High Stakes on Wheels: The Great American Car Gamble (1966)

[Music] a way out west where the wind blows free a Gambling Man told A Tale To Me said you never can win on the turn of a card cuz with cards in hand he's in command he can make them jump to beat the band said you never can win on the turn of a card how a lot of folks are out to gamble just the same getting into trouble playing someone else's game and the phonies are always looking around waiting to take this kind cuz they never can win on the turn of a wheel this Gambling Man showed game to me with three Walnut shells and a little old pee but I never could win on that little old PE you pe picking folks who hear this song remember and you can't go wrong that you never can win on that little old pee you see in the Shell game that old pee can seem to be under all three shells but it's an [Music] illusion it really isn't under any of the shells now let's open up another can of piece and look at one that also gives the illusion of fitting under three shells at once the sports car car shell the family Economy Car shell and the high performance car shell so let's lift the shells ourselves and take a look is it under the sports car Shell let's see how they handle with base production equipment Mustang leans when it should hold [Music] level it nose Dives when it should keep its head up it's long on the turn when it should be short it just doesn't have the chassis for this kind of fun and Sport [Music] this is cor's long suit sports car handling with independent rear suspension short turning radius easy steering a firm flat ride a fun car with modern [Music] advancements does a few extra hundred and the optional equipment Kitty make Mustang a high performance sports car Corvette is the only true American sports car that's built in not tacked on it's fact not fancy here Corvette is the only bet is the Mustang P under the family Economy Car shell Mustangs a t for two car a reasonable price must be coupled with reasonable room for passengers and their [Music] luggage Mustangs a two Su [Music] car Chevy 2 has more space for luggage [Music] and so is Corvair for that matter is the Mustang P under the high performance shell watch [Applause] [Music] Mustang is no Highway bomb Chevy 2 with a 327 and the ss396 they're hot yes sir you can't beat the old Shell game cuz if a p tries to be in three places at once it'll end up no [Music] place so why do people their money down on [Music] Mustang maybe a lot of them think they're getting something they're not something you can give them in Spades you've got the sports cars you've got the family economy cars you've got the highway performers a car is one thing people don't want a gamble on they want an honest car no three-way [Music] compromises now all you people who hear this song remember and you won't go wrong that they never can win on the turn of a wheel so find out their needs and fill them all in cuz you've got the cars to let them all win and that's a much better deal than the turn of a wheel that's a much better deal than the turn of a wheel that's a much better deal than the turn of a wheel the legend of the old west dies hard in fact it seems to grow stronger and more vigorous with each passing year but did you ever think much about the realities of the old west did you know that the Pony Express lasted only a few brief months or that Billy the Kid was from Brooklyn did you ever wonder if Texas John Ringo brushed his teeth after every meal or how Wild Bill Hickok got his clothes washed well he he probably washed them in a stream or sent them to a Chinese Laundry however some folks had a Contraption like this they called it a washing machine probably shipped West by train but how did they haul things like that from the station certainly not on Horseback was a matter of fact they used a station wagon that's right the station wagon idea was born in the old west of course the early models only had one or two horsepower and they still had leaf Springs come to think of it so has Plymouth but essentially they were designed to do the same thing as modern station wagons serve as containers for people and cargo here's one of the earliest Horseless station wagons by Ford it clung to the HSE drawn styling as you can see from the exposed row of bolts which held the panels in place today Ford still clings to this car overlooked from the past but we've come a long way from the first word on the subject to the last word the 1966 Caprice custom wagon talk about coachwork just look at how these panels are set into high style bright work moldings the look of Rich grained wood fashioned for today today's station wagon wons don't just go to the station they're faced with today's realities let's start with fuel capacity Ford's been talking larger fuel tanks but on station wagons where added fuel capacity is needed for long distance driving Ford puts on a 20-g tank Plymouth a 22g tank Chevrolet a 24g tank fuel capacity where it counts the ultimate handling test for wagons is under heavy loads these six passengers and their luggage have a combined weight of about 12200 lb let's load them aboard see the way the Plymouth squats bottoms down for Ford and here we have an advantage not available to Plymouth and 4 our optional automatic level control Ford offers a level control option but it's not automatic you have to do this to it [Music] first but with Chevrolet with automatic level control you