People who are into cars – and history – already know about this one. But for those who don’t, a history lesson is in order – because it’s about to repeat:
Back in the early-mid ’70s, when the federal government was just getting serious about busybody’ing the design of new cars in the interests of (so it was said) “safety,” it became evident that it would soon become difficult if not impossible to build convertibles because soft-topped cars could not realistically be made compliant with pending federal roof-crush “safety” standards.
It didn’t matter that rollovers were uncommon and even less that it was none of the federal government’s business, either morally – because free adults ought to be free of being parented by the government – or constitutionally. It didn’t matter because Americans acceded – most of them – to having their freedom to buy what they want (and not just convertibles) taken away by busybodies who combined the meddling nature of the nosey next-door-neighbor with the power of the government. This empowered people such as the acolytes of Ralph Nader, including most notably Joan Claybrook – who eventually became the “administrator” of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. That is to say, she became the head busybody of the federal apparat that imposed such things as roof crush standards and air bags on the car industry, which then imposed them on us.
Well, when it became known that the federal government was planning to impose roof crush standards on the car manufacturers, they knew they could not realistically continue to manufacture convertibles. Not without such clumsy artifices as installing fixed-in-place roll bars, as race cars often have. They had to redesign the structure of hardtops to “achieve compliance” with the roof-crush standards, too. This accounts for the so-called “Colonnade” styling of many early-mid-1970s General Motors cars. Famous examples include the 1973 Pontiac Grand Am and the closely related 1973 GTO as well as the not-as-famous but platform-related models sold by GM’s Chevy, Buick and Oldsmobile divisions.
These were defined by “flying buttress” C-pillars, which anchored the rear part of the roof to the rear quarter panels and thus greatly strengthened the roof. To GM’s credit, the cars looked good, even though the styling was entirely compliance-motivated. But there were casualties. Including the “pillarless” sedans people were once free to buy. Instead of a girder in located in between the front and rear doors – this is the B pillar – supporting the roof from the middle to comply with the roof crush standards, one upon a time there was just glass, if you can imagine that. 
A totally open space – with the windows down. And a visually unobstructed place with the windows up. You could see all around was the point – which is arguably safer than having your vision obstructed by massive roof-support girders. The most famous example of the “pillarless” design was the Lincoln Continental sedan of the early ’60s. JFK was riding in one when he was assassinated, which was facilitated by the open view whoever pulled the trigger had.
No more “suicide” – i.e., rear-hinged – doors, either. Because saaaaaaaaaaaaafety.
Convertibles had to go, too. Or so it was anticipated. Thus there was a great deal of anticipation when Cadillac announced – and heavily promoted – the “last ever” convertible, the 1976 Eldorado. It was a beautiful car. But it was not the “last ever” convertible Cadillac would ever sell. By the early ’80s, Cadillac had figured out ways to build a convertible that was compliant, which was admirable. But there lots of people who’d paid top-dollar plus dealer mark-up for a “last ever” 1976 Eldorado convertible and they felt gypped – even though it was government’s fault.
There was a lawsuit – against GM – that resulted in GM having to compensate the gypped who’d bought what they’d been assured would be the “last ever” Cadillac convertible.
Will history repeat?
Not – this time – with convertibles. But with engines.
You may have caught the news that Stellantis – which own the Dodge, Ram truck and Jeep brands – plans to bring back the Hemi V8s that were pulled from models such as the Charger and Ram pick-up after the 2023 model year. Dodge sold – and heavily marketed – “last call” iterations of the 2023 Charger that were billed as being just that. Jeep is currently selling a Final Edition of the 2025 Wrangler with a Hemi V8 for $5 less than $100,000.
There are probably a few people who’ve bought one – likely paying more than MSRP for them, because it’s the Final Edition.
But it doesn’t look like it’s going to be the Final Edition – or the “last call” – since come 2026, it will be possible once again to by a Hemi V8-powered Charger as well as a Ram 1500 pickup and probably a Wangler, too.
This could and almost certainly will cause the value of the “last call” and Final Editions sold when it was assumed no more such would ever be made again to plummet – and that is likely to arouse the indignation of those holding the title to these vehicles, who may already be lawyering up.
The tragedy – again – is that none of this would have happened (in ’76 or 2023) if the busybodies weren’t empowered to impose their neurosis on the car companies – who then have little choice but to impose it on us.
