Rare/unusual auto options.

[Chuckyg1]

Years ago I attended s local car show. There was a beautiful '68 Camaro that had an option called the liquid tire again. An aerosol cannister containing a polymer was mounted on both rear tire wells and was activated by a switch on the dash. The owner of the Camaro said it was available on other GM products at the time. I got to wondering what other rare/unusual option were available through the years. I'm talking original manufacture only, not after market add ons. Can you think of any?

[NOBLNG]

21 minutes ago, Chuckyg1 said:

Years ago I attended s local car show. There was a beautiful '68 Camaro that had an option called the liquid tire again. An aerosol cannister containing a polymer was mounted on both rear tire wells and was activated by a switch on the dash. The owner of the Camaro said it was available on other GM products at the time. I got to wondering what other rare/unusual option were available through the years. I'm talking original manufacture only, not after market add ons. Can you think of any?

 

I just had to google this….it’s actually “liquid tire chain”.

https://www.motorious.com/articles/features-3/liquid-tire-chain/

 

[NOBLNG]

This one didn’t last long.

[MeatMan]

30 minutes ago, NOBLNG said:

This one didn’t last long.

 

I drove a Pettibone Cary Lift in another life. It was a heavy duty forklift designed to lift lumber, utility poles, large pipes, etc. and it had four wheel steering. It was fun to do crab walking with, and the turning radius for the size of it was phenomenal.

Btw, the 2024 e-Silverado was supposed to have it. https://www.gm-trucks.com/electric-chevy-silverado-four-wheel-steering/

Edited December 28, 2024 by MeatMan

[Mark]

Probably not many of those Camaros with the "liquid tire chain" option originally installed on the car still exist.  After all, those who would order such a thing probably drove the car in the slop, rusting it into oblivion! 

[StevenGuthmiller]

Don't know how rare or unusual it actually is, but my '69 Pontiac Grand Prix had a "Reverb" unit for the radio mounted in the trunk.

I took it out at some point, and I'm guessing it was disposed of by my dad in one of his garage cleaning tirades.

 

Also, not so much an unusual option, but there are some strange combinations of options.

I remember that my 1958 Cadillac 62 series coupe had power seats, a "Wonderbar" radio and an "Auto-tronic eye" automatic headlight dimmer as standard equipment, but heat was optional. 

 

 

 

Steve

[Bucky]

A few Chrysler products way back when had floor mounted record players. I never actually saw one. I wonder how they kept the records from skipping on rough roads. 

[RSchnell]

There was a Dodge in 1955 called the La Femme. It was geared towards women and came with a purse & raingear that matched the interior of the car. A friend of mine had one in his collection. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dodge_La_Femme

 

[StevenGuthmiller]

19 minutes ago, RSchnell said:

There was a Dodge in 1955 called the La Femme. It was geared towards women and came with a purse & raingear that matched the interior of the car. A friend of mine had one in his collection. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dodge_La_Femme

 

I believe they only offered the "La Femme" for a couple of years, (1955 and '56) and they were only available in a couple of different feminine pastel color combinations.

If memory serves me, they also had a dash mounted tissue dispenser.

 

This is a '56 version.

 

 

 

Steve

Edited December 28, 2024 by StevenGuthmiller

[stitchdup]

I think Rolls Royce have the widest number of unusual options. If you can think of something, no matter how bizarre, they will add it. Whether its being able to have the starlight headliner showing how the sky looked on the night you were born in the current ghosts or the ridiculously ostentatious cars for the Majharasha's and sheiks that can include anything from a falcon roost to a raisable seat for shooting. And most of these could also be ordered on range rovers at one time or another

[webestang]

1 hour ago, Bucky said:

A few Chrysler products way back when had floor mounted record players. I never actually saw one. I wonder how they kept the records from skipping on rough roads. 

Article from the web...........

Today, in-car audio is an essential part of the automotive experience, offering nearly unlimited programming choices from satellite to MP3. But until 1956, American motorists were stuck with but one choice: AM radio.

That’s when, in a major milestone in the evolution of car audio systems, Chrysler unveiled a custom record player in several of its 1956 models called Highway Hi-Fi. The intention was pure, the execution muddled.

Despite working well in high-end models, poor suspension systems in lower-tier vehicles caused records to skip. Additionally, Highway Hi-Fi could play only proprietary 7-inch records, forcing owners to go out and repurchase albums just to play in their car.

[webestang]

Toyota van ice maker....?

 

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a15357460/icemaker-ception-or-that-time-toyota-put-an-icemaker-in-its-refrigerator-look-a-like-van/

[StevenGuthmiller]

1 minute ago, webestang said:

Article from the web...........

Today, in-car audio is an essential part of the automotive experience, offering nearly unlimited programming choices from satellite to MP3. But until 1956, American motorists were stuck with but one choice: AM radio.

That’s when, in a major milestone in the evolution of car audio systems, Chrysler unveiled a custom record player in several of its 1956 models called Highway Hi-Fi. The intention was pure, the execution muddled.

Despite working well in high-end models, poor suspension systems in lower-tier vehicles caused records to skip. Additionally, Highway Hi-Fi could play only proprietary 7-inch records, forcing owners to go out and repurchase albums just to play in their car.

And we look back on 8-tracks as being a PITA!

 

 

 

Steve

[Can-Con]

3 hours ago, StevenGuthmiller said:

And we look back on 8-tracks as being a PITA!

 

 

 

Steve

I never could get 8-tracks to work good ,,I don't smoke.

[stitchdup]

vw beetle

[mr moto]

If you ever owned a turntable or record player that had a 16 rpm setting in addition to the usual 33 and 45 that was for compatibility with Highway Hi-Fi discs. The discs weren't 7" as you can clearly see in the photo. The problem was that Highway Hi-Fi could only play the special 16 rpm records made for it and the selection was very slim!

[mr moto]

How about DeSoto's cigarette dispenser built into the steering wheel? It was offered from around 1940 until sometime in the early 50's.

[Tabbysdaddy]

I seem to remember a story told by Ace about a purse hanger in a customer's car.

[Can-Con]

I have a cassette holder like this for my T/A. original equipment to the car. I don't use it because it doesn't hold enough tapes for the space it takes up.

[jaymcminn]

The Imperial "Mobile Director" package was available for Imperial Coupes in 1967 and 1968. The center console folded out into a desk and the passenger seat could swivel 180 degrees. The theory was that it would be an office on wheels, perfect for the modern executive on the go. In practice they only built 80 or so. The idea would possibly have been more successful if they could have applied it to the sedan but the swivel seat couldn't have been made to work on the sedan platform.

[Chuckyg1]

These are pretty cool. Keep em  coming. Two others come to mind. The mopar "flower  power" vinyl top and the Caddy Biarritz cocktail set.

[Chuckyg1]

Make that the Brougham

[Chuckyg1]

The Oldsmobile transportable radio.

[1972coronet]

The quite expensive 1971-1974 cassette player-recorder-microphone that was an option in the Charger, Super Bee, Demon (1971 only), Dart (1971 only), Satellite, Road Runner , GTX, Barracuda, Duster (1971 only) , and Valiant (1971 only).

 

[sfhess]

8 hours ago, stitchdup said:

I think Rolls Royce have the widest number of unusual options. If you can think of something, no matter how bizarre, they will add it. Whether its being able to have the starlight headliner showing how the sky looked on the night you were born in the current ghosts or the ridiculously ostentatious cars for the Majharasha's and sheiks that can include anything from a falcon roost to a raisable seat for shooting. And most of these could also be ordered on range rovers at one time or another

Not to mention the "Gallery" in the passenger side of the dash, a mini art installation you can customize.