(first posted 2/5/2018) Among the treasure trove of hundreds of vintage R&T magazines a CC reader sent me about a year ago or so is this Buyer’s Guide from 1975. I’m going to start off with it, and then we’ll do one of the many actual reviews in it each day. Please note: in this Guide, a number of the imports may actually be 1974 models, as new model year imports often arrived late in the US. Also, only domestic compacts (or smaller) are listed, consistent with R&T’s mission to hate big, flabby American cars.
The scans are in their rough forms, as there’s way too many for me to crop and level. Click on them to get the full size view. And to arrive at the inflation adjusted prices for 2017, multiply them by 4.63.
So what will it be for you?
Ill take the silver shadow, the nova ln,mercedes 300d, mazda rx3, ford granada, transam and z28.
Although I’m a die-hard vintage Volvo fan, ’75 was a bad year. The new, untested 240 still ran the old pushrod motor (and proved to be a bad ruster) and the 164 was overweight, underpowered, and thirsty.
American cars didn’t yet have the hang of making a motor run right with the new smog controls. Japanese cars ran better, but rusted if you looked at them funny.
For me, I’ll take the last of the metal-roof Beetles on the low end, and an MB 300D if I’m feeling flush.
The 164 could still run a 10 sec. 0-60 back then. Put into context, you’d have to be running a 455 Grand Am or Cutlass to outrun one from a stoplight if you had a domestic sedan. Even then, it’d be close. In the imports, you’d have to spend almost twice as much to buy something quicker in a straight line. Granted, by today’s standards a well-tuned Civic could better that, but in 1975 terms was pretty quick.
I am struck by the huge assortment of European cars on offer here, a state of affairs that would not last much longer.
Regarding vintage compacts I recently bought All original 1981 AMC Concord DL coupe blue exterior with light blue cloth interior has 50K original miles 2.5 4cylinder auto, Factory AC, Factory AM/FM, rear defrost. I was Never an AMC fan but I wanted piece of AMC history!
Concords are nice cars, significantly upgraded from the Hornet even though the bodies are the same. Might be a little underpowered with the 4-cylinder and all that power equipment but should be a nice around-town driver.
My Dad and I owned several Concords in the early ’90s and really liked them. They were considerably nicer than the old Hornets even with the same basic body shell. If AMC had been building these in 1975 they would easily have been my first choice!
“… consistent with R&T’s mission to hate on big, flabby American cars…”
And look where we are at today, SUV’s/trucks all over. Far from the 70’s/80’s buff book dream of “all small cars”.
I think I’d like a Fiat X1/9 or a Mercury Capri. But for the same money as the Capri, one could get a V8 X-body (Pontiac in my case) and probably have a better all around car.
geozinger you mentioned like vintage gm rwd X bodies. I do too I recently bought all original 76 Pontiac Ventura coupe w landau top has 122 original miles Yes Not Typo!! been in storage since new I guess must only Ventura left with this mileage! 260 2V, tilt steering, Factory AM radio, rally wheels I did pay 12K for it. Later I was v surprised learn was featured in article on hooniverse here it is http://hooniverse.com/2015/02/01/weekend-edition-quick-hit-a-minty-fresh-1976-pontiac-ventura-coupe-with-only-120-miles-on-the-odometer
Kind of an odd car, power locks, but not power windows? A half vinyl roof and that (too) wide vinyl stripe so far up the side of the car as to be useless….even as a decoration.
I looked at a 76 Phoenix 4 door in the late 70s equipped fairly similarly. Yet it was so different: the V8 was the same 260 unit, the automatic transmission shifter was located in a floor console, same tilt wheel, but seats were velour and vinyl roof covered the whole roof. The reason why I didn’t buy it was that for a 2 year old car it had nearly 55 thousand miles.
I have original window sticker yes was ordered with power locks but No power windows! essentially its a chevy Nova with Pontiac badge again its simple beautiful car from 70s and been told the olds 260 v8 is fairly reliable. I only did oil&filter change with 4 slightly wider new whitewall tires the car drives feels new! again Its Not daily driver its just Nostagia!
No, not really. We seem to forget that everything was an option on cars back then. Also, a lot of people did not trust power windows, something about them driving into a river or a lake and then not being able to escape.
Agreed about that rub strip, I don’t know who came up with that idea, but I want some of what they’re smoking…
even the so hated rub strips were part of the optional appearance package group!!
“AMC is the only American car builder enjoying good health these days…”
Amazing how fast things can change in the car industry – a few short years later AMC was practically down for the count.
I might be tempted by a V8-equipped Sportabout. Nice-looking wagon, but the interiors were pretty crappy including one of the world’s worst dashboard designs. (Decent interiors would have to wait a few years for the Hornet to morph into the Concord.)
What I did actually buy back then though was a Subaru, which in those days was pretty much out of the mainstream. As I recall it was very reliable but rusted like crazy after a few years.
Jaguar XJ, the beautifullest 4-door ever
I’m with you; hard to beat an XJ. That Aston Martin V8’s looking pretty nice too, though.