just load and go Plymouth has no such option look at how Plymouth handles with a full load if you don't believe it try it that'll make a Believer out of you now watch Chevrolet remember too that Chevrolet has wider wheel tread than both Ford and Plymouth for greater stability and a quicker steering ratio for better handling Chevrolet has a roomier front and second seat than either Plymouth or Ford and has far easier access to the rear seat than Plymouth due to a more gradual slant from roof to tailgate see what I mean and in the Ford Wagon sitting in the rear seat is kind of a face Toof face Affair sort of side [Music] saddle compare the third seat in the Caprice custom wagon where you not only sit in Comfort but have room to spread [Music] out in the matter of cargo carrying it is one thing but getting it in is another the Chevrolet load floor is wide enough between the wheel wells to hold a stack of standard 48in wide wall paneling watch this paneling plywood wallboard and the like have to ride flat or suffer possible damage Plymouth with less than 45 in between wheel wells is a poor buy for the do-it-yourselfers that populate our country and Chevrolet can carry more cargo [Music] too for loading convenience tailgate should be close to the ground and not extend too far out and they should provide a flat sturdy platform this is doubly Critical with Ford's double opening tailgates it can sag and get out of alignment fortunately with a little Ingenuity you can trip the hinges and just let it dangle how about that now let's consider protection from dust and weather that traditional pocket of turbulent air causes the dust to Billow up behind which is all right as long as the rear window is closed but look what happens when you ru pull the window down in the [Music] Plymouth Chevrolet slant back rear Design minimizes Air turbulence the result most of the Dust stays outside what about four well they're proud of their built-in air deflectors which are supposed to blow dust and Rain off the rear window chevolet has features advantages and size advantages all across the board Chevrolet offers three full lines to cover the buyers of regular size wagons intermediate wagons and compact economy wagons Chevrolet wagons are built on a 119in wheelbase 115in wheelbase and 110in wheelbase Ford also offers three lines but they are compromise sizes a 119in wheel base a 113in wheel base less of an answer to the intermediate Market than we have and the same 113in wheelbase which is no answer for the compact minded man with a compact garage compact parking space or compact hauling needs this year Ford is building its Falcon wagons on the Fairlane chassis an economy for Ford but not for Ford buyers in Chevy 2 wagons you have major advantages over Falcon wagons lower price higher resale quicker steering ratio shorter turning diameter lighter weight and the most trouble-free and lowest maintenance cost Wagon on the market today all this coupled with Ford's leaving the compact economy market provides a wide open field for you here is one of your major 1966 selling opportunities and your stronger position position in the intermediate Market gives you an additional selling Advantage you have the best answers to the needs of individual wagon buyers go after them in every segment of the market space on Wheels Plus you have it to sell and you have it in the most popular sizes in the big wagons the big Market you have seven models to five for Ford and six for Plymouth chevel also has many advantages over Fairlane and badier roomier seats a quicker manual steering ratio a shorter turning diameter a choice of two six-cylinder engines and basically lower prices and for those buyers who want less space in a trim easy tohandle container you have Chevy 2 while Ford has nothing with its Falcon wagons now sharing a compromise size with V you know wagons have come a long way uh that is Chevrolet wagons all right oh Mr James Bond I believe yes uh no the uh name is Bland James Bland BL a and the you may call me Dr yes uh y es yes oh uh well Dr yes yes I was just doing a little daydreaming behind the wheel yes well what I mean is I'm I'm not really secret agent O7 and 78 at all yes but you see when you step into the tail light zone anything can happen yes Anything could happen and it was about to happen to me as the world's greatest secret agent in the power of the world's greatest villain the Insidious doctor yes now O7 and 78 we're going to put you to the test this Airfield is my secret base where we torture and torment people oh good Heavens no that's against the law automobiles they come we've had this car made especially For You Wing Machine Guns ejection seat and all of that oh no no no we found that those options had a somewhat limited market this time we put all the goodies under the Bonnet there it is the 396 cubic in turbojet V8 special high performance cam shaft four barrel carburetor and large dual exhaust horsepower uh 360 but who counts the interior is in full keeping with your image as a man of action Strat bucket seats center console recess instrument cluster all that sort of thing but you'll be in some pretty fast company now then I would like you to meet your uh competition this is granny tereso she cheats and Tony Tiger but why are you doing this yes you would want to know that wouldn't you so let's tell him he won't be around to blow blow the whistle on us take the difference in selling prices