In the early 1980s, I bought my very first car, a low-mileage 1959 Buick Electra four window hardtop (4739). I drove it for three or four years, and to this day it remains the best car I've ever owned.
The '59 GM line up was really special. I think the Chevy has the best rear end and the Buick has the best front end. All of them look great in a 2 door hardtop and I love the wagons as well. Art on wheels!
Just amazing looking cars from GM back in '59. I can almost see my Dad back then at the age of 20, frothing at the mouth and wanting to go for a test drive in on of these cars. He had a '58 Pontiac at the time which is his 2nd fav car to his previous car; a '57 Pontiac! His first car he bought in the summer of '57 was a '49 Ford that he drove for 6 months before trading it in for the '57 Strato Chief. My fav happens to be the '59 Cadillac Eldorado convertible followed closely in 2nd by the '58 Chevy Impala. Just amazing! I will never grow tired of these cars because my Dad taught me about appreciating such automotive beauty.
Man those cars are Beautiful esp the station wagons. I once asked my 10 yr old nephew why he thought there was never a Cadillac station wagon. He said "Uncle there is ..............a hearse LMAO.
Had a customer w/ 59' Chevrolet El Camino, chassis rehab, finished by customer , it turned out nice. Big classic lines for 59' . Torque,⚙ can you hear it.......🏁
My Dad, who was a lifelong Buick employee, in 1959 took me to a show in Detroit. Wow, the Invicta, the LeSabre, and the Electra 225. That's burned in my memories.
Thanks for stopping by and sharing your story. We have a 1960 Buick 2 door sedan that was originally purchased by a life-long Buick employee, it was a gift to himself, his "last car". He retired in 1958 after 50 years with Buick. As a tool and die maker, he was credited with inventing the "clean room" during WWII. As I recall, his starting wage was 25 cents an hour.
@@4spdBernie I have my Dad's last 2008 Lucerne CXL with 31,000 miles on it. It's a roadmaster car. Don't do curves fast, you'll be fine. My Grandad left school at 12 to work for Buick. in 1911. Buick family here.
you should've called this video the led sled parade, beautiful cars, such works of art, back when cars were build with craftsmanship, and look at the trash we have today, just tin and plastic, I miss those big cars!
Most of today's "trash" lasts longer, protects its occupants better, produces much lower emissions, and uses less fuel than cars of that era. The problem was that the U.S. let Europe beat it on the driving experience and Japan beat it on reliabillity. We have since recovered significantly, but still have a ways to go on both fronts.
new American cars look the same as the European ones, they are all of the same plastic, all are ugly, overloaded with electronics ... for this engines with a vacuum cleaner that can withstand up to 100,000 kilometers ... old, real American cars were great, beautiful and full of class, well and well-made, beautiful interiors, soft and very durable suspension and racial v8 engines that work without a problem to this day, and most importantly, without stupid electronics .... why did America change the tracks on Chinese szays? and why do people buy it ?!
@@johne6081 How about you judge cars on the time they were built dickhead, technology was worse back then but unlike today cars actually looked nice and took time to style and didn't all feel the same unlike today. And no new cars are not more reliable you can take good care of something new today and it will break within the next fifteen years with how much plastic is used, where if you take good care of something from back then and kept it clean you'd find that the old one would last far longer.
@@550MustangGT I don't where you got that 100,000 km figure. Most of today's car engines are engineered to run a good 3 times that far, many well beyond that. (Check out the Passatworld.com B5 generation online discussion forum, for example.) I grew up in stifling, choking, eye-burning Los Angeles smog, and electronics (oxygen sensors, electronic fuel injection, engine control modules, etc.) finally made it feasible to cut emissions significantly, in one of the single greatest wins for public health ever.
Thank you I loved the video I had 59 Impala years ago, wish I still owned in New Zealand only 4 in the country back in those days and I new where they all lived, every one hated it called it ugly. I loved it got smashed up the bum in the end, goodness know where it is now , I paid $600.00 NZ dollars for now you would pay $40 to 50 grand for it. Now I drive a V8 Ford Falcon Cobra. Thank you once again very good video.
These cars are fabulous....for that matter, ALL of the Detroit offerings of the time were just that, when quality was paramount, these cars depicted the prosperity of the 50's...just can't wrap my head around the import shit boxes, folks buy today... Thanks for this!
BILL WILLIAMSON gussied up vw mmmkk, Oman u toar him a new ahole,, awesome automobiles every one of them, it may sound strange but when I was younger I had a collection of the cut outs from life magazines of all the 50s ,60s car's back then it told the motor trans even price, good old days.
@Mullay2 Hey Mike, Believe it or not, that wagon was just hours away from being hauled off by a scrapper! Saved by the present owner who has no intention on selling.
It's too bad that GM missed the boat in building those things so damn short... 😉 Could you imagine seeing NEW 20 footers rolling down the street today? Wow.
