Best Looking Cars For 1978: Beauty Is In The Eye of The Beholder
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- Опубликовано: 29 сен 2023
- The year 1978 was an era of transition in the automotive industry, marked by a blend of classic designs and emerging trends. From sleek and sporty to luxurious and grand, the best-looking cars of 1978 offered a wide range of choices for discerning consumers. In this video, we take a trip down memory lane to revisit some of the most aesthetically pleasing (if you want to call it that) automobiles that graced the roads during this iconic year.
Trying to distinguish between what I find attractive and what I consider cool, especially when it comes to cars from the late '70s and early '80s, is like trying to decide between pizza and tacos at a buffet - both are appealing in their own way!
But hey, I'm quite content with this lineup. Sure, on a different day, I might have come up with a completely different list of snazzy rides, but the cars you’ll see here have a pretty good track record of making the cut.
As always, we're all ears for your comments on these choices. The comments section is right below this video. We’ll be waiting for your witty remarks and wild car opinions!
This is the story of the best looking cars of 1978 
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The 1978 Monte Carlo was a great looking car
It was the era of style! My first car, I bought in 1999, was a 1979 Dodge Magnum GT XE. It was awesome, and drove great. I loved the hideaway headlights.
A friend owned one of those and I thought it was the best looking car ever. White with maroon contrast white faux leather interior T tops. Just a great looking car all around.
You're blind.
Not much of a Mopar guy but WOW! They sure did look mean back in the day. I would not mind owning one now. Hell, I wish I could own every car we have done a video on! $$$ Thanks for watching and commenting everyone! I'm sure you're subscribers? All it takes is one click!!
I bought a new 78 Dodge Magnum, silver with black interior, and totally enjoyed that car. The comfort was amazing, and with a 360, had plenty of power. I sure do miss it.
I was never a Mopar guy but I really did like the Magnum for 78! They look mean!
I had a Continental Mark V & I loved it, it was quite & comfortable & felt like you were floating down the road!!! 👍👍🙂
Thanks for sharing!
Just after graduating school in 1977 my dad bought me a 1978 Trans Am , special edition, gold with wide T-tops. I was 18 and on top of the world. I still own it and as long as I am alive ,I plan to keep it.
My dad has passed away but I still have him too ,in my heart. I love you dad.🙏
Cadillac Seville deserves a spot on the list. Although it was a few years old by then, it set the tone for GM styling for at least a decade including the Caprice which is on the list.
If you remember in 78 the Seville was a slant back
Exciting time for the car industry. I was 13-14 years old in 1978 and members how excited I was too see the new 78 models such as the all new Monte Carlo, Regal, Cutlass Supreme, Grand Prix. Fairmount, Zephry etc.. I really loved the GM products .. but little I knew that many of the 78's cars weren't very good. I can't believe how cars changed every year and a few model years , looked so much different. I miss the exciting car commercials , the new model literature I got in the local newspapers in Oct etc. Today there is no excitement for the new model year and everything is bland, SUV's etc...I loved being a kid in the mid to late 70's !!!!
I had a 78 ltd2 with the starsky and hutch stripe! Also had a 78 town coupe. Miss those cars!
I lived through this era, 16 at the time, and I am glad to see my top pick for the year on your list. The '78 Dodge Magnum. A forgotten-but-fabulous-looking car, made just two years. At the time they said the grille was designed after the famed thirties Cords, and it is plain to see. It is a timeless look. This otherwise was a godawful year for car design, a watershed that marked the end of classic styling cues -- though it took another couple of years for auto styling to reach its nadir. '78 was the year of those damn rectangular headlights! They appeared the year before on some cars, but this was the year we saw them tacked onto pretty much every car on the market. I thought they looked hideous. Rectangles where circles used to be. Until that point, front grilles were always reminscent of the human face -- eyes, nose, mouth. But rectangular headlights spoiled everything. You can see what I mean in this video. Look at that '78 Cordoba! The '77 was one of the best-looking cars of the '70s. The '78, identical except the headlights, looks like a utility vehicle. Even the Trans Am looks a little cheap, compared to the round-headlight '76. (Fascinating to see the Camaro still had round headlights in '78). This was a harbinger of the appallingly ugly boxy styles we saw within the next two years.
