Wink has so much class, i did not know how my life would be less luxurious with out a padded vinyl roof when he says so!

Yeah I'm a kid from that era too. We always had the big ol boat cars but when we went camping, we always had the pickup truck to tow with. My parent's last huge 70's car was a 77 Ford LTD II 4 door. It was baby blue with the dark blue velour interior. Now that was 70's fab! lol

I don't get why people are hating on vehicles built during the late 70's, I remember seeing cars like this around all the time back when I was little (I'm born in 1980) and always liked the looks of these cars, at least they have style and personality unlike today's cars.

All midsize GM 4-doors of this era had fixed rear door windows. I have heard two reasons for the major design flaw. One was that without window mechanisms the interior door panels didn't need to be as thick which would allow for additional rear seat space and the other it was done as a cost saving measure. Either way it was a very unpopular move by GM and corrected in the next generation mid size cars.

Leaning Tower of Power. The slant 6 engine was indistrucable!

no padding in the vinyl roof!!!! That's it I'm buying the Dodge!

I actually had a 1978 Ford Granada Ghia in light green jade, dark green green w/ dark green velour interior. It had the 302 V-8 under the hood. It was a very sharp looking car, and a very smooth ride. My dad had an after market cruise control installed, and it got about 22-23 mpg on the highway. The trunk was a bit small though. We bought it from my great-aunt about a week before she died in 1989 for about $500. It had 10,002 original miles on it when purchased by us. Wish I had still had it.

Hey that's Wink Martindale narrating.

The Diplomat happened to be Dodge's step-up series from the Aspen that year.

I miss these Volare/Aspens, er Diplomat, Gran Furys, and later 5th Aves.

Electronically tuned radio? I did not realized you could get something like that in a car back in 78 (lol)

The only police car that scared the crap out of me was the Diplomat. There was just something very mean and businesslike about a Diplomat/ Gran Fury with the light bar whirling and the wigwag headlights. That was scary back then.

You had me sold on the map reading light!

@landyachtfan79 I loved these cars so much, I convinced my parents to trade their 75 AMC Hornet in for a Brown and Cooper Diplomat. It made me feel like we came from a wealthy family. We grew up in an exclusive town and riding around in the Hornet made me feel a bit ashamed. This car was a real step up and I loved going to church in it every Sunday with the family. No offense to Hornet fans, I do love them too. :O)

Wink "Mr. Game Show" Martindale!

Working for a Dodge Dealer at the time, I would say about 85% of these cars were Medallions and I don't ever recall seeing a stick shift Diplomat go thru the dealer. I do remember lots of Stick Shift Aspens though.

I worked for Chrysler couple of times it was a great company to work for

There was a very specific reason those rear door windows did not roll down. GM was in the middle of downsizing its entire line of cars, first with their full size car for the 1977 model year, then their mid size cars for 1978, including the Cutless. In order to preserve rear seat passenger space lost due to downsizing, the engineers carved a deep depression in the door making more room. No space left for a roll down window. Not a good idea, many customers complained and eventually abandoned.

i used to own an 81 lebaron had the 5.2 ltr 2 barrel carbureted 318 v8 automatic 4 door 2 toned light brown and dark brown light brown interior and carpet i could never forget how easy the power steering was on that car you could turn the steering wheel with 1 finger either sitting still or moveing i got the car from my uncle who got it from his uncle who baught the car from my dad who purchased it from a local junk yard . when my dad owned it he once drove it from where we live 90miles 1 way to cleveland ohio on a friday to visit family in cleveland for a weekend and drove around cleveland when we left cleveland we had a lil less than 3/4 tank of gas when we got back home had 1/2 tank of gas left . i say not bad for a carbureted 318

My neighbors had a 1985 Pontiac Bonneville wagon that they had bought brand new (similar to the Olds Cutlass in this video). The thing was so old fashioned even by 1985 standards (it was really 1970's technology). And the rear windows only went down half way, but it was still a cool car. And it was 2 tone blue and silver. The guages were all round, and a lot of fake wood trim. Vinyl bench seats. It probably had the 3.8 V6 in it. I miss those classics.

surfing the web is the way I find great cars. I just bought two days ago, a 1977 Dodge Royal Monaco with the rare Diplomat luxury package......I'd been looking for one since I saw one for the first time in 1977. You can find Lebarons and Diplomats on Ebay all the time.....I would try to find a 1977 or 1978, they are the best years. in my opinion. Sevilles and Monarchs and Granadas are on ebay often as well. Craigs list is another option. Good Luck with your search!