Fantástico, ver estas maravilhas andando, relíquias que só os aficcionados conservam, buick um dos meus favoritos, possuo um da marca, etc. maneco - Porto Alegre-RS - Brasil.
Read John Delorean's book, "On a Clear Day You Can See General Motors." The problems go back to the 1960s, and that is when the long slow demise of GM began. .
American cars were King from the 1920s to the mid to late 70s. The fake gas crises and Gov mandates made America downsize al their vehicle. America was not used to make small tin cans. US Gov't conveniently allowed dumping of foreign cars at the same time as the gas crises and Americans bought because the media told them too.
John E - Unfortunately,you are correct - It didn't happen all at once - GM still made some very good vehicles up until about 1978,but they also built a fair amount of clunkers,even as far back as about 1965 - But from 1978 until about 1988,much of what they had on the market was absolute garbage - again,not every single vehicle,but a very high percentage of their products were awful in that time period - After that their quality and reliability waxed and waned,with some good vehicles and some bad.....
@tokyonayeliblack Thank you - that was a very fun day! The wheels are later Buick Road Wheels '71 and newer 15" 5x5. Ck out more cool '59 Buick stuff on buick-59.com
buick and pontiac i think both were the first 2 car brands purchased by gm. they were really great brands in the 50th. buick was getting close to the tops and pontiac just made flamboyant designs..
I love those "59 GM's My family owned a"59 Buick Le Sabre when I was a kid. I love your video of The "66 Pontiac Catalina 421 4 speed,goin through the gears. I owned a "66 Boneville once. Thanks for bringing back some memories.
@@4spdBernie That was 35+ years ago. I drove her plenty back then. When the 348 gave out she got a 409 Hipo. I presently drive a 'flatfender' Willys Jeep (titled as 1946) with hopped up 225 'Odd Fire' Buick V6.
The '59 Buicks have really stood the test of time. GM knew the design was good and gambled on a hit. They borrowed an idea from Chrysler that year and ordered their entire 1959 lineup to be built on the same "shell" and to share the 1959 Buick door. Chevy, Cadillac, Olds & Pontiac for '59 were all designed around the '59 Buick door. They didn't save as much money as they thought because the door was so costly to manufacture, with that drop. And they were surprised when Buick sales dropped to 9th place that year, despite the great design.
***** Take a '59 Buick and smash it up. What do you have? A '59 Chevy. The Chevrolet was shaped similarly to the Buick, which was elegant. Yet the cheaper car was a car I'd want to hide! We had a '59 black Electra 225 4-door with the flat roof and the wrap-around back glass. It sported air ride and triple turbine transmission. Wow! What a car! Was it sporty? No. But so what. Being picked up in it was a proud moment for me. Some people called it a bat mobile. But what did they know? They didn't see cars as art. Cars for them were just utility- like today. And ours was very thrifty on gas at 80 MPH. We got about 20-mpg. Not bad for a heavy 1959.
That's a great story, thanks for sharing the memories! I always liked the '59 Buicks. The arched chrome eyebrows, big fins and sophisticated instrument panel. I agree, Chevy was a sight that year, especially the front clip. 1959 was one of the few years back then when Ford outsold Chevy! It's a shame style has taken a back seat to utility today. The new generation doesn't know what they missed.
My /63 LeSabre,which also had (like your '59 Electra) the high compression 401 engine was good on gas out on the highway too, and if you started the "switch the pitch" tranny in low, 60 mph was only 7 seconds flat away.
All the models had basically the same roof lines. But, they kept a certain personality for the other aspects. Grill, and rear end treatments. GM really new how to market their broad array of models to each market demograph.
Yes, and GM knew how to make more money than any other car company...they could turn a penny saved per unit into millions for the stockholders. Thanks for stopping by!
0:12, I see the “CURVE” of the “Elephant Trunk Brace” Steering Wheel, on the right side of the screen. Seeing the steering wheel like this one is very rare. This steering wheel with the elephant trunk brace is a “COLLECTOR’S ITEM”. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. . . . . . . . . . . . .. ..
I like that GM came out with all of these wild designs and ideas, and then NOPE. One year only. 1959. The next year, different looks completely, except Cadillac which just got lower tail fins. Even the previous year, 1958, was a one year only car for all GM brands. Crazy.
Being a pentastar guy, i always thought that the '70 Coronet had a "mad" looking front end. Might have to rethink a bit, now that I'm looking at these '59 Buicks. :o "Buick 59"(the Medallions)..