So my point? In '78, as today, I found the Magnum to be the only car to wear its rectangular headlights well. Notice how well they were integrated into the front fascia, with a headlamp cover, for a smooth all-round appearance? It was really ahead of its time. The fittings -- the T-tops, the leather upholstery -- they were top-notch. It was really the Dodge version of the Cordoba, but we didn't have that fussy boudoir look that infected so many higher-end cars at the time. If your tastes run to personal-luxury cars, as mine do, the Magnum was as close to a car-guy car you could get in '78. The only others that year that would suit me were the ones that kept their headlamps hidden.
Personally, I liked the rectangular headlights. I thought they were a step into the future, and I was disappointed to find that the Triumph TR 7 didn't have those. But I agree that it worked quite well on the Magnum. The clear hideaway headlight covers, while distinguished seemed kind of unnecessary, unless you considered the aerodynamic effect.
I remember them cars and I liked the Dodge Magnum some were the sport package that looked pretty cool, I was 16 in 1978 graduated in 1979 now I’m 62, I also liked the Dodge Aspen Super Coupe and the Plymouth Volare super coupe.
I'm glad they told us where the comment box was as I otherwise would not have known!
Since we’re taking 1978, two of my favorites we’re the Dodge LIl’ Red Express pickup and the full size Dodge Vans with the fancy paint jobs.
As a 1978 model myself, I approve this list. 😅
lol....Thanks!!!
One of the best channels on RUclips!!! So, so so many memories. I had a 1972 Buick Centurion. Big car. I'd go back to that time in a flash!!! 😢
The cars I so overlooked back then. I would love to see them on the dealer lots now.
1978 Thunderbird should be added too.
My first car was a 1978 Magnum. It had the 360. I loved that car so much until the transmission crapped out. It was a tank though. I thought it looked SO cool.
Camaro and Trans Am will always have a soft spot in my heart! Beautiful pieces of art!
I'm a year off. My parents bought a brand new 1977 Mercury Cougar XR-7. I got to drive it all of the time back then. It looked just like the 1978 Cougar.
I absolutely LOVE the 78 Dodge Magnum!
I'm thrilled you chose the 1978 Trans Am as the #1 best looking car - because I own one! I own it because I think it has great styling. You showed one in Solar Gold, which I always thought looked beautiful on that car. I totally agree with the 1978 Dodge Magnum also, though I never owned one. The 78 Cutlass Supreme and 78 Chevy Caprice - those cars were amazingly popular. The Caprice was a huge improvement over the much less attractive 1975 - 76 styling. The Grand Prix - well, the 73 - 77 was much more attractive. The 78 was ok but so much was lost when it was restyled. However they had to do it as part of downsizing and improving fuel economy.
78 T/A! What a great looking car!!! Thanks! I hope yours're a subscriber!
Yep, that Gold Trans Am has always been a favorite of mine.
The 1978 Trans Am was the car back in the day. Had a friend with one. I got to drive it a few times. His was silver.
Bad ass cars in the day!
Owned a 1979 Dodge Magnum, still dream about it today.
Great looking cars!
I had a Cordoba and loved it.
Never forget my parents pulling up in a 78 Pontiac Catalina. I was obsessed with the taillight design. It was mint metallic green and was just a notch above it's sister GM cars in looks.
Dude, that was my first car!!!! Crazy mention 👍😳😜
Ha, my exact same story, same car, same color! 2 door was stunning and now of course very expensive.
Was 15 in 1978 and I remember all of those cars! Great picks for your list and I thought the epic Trans Am was so so cool!!!
Loved most to those cars!!!
I also had a 79 Magnum. I loved the way it looked. Too bad it suffered from the malaise of late 70's performance because it had a hard time getting out of its own way. Did I mention that I loved the way it looked?