But maybe they could have chosen differently. Cadillac could have spent money explaining to people why they could no longer offer convertibles – and Stellantis could and ought to have done the same as regards the V8s that were taken away from people who wanted to buy them because busybodies didn’t want them to have them.
Compliance with evil always results in more evil.
Maybe the “pandemic” taught enough of us that. But what about the car companies?
. . .
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Got pulled over for riding my Kwacker without a helmet (a while back). Cop said ‘if you’d scraped as many brains off the pavement as I have, you’d understand why there’s a helmet law.’
I told him ‘you could always get a different job.’
Hi Cobble,
This bleat about “if you’d scraped as many brains off the pavement as I have, you’d understand why there’s a helmet law” is both insulting – how did the state become our parent? – and arbitrary and capricious. How many fat slobs end up in the ICU with heart attacks? Shall we criminalize obesity?
Our “safety” – and “health”- are none of the government’s business. That is, none of the busybodies’ business.
Every time I hear a version of that bit, “if you’d scraped as many brains off the pavement as I have” I think of several friends over the decades who bit the dust while wearing a helmet. Didn’t do them a lick of good to be wearing one.
I don’t know of any motorcyclist who died without a helmet.
Anecdotal, for sure, but them’s the facts.
Kiss did there first farewell tour in like 1991. Motley Crue signed a contract like 8 years ago saying it was there last tour.
Yeah, I still have my ticket from seeing Kiss at their “Farewell tour” in 2014 with Def Leppard.
A new V-8 hemi Charger, one can only hope.
Yesterday I nearly hit a car in a roundabout because the massive airbag-equipped A pillar blocked my view of it.
How is blocking the driver’s view making transportation any safer?
2018 Grand Cherokee same problem. Huge view block RH corner I have to remember to look around several times for vehicles and pedestrians.
and the latest headrests are huge, and on the back seats now too. No wonder we can’t see crap anymore.
The solution to that is more cameras!
I honestly believe that “final editions” are nothing more than just marketing, usually done out of desperation. It’s just a rouse to get as many suckers as possible, to pay top dollar for an otherwise relatively affordable vehicle.
Hellcat is a helluva name for a motorcar, might want to keep the name a little bit longer.
Tariff tyranny rages on.
The Moron-in-Chief ends the war in one day, or so he said; funds billions for more war everywhere.
I can drive the economy into the ground better than that moron. That’s what the moron Trump really means.
Somebody has to do something, anything.
Trump pardoned Ross Ulbricht and stopped the invasion of illegals. Two big wins.
“In 2021, Ulbricht’s prosecutors and defense agreed that Ulbricht would relinquish any ownership of a newly discovered fund of 50,676 Bitcoin (worth nearly $5.35 billion in 2025) seized from a hacker in November 2021.”
Follow the money, more importantly, who has the money? Where is the money?
Trump would pardon Ross for 5.35 billion dollars.
In total, 220,676 bitcoins were seized from Ross Ulbricht.
Probably totals more than 17 billion USD. Asset forfeiture big time.
Don’t have to do the math, it was done for the money.
Do the search.
Dunno, have to be somewhat skeptical.
Could have been framed too, you never know.
OK, great. But he said ‘We’d get tired of winning.’ Two tiny pieces of low hanging fruit is not my definition of winning
Generations of Americans will benefit from stopping the invasion of millions more illegals. Our fast drive to becoming another third world failed state has at least slowed a bit. Trump deserves much praise for this. As far as Ross goes the government probably did confiscate his BTC. At least he’s out.
He doesn’t deserve much praise. The jobs by no ways done. If he wants the adoration and respect of us remaining independents he needs to up his game and earn it. I can almost guarantee illegals and NGOs are still gettin paid bigly.
Sheesh, he’s letting a bunch of degenerate kidney strokers on the bench punk him out. Piss ant little judges don’t make law or policy in regards to the common defense of the republic. Lock her up. Last I checked, that was delegated to the commander in chief. He should exercise his power if he wants more than the run of the mill adoration he gets from the common MAGA bootlicker crowd.
Norman, people too often refer to the “commander in chief” when the full phrase is “The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States;”.
The USA president is not the commander in anything of free citizens. The phrasing, and the concept, matters.
Though he probably does have the power because spineless and treasonous congresses have allowed the executive make war on its own discretion.
Gov knows best!