I have had the experience of ownership (and continue to own two '59 Impalas) with quite a number of these cars. Beautiful, beautiful, absolutely beautiful vehicles, every single one. Never get tired of looking at them and driving them. In spite of what some automotive hack authors and self-appointed supreme judges of "good taste" spewed over the years, the only "excess" these cars exhibit is an excess of originality, character and beauty. At the risk of bursting the bubbles of some posters here, build quality was definitely NOT a strong suit of these cars. American cars were never known for careful assembly and these are no exception. The quality of materials, however, is another story. Aside from seat trim, carpets and steering wheels (and a few odds and ends) almost everything was made from die cast metal, stamped steel, aluminum or other easily restorable or extremely durable material. In areas without road salt, these could last decades with a little extra care and maintenance. Most of the brightwork on these cars is actually anodized aluminum or stainless steel (!)
It still looks like this in Cuba! Of course the cars there are mostly not as gleaming and sleek as these guys - but still, they're there. It's quite amazing. There are a few 1960 cars, but most American imports stopped in 1959, so not many '60 models seem to have made it. I think I saw only one Corvair and one Falcon.
My father has a 1959 El Co, first car I got a ride home in. Still has it sitting in one of his garages with the motor and trany out. Other than that he has 73 and 77 El Cos, 73 Laguna, 60 Nomad, 60 Impala. The Nomad is a one of one car, 348 # matching, Powerglide, posi-track, power steering and brakes, and is a Canadian car on top of that. So we got the paper work saying the motor is the one to that car from GM Canada! Only 230ish were built. driving.ca/chevrolet/auto-news/news/mad-for-nomads
Wonderful look at the GM 59's. How did Sig manage to drive both his 59's at the same time? I loved that 59 Olds wagon. Who is fortunate enough to own that wonderful car?
GM was actually late to the party with the new long low lean look. The party actually start in 1957 with both Ford and Chrysler Prod. 59' was GM intro to the party. This is good because if Chevy had started in 57' we would not have the Classic 57' Chevy. Not only that, except for Caddy I don't think GM got the low look right until 61 or 62. And in 61 and 62 Chrysler prod. styling took a hit and became mundane with a few exceptions. One exception being the 65' Chrysler Imperial which is absolutely beautiful. The late 60s produced beauties like the Chargers and other B-Body cars. Meanwhile all through the 60s and mid 70s GM put out some real beauties. Ford had some real classics in the late 50s with the 57 Fords, the Tri-5 Tbirds, and lets not forget the Classic early to mid 50 Ford Pickups. And let face it, the 60s were all about performance and all the Big 3 had many classic performance cars in which to choose. I'm glad I was around to see it but just not old enough to drive. Wanna see a classic GM of the LLL Look? Check out the 66' Pontiac Bonneville. In 66' a school mate must have told me 5 times that day that his father just bought a 66' Bonneville. When I saw it I was impressed. At the time we had a 62 Olds 98. It couldn't match the beauty of that Pontiac.
Bruce Bryant Yes, I can see this. I don't think Buicks ever improved on the '59 look. But with curved side windows the '67 sure looked pretty! And the last Riviera design is nice, although the back is too long.
new American cars look the same as the European ones, they are all of the same plastic, all are ugly, overloaded with electronics ... for this engines with a vacuum cleaner that can withstand up to 100,000 kilometers ... old, real American cars were great, beautiful and full of class, well and well-made, beautiful interiors, soft and very durable suspension and racial v8 engines that work without a problem to this day, and most importantly, without stupid electronics .... why did America change the tracks on Chinese szays? and why do people buy it ?!
My 59 favorite was the OLDSMOBILES. I had two; a black SUPER 88 and a light blue 98. Both were 4 door flat tops; best cars owned safe, fast, 25 mpg and economical to own. Next best was a 87 LINCOLN TC.
GM's 1959 offerings were directly influenced by Chrysler's 1957 models. GM had introduced all new styling for 1958 so the '59s should have been just face lifted. GM was so shaken by Virgil Exner's magnificent creations, their designs for '59 were trashed and started all over.
WOW! Who belongs to that 1959 Oldsmobile station wagon? Had one of those brand new back in the day but its like hen's teeth finding one now- same colors too- we called ours the "Purple People Eater" because it was 8 passenger.
Gotta love the 50's cars. The mid-late 50's GM cars have always been personal favorites. Although, I think they went a little overboard on the 58 models. In 59, they trimmed them down and toned them down a bit and they didn't look so much like giant bricks on wheels with a load of chrome, and personally, I don't see a whole lot of difference between the GM corporate siblings in 58. They all kind of looked the same, especially the front of the cars. In 59, each car has more distinctive styling, especially on the fins. Can't decide if I like the Chevy batwing design, the Pontiac split fins or the Olds with it's huge swimming pool sized trunk with fins/rocket exhaust styling more than the others. Course you have the iconic Cadillac and the Buicks looked like spaceships.
You must know Mitch in Castro Valley. He's got something like 100-150 '60 Buicks. His favorite 1960 Buick thing to say is, '59s are too old and '61s are too new...
The thing about cars of that time is the suspension was so "mushy" and the mohair stuffing in the seats smelled bad. Other than that they were like sitting on the soffa in your living room.