Awesome looking car!
But if you didn't have emissions inspections, all the go fast parts would fit.
My dad had a 78 Cutlass. I had a 78 Firebird. My brother had a 77 Trans Am
To me, the 1978 Chevrolet Corvette should've been number one on the list. That was the very best looking Corvette ever made.
1978 Ford Thunderbird Diamond Jubilee is diamond Blue would be my pick in 78. Great video
I had a Dodge Magnum , loved it wish I still had it.
Here's a few imported picks for 1978 that I have long been fond of...
Volkswagen Scirocco - First generation Giugiaro styling looked great then, still looks great now.
Ford Europe Capri Mk II - Ford's "Sexy European" always looked great, a proper sporting coupe for the masses.
Porsche 928 - Looked absolutely futuristic when introduced in 78, still looks gorgeous all these years later.
Ford Australia Falcon XC - Looked good as a four door, looked exceptional as a coupe. Cobra and Alan Moffat editions are killer.
Nissan/Datsun 280Z - Last year of the original Fairlady Z bodystyle, the original and the best looking.
Mazda RX7 - The latest of Mazda's rotary rockets. It was less expensive yet still sporting and great on the eyes.
Ford Europe Granada Mk II - This car looked fantastic when new and still looks sharp today.
Renault 5 Gordini - Weirdly appealing French supermini with sporting asperations, sadly never sold in the USA (where I live).
Stutz Blackhawk - Absolutely bonkers luxury car styled by Virgil Exner of Chrysler fame. Sinatra and Elvis each had one!
Awesome lineups!
@@ThisOldCarChannel Thank you Boca Bros! You make some really fun videos, and I enjoy them immensely. Thank you for your efforts!
I just realized that I put the Stutz on a list of imports... oops. They were made in the USA using Pontiac chassis. They do, however, look like they could have been imported from the Twilight Zone...
My parents bought one brand new on July 8, 1977. We found it the say before but the dealership was closing for the night so we had to wait til the next day. What makes this interesting is that we could have bought it on 07/07/77 had we found it an hour or so earlier. 400 V-8, brown with Chamois vinyl top. Not the more common light Chamois, but the dark Chamois that is rarely seen. Loved that car, and I wish I still had it. With its 26.5 gallon gas tank and $6.00 per gallon for gas, currently in California would make it quite a bit more expensive than the 50 cent per gallon we paid in 1977.
Saw a Stutz Blackhawk in a Tennessee wrecking yard in 1995. They wanted $6000.00 for it. There was nothing wrong with it. I have no idea why ot was even there. It needed a good cleaning that's all o remember.
My brother had a 1977 Mercury Cougar XR7. It was absolutely beautiful!
So did I...a beautiful car!! 👍🎯
ove the videos, cheers from Tillsonburg Ontario Canada, and we called parking lights "Bitchin' Lights". Always too cool in a 69 Javein!!! Cheers everyone!
I loved my 1978 Chrysler Cordoba.
Had a 79 Lincoln mark v,78 Camaro, 77 firebird,78 challenger, and a 77 f150. The 78 challenger will always hold a special place in my heart because I dated my wife and used to pick her up from high school in it. It handled well,had nice options,and for a 2.6 Mitsubishi 5spd its boogie,up to about 110mph
77-78 Ford Pinto with the all-glass hatch and the sporty front end was a good looking car. I had one.
Good list for American cars of 78. I agree that the T/A was the best looking car of the time. For many years I looked for a Dodge Magnum that was in good shape and untouched. I couldn't find 1. I settled on a 79 Chrysler 300, which looked much like the 78 Cordoba with all its luxury, but gave 1 all the HD police parts to make it a real GT car. I still have it.
So many good looking cars back then. Each with their own style. Not all cars look the same! Boring! Thanks for watching. Subscriber!
@@ThisOldCarChannel Some of those 70s cars were style themed for certain, but nowdays, if not for the huge badges, I cannot tell 1 SUV, crossover etc from the next!
