Having my camera ready to shoot at any moment is not a talent I possess. Things are only made harder when driving; at least I was stopped so I could see this coming.
It’s too bad about lacking such talent; on this same trip to Kansas City I also missed a delightfully clapped out ’78 Ford LTD, a 1950s era Chevrolet panel van, and a ’63 Thunderbird. All were in motion. This Laguna, a consolation prize of sorts, is certainly nothing to sneeze at.
Since I could only squeeze off one shot, let’s crop it for a better view. Here’s a more in-depth article about the Laguna.
Found at the corner of Broadway and 31st Street, Kansas City, Missouri
May 24, 2017
Of the Colonnade Malibus, the 73s are the only ones I like, and the Laguna is my favorite 73.
That said, this one really needs white letter tires and rally wheels.
True, but blackwalls and ersatz wire wheels are still better than the all-too-common 20″ wheels and narrow sidewall tires that one sees on such a vehicle.
Guess it shows my younger sensibilities but this is one of those cars where upsizing works.
Completely agree about the ’73. Chevy did everything they could to make the details on the ’74 and up Chevelle / Malibu undesirable.
My sister’s first car was very briefly a ’73 Laguna in the same color as the subject car with a parchment vinyl top and vinyl interior. I was a bit conflicted about the vinyl front bumper paired with the conventionally attached rear bumper, but otherwise found it an attractive and interesting car. Well equipped with 350 engine, automatic, PS, PB, air, AM/FM, swivel buckets, console and tilt wheel it was a nice ride, lost in the hands of a novice driver and a left turn across multiple lanes of traffic when the car in the first lane stopped and waived her on.
Though it would hardly be noticed now, the body colored bumpers and the front one being integrated was sooooooo radical when new. Now every car sports that look.
Sports car? Try every car period. These are most impressive because this integrated execution existed in the 5mph bumper era, where most cars, and indeed base chevelles, were using railroad ties to comply. Even modern cars aren’t held to that high standard.
The irony I find with body colored bumpers in this era is that the exact purpose of minimizing repair cost from low speed collisions is completely defeated with these easily scratched body colored pieces. Chrome as a finish was virtually indestructible so long as the metal underneath wasn’t rusting out, and even if it did scratch it blends right into the chrome for the most part, and an eventual repair or replacement requires no futile color blending.
5 MPH bumpers weren’t supposed to make your car look damage-free after a low speed collision, but were actually supposed to make your car safely driveable after a low speed collision. Until the law went into effect, bumpers did such a poor job of protecting the ends of a car that fenders would be pushed back far enough into the wheel openings at the bottom edges as to sometimes make it impossible to steer a car. Then there was the issue of lights not working after a low speed collision. Before 1973, a low speed collision could cause filaments in headlights and/or turn signals to fracture even though the light’s housing was intact. As a consequence, folks would sometimes get into a second accident when they drove away from the scene of a minor fender-bender.
I had understood that the 5 mph bumper was championed by the insurance industry which felt that it was getting killed from sheetmetal repairs after minor fender-benders. Everyone remembered cars like the Model A Ford where the bumpers were actually functional for protecting the rest of the car from damage. I believe the push to have been based on purely financial reasons. “We care about your safety” is always a better PR line than “You are costing us too much.”
I don’t think the US would see this sort of thing, but there are many cars like the Ford Mondeo wagon where the metal tailgate is flush with the plastic bumper surface – it must be a nightmare for parking dings etc!
Matt, he said “car sports”, not “sports car” 🙂
Heh, wow! Either I have a mild form of dyslexia or I simply read too fast lol
Gaaaaa, all I see is that maroon GM “Magic Mirror Acrylic Lacquer Finish” that I used to have to polish and wax the everliving snot out of to keep it from turning all chalky pink on my mother’s 74 Luxury LeMans. Low maintenance that finish was *not*.
Agreed – marketing fraud at its finest. My Caprice will hold a shine for what seems like less than a month, with a whole day’s worth of work, then the clouds roll in. I just keep it covered and save my elbow and shoulder.
That’s the perfect angle to show off the best of that body. Nice catch Jason.