Damn good car, that Diplomat. Blows the Granada and Cutlass out of the water.

Think the showrooms have any leftovers? This man got me sold

In 1990 my dad bought a '76 Granada Ghia. It must have spent most of it's life up north. Was rusted so bad my little cousin used to call it "rustoleum".

My mother bought our brand new Dodge Diplomat in February of 78. 2 weeks after she bought it the tail lights fell off because of the cold. There were only glued on.

Those were UGLIEST Cutlasses Oldsmobile ever made.

I'm still driving my Dodge Mirada, which is the same underneath as Diplomat/Aspen. The Torsion Bar suspension rides smoothly and doesn't bounce. I also have an '81 Imperial but that car is way heaver in the nose. Neither car has ANY wind noise. I worked for a Dodge dealer in the '70s and sold lots of Diplomats. Customers would ooh and aah when they saw the leather interiors o the Diplomat. I was vat dyed imported Corinthian leather and smelled as good as it looked.

Tom looks like he is boasting an Impressive Package of his Own.

I love the velour interior, I wish they bring it back along with the full size sedan. .. they keep making more suv's, y not expand the sedan market!

I like the Hammond B3 organ in the backing music.

In 1977 automatic transmission was standard on Diplomat. Then Sales Manager at the dealer I worked at ordered the 1978's he didn't realize it. The Chrysler rep called and told us. I don't believe any were made with the 4 speed overdrive for the US but many were made for Mexico where the car was called the Dart.

Oh my goodness I had a Diplomat, totally forgot about that car. Lots of fun gremlins. And it must have been a premonition, I'm now a diplomat.

I built the Dodge Diplomats! Chrysler..St. Louis Assembly Plant #1 South Fenton,Missouri "The Good Ole Days"

Gotta love how they pick and choose, going after the Cutlass for not having roll-down windows in back, but then going after the Granada for not being as roomy. On the flip side, the Cutlass was a bit roomier, based on published EPA volumes, while the rear windows on the Granada actually went ALL the way down. Still, considering how bad some cars were by that time, the fact that the M-body went down all but maybe an inch and a half, was pretty impressive. It was a fairly large piece of glass, too.

Good old VHS tape.

the 318 was a proven power plant .

gm added the dreaded giant hatchback to these cars, so they would better compete in racing. the granada and mercury monarch were actually more in competition with the volare and aspen than the diplomat. i always liked the notchback sedans from gm, like the cutlass, malibu and le mans. all were good cars in their own right, and were what was in vogue at the time, just fun to look back, and think wow, this was what our dads had to drive, how lucky are we!

I had a diplomat and a lebaron, old ones like these, second hand. LOVED those cars.

Ford would compare itself to Rolls because apparently the Fords of that era (60's/70's) had a really nice and luxurious ride. I grew up in a Dodge and Plymouth family. My dad always bought and drove Dodge pickups, and mom got a '72 Plymouth Fury wagon brand new and drove it until she bought a Plymouth 1984 Voyager minivan.

These are all great cars, even today. Weren’t Wink Martindale and Tom Kite such cool dudes?

I owned a 76 granada and a 78 mercury monarch ghia and both were great cars, very reliable.

Dodge Diplomat is my favorite. Here in Brasil, Diplomat was a name of one Chevrolet model.

