Laurence Jones 1960s, General Motors, Opel

(Found In) Lower Haight (San Francisco, CA): 1968 (Buick) Opel Kadett Station Wagon

9319809292_59693dfe72_z As omnipresent as the original Volkswagen Beetles continue to be some 35+ years after the last one was sold in the United States, one forgets that it wasn’t always the only import popular with American audiences before Civic/Corolla domination. In fact, the quite often second most popular import in America could be found in your Buick dealer, via Germany.

General Motors had from time to time given its American brands something different to sell. Their were the price gap cars that came at the end of the Roaring Twenties. In fact, Pontiac cannibalized parent brand Oakland during that period. When foreign car popularity took off in the Mid 50’s and more buyers craved more sensible cars, General Motors took to importing their overseas offerings. Pontiac offered Vaxhalls from the UK. Buick offered Opels from Germany.

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Laurence Jones 1960s, Ford Motor Division

(Found at) Fort Mason (San Francisco, California): 1966 Ford Galaxie 500 Convertible

12233406_10153136886362201_131286300_nImitation is considered the finest form of flattery. The stylists at Pontiac had the biggest confidence booster in the form of imitations from multiple brands for Model Year 1965. From cars as diverse as the Mercury Comet to Fraternal Luxury brand Cadillac, brands adopted Pontiac’s signature stacked headlamps. Some also adopted the fullness at the ‘hips.’

No brand got flack for it more than Ford. Their mostly revamped under the skin Full Sized Models were derisively called “The Box the 1963 Pontiac came in.” Burned by that assertion, Ford massaged the look to mesmerize buyers and critics the following seasons on sale. From hips sprouting pubescent curves and a bit more rake to the headlamps, The 1966 full sized Ford strived for a unique identity all it’s own.

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Laurence Jones 1960s, Cadillac, General Motors

(Found In) Bayview-Hunters Point (San Francisco, California): 1960 Cadillac Series 62 Six Window Four Door Hardtop Sedan

12212196_10153135151467201_1693632014_nAll American Automakers were faced with the daunting task of what to do next as the 1950’s gave way to the 1960’s. If one is to take a meter of aggregate automotive flamboyance, 1959 ranks as the equivalent of Liberace, Paul Lynde and Charles Nelson Reilly hosting a Christmas party. Befinned and bejeweled, Offerings from Rambler to Imperial maximized access to costume jewelry like no year before or since.

The splurge on baubles pushed Cadillac in particular to have a full Breakfast At Tiffany’s moment for 1959. In the hangover year that was 1960, a lot of those jewels were sent to the pawn shop. With the same basic body shell, a remarkable sense of restraint and modesty was applied to the variety of 1960 Cadillacs, as respectability replaced rambunctious as the value people coveted in their luxury machines.

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Laurence Jones 1960s, Ford

(Found In) Outer Sunset (San Francisco, California): 1965 Ford Fairlane 500 Sport Coupe

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Success for various Detroit-bred cars wasn’t unlike the track record of another factory in the Detroit Metro area in the 1960’s. Yesterday’s star, in a quick flash of 3 years could become the season bench warmer. Like The Contours of Motown, by the end of 1965, the mid-sized Ford Fairlane was singing “Do You Love Me?” to American Audiences for all the wrong reasons.

In 1962, The Fairlane was the smash hit nobody expected, just like The Contours. Priced cheaper than General Motors’s not as roomy and sometimes trouble prone “B-O-P Luxury Compacts,” the most upsized of Falcons in Junior Galaxie 500 finery walked away with sales victories.  Nearly 300,000 went out the door for the introductory year. With a new, revvy and willing small block V8, it seemed like nothing but hits would follow for the Fairlane.

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Laurence Jones 1960s, Chrysler, Plymouth

(Found In) Downtown/City Center Plaza (Oakland, CA): 1968 Plymouth Valiant Signet 2 Door Sedan

12167370_10153094429002201_114606198_n (1)American buyers have always appreciated a reliable “appliance” car. More often than not, Plymouth provided safe and sane reliable transportation as their bread and butter. Perhaps the most refined expression of the wholesome “Peanut Butter and Wheat Germ Sandwich” expression of Plymouth values was the 3rd Generation Plymouth Valiant sold from 1967 through 1976.

