Cars of the 50s and 60s: guest blog by Blair Roddan

Since I was born in the early fifties, I've always had a great interest in the automobile. I'm sure it had something to do with playing with toy cars and having a pedal car when I was a child. Needless to say, cars have always fascinated me.

The first cars I remember were the ones that Dad and Mom drove. Dad drove a 1956 Ford Country Sedan station wagon (in those days they didn't have vans available as a family vehicle; vans were only produced for commercial purposes). Mother drove a 1955 Lincoln Capri coupe. Both of these vehicles were land yachts, as were all the other vehicles in the marketplace. They weighed tons, as they were mainly constructed of steel; there was precious little plastic on these beasts. The Lincoln was a luxury car and had a few more options on it than Dad's station wagon. The Lincoln was ahead of its time, with power windows and seats. Both cars had power steering and brakes, both had automatic transmissions as well; both had the requisite switches to operate the lights and wipers, and each had a push button AM radio. Pretty fancy, back then. Everything was so simple to operate, direct and to the point. They also had gauges for not only gas, but for temperature, oil pressure and voltage. No "idiot" lights however. They didn't come with seat belts; I think those were an option back then.

The cars of this era were also very different looking from one another. You could easily tell them apart not only by year, but by manufactuer. In the mid-fifties Chrysler started sprouting fins over the taillights. Some of the other manufacuers followed suit. Not only did these vehicles have a distinct look, they had their own personality; most had two-toned paint jobs.

By the late 1950's and early 60s, American automobile manufactuers thought the idea of a compact car in America was a good idea. I think they came to this conclusion because the Toyopet, Opel, and several other small foreign imports were moderately successful. Chevrolet introduced the Corvair and Nova; Ford brought out the Falcon and the Fairlane 500; Chrysler the Valiant and the Lancer. Gas prices were rising and big automakers thought smaller cars were the answer. Looking back on it, car ownership was on the rise as well. The population was growing. I'm sure that in the manufactuer's minds, scaling down the size would cut the cost to consumers. Well, that strategy certainly worked! Americans loved their cars! Lines of cars kept expanding, i.e. the 1965 Ford Mustang and 'muscle' cars. Two-car households became common.

I wrote earlier of the simplicity of the vehicles when I was a kid. They were much easeir to work on and repair. I remember doing a lot of the mechanical maintenance to my older cars. If you didn't want to take it to a shop to have it repaired, you could always find a "backyard mechanic." I guess a simpler car was part of a simpler life.

Today we have automobiles that seemed to have been 'cloned.' They all look alike, even with a different nameplate on them. They all come with air-conditioning no matter where you live. They all are equipped with power windows and door locks as well as with a lot of unnecessary options. A camera is built in now with a screen on the instrument panel so you don't have to look back when in reverse. To me, this is ridiculous! These so called "features" only drive up the cost. I have shopped new cars recently and it's almost impossible to find one that doesn't have all these 'extras' on it. I went into a dealership several years ago to buy my wife a car. I knew what equipment I wanted; I did not want power windows or power door locks.  We finally found one on the lot in an acceptable color. When my parents bought a car in the fifties, they ordered it from the dealership; the dealership did not stock many cars on the lot. You'd order what equipment you wanted. You could also choose the colors you wanted on the exterior and interior. Six weeks later your car was built and you could fly to Detroit and pick it up or have it shipped to you dealership. Now the dealership wants to sell you the works.

But back to new cars and maintenance. You really don't have mechanics anymore; you now have 'technicians.' Technicians plug a computer into your car and it tells them what is wrong. If they really knew the mechanical components of a car, as a car mechanic did in the good old days, they could listen to it to find the problem. Consequently, "backyard mechanics" are creatures of the past.

I've been thinking that when I retire I might invest in one of those automobiles of my past. But upon further reflection, analyzing the situation, I know I can't do this. I could polish it and make it all pretty for a show, but who is going to service it when something goes wrong? These young technicians don't even know what a carbuerator is, for instance, and I have very limited mechanical knowledge.

Still, for people brought up in the 50s and 60s it's fun to remember the great cars of our youth. Can you remember what kind of car your neighbor had? Dig deep, I bet you can.

Blair Roddan lives in Las Vegas, NV and has worked for many years in the gaming industry as a blackjack dealer at a popular casino. He's owned several 'vintage' automobiles, several of which he mentions in this piece, but is now happy to drive a Toyota Camry.