An interesting comparision here - the Diplomat's design was cunning, being based heavily on the Aspen/Volare, complete with identical suspension, wheelbase and interchangable doors, yet having a larger look about it... As for Granada, I recall its basic underbody design could trace its roots back to the1960 Ford Falcon. In Europe a "Ford Granada Ghia" was sold, however it was a different animal altogether. For this reason, the US Granada was exported to Europe in Mercury Monarch form only.

That Diplomat Medallion at the start has me craving a glass of red wine! And I'm a beer guy! 😆😆 I think I'll head to my Dodge dealer now, and see if they have a 4 speed manual overdrive version! That will be fun to drive. 😄

The reason for solid windows on the Malibu class (including Cutlass) is because EPA mpg tests at the time were based on broad weight classes. One of the car magazines in the 1980's did a piece on odd things that were done to 'make weight' which had no basis in real world mileage - only helped the car companies game the tests at the time. One reason EPA estimates for all cars were impossible until testing protocols we're reformed.

Good ole Wink Martindale.

It is also equally amazing the 1987 Buick Grand National platform is based on the 78 Olds Cutlass platform

Dad bought a 4 door diplomat bro-ham lol in 78. Good car, great date car. I was17 what did I know. Back doors did allow for more space.

I love these videos because they take me back way back. Back in time. Sort of like a time warp. They transport me back to the 70's with the narration and especially the background music.

LOVE that Diplomat station wagon!!!

When Ford and Mercury compared their cars to a Rolls, it was for quietness only, and that proved to be true by independent studies. I remember my aunt purchasing a Mercury Marquis, riding in it was like sitting in a vault it was so quiet. Did you know that Rolls used to buy and install Frigidaire auto air conditioners for their cars? Frigidaire was (not sure if it still is), was a subsidiary of GM. GM had the best car a/c units and Rolls knew it.

Been daily driving that diplomat coupe it's more reliable than you think you just gotta know how to drive em

@caholla yep, i have it in the tag line in case anyone searches for Wink on youtube. He also is the voice of a couple other video's from Dodge that I have here.

Back when a padded vinyl roof was hawt. Keep pumping that alternator gauge too.Those leather seats look amazing though.

I really dig Mr. Kite's checkered trousers! 😂😂😂

None of the cars offers the stereo sounds of an 8 Track?

The ol Winkster strikes again

What are you talking about? Sealed beam headlights were already being used in cars for thirty years at least when this commercial was made. 5mph bumpers were required front and back in the 1974 model year and emissions started around 1968. By 1975, catalysts were nearly universally used in the US market. Do some research will ya?

GM could've saved even more money on those windows by fixing them in the *open* position. Glass costs money after all. Plus they could sell accessory side curtains.

1978 Dodge was a powerhouse compared to today.

Still amazed that some people choosed the Granada back in the time,héhéhé

@MrPowertorque I can honestly say, the most frightening Time I ever had driving a car and I'm 110% serious was back in 1980 driving a Ford Fairmont with the 4 cylinder trying to pull into traffic. That car couldn't get out of it's own way. Merging or entering Traffic was and ordeal. I worked for a Car Rental Agency and had to drive them often.

It was not a hatchback, it was called a fast back. The lid opened to a conventional trunk. The back window did not lift up.

The early K cars had non roll down windows too.

Cost. Most cars had idiot lights by the mid 1950's except for Chrysler and Pontiac. My 1997 Bonneville has a full compliment of gauges, including fuel, temperature, oil pressure and charging, plus a tachometer.

Those old diplomats held the road very well

Look kids! it's famous golfer Tom Kite!! *kids go crazy

How GM got away with selling something as horrible as the Cutlass in 1978 is beyond me.

I actually don't use Craig's List but I've heard of people finding great cars there. I know there are some gems out there so it's a good place to look.

These cars were in fact rated to tow with the appropriate towing package. Even today, where nearly all cars are unibody, can tow.

