Revving Up Sales: The Showmanship of Chevrolet's 1966 Impact

[Music] a [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] d [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] h m [Music] [Music] this is the way they settle things in the old west with Sudden Impact but this isn't 1866 it's uh 1966 and I'll tell you something you separate fact from fancy and you'll find far more impact in the modern world than back in the days of wooden sidewalks and watering troughs back then Jenny Lind appearing at the opera house was a once in a-lifetime Affair Hamlin's wizard oil a miracle drug cures all pains in man or beast the General Store was the focal point of community activity but this is another Century entertainment television radio Motion Pictures stage shows they all compete for our attention Miracle drugs why the list is endless and they do work miracles the cracker barell has given way to the supermarket the stage coach to the jetliner we're surrounded by a sea of wonderful products to buy each made more appealing by modern merchandising and salesmanship and that's the point in a world crammed with impact your voice has to be heard over all others and so welcome to impact 66 our theme put more impact into our selling and we're here to explore ways to suck home an idea an advantage a feature not just knowing an advantage not just saying it but putting genuine enthusiasm and fire into it smacking it home so it stays remembered making something come alive and be important that's why today in this once a year merchandising rally we use the big screen we move around we dig under sheet metal and generalities to get at the heart of what we have to sell impact 66 brings you facts demonstrations ammunition for each of your five lines of cars and full line of trucks your products are loaded with impact but you have to pull the trigger [Applause] watch just like that and you know something your prospects expect and want you to use Showmanship and enthusiasm when you sell oh speaking of Showmanship let's see the kind of impact automobile stunt drivers put into their [Music] exhibitions this is Chrissy Kaki speaking for Chevrolet and your line of 66 products the place the GM Proving Grounds Milford Michigan the event the 1966 Thriller of the Year demonstration program the top cars in the industry driven by the best drivers in the business Joey Chitwood and his hell drivers plus the drivers from The Proving Grounds and now a pulse quickening demonstration of precision control watch how builtin Chevy handling teams up with Split Second timing you can almost hear those bumpers click it's that [Music] close that is real ride control how does your 396 cubic inch power plant stack up against the 409 well let's pit them in A4 mile drag from a standing start the winner your 396 the top speed 92 and 1110 mph that's moving and so is this now a punishing test of transmission and drive components the rock cycle a real torture test [Music] here's a look at the turbo Titan 3 a multi-fuel turbine engine a six-speed automatic transmission astronaut seats twin dial steering in place of a steering wheel the truck of the future operational today what happens when a front tire blows at 90 M hour let's find out out perfect control basic buil-in stability how fast can the sizzling ss396 go with 360 horses in a 1/4 Mile from a standing start the top speed 103 and 510 mph next Corvette flat out on a high-speed run here it comes and there it goes top speed 151 and 3/10 mph that's moving next up a rugged test of suspension frame and Chassis here goes the toughest chassis design in Chevrolet's history yes sir you're 1966 chevret is in action Showmanship on Wheels and salesmanship too all through the year and all over the country Chevrolet's travel the thrill show circuit creating a strong image of rugged performance these are the cars you're selling today 66 models right off the showroom floor and now on signal from Joey Chitwood it's action drivers to their cars in true Indianapolis tradition gentlemen start your engines true Precision Artistry in highspeed action the ultimate in controls they utilize the full width length of the stretch scissoring high side low and low side high as high speed Touch and Go striking elevations changing sequence over elevations 1 2 and three high and low low and high an occasional cap of the r and frequent first from those high performance engines utilizing both for control and [Applause] safety now taking a car up on two wheels and holding holding holding maintaining that point of balance now the X1 space rocket propulsion shot tolerance is here involved in the inch and a half on either side as they enter the breach area of the X12 Joey junor behind the wheel makes his way around the Raceway that critical moment approaches the breach area he's in slamming down the sights the sounds that Spell excitement thrill shows that feature 1966 je a thrill shows that keep selling all year long [Music] that's quite a show isn't it and a lot more people are going to see the joy Chitwood thrill show this year than ever before about 10 million pairs of eyes will see it because it's going to be shown as an action-packed short subject on big Motion Picture screens across the country it's starting its run right now at first run theaters now this kind of action is one way to present 1966 Chevrolets with impact of course you're not about to give your prospects a demo ride