It was hit or miss back then when it comes to car design. In 1959 I think that the Pontiac was a great looking car, the Chevy was pretty nice, and the Caddy was a rolling sculpture that qualified as a work of art. But the Olds was ugly and the Buick was just plain weird, like some sort of Batmobile wannabee. One year later, in 1960, the Caddy was still nice but not quite as eye catching as the '59, the Buick morphed into another rolling work of art much as the Caddy had been a year earlier, the '60 Pontiac was still nice (that year's Catalina was my very first car) but not as interesting as the '59 model had been, the Olds was still butt-ugly only worse, and the Chevy was so similar to the previous year it was hard to tell them apart (I owned one of them also). But all things considered, I miss those good old days when car designers were given free reign to let their imaginations soar and express new concepts every single year. Nowadays you can hardly tell the cars apart in moving traffic, and designs only change once every five years on average.
![FNAF Into the Pit has A LOT of Unused Graphics | LOST BITS [TetraBitGaming]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/6YhZCRdipl4/mqdefault.jpg)
'59 was an awesome styling year for GM!! Probably the best for the decade! Thank you for taking care of the these wonderful, exuberant automobiles!
In the early 1980s, I bought my very first car, a low-mileage 1959 Buick Electra four window hardtop (4739). I drove it for three or four years, and to this day it remains the best car I've ever owned.
GOOD TIMES!! Thanks for stopping by!
I bought a 59 olds super 98 and drove it back and forth between Rivers Manitoba and Montreal on a regular basis. Loved it!
Hydramatic
I was a preschooler stiil in 1959, but I remember it. It was great time to be a kid. Cool cars and great music.
GOOD TIMES!!
The '59 GM line up was really special. I think the Chevy has the best rear end and the Buick has the best front end. All of them look great in a 2 door hardtop and I love the wagons as well. Art on wheels!
Agreed, thanks for stopping by!
Beautiful old cars. It was almost like going into a time machine watching this video.
Very beautiful old cars very beautiful amazing looks
You sure can tell what these are without looking for the logos . Beautiful and distinctive
59 Buick was an awesome design...
Flawless automobiles from a bygone era. I'd love to cruise around like that.
I had to go to the ER to have my fluids replaced after watching these wonderful classics!
Just amazing looking cars from GM back in '59. I can almost see my Dad back then at the age of 20, frothing at the mouth and wanting to go for a test drive in on of these cars. He had a '58 Pontiac at the time which is his 2nd fav car to his previous car; a '57 Pontiac! His first car he bought in the summer of '57 was a '49 Ford that he drove for 6 months before trading it in for the '57 Strato Chief. My fav happens to be the '59 Cadillac Eldorado convertible followed closely in 2nd by the '58 Chevy Impala.
Just amazing! I will never grow tired of these cars because my Dad taught me about appreciating such automotive beauty.
Nothing like the excitement of seeing the all-new models every October!
Good times indeed!
Man those cars are Beautiful esp the station wagons. I once asked my 10 yr old nephew why he thought there was never a Cadillac station wagon. He said "Uncle there is ..............a hearse LMAO.
Take a look at ALL of the 59 Pontiac's, sweet ass cars. The 59 Ventura was my favorite.
1:28 The greatest car ever made.
Thanks for looking at all the 1959's GM cars. Fabulous!
Those fins, that bright metal. Many things can be said from our modern perspective about those 1950's cars but God, they were beautiful
The '59 Impala is my favorite.
Me too, with the Buick 2nd, Pontiac 3rd, Cadillac 4th, and the Oldsmobile 5th.
My dad had one in blue/white, Flat Top.
A sensation in Switzerland :)
Wooh-hooo! Great medicine when you're stuck at a desk! Thanks for posting this.
My beauty-vote is for the Buicks....
Had a customer w/ 59' Chevrolet El Camino, chassis rehab, finished by customer , it turned out nice.
Big classic lines for 59' . Torque,⚙ can you hear it.......🏁
THIS was the year GM was on a roll ! EACH CAR was a real beauty in its own way.
Wow! this was like going into a time machine, but I'm not sure what direction the Time Machine went in? Forward or Backwards!!! :O)
My Dad, who was a lifelong Buick employee, in 1959 took me to a show in Detroit. Wow, the Invicta, the LeSabre, and the Electra 225. That's burned in my memories.
Thanks for stopping by and sharing your story. We have a 1960 Buick 2 door sedan that was originally purchased by a life-long Buick employee, it was a gift to himself, his "last car". He retired in 1958 after 50 years with Buick. As a tool and die maker, he was credited with inventing the "clean room" during WWII. As I recall, his starting wage was 25 cents an hour.
@@4spdBernie I have my Dad's last 2008 Lucerne CXL with 31,000 miles on it. It's a roadmaster car. Don't do curves fast, you'll be fine. My Grandad left school at 12 to work for Buick. in 1911. Buick family here.
you should've called this video the led sled parade, beautiful cars, such works of art, back when cars were build with craftsmanship, and look at the trash we have today, just tin and plastic, I miss those big cars!
