice. If you choose 1976 I would have pick The 1976 Cadillac Sedan DeVille d'Elegance. The Kingswood Green being the color of choice. I find your SeVille Highly Compelling!
Fortunately or not, the 76 Seville (not Deville) set the tone for American car styling until the 86 Taurus.
The 67 eldo is still my fav here but I think the 67 Riviera also belongs on the list 😊
An astutely curated series of choices, Adam. It would be great if someday you went forward with a series of choices for the 1980s and 1990s. ;-)
Looking at the cars on this list, something has been lost with modern vehicles.
I miss the '67 Ford Galaxie 500 Fastback
We had one of those.
The 1968 Chevrolet Impala SS was gorgeous and powerful
I love the 67 Eldo. However, the Mark III predicted the neo-classical styling dominating the 70s and into the early 80s.
I agree....the Eldorado was beautiful but it didn't influence many designs afterwards. The Mark III was the original overstuffed, plumped, padded and fluffed "brougham"-styled vehicle.
While I'm not normally a MOPAR man, the 1957 Plymouth in the video is truly a beautiful design (except for those funky horn looking things on the rear bumper). I greatly perfer its look to the 57 Chevy or 57 Ford.
The 1966,67,68, & 1969 years IMO were the best styling years for GM. Some of the most attractive body styles GM ever made in large, midsize and muscle cars were made in these years.
Mostly agree, but I would also include the early 1960s GM full size models.
Interesting fact.....the 1957 looked so long, low and wide in comparison to the 1956 Plymouths but were actually a couple inches shorter in length.
I remember as a teenybopper army brat being in lala land after getting off of a plane in Ft. Dix, New Jersey and being back in THE STATES for 5 whole minutes...I saw my first 66 Oldsmobile Tornado. I thought I'd died and gone to heaven.
I would actually argue that the ‘67 deVille was more the influence on Art & Science. If you look at one of those next to the Evoq you can see how they took the forward-canted stacked headlights and lowering spline line from the deVille and turned them upside down for the Evoq. The rear is more Eldo, but (and I might be the only person who thinks this) the line of the rear C pillar continuing onto the slanted part of the upper side taillamps reminds me of the bustle back sevilles.
4door lincoln continental convertibles are my favourite.the 1966 oldsmobile toronado i like. 1967 cadillac Eldorado is nice although i like 1971-1976 Eldorado convertible and hardtop i like. cadillac Seville bustle back i like.
I would add the 1953 Studebaker Starlight and Starliner coupes.
While the port fuel injected Oldsmobile R-350 ran beautifully, the Seville was a real comedown from the 1972 Coupe DeVille it replaced in our family.
14:58 Adam , you making Fun out of Chyrsler designers having to use round wheels, you bad boy 😂
Hey Adam. I wanted to ask you, do you use some type of paint protection product ( wax, sealant, coating) after you polish your vehicles?
I see now that the title includes the words "Full Size". One car that set styling trends world wide was the 60 Corvair. While American companies didn't seem to copy that design, foreign cars all over the world did, including the Hillman/Sunbeam Imp (an almost exact copy). Even cars from India copied it! I wouldn't call the Corvair stylish, it certainly did pave the way for others to copy. I also think the 65-69 Corvairs had an elegantly sporty design that put a dash of Europe into an American car.
😍!
The best word to describe these Continentals is - elegant...
I actually preferred the 1961 Cadillac.. Just stunning with jet age styling.
The seville set the styling theme that made gm cars the ultimate old man mobile for the 80s. Nobody under the age of 60 drove an olds, buick, or cadillac where I grew up in the 80s.
Born in '59, I've seen, owned and driven vehicles from the 1920s to present, sans EVs. Most unique in the Army NG, a Deuce-and-a-half, a Five-ton and a semi tractor all built by Kaiser.
A nice selection, though 1963-5 Riviera actually inspired the Toronado. I don't see the lovely '67 Eldorado in the homely, bland 2000s Caddies. Something in Robocop maybe? The '76 Seville did influence, mostly at GM. You can see it in all the badge engineered FDW offerings to follow in the 80's. Not saying those were bad cars, but essentially only differed by price according to logo. The Caddies did have V8s and styling cues, otherwise meh. Nice mention of the first Riv and Taurus. The last car, and first since Taurus, to broadly influence styling is the 2011 Sonata. Those beautiful character lines soon showed up in even BMW and Mercedes cars, and the '59-Chevy-escent taillights continue to influence to this day.
Everything is too much the same now, huge grill to the ground, minimalistic headlight assembly, indistinct body lines. I'm bored, except my 2012 Sonic. It isn't influential, but certainly unique. Also trouble free so far.
I had a 2012 Sonic hatch turbo manual. Loved that car.
In 64 my parents bought their first new car, a Bel Air, their previous car a 56 of the same model. Though very austere and minimal and without gimmicks I still think it was one of the handsomest cars Chevrolet made.
Seriously ? That's a bit of an odd choice, considering that the 1964 was a carryover from 1963
Christine was a beauty.
Adam, If you recombine all the letters in the words Fiat and Peugoet and use a little imagination, you can almost spell PLYMOUTH . 😉😉
Yeah but I can't seen to comeup with Stalantis
Excellent video. I would have included the 1964.5 Mustang. Maybe you didn’t because the pony car segment was (is) relatively small.
I would have included then 1970.5 Chevy Camaro. But as Adam stated, he was focused on full sized cars.
These kind of arbitrarily limited lists, top five, top ten, whatever, are always subjective and matters of opinion. Allowing only five cars on the list out of a thirty year time span is an arbitrary and pointless limit and many influential cars are not included. The five car limit leads to disagreements and partisan bickering. Why were the ‘63 Riviera, ‘65 Mustang, ‘55 Thunderbird, ‘63 Corvette, ‘77 Caprice and others left off a list of significant cars over a long thirty year span of time? No reason at all except there can only be five. I know it’s winter and you can’t drive your cars, but the reviews of your collection and your excellent interviews and fine engineering discussions are far more interesting than a list. Especially since there are so many click-bait lists all over the internet. Just my humble opinion. Love the channel.
Gee.. you don't *sound* very humble..
@@trudygreer2491 What do you mean? I’m just voicing an opinion. I think Adam and his channel are wonderful and I’m very appreciative of the effort that goes into making the videos. Am I required to love everything about every video?
The 1977 Impala was derivative of the 1975 Seville.. The 1963 Corvette, 1955 T-Bird and Mustang weren't in the full size class of cars he covered. I agree regarding the 1963 Riv though..
I agree with your selections but the Riviera is so perfect, you should have made it a top 6. : ) 5 increments are so overated!