Gov realizes people will complain,,, which is why they never ever try to defend their decisions. They know after the bitching is done,,, the good complying Germans will buy the trash anyhow or come up reasons/excuses why it might cost more if free enterprise was allowed to flourish. Who knows how these cucks even survive. You want this to stop? Don’t buy the crap. Guarantee you,,, in a very short time span they will either go out of business or tell the snakes in DC where to go and what to do with their compliance dictates. Doubt that? Americans still take their shoes off and “Spread em” at the airport.
Gov knows it needs slaves —– Slave: A person that does not own their labor. Next Tuesday when the parasites demand their cut, smile when bending over and writing the checks—- Many governments tried but fried printing what money they ‘needed’. Today entire sectors of the economy are devoted to helping the gov collect ( its ) money and enforce ( its ) laws. Step out of line, the man come and take you away.
Right on Ken.
Bud Light is once again the #1 beer (I mean Tranny Fluid) sold in the USSA.
Cucks can’t even be bothered to shun Bud Light permanently. Let some time pass, lay low, then do a couple of commercials aimed at making white men look like dopes and you’re right back in the #1 spot.
The country is lost and beyond recovery.
I got a nostalgic turn of the stomach seeing Joan Claybrook’s face. To be fair, she had nothing to do with GM’s collonade cars. It was in 1973 that they decided to put the “cutlass in a new box” according to Bud Lindemann, who tested it and compared it to the 1971 model, which had more power and recorded “better acceleration times” than the 73 due to “emissions laws.”
The automakers were racing to see who could spread their cheeks wider for Uncle with Collonade cars, 5 mph bumpers, 100 mph (down from 120) and seat belt buzzers… all before the 1973 energy crunch struck.
It was and is a disgraceful spectacle
I’ll see your ‘73 and raise you GM ‘74s with the seat belt start interlock. I worked for the local Buick dealer car rental division that year. What joy when a pissed off rental customer called with a no start Buick no matter how many times the belt was buckled. Finally got the work around in June, a jumper between two ports on the fuse block was the permanent fix.
Chrysler/Stellantis needs to mothball the new “Charger” and revitalize the 2023 model. That would probably be the easies tthing to do. They are going to sink more money into that than it’s worth in sales. I would a month at any car company to set product planning straight.
Ever heard of FMVSS 208? Maybe FMVSS 213?
Yes. I thought it was 214. I could be wrong.
The entire agency needs to be tossed into a landfill.
Was the FMVSS why the 2023 Charger can no longer be built? It’s worse than I thought.
They can’t, easily. Shut down production of the Challenger, Charger and 300 in Brampton Ontario already. Currently retooling the plant for the Jeep Compass (haha).
The current Charger EV is made in Windsor Ontario, so it would have to be there when they bring the ICE engines back.
Don’t know what happens to old tooling? My guess, the scrap it or ‘retool’ it, means the old way ain’t easy. The would certainly have the old drawings/specs, but rely on mostly 3rd parties for these parts. And why most plants these days say ‘assembly’.
Look! So happy he’s saved the Hemi, car companies got together and built trumpy his very own model!
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/63/a0/cc/63a0ccadf57c11597db39b755ecccdb9.jpg
It’s called the ‘Outspan Orange-Man’
LOL
Along with the whole compliance issue, another factor in convertibles’ demise during the 1970s was that air conditioning and stereo became cheaper and thus more commonplace in cars: Neither of those make much sense if you’re riding around with the top down.
And yet another factor was the rise of unibody construction for cars, in which the roof is a crucial part of the overall unit’s rigidity. (Chrysler found a way to make it work satisfactorily in the 1960s by using lots of reinforcements.)
But one key factor that was the last nail in the coffin was cost—It cost more to make convertibles. For example, frames for convertibles were different because they needed to be reinforced. So you might have as many as three or four different frames for the same model—one for sedans and/or coupes, one for station wagons, and one for convertibles. Eliminate convertibles and you need one less frame. Multiply that by 100,000 cars per year, and that’s a lot of money.
Last call for the ID Buzz?
My neighbor just replaced his garage queen new Bronco with the VW “microbus” device.
The Buzz and the Bronco seem to occupy the same amount of floor space in the throne room.
The VW is a BIG vehicle.
‘Since when did it become nearly universally accepted that the stonk market become a national savings account …?’ — Flip
This paper by Fisher and Lorie, published in 1964, kicked off the pension revolution in which equities rather than bonds became the core holding of long-term investors:
https://www.crsp.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Journal-of-Business-Rates-of-ROI-in-Common-Stocks.pdf
They found a 9% total return on NYSE-listed stocks from Dec 31, 1925 to Dec 31, 1960 — despite an intervening 85% smash from September 1929 to July 1932.