We have lots of fun, we bring the "car show" to the people!
Most of today's "trash" lasts longer, protects its occupants better, produces much lower emissions, and uses less fuel than cars of that era.
The problem was that the U.S. let Europe beat it on the driving experience and Japan beat it on reliabillity. We have since recovered significantly, but still have a ways to go on both fronts.
new American cars look the same as the European ones, they are all of the same plastic, all are ugly, overloaded with electronics ... for this engines with a vacuum cleaner that can withstand up to 100,000 kilometers ... old, real American cars were great, beautiful and full of class, well and well-made, beautiful interiors, soft and very durable suspension and racial v8 engines that work without a problem to this day, and most importantly, without stupid electronics .... why did America change the tracks on Chinese szays? and why do people buy it ?!
@@johne6081 How about you judge cars on the time they were built dickhead, technology was worse back then but unlike today cars actually looked nice and took time to style and didn't all feel the same unlike today.
And no new cars are not more reliable you can take good care of something new today and it will break within the next fifteen years with how much plastic is used, where if you take good care of something from back then and kept it clean you'd find that the old one would last far longer.
@@550MustangGT I don't where you got that 100,000 km figure. Most of today's car engines are engineered to run a good 3 times that far, many well beyond that. (Check out the Passatworld.com B5 generation online discussion forum, for example.) I grew up in stifling, choking, eye-burning Los Angeles smog, and electronics (oxygen sensors, electronic fuel injection, engine control modules, etc.) finally made it feasible to cut emissions significantly, in one of the single greatest wins for public health ever.
Great cars
so cool!
For a second, I thought I was having an acid flashback. Those wagons were amazing, and I never see them around.
That Pontiac station wagon is just outrageous!
So awesome!
It's a pretty cool ride, thanks for stopping by!
Wonderful, beautiful cars! What happened to these beautiful designs?
1959 was the year that Pontiac became a Pontiac, wide track, split grill, arrow sign, 389 tri power, and the catalina.
YUPS
I had a 59 Catalina. They didn't call them wide tracks for nothing. It took skill to go through the drive-in at the bank.
Pontiac was named Motor Trend Car of the year for 1959
Gorgeous cars!
I couldn't agree with you more! Thanks for stoppin by!
Time machines...
Back in the 60s we took a 59 buick and made a buiccamino out of it. A p/u truck back window and a bed with tailgate. One of a kind
sweet
Thank you I loved the video I had 59 Impala years ago, wish I still owned in New Zealand only 4 in the country back in those days and I new where they all lived, every one hated it called it ugly. I loved it got smashed up the bum in the end, goodness know where it is now , I paid $600.00 NZ dollars for now you would pay $40 to 50 grand for it. Now I drive a V8 Ford Falcon Cobra.
Thank you once again very good video.
These cars are fabulous....for that matter, ALL of the Detroit offerings of the time were just that, when quality was paramount, these cars depicted the prosperity of the 50's...just can't wrap my head around the import shit boxes, folks buy today...
Thanks for this!
My import **** box is a 1996 Audi A4 -- safe, economical, reliable, and timelessly good-looking in an understated Bauhaus way.
>96
>good looking
chose one
LOBBY MONIED CONGRESS SCREWED USA. 1975, ON. TO THIS DAY ON AUTO MANUFACTURING IN USA.
@@johne6081 drugs are bad mmmmkay, that gussied up vw only looks good to you after a few bong hits john e boy
BILL WILLIAMSON gussied up vw mmmkk, Oman u toar him a new ahole,, awesome automobiles every one of them, it may sound strange but when I was younger I had a collection of the cut outs from life magazines of all the 50s ,60s car's back then it told the motor trans even price, good old days.
@Mullay2 Hey Mike, Believe it or not, that wagon was just hours away from being hauled off by a scrapper! Saved by the present owner who has no intention on selling.
😍really Dream car's
It's too bad that GM missed the boat in building those things so damn short... 😉
Could you imagine seeing NEW 20 footers rolling down the street today?
Wow.
Fantástico, ver estas maravilhas andando, relíquias que só os aficcionados conservam, buick um dos meus favoritos, possuo um da marca, etc. maneco - Porto Alegre-RS - Brasil.
Nice theme! All 59's! There should be more meets specializing in the manufactorer year!
So beautiful...My uncle had a 59 Biscayne 2dr in that same green color
Thank you ~ good times!
I recognized right away this was filmed in Tacoma WA.
59 was a good year for gm
From 1954 to 1980, GM cars were, by-and-large, the best.
Then, in 1981, came Roger Smith and the rest is history.
SatchmoSings Is that who did it? Wow. What a dud!
Read John Delorean's book, "On a Clear Day You Can See General Motors." The problems go back to the 1960s, and that is when the long slow demise of GM began. .
