Comments by "g bridgman" (@1940limited) on "US Auto Industry" channel.

  1. I like 56s more than 55 and 57. The 56 Nomad was my favorite. You don't see them too often.
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  2. 1964: One of the best Chevies ever produced.
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  3. Pretty suspenseful. A left hand turn from the right lane with no signal. That's real smart. Speeding and tail gating also contributed to the disaster. Cars with no seat belts, air bags or telescoping steering columns were another joy when in an accident. I love old cars and am not afraid to drive one, but I pray I never hit anything.
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  4. If I saw that scene correctly 25 cents in a vending machine got you a pack of cigarettes and a pack of matches. Amazing.
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  5. Yes, operated by hand.
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  6. I'm glad someone took the trouble to make this movie. Lots of American ingenuity at work here with no OSHA.
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  7.  @BentleyTypeR  My mother had a green and white 56 Bel-Air convertible until around 1964. We gave it to my older brother because he needed a car. He in turn traded it in on a late model used 63 Falcon convertible and that was the end of the 56 Chevy. The last time I saw it was parked in front of the local high school with risers and slicks on the back. I wish we'd kept it.
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  8. No OSHA.
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  9. This is why we now have left turn lanes or roads set up for "no left turn."
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  10.  Briguy52748  Buick had them in 1939 as standard. You're right about Cadillac. I love the aftermarket turn signals on trucks. My favorite is a 700 Signal Stat. They fascinated me as a kid. Well, they still do! :-)
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  11. Some had cigarettes hanging out of their mouths, too! Amazing!
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  12. Good deal! 25 grand and a new 57 Chevy of your choice or even a 4-door sedan and $500. Or, take the cash. I wonder if anybody won all those prizes? Or was it just hype to get you into the showroom? At least back then there was something to look at when you got to the showroom. In 1958 we bought a used 56 Chevy convertible from our local Chevrolet dealer. I remember looking at the new 58s in the showroom. They were so amazing. What's to look at now? Tin and plastic.
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  13. I certainly recognize Jimmy Stewart's voice.
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  14. Notice the guy shimmying up the boom. Everyone was working so hard.
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  15. My aunt had a new, powder blue 54 bel-air Convertible. I remember sitting behind the wheel and admiring the beautiful dark blue metallic steering wheel.
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  16. They did but it was impolite to talk about it! :-)
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  17.  Briguy52748  When I was in Jr. High we had 56 and 57 International buses equipped with aftermarket turn signals. I think by 58 or 59 they came equipped from the factory that way.
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  18. I love the globes and the cars and trucks.
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  19. It was fun to buy if you had the money and coud pay cash, probably what he did.
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  20. I noticed that immediately. What a beauty. A guy down the street from me in the early 60s had a powder blue 58 Impala convertible with power windows. It was fully optioned except AC. What a novelty that was at the time.
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  21.  @Paramount531  You're right. They don't shift. All Buick automatics in big cars were shiftless from 48-63. Chevrolet's Turbo-Glide was the same. I've been told early Power Glides, were, too, but I've never driven one.
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  22. They were all notorious for rust form 49 at least through 1960.
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  23. Imagine being able to buy a car like that at your Chevy dealer today.
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  24. Could use some of this attitude today, for sure!
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  25. I don't think you were ripped off with a car like that.
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  26. In 1959 my cousin's aging 47 Chevy was getting pretty raggedy. All she could afford was a 59 Biscayne 2-door sedan, completely stripped except for a heater. No arm rests. One sun visor. 6/stick. Her husband said to me it has a fuel pump and a carburator, what more do you need? About 12 years later she gave it to me, by now pretty tired, but still running well. I loved bombing around in it, but didn't keep it.Try to find a car like that now.
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  27. The needed a station wagon.
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  28.  @spiff8862  I remember optional turn signals on many vehicles in the 50s. If you didn't spring for them the arrows were still in the speedometer.
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  29. That certainly was an improvement over the 41. Imagine being able to buy car like that today from a dealer with a sidewalk showroom.
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  30. Yes, it's automatic. I'd prefer stick.
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  31. The transmission was OK if you used it properly, which most people didn't. "Gr" was "Grade Retard" for going down steep hills only, not for accelerating.
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  32. That's plenty fast enough, especially on 1954 highways.
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  33.  @senorkaboom  Exactly!
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  34. You're 100% correct in your terminology and review of the transmission. I had a 57 Nomad with Turbo Glide and never had any trouble with it. I had several big series 58 Buicks but all had been converted to regular Dyna-Flow before I got them. Flight Pitch Dyna-Flow, as it was called, was standard in the Limited and Roadmaster. In 59 it was Triple Turbine Dyna-Flow and optional on all models. I had a 59 Electra with it. I had no problems with that transmission, either, but never used "G" just to play it safe. When I first got the 57 nomad I thought it strange it didn't shift, just like a Buick. It took me a while to figure it out! I never used "Gr" in that car, either. It was such a low gear as to be almost unusable for anything. I put it in "Gr" once, briefly, just to see what it did. Same thing with the 59 Electra 225. I tried "G" once just for the hell of it, then quickly put it back in drive. That was it.
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  35. It was just lile Buick's Dyna-Flow and sucked gas like no tomorrow. I had a 57 Nomad with it.
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  36. Nope, not needed.
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  37. There's no such thing as a unsafe car, it's an unsafe driver.
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  38. What's that?
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  39. Illinois. There's a comment above that explains it. You can see the writing on some of the trucks.
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  40. She had 4 kids? Wow!
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  41.  @williambeglen4771  I'd be very happy with a car like that in nice shape. I had a 57 Nomad at one time. Wish I'd kept it.
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  42. I think the 41 was old enough to consider retiring it.
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  43. That was a good show.
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