For such a humble car, few automobiles have been admired for their all around staid status the way Plymouth Valiants (and to a lesser degree their sister car the Dodge Dart) are. The official ride of High School Chemistry Teachers and Lesbian Librarians of the 1960’s can still be seen in locales that don’t encourage rust to rise on their quarter panels nearly 50 years later.

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Laurence Jones 1960s, Station Wagon, Studebaker

(Found In) Alberta Arts District (Portland): 1963 Studebaker Wagonaire Station Wagon

10406728_10152113960137201_2508588378875276034_nSome of the best ideas come out of the most desperate and dark hours. In the early 60’s with a non-existent budget, Studebaker threw everything they possibly could in every niche direction. Had those innovate ideas on wheels went anywhere there was a host of concepts of where to go if they got enough money in the bank.

Alongside the Personal Lux Pioneer Phoenix Grand Turismo Hawk and the Thunderbird/Corvette love child that was the Avanti, Studebaker decided to innovate the way wagons earned their keep on the trusty old Lark platform. All it took was a hole in the roof.

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Laurence Jones 1960s, Chevrolet, General Motors

(Found In) Outer Sunset (San Francisco): 1964 Chevrolet Corvair Monza Club Coupe

11868665_10152985819052201_954650463_nThe Corvair didn’t know soon it would be dethroned from the top of the Sporty Compact pile as the last of the original series went on sale in the fall of 1963. And why should it have know? There were still improvements and refinements that made the 1964 the finest of the original series.

Given the studly update that was just around the corner, the original hot geek that could hold his own Corvair had nothing to worry about. Soon enough, it would once and for all ditch Clark Kent pretenses and go full Superman.
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Laurence Jones 1960s, Outside in Oakland, Plymouth

(Found In) Bushrod (Oakland, California): 1960 Plymouth Fury Four Door Hardtop Sedan

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Sometimes you get so far ahead of the curve that you’re blind to your own turns. This is precisely the predicament that Highland Park found themselves in with their Forward Look cars at the turn of the decade.

Plymouth in particular had screamed from every stage that Suddenly, It’s 1960! in the fall of 1956. So what were they to do when it actually made it to 1960? Apparently the solution was to offer a brand new Uni-Body shell and soon to be legendary 6 cylinder powerplant in an updated wrapper of what warped the automotive Space-Time continuum 3 seasons earlier.

Bedazzled and befinned, we have the 1960 Plymouth looking to the recent past as it plugged from the Space Age to the Camelot years.

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Laurence Jones 1960s, Ford Motor Division, Station Wagon

(Found In) Bayview (San Francisco): 1967 Ford Country Sedan Station Wagon

11846368_10152984186537201_439502704_nFord Motor Company was not the leader in complete volume sales that General Motors was during the 1960s. They were the “Wagon Masters” however. When people wanted to haul more than just their kids; perhaps gear, perhaps a boat or trailer, they sought Dearborn designed delights more often than not.

In the afterglow of the heyday of Ford Station Wagon dominance some 50 years later, folks forget that not all that came down the line were Di-Noc wood paneled Country Squires for upper middle class WASP families in tree lined suburbs.

Indeed, there were slightly more thrifty modes of moving the family around in the Ford Showroom throughout the Sixties, and this beautiful Country Sedan is a Radio Flyer Red perfect example that you didn’t have to blow the budget to get the family to Yellowstone.

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Laurence Jones 1960s, Ford, Ford Motor Division, Thunderbird

(Found In) Alberta Arts District (Portland): 1962 Ford Thunderbird Landau Two Door Hardtop

11830178_10152970839432201_804884135_nThe truth of the matter is, even if the Ford Thunderbird wasn’t the absolute best choice in its field, it definitely found itself being a trend setter. Although I don’t consider it the first and foremost Personal Luxury Coupe it did carry the sales torch in that genre for more than a decade.

Glittering gadgets, glamour and unique styling were one way that the Thunderbird stayed ahead of the rest of the personal nests from the best of the manufacturing world. In 1962, Ford tested two distinct oceans of taste. One of those was an homage to the baby bird stages of the Thunderbird’s life, and another that would see it through many years of middle aged bloat before it became a fit senior citizen.

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