American cars were King from the 1920s to the mid to late 70s. The fake gas crises and Gov mandates made America downsize al their vehicle. America was not used to make small tin cans. US Gov't conveniently allowed dumping of foreign cars at the same time as the gas crises and Americans bought because the media told them too.
John E - Unfortunately,you are correct - It didn't happen all at once - GM still made some very good vehicles up until about 1978,but they also built a fair amount of clunkers,even as far back as about 1965 - But from 1978 until about 1988,much of what they had on the market was absolute garbage - again,not every single vehicle,but a very high percentage of their products were awful in that time period - After that their quality and reliability waxed and waned,with some good vehicles and some bad.....
wonderfull cars, if we could see them all together here in france at us cars meeting it be dreamland
@tokyonayeliblack Thank you - that was a very fun day! The wheels are later Buick Road Wheels '71 and newer 15" 5x5. Ck out more cool '59 Buick stuff on buick-59.com
I still love the fins; why cant they comeback? You don't need aerodynamics to save an extra 1 mpg. We all tend to drive differently, what about style?
buick and pontiac i think both were the first 2 car brands purchased by gm. they were really great brands in the 50th. buick was getting close to the tops and pontiac just made flamboyant designs..
Pontiac didn’t come along ‘till much later (initially was a car named Oakland) Buick was the basis for start of GM.
I love those "59 GM's My family owned a"59 Buick Le Sabre when I was a kid. I love your video of The "66 Pontiac Catalina 421 4 speed,goin through the gears. I owned a "66 Boneville once. Thanks for bringing back some memories.
+Eddy Smith You are VERY welcome!
1:20 Amazing how slapping a pair of skirts on a 1959 Pontiac wagon can transform it from a stodgy old grandpa family car into a badass ride..
very beautiful car
dad wanted a 59 electra, but to many kids, instead bought a 59 mercury colony park wagon because the 3rd seat faced forward, all gms faced the rear.
I was the third owner of a low miles Roman Red 1959 Impala Sport Coupe with 348, factory air, power brakes... .,
Sweet! Get out there and DRIVE it!!
@@4spdBernie That was 35+ years ago.
I drove her plenty back then. When the 348 gave out she got a 409 Hipo.
I presently drive a 'flatfender' Willys Jeep (titled as 1946) with hopped up 225 'Odd Fire' Buick V6.
ahh love it!!!
The '59 Buicks have really stood the test of time. GM knew the design was good and gambled on a hit. They borrowed an idea from Chrysler that year and ordered their entire 1959 lineup to be built on the same "shell" and to share the 1959 Buick door. Chevy, Cadillac, Olds & Pontiac for '59 were all designed around the '59 Buick door. They didn't save as much money as they thought because the door was so costly to manufacture, with that drop. And they were surprised when Buick sales dropped to 9th place that year, despite the great design.
***** Hell yeahl !!! Buick should hire you for a retro Invicta
***** Take a '59 Buick and smash it up. What do you have? A '59 Chevy. The Chevrolet was shaped similarly to the Buick, which was elegant. Yet the cheaper car was a car I'd want to hide! We had a '59 black Electra 225 4-door with the flat roof and the wrap-around back glass. It sported air ride and triple turbine transmission. Wow! What a car! Was it sporty? No. But so what. Being picked up in it was a proud moment for me. Some people called it a bat mobile. But what did they know? They didn't see cars as art. Cars for them were just utility- like today. And ours was very thrifty on gas at 80 MPH. We got about 20-mpg. Not bad for a heavy 1959.
That's a great story, thanks for sharing the memories! I always liked the '59 Buicks. The arched chrome eyebrows, big fins and sophisticated instrument panel. I agree, Chevy was a sight that year, especially the front clip. 1959 was one of the few years back then when Ford outsold Chevy! It's a shame style has taken a back seat to utility today. The new generation doesn't know what they missed.
My /63 LeSabre,which also had (like your '59 Electra) the high compression 401 engine was good on gas out on the highway too, and if you started the "switch the pitch" tranny in low, 60 mph was only 7 seconds flat away.
There's nothing like a '59 says FINE 59 !
i saw the exact sane buick today on this here october 3 2016
I meant to say built with craftsmanship
I guess you know that you can edit your comments.
All the models had basically the same roof lines. But, they kept a certain personality for the other aspects. Grill, and rear end treatments. GM really new how to market their broad array of models to each market demograph.
Yes, and GM knew how to make more money than any other car company...they could turn a penny saved per unit into millions for the stockholders. Thanks for stopping by!
BEAUTIFUL B59! Similar to the two door hardtop we have in the shop now on our channel.
Thanks for stopping by!
0:12, I see the “CURVE” of the “Elephant Trunk Brace” Steering Wheel, on the right side of the screen. Seeing the steering wheel like this one is very rare. This steering wheel with the elephant trunk brace is a “COLLECTOR’S ITEM”. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. . . . . . . . . . . . .. ..
