Look on the options list for most new cars today and you’ll find all sorts of high-tech features like semi-autonomous cruise control, night vision cameras and massage seats. Back in 1970, though, the list of available extras for most cars was much shorter and contained comparatively archaic equipment.
We recently came across a vintage 1970 Chevrolet promotional video showing the different options it offered on certain models that year. Not surprisingly, General Motors offered fairly straightforward extras under its mainstream brands in 1970, such as a rear differential, referred to by GM as a Posi-Traction rear end at the time, power windows and locks, a tilt/telescoping steeering wheel, climate control and a rear-window defogger. It also offered cruise control, along with an AM radio and an AM/FM radio.
Cosmetic options offered by Chevrolet on certain models in 1970 included a vinyl roof, front and rear bumper impact strips and a variety of different wheel covers, including its well-known ‘rally’ wheels.
This video is also spliced together with a film that provides a quick rundown of the Chevrolet warranty program. It seems as though the warranty film was intended to be shown to customers after buying a new 1972 model year Chevrolet vehicle, laying out for the viewer what the Chevrolet warranty covers and what can void the factory warranty.
Check out this brief blast from Chevy’s past embedded just below.
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Comments
So much more interesting than the crap era we are entering today. The amount of choices in body styles, engines, transmissions, exterior and interior colors makes today look like a yawn fest. We do have some really great performing vehicles now and reliability is so much better than back then so there is that too. It’s such a shame we can’t have the best of both worlds.
Don’t forget the other options as 8 mpg, 2/3 speed automatics with no O/D, sputtering low compression engines, sloppy handling with drum brake stopping, rusting oh and 4500 lb curb weights😁.
Yes, I too wish a mass-market rwd Chevy sedan is available today but not all the good ol days were good.
And today we have bland generic cookie cutter styling, less and less choices, lack of interior and exterior colors, crappy tiny noisy droning turbo engines tied to not very reliable annoying CVT transmissions, terrible rear and side visibility, massive complexity that many dealers have a very difficult time diagnosing, lack of character and personality with agenda driven CEO’s that care more about appeasing Wall Street, ridiculous tiny trunk openings, annoying stop/start, lack of V8 engines and fewer and fewer V6 options, cramped narrow front seats with massive space stealing center consoles, terrible packaging that forces buyers into overpriced options packages just to get one or two simple options, much more costly things to replace like HIDS, LED headlights/taillights, bumpers with sensors and rear ends stuffed with cameras and sensors, having to remove entire bumper assemblies just to replace a simple headlight and less and less things the consumer can work on under that stuffed hood. And I see plenty of 2000 on up modern designed cars that are rusted to oblivion even as new as 2013 so they still rust just not in the same way or as fast as before.
There is good and bad in any era of the automobile and today’s cars have more than plenty of flaws but as stated overall reliability and longevity are not amongst them.
Didn’t say todays cars were perfect but still take one over most 70s rustbuckets. A 2.0 Malibu would outrun most 70s big-blocks in the 1/4 and have fuel to spare…
@Joe Yoman. Well said! Everything you said made me crack up, but it’s all so true. To your part about the cramped narrow front seats with massive consoles? I’ll add overly hard, thinly padded, overly “contoured” sport oriented seats! I’ll take a 1980 Buick Park Avenue seat any day over anything from any brand today.
Ah, thank you for this and the other old ads and videos. I just love going back in time and watching them. Although I love the more reliable cars, better MPG’s, and safety of today, I do miss the styles and class the older cars have. Couple things that made me chuckle: The sideburns. The cloths. The good old 8 tracks! Of all the cars, it’s the Monte Carlo that I like the best!
Great article on GM:
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xjug is right!
That is a great article and sad to. It’s even more sad that GM is now an “also ran”. Styling is questionable, more quirky than class leading. Quality does not seem to be what it was just 5 years ago and the leadership has seemingly gave up on today to focus on a pipe dream of tomorrow. I read an article on this site about Chevy truck sales and their battle with Ram last year; in it, the writer referred to Chevy trucks as “returning to their rightful second place in sales” or something close to that. I t made me realize that there are at least 2 generations now that never knew Chevy as a leader. I don’t like the direction GM is headed in, I don’ t much like their offerings anymore, new Silverado is a mess, Impala is dead and Blazer has been neutered, and I hate that because I feel they left me long before I wanted to leave them. Yeah, they got stupid in the ’80’s and ’90’s but they are still plenty damn arrogant now and that will make them stupid again.
Sam – Why show a picture of ’72 full size Chevy when the “article” is about 1970 MY options?
Yesterday’s styling with today’s mechanicals, minus CVT. Today if cars had no emblems you can’t tell them apart.
Yes, please! I’d love that.
Boy I recall these days. My dad had a new Chevy from 63-73 before going to Buick’s.
I had a 70 Monte in Green like the 72 here a 68 Chevelle SS and GMC SP Sprint.
My dads cars were all fully loaded. That rear window defogger was just a fan blower good on fogged but not frozen windows. Posi was on all and a must. The styling was great on all but the 73 Chevelle.
But I recall the paint getting dull in just a couple years. The 72 Chevell he kept till 76 and the quarters started to rust in 4 years. We never had any mechanical issues but for poor wear on the bias ply tires.
Imagine having the number of options today on a modern vehicle?
I enjoyed my cars but I have to say my new GMC Handles, rides and is more comfortable. Also my V6 has nearly 58 more HP than my last big block and gets over twice the mpg.
Too bad we can”t take the good of both eras and merge them. Imagine my Monte today with & wheel Brembo brakes, a LT engine and 10 speed. How about some modern seats that hold you secure as the suspension is made to turn corners. Add to it a girl coat paint and that would be a sweet car.
The engine problems didn’t start until 1974 model years when unleaded became mandatory and other emission requirements. It continued until the first throttle body fuel injection came about around 1984.
Before 1977, full size was full size for six people and plenty of comfort and legroom in the back seat, including head room with rear doors tall enough to get into one. Both front and rear benches or seats were as deep as a couch where the support was all the way to the back of your knees.
Options, colors and interior styling and dashes was very important and generally far better than todays all plastic bezels. Today’s option list is all electronics, everything else is now standard, that is, AC, side view mirrors, tinted glass, buckets seats, automatics, radial tires on some models, power steering and brakes, disk brakes were option on some models, FM radio, stereo FM was later on, eight track tape machine, then cassettes. Don’t forget back up lights, vinyl roof, a choice either four door or two door models. Go back far enough and heaters and bumper were optional including the rear view mirror.
Now today, you get almost everything as standard and far better in reliability and safety. When I drive my 2019 SS Camaro, the performance and quality surpass most of everything that has been built in the pass when I was a young guy.
I bought my 74 Camaro in 1984 and drove over 100,000 miles in a 10 year period .It was the first year with aluminum bumpers .Somewhere midstream in 1974 the first HEI ‘s came out . Mine came with one . It was the last year for the small back window and the last year for regular gas ,at least mine was .O.E.factory installed regular gas tank with no unleaded labels on the car .we have owned six 2nd gen Camaros .I remember the fuel gauges in the instrument panel saying unleaded and another label behind the License plate. the 74 had nothing of the sort .I still own the instrument cluster along with a few parts from the others 1970 was my favorite .I thought it was fast back then . Now my Z06 would blow its doors off with the ac on , better looking and 8 more miles per gallon to boot