Cars We Loved in the 1970s
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The 1970s saw some ground-breaking new metal in British showrooms: the Renault 5 established the new ‘supermini’ class, the Volkswagen Golf gave the average family car a hatchback and top quality, the Ford Capri made sporty cars available to everyone and, despite all of this, that old favourite the Ford Cortina continued to rule the sales charts. It was a funny old time to be a driver, and Britain started to experience a love/hate relationship with the four-wheeled machine that previously symbolised nothing but speed and freedom. The economic rollercoaster sent fuel prices soaring, while the country’s roads left something to be desire, and then there was the issue of those cars themselves: it seemed British manufacturers, beset by striking workers and falling quality standards, were stalling as Japan’s Datsuns and Toyotas cruised off with contented customers. Giles Chapman documents the whole turbulent decade stunningly illustrated book, from the cars that dominated our motoring lives to the much-maligned Morris Marina and Reliant Robin actually helped drivers out of a jam.
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Additional information
| Publisher | Illustrated edition (1 Oct. 2013), The History Press |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Paperback | 160 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 0752494325 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-0752494326 |
| Dimensions | 18.01 x 1.02 x 15.01 cm |
by William Smith
Written by a clearly knowledgeable enthusiast this insightful little book captures the essence of 70s cars and motoring succinctly and accurately.
The author’s objectivity demonstrates that, despite industrial unrest, political strife (and interference) and rubbish cars made in this decade, there were also many fine models, plus significant motoring advances and technological innovations.
British marques ruled at the start of the 70s but were in serious decline by the end, thanks in part to often superior foreign alternatives, which is one of the reasons so many people of my generation who grew up in the 70s, have such fond memories of now forgotten makes and models. Who can remember the Vauxhall Magnum 2.3 saloon (a fast Viva), the author can and so can this reviewer whose Grandad had one (they were QUICK, or seemed so to me at the time).
An informative, entertaining and nostalgic read, written by an author with no axe to grind.
by Bob
If this is your subject your in for a treat ! Very informative lots of little gems of information stuff I had forgotten really great buying the sixties one when I finish this which will read again almost certainly before long
by Chas Steer
Another good one with good memories
by K of Essex
Bought as a gift, was reluctant to give as I was enjoying the book myself…
by Stephen_CY1973
Brilliant book! Re-visited many of the cars I can remember that were on the roads in my childhood. I particularly liked that there was coverage of those cars that had sales overlapping two decades i.e. from the late 1960s to early 1970s and late 1970s to early 1980s. Aside from car/models from this era, there are interesting sections about what it was like to be driving and owning cars in this period. For each car/model, aside from photos and background information, there are extracts of reviews made t the time by the motoring press. Made for an enjoyable read and reference book.
by Mr. S. C. Billson
Every bit as fascinating as others in the series.
by Mrs G K Fotheringham
An ideal smaller gift for anyone brought up in the 60s/70s. One many men out there would appreciate as a small stocking filler.
by KJC
A fascinating read. Obviously there are omissions in a book of this size and it was rather short on detail, but it stirred the memory of a good time of life and interesting cars that were becoming more safety aware, although many were prone to the dreaded tin-worm from an early age. My first drives were in the 60s, so these 70s cars were coming out when I was doing 40,000 miles p/a in a Volvo 144 on Dartmoor and in South Devon. I remember the massive cut in traffic for a few days when (shock/horror) petrol went up to 50p/gallon. Book was smaller than I expected but good content.