I remember seeing a old lady driving a 78 cutless mint green paint with white and green interior growing up and i love it
I turned 13 in 1975 and was eagerly awaiting my driver's license in a few years. The late 70s cars are some of the best looking, if not the best made - they did have their issues, in my opinion. I loved the Lincoln Continental Town Car, a family friend had one.
My car from 1978 in the 1990's was a Cadillac Fleetwood limousine, black with grey upholstery. All stock - no pimping, no boomerang.
Beautifull car. It still exists all stock.
Truth be told, all american cars from late 60s till end of 70s were awesome. I grew up with those cars and they still have a very special place in my heart.
The 78 2 door Buick park Avenue Electra, in particular the silver color. Such luxury and very appealing to the eye.
Loved the Electra! Thanks for watching! We're on a SUBSCRIBER BLITZ. We can't tell if you are a subscribers or not. If you're not, can you please help us out by hitting the like and subscribe button. We're trying to reach 100,000 subscribers in the next 6 months!
I currently own a 1977 Mercury Cougar XR-7. I've had it repainted, a little work done to spruce up the motor and a few other customizations to make it look and sound better! I like it because it brings nostalgia from the "good old days" and it's not something you see often anymore!😊
Very cool!
I've got the 77 impala 4door red on red , first year of the box then they changed the headlight area and taillights in 78 I love these old big cars
Had an 79 Cougar and loved it. Your list was spot on
Great list, beautiful cars and I would ❤ to have any one of them right now 😊
Now people are gonna start talking about Dodge Magnums after I just sold my ‘79 Magnum GT!
Hard to beat the Ford T-Bird with the chrome wrap around roof
Town Landau yes!
The T-Bird was the only car, ever, that looked good with opera windows.
Got my driver's license in '78. The '78 Firebird Trans Am was at the top of my list then and still is. Too bad they ruined the iconic grill in the '79 model.
Owned 2 Magnuns and a 76 Cordoba.The Magnum was the best looking IMHO
I have had 2 '78 Impala's and a '78 Grand Prix.
Now I drive a '80 Delta 88 Royale.
V8 rulezzzz
Great job guys. Keep up the good work!
Thanks! Subscriber? We can't tell these days!
@@ThisOldCarChannel yup subscriber here! Lol! I know the feeling. When I get a new subscriber to my channel I find out years later!! 😂 lolol
All of them were really good cars, but I couldn't argue with you about the 78 Pontiac Firebird Trans AM. I was a kid but I loved cars, and those Trans AMs blew me away! They even put it in Smokey and the Bandit and even Rocky II had to show it... 😊
In 1978 I bought an AMC Concord D/L it wasn't the most exciting car but I loved it.
That's what counts!
Always a lover of Great American 🇺🇸 LAND YACHTS. 78 was the grand finale for Lincoln and Full size Chrysler. Once owned a 78 Town Coupe, large and definitely in charge of the road! Also owned a 77 Monte Carlo and enjoyed it, but 78 downsized version was a disappointment. Love the OTT excessive chromed luxury of the monumental LAND YACHTS! 🏆 😎
My Aunt bought the 78 Monte Carlo. Always thought it looked like a grasshopper. Thanks for watching! We're on a SUBSCRIBER BLITZ. We can't tell if you are a subscribers or not. If you're not, can you please help us out by hitting the like and subscribe button. We're trying to reach 100,000 subscribers in the next 6 months!
My grandmother had a 1979 Chrysler Cordoba which was identical to number 10.
My parents also had a ‘79 Cordoba, there’s was white. I can remember my dad playing the 8 track tapes over and over. 😂
@@VoxRox1 the same color as my grandmother's Cordoba
You forgot the 1978 NOVA Custom/Concourse. It was the best looking Nova and car for that year.
1979 Olds Cutlass was my 1st car, got it in 1981! 🤩🚗
Of course I'm a bit bias, but I was surprised that there were not any AMC's on the list. The AMX was based on the Concord Hatchback that year, and especially in the silver or black paint scheme, it was quite sharp!