between chel and the uh bopet for instance based on suggested retail prices she quickly pointed out that comparable chel models average up to $230 less than Tempest up to $175 less than f85 and up to $370 less than Buick special as for the Fairlane GT it's already a counterfeit GTO we just need to add the oh now are you ready uh yes but uh where's my girl oh yes how stupid of me you do need a girl to rescue don't you will she do I could see that she would a go- go girl to go with my go go car [Music] we are holding thousands just like her in cages all over the country but that's another of my FY schemes let's get on with this one and we did we faced a series of diabolical tests the SS 396 against GTO and just plain GT each car the going as performance model offered first Tony tiger challenged me to a panic brake [Applause] stop the SS 396 can out stop the GTO but can it outgo the GTO and what about the Fairlane GT and then they lined us up for a quarter mile run the answer the SS 396 can outgun GTO and leave Fair Lane's GT in the dust we could out stop them and outgun them but could we outrun them an all out highspeed run would tell from a standing start to the half mile [Music] [Music] it didn't take long to realize the SS 396 can go with the best of them in fact it's the pace Setter it was ss396 going away now I was ready to make my move I knew that the SS 396 takes a back seat to no one in the uh go go F so I decided to [Music] [Music] go are you going to stand there and just let them cut out on us Dr yes yes what's the matter with you can't you ever say no how could anyone say no to the SS [Music] 396 friends meet sh quiet up Addie and his Deputy Cal bass howy now we're going to let quiet and Carol here test drive a number of Chevrolet and competitive trucks why because we need the honest great shotin highly valued opinion of the two most upstanding citizens in these parts we put a 1966 L Camino and a Rancher at their disposal for the trip out to The Proven grounds I get to drive the Chevy I thought I was going to drive the Chevys who Sheriff around here and don't you forget it but I'll tell you what I do little deputy just to make driving forwards a might less painful what had your eye on my silver belt buckle for a long time ain't you yep so I'm going to give it to you well providing you driving four trucks can outdo Chevrolet in any event well okay but watch it while Qui and Cal Mount up let me take a minute to tell you about the El Camino the hottest Prestige pickup on the road not only pretty but practical Ford claims to have a box as big as ours but is it all usable space you judge for yourself now then let's see who's got the most [Music] go Rancher has 289 cubic in El Camino goes all the way up to 396 cubic in up to 135 more horses than [Applause] Rancher I'll R It to the gring Ground [Music] now I won't say anything about calico dealing off the bottom of the deck but if you don't think an El Camino 396 can outrun Ford's hot dog production Mustang give it a try it's got near 90 more horses only Chevrolet offers a fullsize Prestige pickup with this kind of performance and performance is the 1966 story for Chevy van 2 more performance out of fuel cubes spells greater efficiency in stop Ando City driving with both pot load and full load Calico came up on the short end again cuz the Chevy got about one mile more per gallon in trucking that that up since the Econoline super van weighs about 140 lb more and has a little lower GVW rating Chevy van can handle about 200 lb more payload next up a little experiment in load distribution [Music] Ford has added 18 in of body all at the rear but left the wheel base the same so the sheriff insisted on piling the load at the rear both trucks to see what would happen the result Calico came out on top for the first time wo Nelly [Applause] in fact even with normal load patterns you can end up with poor handling because the weight distribution of the load area itself is out of balance once they redistributed the load the boys ran into another little problem Calico began to wonder if that tacked on load space back there was worth all the trouble Easy Does It Easy Does It Now easy easy easy does it that does it finally 3/4 ton pickups with camper options chevret had a 327 with turbo hydromatic Fords a 352 and a Cruiser mtic the thing about a camper is that it's got to sit handle and run almost like a passenger car are you comfy quiet yep plenty of leg room I can see well everything's handy this sure is a good seat have to be to hold all your beef you'd make that Ford seat sag so much you could hardly see out well all you're going to see is my dust cuz we're going to do an acceleration t go get in your [Music] Ford from a stand and start it's Chevy all the way proof of real ability to keep Pace with passenger car [Applause] traffic little deputy you've been riding drag all day now our last test is riding stability I'm going to take pity on you you going to let me drive the Chevy yep let you see what a good ride feels like what about the belt buckle if you can top me the Buckle's yours Crosswinds can really whip campers around but at looks like smoo salent for calicorn [Music] [Music] [Music] jeez Sheriff I'm sorry now why did you want to go and do that for a Calico well you drew first and I come out on top so how about giving me that Silver Buckle what do you think I'm about to do little oh you're going to give me a belt I Shi