What I had back then — 1974 Datsun 710 4 door Sedan
What I wanted back then — 1976 Fiat 128 SL
Well, probably a case of what you have is what’s better for you.
The 128 SL was pretty scarce even then, it’s been years since
I’ve seen one. Despite the lack of FWD, my Datsun got me
through my undergraduate years up north (as a commuter student)
and was a good simple car to learn how to work on them.
I eventually did buy a fun car (really my only one, no mid-life crisis
car for me) when the Datsun gave way (it was getting pretty rusty
when I sold it) I got a ’78 Scirocco…my sentimental favorite of all
the car’s I’ve owned (but I’m glad I had it when I was young; I’m
no longer a scrambler and don’t need as sporty (but appreciate some
comfort) now.
I remember buying this very magazine as a 20-year-old at a nice little bookstore across from the University of Florida and reading it on the Plaza of the Americas between classes. Now, thanks to CC, I’m going to waste the next couple of hours reading this again. 🙂
Unfortunately…but perhaps as expected…this looks like it was put together by some opinionated sub-editors, from press releases.
I await the “authoritative” road test reports.
I actually had this Buyer’s Guide in my magazine collection until it got too…outdated.
In 1975 I was driving a 74 Audi Fox, a year later I was driving a 76 Pinto. I don’t remember, but probably considered a Capri II, but the price was high(er) and in my area few Ford-Mercury dealers sold Capris.
So many French (Renaults mostly) models to choose from (minus Citroen).
From this list I want a Saab 99.
I have a strange attraction to the Volvo 164 with it’s slightly orange leather seats too.
Even though they probably were among the best, C&D dogmatic predilection for Mercedes and BMW was disgusting. Even when the cars had trouble merging into traffic, as 240Ds were quite heavy cars, C&D would had some excuse for them which would not be valid for others.
An Alfa GTV for summer and a Saab for winter.
I had a 74 Dart Sport back then, I’ll have another please, or a Duster, this time with a 318, not the 225 ci slant six. If I could ante up I would move to a Challenger.
I’m town between a VW Scirocco and a Formula 400, how’s that for polar opposites.
Torn*
Anyone else having trouble posting/editing comments the last few days?
I get a message about server unavailability after I post, then when I refresh, I can’t edit at all.
I like playing this game…so in no particular order:
Alfa Romeo GTV
Peugeot 504 wagon
Toyota Celica GT
Saab 99
Renault 15 TL
And a Corniche hardtop so I can get around like Thomas Crowne, thank you.
Also, if the distributor still had stock of the pre-update Iso Grifo I’d grab it regardless of colour or transmission.
An Austin Marina! They must have sold like… 2 of those in the US!
Some not so bright spark decided a 2620cc six cylinder engine would be a good idea for this car. Many already thought it was possibly the most evil handling car ever devised. The addition of the extra weight over the front end caused the previously diabolical understeer to transform into
downright dangerous understeer, but you could also have a rapid transition to snap oversteer under certain road conditions. It would plow ahead in a straight line on full lock if you approached the already lowly limits that it had to offer. But, it went alright in a straight line, and the brakes were adequate.
Actually, they must have sold quite a few more, as my brother-in-law who lived in Erie, PA at the time bought one new. Yes, Erie had a dealer. Can’t remember who, although it was probably Porreco up on Peach Street, who also had Datsun and Saab.
And discovered he’d bought the worst POS he’d ever had – until I talked him into a new 2014 Jeep Cherokee (he got one with the 9-speed that you could not reprogram or upgrade the faults out of it).
We still joke about that car. And I keep threatening to find another one and give it to him as a Christmas present.
Late reply, but compelled by coincidence…one of them ended up being the ride of choice(?) for a shady character in a movie watched last night, Paul Newman’s 1975 “The Drowning Pool”
The car was not seen to move on screen but did change locations.
And yes, said shady character was not very successful at his chosen career and ended up being shot to death.
Film was good, but not equal to the earlier “Harper”. Still worth seeing.
I can’t get over the fact that the Nova twins steering was just 2.4 turns lock-to-lock, that’s insanely quick for the mid-70’s. They must have felt crazy to people used to Granadas and Valiants.
That’s really surprising, that’s fast steering even by today’s standards. Quickly scrolling through, the other cars in this list with less turns lock to lock i spotted is the MG Midget and Maserati Khamsin!
I’ll take the VW Scirocco, it looks like the BMW 318ti of the late 90s. My uncle in Germany had a 1979 Scirocco when I visited him that long ago summer; we took a European road trip in the Scirocco, it was supremely comfortable, interior well put together, but mechanical reliability was MIA. The beautiful, forest green Scirocco left us stranded twice, once in the Italian Alps during that nation’s 3 hour afternoon siesta, and once again just outside of Munich, during record-breaking flooding.
Ooh, on second thought, I will pass on the Scirocco, let’s play it safe and go with the Toyota Celica. Funny how reputations linger, as I have loved the VW Passat for years, but never bought one as I was scared off by the reliability reports. Since 2000, I’ve alternated between Camrys, Accords and Altimas.