I'm a HUGE AMC fan, but after producing the 68-70 AMX, every other attempt was really and insult to the name. I had a 69, and it was dangerously fast off the line. I'd sure love to turn back the clock and keep that one!
My first new car was a 78 Ford Pinto Cruising Wagon that I still own and drive! Best looking....well it's very unique!
Very cool!
The videos keep getting more interesting by the week. I agree with several models on the list: Mercury Cougar, Pontiac Grand Prix and Firebird, Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme, Lincoln Mark V, and Chevrolet Caprice. You should have included all the B Bodies and C Bodies sand G Bodies of that era. I personally think they all got better looking with the styling updates in 1980-1981. GM fixed the things that looked awkward styling wise. The styling got more streamline with lower hoods and high trunks. The details got sorted out too. You miss cars like that in 2023 because everything is a suv or crossover.
Thanks for the feedback Olds98!
Preferred the 76-77 Cordoba. Love the Cougars as well as the Thunderbirds from that era
My friend worked at the Chrysler plant in St. Louis and bought a new 76-77 Cordoba. The round headlights were much more attractive. It was beautiful inside and out.
The Monte Carlo deserves honorable mention on the list and I would swap a 78 T-Bird for the cougar and it would be a fairly perfect list. I owned a 78 Cutlass and a few other 78's that didn't make the list, including 2 Monte's, a Sport Fury and a T-Bird. I'm sure I'm forgetting one or two more. The 78 T/A with the 400 4 speed is one of my bucket list cars along with an Alpine white Challenger RT stripe delete 440 4 speed.
Thanks! Same here on the swap. Thanks for watching! Subscriber?
@@ThisOldCarChannel Been subscribed for over a year with this account and was subscribed with my old account for a few years
I owned a '78 Grand Prix and a '78 Corvette. Both wonderful cars.
Great vid!!! 👍👍
Glad you liked it!
I was. Teenager in the 70s and I loved corvettes and Lincoln’s.
My graduation present was a 77 Cougar XR7 7, LOVED THATcar
I was so jacked when the Dodge Magnum was introduced because The King (Richard Petty) came back to Dodge for this very car. It was so natural for him to be in a MOPAR. Sadly, the car was a dog and the King went back to GM where he won the 1979 Daytona 500 in an Oldsmobile Cutlass in one of the most memorable 500’s in the race’s history.
True! Thanks for your comment!
But it looked sooo good.
Petty was in a charger in 77 not a gm product. Petty ran the magnum and it was a dog then in mid season he went to chevy. When the mirada came out petty tried it out at daytona but it was worse than the magnum so the went home and cut the mirada body off and put a buick body on the same chassis and won the 81 daytona 500.
Great show Boca ! My favorites are the Caprice Classic , Cordoba , Lincoln Mark 5 and Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme . I wish the Ford Thunderbird was on your list umm next time .
T-bird....Should have added! Thanks. We hope you're a subscriber.
@@ThisOldCarChannel Most definitely I am a subscriber ! I love my oldies just like you do .
I cannot argue with your list! I did like my 1977 Mercury Cougar XR7 better than any of the other '70s model years for the Cougar.
My very 1st car I owned was a 78 Dodge Magnum XE with a 360. I bought it when I was 15 for $1300 !!! A couple other honorable mentions would have to be....
78 Dodge Aspen R/T & 78 Plymouth Road Runner and especially the Super Coupe versions !!! I always wanted one.
Plus of course the 78 Lil' Red Express Truck/ Warlock !!! Fastest vehicle that year !!!
I bought a new 1978 Firebird and I agree with your choice as number 1 that year. It was very cool looking at the time.
Thanks for watching!