Actual engine power is not mentioned, and there´s a good reason why! These cars were so strangulated, mainly because of bad emission control systems. The Ford "250" was 97 hp! If You bought a Volvo here in Sweden at the same time they got more power out of an engine half that size! (Minus the torque, ok...) The Dodge (With the "super six" as in this clip) had a slightly smaller engine with 110hp. (90hp version if You wanted that.....) Standard for the Olds was a "231" V6 with 105hp

@briabba123 you mean the Oldsmobile right? The Diplomate never had a diesel engine as far as I'm aware. Those Olds Diesels were AWFUL!!!

The first car I ever drove was a 1978 LeBaron Medallion 2 door. Nice car, but it had its problems.

I Liked the oldsmobile the most

Feliz que você gosta!

@Lumotaku What's interesting however is that the four door 1983-87 Cutlass Supreme Brougham sedan with power windows does let you open the windows in the back which was a take that to Dodge of course.

Nice video and very informative about the cars, but good God that music...

Great cars

It couldn't have been worse than any VW Beetle of that era. 0-60 times were about 30 seconds.

Diplomat is more automobile.

Unibody is stronger than body on frame, it is also lighter and makes for a larger interior.

Cool :)

I don't remember ever seeing a Diplomat wagon. Maybe as a kid?

While I find all three cars attractive to look at, I'd much prefer the Dodge Diplomat for its standard features, features that for some reason weren't available on either the Ford Granada Ghia or the Oldsmobile Cutlass Salon Brougham. Among my favourites are unibody frame construction, I like the rear door windows that roll down all the way, why they weren't available on the Oldsmobile Cutlass, which had only a fixed window that doesn't open at all is beyond me. While I'm all for bench seating, I appreciate having an armrest to relax my arm on while I drive. I also appreciate gauges, rather than warning "idiot" lights, which most Ford and GM cars still had. Warning lights are an ok supplement to the gauges, but I think they're a lousy substitute to the gauges. Why anyone would refuse to include proper gauges as standard equipment. It's pathetic. I also like the engine choices in the Diplomat vs either the Granada or the Cutlass. Whether most people admit it or not, I think they would appreciate the option of a station wagon. I've never seen either a Granada or Cutlass in station wagon form. I'm not fond of the vinyl padded roof, but that's me.

Did they really just say that unibody was better than a frame? Are you kidding me?!?!?!

In less then 5 years they would sell the M body as their biggest top of the line model up against downsized Ford's panther and GM b body, the origins of this platform were in the near identical F body which was ironically their compact model

My uncle had one of those. Chrysler employee.

This Is When GM Ford & Chrysler Cared About The Vehicles That They Made & Sold To Their Customers

Ok I am convinced. I am going with the Diplomat. Where do I sign?

In an ironic twist Of fate, it became the Mopar standard for the rest of the Eighties!

When I was a kid I mowed the lawn of a lady who had a red Diplomat Medallion sedan. I always liked that Chrysler metallic red. Not sure what year it was, '77 or '78. It had a 360 and the lady said it would get up and go.

I didn't know they had lock up torque converters in the 70's thats the only cool thing about this car.

@pdennis93 Even as a teen, it use to make me laugh that Ford could say that a Granada was a less expensive alternative to the Mercedes......seriously...but they were also the car company that use to compare the 65 Ford Galaxie to the Rolls Royce in their TV ads.......and 73 LTD's to Jaguars..........

I forgot how red things were back then.

Who the hell would want a manual transmission in one of these? Lol!

@Jac2Mac but what sound do those doors make?

Muito interessante esta propaganda antiga dos automoveis norte americanos, modelo que eu so conheço do cinema vejo agora em detalhes, muito legal!

Back in the day, everyone towed boats and campers with cars. We had a brown Diplomat just like the one in the video. We would go camping and pull our 18 food Wilderness trailer........we could fit the whole family in the car unlike a pick up truck. SUV really didn't exist then as they do today. Chevy had the Suburban and Blazer, the Ramcharger was on the market and Jeep Wagoneer, but that was about it.

I rather liked the Diplomats in the late 1970's. I can't figure out why people bought the Cutlass models where the rear windows didn't open. Imagine if it wasn't equipped with air conditioning?

Love that diplomat