Not the most exciting trio admittedly, but reliability of all 3 has been near top notch; it was a bit of a surprise, that, in my experience, the Altima was most reliable, with Camcord basically tied for second.
My first new car was a 1980 Scirocco…alpine white with red leatherette interior….heavily influenced due to my reading of Road & Track…17 years later I bought a 1997 BMW 318ti, Boston green with the active package…..Then in 2010 I bought a used 1981 Scirocco S…the last year of the MK 1…Restored it and believe it to be one of the nicest surviving Scroccos left in the country
that Scirocco looks fantastic.
And those original rims are very rare these days !
I know what I bought… and what I should have bought. Thanks for posting this- gives that “lens” I’ve mentioned into car buying in the mid 70’s. It’s also interesting how many cars were enthusiastically received at the time, but later were known mechanical headaches. Anything Italian, anything French, anything British, Audi 100LS and Fox, VW Passat, the Vega, the Monza, any BMW that wasn’t a 2002… I could go on, but the points made.
That Hornet Sportabout never got the recognition it deserved, IMO. It was one of two domestic wagons that actually made sense (the Pinto being the other). Interesting read.
Not a big fan of the vehicles built in 1975 but my choices would go to the Datsun 280Z (although it came out late in the 1975 model year), Toyota Celica or Chevrolet Nova (350ci V8 only).
had a b210 4 speed. had a terrible heater but the highway sweet spot was 80 mph. later on had a 128 sl. had to put tubes in the tires for them to hold air. the engine was a little jewel but the body basically rusted out before your eyes. wish I still owned both but back in the day never kept a car for more than a year.
I should have added- bought a Vega GT in ’74. Should have bought a Celica GT.
Thanks Paul for taking the time to upload all those pages – that´s awesome.
Never heard of a Mercury Bobcat before.
I want one !
No you don’t! Trust me.
mean person!
why not?
Because it’s a fancy Pinto, and the only good part of that was the 2 liter Pinto engine, which was no longer offered by the time the Bobcat clone arrived. Living in Europe, you have a wide choice of much better cars with that engine including Capris and such.
I’m sure I would have regretted it, but the Alfetta 4-door looks pretty cute…
Although the Alfa Berlina was just about my all-time favorite from that time, I would love to have another Fiat 128. That article’s statement about its being “no high-speed cruiser” is just silly; although its best cruising speed was 10 mph under the Alfa’s (70+ instead of 80+), its happiest habitat was the rural Tennessee two-lane, over which it would float like a very swift butterfly … that little 1300 single-cam was such a brilliant engine, I wasted entirely too many hours trying to plot how to score a Lotus Elite shell (a UK outfit called Heron was making duplicates then) and finagle Lampredi’s little jewel into it instead of the problematical and far-from-flawless Climax FWE. But the 128 had charms of its own, including an uncanny talent for getting around in deep snow and over glare ice. The Alfa, OTOH, was an absolute pig in those circumstances.
I’ ll take both Renault 15 and Subaru GL / DF coupé , they are simply irresistible and i don’t care at all the quality’s “reputation” , i loved both’ em and that’s just enough reason
Wow, compared to a 2024 Buyers’ Guide I owned quite a few of these cars, at least by make, model and generation, if not model year – and a few more very similar. My sole ‘75 was the Alfetta sedan, but I also owned a ‘74 Spider, a ‘73 Vega, a ‘77 Scirocco, an ‘81 Firebird. Plus an E12 BMW, though ours was a 528i not a 530, and one generation newer, an 1982 Civic. CVCC of course. I’m not sure I’d say our current 2015 Golf is that closely related to the 1975 Golf/Rabbit, nor our Subaru Forester was to the DL, but they’re closer than our FWD Corolla or New Beetle were to their predecessors
.
I recognize many of these car photos as popularly used press photos from the time. For example, I remember seeing that exact Pontiac Ventura photo, being used in a lot of places.
This was a lot of fun to read. I have memories of so many of these cars, though probably not MY 75. I had a 69 Alfa Berlina, so it was a 1750 with carbs. When it succumbed to rust I replaced it wit a 76 BMW 2002, but I was also looking seriously at the Saab 99. My 2 best friends from university drove a Celica and a 260Z. I knew several Pinto owners and my older cousin drove a B210. My mother had a 72 Duster and my future brother-in-law had a Mercedes 300D (non-turbo). There are probably a couple of others I can’ remember.
Renault R12 with more horsepower than 1974? Sold!!!!
(*not very many makes in 1975 could say that…)
I missed this the first time–great CC!
This is the type of stuff I could, and would, read for hours in the mid/late 70s as a kid.
I loved the data! Horsepower, length, EPA, engine size, etc. When I first started, I also would memorize the prices, though soon I realized that on a domestic car, “base price” did not reflect reality before options.
It’s a close call between the Granada or Monarch with a 250 ci inline 6.
I would probably go for the latter, and most likely top it up with a cruise-o-matic.
I guess they were advertised in a way like:
“Buy a new Ford today – you get diesel performance without diesel economy”.