on two wheels or take a few ramp jumps but isn't it true that you want your prospects to feel the full impact of your product now let's take an Excursion behind the scenes and see the length to which advertising men go to put impact into your television commercials here at PT makon Georgia a brand new Chevrolet commercial is being filmed a crew of 26 men and literally tons of equipment have been brought in the crew will labor for eight solid days to shoot two minutes of film The Script calls for a Chevrolet to be assembled right before your eyes without a human hand touching it can do yes these fellas can do practically anything parts of a specially prepared car are suspended on invisible wires and the car is pulled apart heart piece by piece later the Motion Picture film will be run backwards so the parts appear to fly onto the car as you'll see in a moment the script also calls for parts of the car to come flying off a tree while still others are to rise from the ocean oh those script writers for the final scene an explosives expert has been brought in to plant charges of dynamite throughout another specially prepared car all set camera is rolling higher now let's look at it as it was recently seen on Bonanza in 23 million American Homes what you're watching now is the beginning the beginning of one of the most exciting things that will happen this year the beginning of a 1966 Chevrolet [Music] and there it is a lively impact filled commercial that will have plenty of people wondering how it was done but you know the secret 26 men working eight solid days to make it well that sure seems like going to a lot of trouble just for 2 minutes on TV doesn't it but what better way to dramatize all of the exciting elements that are fused together to make a 1966 Chevrolet as a Salesman I'm sure you go to a lot of trouble too digging into all of the many features you have so that you can blend the right combination of them together into a sale hours of work focused right down into minutes of selling but that's what it takes today now let's get back to some of those product features that you have to sell how much digging have you done under the hood are you in a position to do full Justice to a power plant as advanced as efficient as revolutionary as the 396 do you have enough facts to fuse together a portrait of power that will sell watch and here it is the sensation making 396 cubic in Turbo Jet V8 Chevrolet's big engine for 1966 the biggest thing about it is an ingenious new design of exhaust and intake valve ports that really does something for engine breathing breathing is just as important to an engine as it is to a person the easier it breathes the more power pep and economy you're going to have in older type engines like this one breathing is restricted by sharp bends in the manifold passageways and in the design of the valves but in the 396 Chevrolet's new aircraft type valve system and special Port design produce straighter passageways making it easier for the fuel mixture to get in the exhaust gases to get out everything about this engine contributes to its greater efficiency the way the valve stems protrude from the head at precisely calculated angles which is the reason they call it a porcupine head the bigger air filter 40% more area it's a terrific engine and it's available in both 396 and 427 cubic in displacement and here's something else your special high performance engines carry the same Chevrolet warranty as your other Chevrolet engines while Fords and plymouths have only a limited warranty your performance engines cost less than Ford engines of comparable Power and Equipment your engines have the axles to go with them to get the most out of them this is the most advanced engine offered in any production line automobile this year so now let's see it in the only way that an engine should be seen in action [Applause] so open up your mind to the full opportunity before you and sell Power in 66 sell the new six the smoothest operating six you ever saw sell the 283 V8 the most popular V8 ever [Applause] built sell the 327 more power this year sell that Sensational new deep breathing 396 sell it in all three blazing power options 325 to 375 horsepower sell the red hot power punching 427 the street version at 390 horsepower and the high performance 427 with solid lifters at 425 horsepower in 1966 your big story is engines demonstrate and sell sell a full range of Chevrolet power and performance in 1966 yes it whatever people want under the hood you can give it to them from allout economy to allout Performance you have the finest engine lineup in the industry now let's dig a little deeper into some of the many product advantages you have in Chevrolet cars and trucks over competition but first a word about the things that you're about to see they're all based on Cold Fact fact turned up by extensive product testing we brought a number of cars and trucks of all makes and models to the desert Proving Grounds in Mesa Arizona our report to you is based strictly on what the engineers uncovered but instead of confining ourselves to Raw facts and figures we're going to give them to you with a little Showmanship to add impact so with Superstition Mountain and its Fable of the Lost Dutchman gold mine looming up out of the desert let's start off with another Fable one that's been going around recently a fable about a car someone else's car here's a little song about it