I like that GM came out with all of these wild designs and ideas, and then NOPE. One year only. 1959. The next year, different looks completely, except Cadillac which just got lower tail fins.
Even the previous year, 1958, was a one year only car for all GM brands. Crazy.
While the sedans might be underrated there still cool though some are scary looking.
My uncle had a 60 it would fly
Being a pentastar guy, i always thought that the '70 Coronet had a "mad" looking front end. Might have to rethink a bit, now that I'm looking at these '59 Buicks. :o
"Buick 59"(the Medallions)..
Thanks for stopping by and ckin' out the "mad" lookin' '59 Buicks, lol
Suddenly its 1-9-5-9 again-cool video of when American cars were No. 1 in the world!!
I have the 59 Buick Le Sabre 4 dorr Flattop for 15 Years now it was selling in good hands and it runs like new in CUXHAVEN Germany !
I have had the experience of ownership (and continue to own two '59 Impalas) with quite a number of these cars. Beautiful, beautiful, absolutely beautiful vehicles, every single one. Never get tired of looking at them and driving them. In spite of what some automotive hack authors and self-appointed supreme judges of "good taste" spewed over the years, the only "excess" these cars exhibit is an excess of originality, character and beauty. At the risk of bursting the bubbles of some posters here, build quality was definitely NOT a strong suit of these cars. American cars were never known for careful assembly and these are no exception. The quality of materials, however, is another story. Aside from seat trim, carpets and steering wheels (and a few odds and ends) almost everything was made from die cast metal, stamped steel, aluminum or other easily restorable or extremely durable material. In areas without road salt, these could last decades with a little extra care and maintenance. Most of the brightwork on these cars is actually anodized aluminum or stainless steel (!)
I love the colors, they say the 50s were a repressive era, but not by the color combinations and tu-tone, tri-tone paint jobs.
It still looks like this in Cuba! Of course the cars there are mostly not as gleaming and sleek as these guys - but still, they're there. It's quite amazing.
There are a few 1960 cars, but most American imports stopped in 1959, so not many '60 models seem to have made it. I think I saw only one Corvair and one Falcon.
Pretend it filmed in 1959, when it actually filmed many years later. ZIV Tunes were heard often on Television, in 1959.
Impalas beautiful tail with the "cateyes" and Buicks beautiful front. Please craft me a car like that. (with a huge bigblock ofc, hehe)
Thanks for checkin' out the old jet-age beauties!
And they all have FINS!
One word WOW
Thanks for stopping by!
Was this filmed in the Tacoma area? Nice group of heavy '59s!
Yes it was - thank you!
My father has a 1959 El Co, first car I got a ride home in. Still has it sitting in one of his garages with the motor and trany out. Other than that he has 73 and 77 El Cos, 73 Laguna, 60 Nomad, 60 Impala. The Nomad is a one of one car, 348 # matching, Powerglide, posi-track, power steering and brakes, and is a Canadian car on top of that. So we got the paper work saying the motor is the one to that car from GM Canada! Only 230ish were built.
driving.ca/chevrolet/auto-news/news/mad-for-nomads
I love my imaginary Pick-up Chevrolet Ford and the Very too Wild best BUICK Pick-UP really pick-up! !!!!!
GOOD TIMES!!
My uncle had a black '59 Skylark!
SWEET!! Thanks for stopping by!
When Chevrolet. Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Buick, and Cadillac all offered V-8 engines and all were unique to the respective car.
I liked the film "Crime Story 1986" and like "Classic car" their are format together .
👍
I like the Buicks
my uncle's 59 2dr post coupe was that same green color
Sweet! Good times!!
Wonderful look at the GM 59's. How did Sig manage to drive both his 59's at the same time? I loved that 59 Olds wagon. Who is fortunate enough to own that wonderful car?
GM was actually late to the party with the new long low lean look. The party actually start in 1957 with both Ford and Chrysler Prod. 59' was GM intro to the party. This is good because if Chevy had started in 57' we would not have the Classic 57' Chevy. Not only that, except for Caddy I don't think GM got the low look right until 61 or 62. And in 61 and 62 Chrysler prod. styling took a hit and became mundane with a few exceptions. One exception being the 65' Chrysler Imperial which is absolutely beautiful. The late 60s produced beauties like the Chargers and other B-Body cars. Meanwhile all through the 60s and mid 70s GM put out some real beauties. Ford had some real classics in the late 50s with the 57 Fords, the Tri-5 Tbirds, and lets not forget the Classic early to mid 50 Ford Pickups. And let face it, the 60s were all about performance and all the Big 3 had many classic performance cars in which to choose. I'm glad I was around to see it but just not old enough to drive. Wanna see a classic GM of the LLL Look? Check out the 66' Pontiac Bonneville. In 66' a school mate must have told me 5 times that day that his father just bought a 66' Bonneville. When I saw it I was impressed. At the time we had a 62 Olds 98. It couldn't match the beauty of that Pontiac.
