57 Plymouth to be unearthed from 50 year Time Capsule

There will probably not be any major changes in functionality either. Improvements of existing systems, yes. Today's cars are more refined, more efficient and easier driving, but windows going up and down with a motor is still the same idea.

Reply to
Edwin Pawlowski
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Better and more reliable crash protection, engines, transmissions, fewer repairs, better radios and more creature comforts are significant to over

90% of the people who drive a car.

Otherwise, the cars from the late 40s would still be on the road.

Reply to
Geoff

Yet the idea of an electic motor driving the car along with the engine is a rather new idea, I think. And it has only been implemented successfully in the US in the last decade or so.

There is also an all electric car in the works, with a gasoline motor that drives a generator. This is something different, too.

Jeff

Reply to
Geoff

That gadgetry didnt necessarily make things better, did it, Ashton?

Reply to
<HLS

Personally, I wish the days when there weren't windshield washers, power brakes and air conditioning weren't around. Nothing like not being able to see out the window in the bad weather. It is always fun trying to get warm before heaters, too.

I suggest that if you leave in the Northeast, you just go in your car. Don't turn on the windshield washer. Keep the off. And simulate not having power brakes by stopping real slowly. And just for fun , don't turn on the heat. Then tell us if they make things better.

Jeff

Reply to
Geoff

The electronic gadgetry doesnt make much better. Electric windshield wipers were a great step forward from those manifold vacuum driven Ps.O.S. We always had heaters in our cars, even back to the 41 Ford we drove.

Air conditioning came later, but was a godsend. It did not have a $600 computer. It had an on/off position and a thermostat. Not bad, really.

Reply to
<HLS

Odd that windshield washers have been available since at least the early 50's, and that power brakes don't actually let you stop any faster, isn't it?

nate

Reply to
N8N

messagenews:45cfb890$0$6836$ snipped-for-privacy@news.adtechcomputers.com...

Far better braking and suspension all around, better handling on the vast majority, and MUCH better reliability. Fuel mileage is about the same, but they run cleaner. Higher specific output, and more use of pressurized induction and fuel injection is just the star of the changes that allow the last two to co-exist.

Reply to
clare at snyder.on.ca

Electric wipers that run when you push down the pedal going up a hill are a huge improvement over the vacuum motors. I don't think that is a gadget at all.

Reply to
Edwin Pawlowski

They've also been around for close to 70 years now. I'm not aware of any mainstream vehicles that used vacuum wipers past the mid-50's. I'm guessing that Packard was one of the last; and by the end, most vehicles used an auxiliary vacuum pump off either the fuel pump or the oil pump instead of manifold vacuum. I will grant you that there were some pretty dramatic improvements in vehicles during the first half of the 20th century; the difference between a "brass era" car and a 50's car is incredible.

You could pluck anyone off the street today and put them behind the wheel of a decent 50's car and with a little familiarization they could drive it safely and comfortably in today's traffic. Which was the whole point that several people were trying to make earlier in this thread.

A case could be made that the American automotive industry peaked around 1971 and it would be difficult to argue with that; certainly the period between about 1976 and only a few years ago was witness to some seriously suckful products put out by once-proud manufacturers.

nate

Reply to
N8N

Reply to
Larry from N.J.

Ford Falcons of the early '60s had vacuum wipers, and American Motors used them through the late sixties.

The later fifties was a great era for gaudy automobile design. Chrysler took it a step further with their land yachts that had such quirky features as big tail fins, a rear view mirror that stuck up from the dashboard, an odd shaped steering wheel, and push-button transmission controls. The 57 Plymouth gave a preview of the dual headlight look with the parking light next to the headlight. It resembled a face with a black eye.

Reply to
Bob

Still gotta love the Lincoln Futura. Awesome looking car. Too bad it never went into production.

Reply to
80 Knight

It became the Batmobile!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Reply to
Grappletech

True.

Reply to
80 Knight

That's all true but the basic functionality has not changed. A plumber in 1949 would have had a panel truck with some tool boxes in the back and various other tools. A plumber in 2007 has the same basic vehicle as he goes about his business. If you gave him a brand new 1949 model to replace his 2007 model he would not miss a beat in doing his work other then missing the AC in some parts of the country.

Reply to
Ashton Crusher

Nope. In practical terms, my 1960 corvair did everything my current vehicles do except it didn't have AC. Yeah, it was gutless. But it was pleasant to drive from Phx to LA.

Reply to
Ashton Crusher

The point is not that modern cars are not "better" in that they have more features, the heaters and wipers work better, the transmissions are more efficient, etc,. But that's just refinement. The basic design of the vehicle is the same, the functionality is the same, and in many ways there's not much different even in the "better" part. A

1960 Caddy didn't have great handling perhaps but it was comfortable and had all the creature comforts of any significance unless you think cup holders constitute basic functions of a car.
Reply to
Ashton Crusher

The best car I ever had was my 69 Firebird 400. It was quieter on the road then my 99GT, driving position and seat was better, interior was nicer looking, and steering was actually quicker and more precise feeling. Handling was worst though. Mileage in normal driving was not great but I got about 15 mpg on a fast trip and once got 21 mpg doing a steady 55 mph from phx to LA during the 72 oil crisis. The

99gt is technically a better car and I really like it but it will never replace the 69 when all categories of "why I like a car" are added up. And the 69 was still on it's original, unturned front disks at 125,000 miles. And they were SHOT.
Reply to
Ashton Crusher

The same is true of a horse and carrage, except that it is bit slower.

Jeff

Reply to
Jeff

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