My favorite 1978 Lincoln Continental Mark V
I had that Midnight Blue Cougar XR7. That was one of my favorite old cars. I refer to it as "the Beast"
Had a 78 Chevette in 80, a 78 Grand LeMans in 81. Mid size family sedan, just for me. My dad won it playing cards. Loser got my Chevette. Good enough for any twenty year old student to fill with friends and drive back and forth to uni, work, anything. Buick Regal, Chevrolet Monte Carlo, Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme, Pontiac Bonneville, Pontiac Le Mans, Chevrolet Malibu, Chevrolet El Camino, Oldsmobile Cutlass, were all badge engineered and super easy to find parts for.
Awesome! Thanks for watching!! Hope your a subscriber?
@@ThisOldCarChannel I've subscribed for about two years. I think. Barely a thousand whenever. Well done.
The 78 T/A started my obsession with T/As I have owned a number of examples from 2nd gen thru 4th gen. I never had a first gen Firebird still on the bucket list.
Love em! Thanks for watching. We hope you're a subsciber!
I had a 78 Cutlass Supreme in Camel Brown w/ TTops
Late 70s lunkin boats were the cats pajamas but nothing tops the lugshurry of passing the grey pupon in a early 80s landow roofed Crysler LaBarron. Plus with a 90hp four banger doing 0-60 in just over 100 seconds its also a sleeper.
I agree I think the Cadillac 76 Seville was one if the most elegant beautiful car too,Idk I the 1978 was on the same style or not
1978 Cadillac coupe deville 💯 deserves to be on this list
I have a 1978 corvette silver Edition. One of the best looking Corvette ❤❤
My first new car purchase was a '78 Malibu in Golden Brown Metallic with a cream vinyl landau top. Still think that was a beautiful car, all new for that year.
Lincoln Mark 5 rules I had to I love them
I had a 1979 Firebird Formula. Pontiac’s Firebird line was iconic in style and grace
I agree! I had a 1978 Trans Am and took it to another level with the 1979 Anniversary Bird and color scheme with Porsche Turbo-style fender flares.
My first car was a 1978 Buick Century. Not a bit surprised that’s not on this list 😂
Owned a 78 Cougar with the 351 V8 and floor shifter. It was a great car
my first new car 1978 Cutlass Supreme,,,, great looking car best ever
My favorite has always been the Trans Am ever since Smokey & the Bandit was filmed around my hometown area & I had one later on in 1989! My junior year of Hi Skool 1983 I had a '78 Ttop Z28! The other best looking car in 1978 for me was a truck, the fastest vehicle that year the Dodge Lil Red Express/Warlock ✌💖☮
Owed a 1978 Macho TA with a 400 and 4 Speed Hurst! Wicked fast car!
I had a 78 cutless loved that car
I might be purchasing a 79 coupe deville this spring up in wiarton Ontario Canada. From the 2nd owner. I know that we are taking about the 78s but, I just thought I would mention it.
Yeah...I remember our neighbors who's dad had money. He would buy a Cadillac every two years. He was a traveling salesman so I think the company would help pay for it. A 1979 Coupe Deville is that last he bought before they moved to the nice Country Club area of Corpus Christi. We moved to the neighborhood in 1974. A new Cadillac and new K5 Blazer every two years! lol Thanks for watching
The 1978 GM B-Body, G-Body, F-Body and Corvette were the best looking cars of the decade. I'm biased as a GM fan. But I still think I'm right
I was 29 years old and bought a 79 Pontiac grand free black with the honeycomb wheels with a landale top with the sun roof and had to tan oppose you with the special bucket seats it was $9800 Kept it for a year and traded it in on a 79 cup Deville Right now in the garage is an 84 Buick Riviera convertible and a 2020 Cadillac CT4V
Thank you ❤
Thanks for watching and supporting our channel :)
I had a 79 Caprice. Best car I ever owned
78 Buick LaSabre Coupe... That's what my Wife had.😎
my mother had a 78 Cutlass ,should make top ugliest it was 4 door salon , dad had 78 Mark it was pretty cool
The black Trans-Am with the chicken on the hood is the coolest looking car ever built, was mainly all show no go, but that is easily fixed.
I think the Chevrolet Malibu Classic should be on this list.