That sounds like a GREAT plan...carry through and DO it! Thanks for stoppin by!
@@4spdBernie Carry through and do what? What plan?
@@matrox youtube message mixup, was intended for another old car friend! My apology and carry on, lol.
At age 14 the 1959 GM cars were my kind of style. I have sort of used the styling of 1959 GM cars as a base year for styling comparison.
Bruce Bryant Yes, I can see this. I don't think Buicks ever improved on the '59 look. But with curved side windows the '67 sure looked pretty! And the last Riviera design is nice, although the back is too long.
The 66-69 Riv is gorgeous.
'59 Buicks look like Bert from the muppets. Just give the headlights some really bushy eyebrows.
Hadn't thought of that... Bert would be a great name for our 3 on the tree '59 LeSabre.
new American cars look the same as the European ones, they are all of the same plastic, all are ugly, overloaded with electronics ... for this engines with a vacuum cleaner that can withstand up to 100,000 kilometers ... old, real American cars were great, beautiful and full of class, well and well-made, beautiful interiors, soft and very durable suspension and racial v8 engines that work without a problem to this day, and most importantly, without stupid electronics .... why did America change the tracks on Chinese szays? and why do people buy it ?!
I agree 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
Americans can't build cars at all. Not in the past and not in the future
@@thewaynex6297 Yeah that's why back in the day they imported them around the world, and were seen as the pinnacle of luxury.
My 59 favorite was the OLDSMOBILES. I had two; a black SUPER 88 and a light blue 98. Both were 4 door flat tops; best cars owned safe, fast, 25 mpg and economical to own. Next best was a 87 LINCOLN TC.
GM's 1959 offerings were directly influenced by Chrysler's 1957 models. GM had introduced all new styling for 1958 so the '59s should have been just face lifted. GM was so shaken by Virgil Exner's magnificent creations, their designs for '59 were trashed and started all over.
WOW! Who belongs to that 1959 Oldsmobile station wagon?
Had one of those brand new back in the day but its like hen's
teeth finding one now- same colors too- we called ours the
"Purple People Eater" because it was 8 passenger.
Gotta love the 50's cars. The mid-late 50's GM cars have always been personal favorites. Although, I think they went a little overboard on the 58 models. In 59, they trimmed them down and toned them down a bit and they didn't look so much like giant bricks on wheels with a load of chrome, and personally, I don't see a whole lot of difference between the GM corporate siblings in 58. They all kind of looked the same, especially the front of the cars. In 59, each car has more distinctive styling, especially on the fins. Can't decide if I like the Chevy batwing design, the Pontiac split fins or the Olds with it's huge swimming pool sized trunk with fins/rocket exhaust styling more than the others. Course you have the iconic Cadillac and the Buicks looked like spaceships.
Reinforce the Bridges!
We had a 59 Olds Wagon-red and white
jim dandy I especially liked their deep steering wheel.
buick was the best styled, 1960 was even better
You must know Mitch in Castro Valley. He's got something like 100-150 '60 Buicks. His favorite 1960 Buick thing to say is, '59s are too old and '61s are too new...
+4spdBernie More like, the 59 is too dramatic, the 61 is too blazay, 60 is JUST right! Best year in my opinion!
the face of the '60 Buick really is much nicer than the '59, and the fins are sleeker.
Uhhh just what was the difference in 59&60 Buicks...I drove them I ran a car salvage business...guess I wouldnt know much..
Me gustan los carros
Thank you!
the worlds greatest.
The thing about cars of that time is the suspension was so "mushy" and the mohair stuffing in the seats smelled bad. Other than that they were like sitting on the soffa in your living room.
BackSeatHump I guess it's personal preference, but I love the boatiness of old car suspensions.
all the cars were comparable in power and quality! some had nicer interior some faster motors, but all great cars with the BATWING stile
Jet age = BIG fins! Thanks for stopping by!
It was hit or miss back then when it comes to car design. In 1959 I think that the Pontiac was a great looking car, the Chevy was pretty nice, and the Caddy was a rolling sculpture that qualified as a work of art. But the Olds was ugly and the Buick was just plain weird, like some sort of Batmobile wannabee. One year later, in 1960, the Caddy was still nice but not quite as eye catching as the '59, the Buick morphed into another rolling work of art much as the Caddy had been a year earlier, the '60 Pontiac was still nice (that year's Catalina was my very first car) but not as interesting as the '59 model had been, the Olds was still butt-ugly only worse, and the Chevy was so similar to the previous year it was hard to tell them apart (I owned one of them also). But all things considered, I miss those good old days when car designers were given free reign to let their imaginations soar and express new concepts every single year. Nowadays you can hardly tell the cars apart in moving traffic, and designs only change once every five years on average.