2 ms·

I have made this argument before on the internet and I have learned that it is a European vs American perspective. American cars in the 70s and 80s were monste

by Swizec 9y ago

I have made this argument before on the internet and I have learned that it is a European vs American perspective. American cars in the 70s and 80s were monsters. Definitely heavier than modern cars. For example, here are 10 popular cars in the US from 1984. http://www.caranddriver.com/features/1984-10best-cars-1984-honda-accord-page-4 http://www.caranddriver.com/features/1984-10best-cars-1984-h... Audi 5000s: 2850-3100 lbs Dodge Daytona: 2830 lbs Honda Accord: 2300 lbs Honda Prelude: 2220 lbs Mazda 626: 2220 lbs Pontiac 6000STE: 3000 lbs Pontiac Fiero: 2580 lbs Porsche 944: 2830 lbs On the heavy side, no? Then again, the best selling car in the US in 2016 is the Toyota Camry which is 3,245 to 3,480 lbs so I guess I'm wrong. Maybe US cars were monsters in the 70's then?

drewg123 9y ago
But those monsters have been replaced with SUVs, which are just as heavy, if not heavier. Eg, the 1977 Ford LTD Country Squire Wagon had a curb weight of 4500lbs. It has been replaced by SUVs like the Expedition, with a curb weight of 5500lbs.
rpeden 9y ago
Most of the cars you listed are the small side of the ones you'd see on the road in the US in the 80's. I'm in Canada, and although I wasn't very old in the 80's, I remember seeing lots of Caprice Classics and Crown Victorias, which were around 3500 pounds, possibly more? My family have a Chevy Malibu wagon, which was a mid-size car but was definitely 3000+ lbs. Smaller cars were starting to become more popular, but there were still lots of monsters around. So there were lots of heavy cars roaming the US and Canada in the 80s - but a new car of equivalent weight will usually use a lot less fuel, and be a lot more pleasant to drive.
Retric 9y ago
Don't forget 'car' is a rather arbitrary category. The car > minivan > SUV 'soccer mom' transition added these beasts: Infiniti QX80 – 5,633 pounds Toyota Sequoia – 5,730 pounds Toyota Land Cruiser – 5,765 pounds Lincoln Navigator – 5,830 pounds Lexus LX 570 – 6,000 pounds
- theparanoid 9y ago
  The Toyota Land Cruiser is not like the others, it's popular with militant groups. And has been in production since 1951.
  - coredog64 9y ago
    Meh. The Chevy Suburban has been in near continuous production since 1929. The gap? When they used the factories that made them to turn out tanks for WWII.
  - Retric 9y ago
    That's a connection more or less in name only. Much like the connection between a military hummer and an H3. The 1950 FJ and BJ was a jeep knockoff with a cloth roof. https://www.fj.co/blog/history-of-the-toyota-fj-series/ https://www.fj.co/blog/history-of-the-toyota-fj-series/ http://www.toyota-global.com/showroom/vehicle_heritage/landcruiser/collection/model_bj_1.html http://www.toyota-global.com/showroom/vehicle_heritage/landc... The FJ40 from 1960 is somewhat comparable, but weighed 1/2 (3263 lbs) what the modern beast weighs. The FJ60 (http://tlc4x4.com/fj60.htm#sthash.nB2cpi4h.dpbs http://tlc4x4.com/fj60.htm#sthash.nB2cpi4h.dpbs) from 1981 was even closer and heavy at 4246 lbs, but again still 1,500 lb lighter than the current version.
beefman 9y ago
> On the heavy side, no? No. Car weights in America fell dramatically after the 1973 oil crisis, reached a low point in the mid 1980s, and have been rising since. Here are the 2017 Car & Driver 10 best BMW M2 3450 Chevy Bolt 3563 Chevy Camaro 3883 Chevy Corvette Grand Sport 3428 Honda Accord 3336 Porsche 718 Cayman 2988 VW Golf GTI 3027
- Swizec 9y ago
  Ah ok so 1984 was pretty much the worst year to look at when finding heavy cars? That explains a lot :)
madengr 9y ago
Wow, a Fiero weighed 2580 LB? That must have been before it caught fire.

by Swizec 9y ago

drewg123 9y ago

But those monsters have been replaced with SUVs, which are just as heavy, if not heavier. Eg, the 1977 Ford LTD Country Squire Wagon had a curb weight of 4500lbs. It has been replaced by SUVs like the Expedition, with a curb weight of 5500lbs.

rpeden 9y ago

Most of the cars you listed are the small side of the ones you'd see on the road in the US in the 80's. I'm in Canada, and although I wasn't very old in the 80's, I remember seeing lots of Caprice Classics and Crown Victorias, which were around 3500 pounds, possibly more? My family have a Chevy Malibu wagon, which was a mid-size car but was definitely 3000+ lbs. Smaller cars were starting to become more popular, but there were still lots of monsters around. So there were lots of heavy cars roaming the US and Canada in the 80s - but a new car of equivalent weight will usually use a lot less fuel, and be a lot more pleasant to drive.

Retric 9y ago

Don't forget 'car' is a rather arbitrary category. The car > minivan > SUV 'soccer mom' transition added these beasts: Infiniti QX80 – 5,633 pounds Toyota Sequoia – 5,730 pounds Toyota Land Cruiser – 5,765 pounds Lincoln Navigator – 5,830 pounds Lexus LX 570 – 6,000 pounds

theparanoid 9y ago
The Toyota Land Cruiser is not like the others, it's popular with militant groups. And has been in production since 1951.
- coredog64 9y ago
  Meh. The Chevy Suburban has been in near continuous production since 1929. The gap? When they used the factories that made them to turn out tanks for WWII.
- Retric 9y ago
  That's a connection more or less in name only. Much like the connection between a military hummer and an H3. The 1950 FJ and BJ was a jeep knockoff with a cloth roof. https://www.fj.co/blog/history-of-the-toyota-fj-series/ https://www.fj.co/blog/history-of-the-toyota-fj-series/ http://www.toyota-global.com/showroom/vehicle_heritage/landcruiser/collection/model_bj_1.html http://www.toyota-global.com/showroom/vehicle_heritage/landc... The FJ40 from 1960 is somewhat comparable, but weighed 1/2 (3263 lbs) what the modern beast weighs. The FJ60 (http://tlc4x4.com/fj60.htm#sthash.nB2cpi4h.dpbs http://tlc4x4.com/fj60.htm#sthash.nB2cpi4h.dpbs) from 1981 was even closer and heavy at 4246 lbs, but again still 1,500 lb lighter than the current version.

beefman 9y ago

> On the heavy side, no? No. Car weights in America fell dramatically after the 1973 oil crisis, reached a low point in the mid 1980s, and have been rising since. Here are the 2017 Car & Driver 10 best BMW M2 3450 Chevy Bolt 3563 Chevy Camaro 3883 Chevy Corvette Grand Sport 3428 Honda Accord 3336 Porsche 718 Cayman 2988 VW Golf GTI 3027

Swizec 9y ago
Ah ok so 1984 was pretty much the worst year to look at when finding heavy cars? That explains a lot :)

madengr 9y ago

Wow, a Fiero weighed 2580 LB? That must have been before it caught fire.