Presumably another 50%-plus ‘Orange Hoover meltdown’ during 2025-2026 would be followed by another big bull market. That’s the fundamental assumption of contemporary finance — higher risk equals higher reward, now and forevermore.
No one contemplates an extinction event such as a $36 trillion default by the US fedgov that sends living standards (and stock prices) back to the 1930s, or even the 1790s. But I wouldn’t categorically rule it out: our kakistocratic overlords are both greedy and stupid.
Looks to be true that markets can remain irrational, longer than one can stay solvent.
Perhaps there is no end to the USSA’s (already maxxed out) credit-card?
‘Cadillac could have spent money explaining to people why they could no longer offer convertibles – and Stellantis could and ought to have done the same.’ — eric
Likewise, auto makers ought to be front and center in federal court, challenging the ruinous tariffs imposed on them at the personal whim of his imperial excellency, the Orange Emperor.
Instead, a small importer in Florida has filed suit in federal district court, citing the obvious fact that Article 1, Section 8 assigns tariff authority to Congress … and that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act cited by Trump does not even contain the word ‘tariff.’
As for me, last night I indulged in a “last call” round of Belgian abbey ale (‘with subtle notes of vanilla and cloves’), before the Pooch Screwer in Chief cranks its price to champagne levels, or the importer simply takes it off the market. Sic transit gloria Donnie.
Doesn’t look like the ScamDemic taught people much of anything.
The fear that was used for 9/11 and CovAIDS is still right along with us.
Scratch the surface of then American public with the next false flag and you’ll witness the BS….AGAIN.
Case in point is the last two weeks with tariffs and stonks.
Almost everyone now bitchin’ “muh retirement!!! muh 401k!!!….stupid Orange Man cost me $xxxx!!!”
Since when did it become nearly universally accepted that the stonk market become a national savings account with no chance of losing?
I’d put (what’s left after the government goons steal it) my money that the next life changing false flag in USSA will be economic.
The latest scam is iiiiiiiileeeeeegal aliens. People are licking the boot that will force us to provide real ID this time for good to do anything. No organized political movement to stop it. Just like there was no organized political movement to stop police brutality that accelerated during and after the Reagan administration and has continued unabated since.
This sect of people who worship at the thin blue line make me sick to my stomach. They are the soft headed underbelly of a corroding civilization that is losing its civil rights and liberties daily.
Hi swamp,
Not every movement has to be loud. Sometimes one just needs to walk quietly and carry a big stick (or a 9mm). Over 124 million Americans (or roughly 44%) do not have Real ID. I am hoping that number stays strong. Periodically, the best thing to do is nothing at all.
Wow. I didn’t know it was that high. And, as usual, you have a point.
I still don’t like the thin blue line one bit. Sometimes it’s better to operate under the radar.
Saw one idea floated is that in order to fill the trillion dollar factories (soon to return to USSA from the Chinese Home Office) with warm bodies, Orange Man will sell the MAGAdupes on reversing the mass de-immigration.
Instead, they will import a half billion jeets in preparation to work in the future factories.
But then when the Democrats take over in ’29, they’ll just reverse the economic plan – except for your new neighbors, who will stay.
You’ll be stuck with them taking dumps in the street – and still no factories.
I would rather have the Mexicans. Much nicer and easier to deal with.
I dislike illegal immigration as much as a maybe a paper cut. I really think that the problem has been overstated. The real problem in this country is corporate ownership of everything and the size of government coupled with the lack of manufacturing work.
Manufacturing jobs have the best multiplier.
I have a “real ID”. It’s made of plastic, has my name, address, DOB, license #, and the OFFICIAL state seal embossed in it. Oh, and it was issued by the DMV. Looks and feels real to me!
And why the name “REAL ID”? Is the government implying that the ones they issued us up to this point, were indeed FAKE (as in illegitimate)?
More government IDs mean more control.
For many years up till the 1990s, one could sidestep photo IDs and just get a small drivers license card printed by a mainframe computer.
My NJ drivers license back then showed only a month and year of birth — no date. Car rental agents at LAX would roll their eyes at the absurd missing data.
When the libtard Garden State retroactively filled in the date field, it just defaulted to the first of the month. So I used that for years as my fake birth date, officially assigned by the state. Fraudulent, I know — but I dindu nuffin.