Classic Ads: 1971 Buick Skylark Custom

In 1971, Buick advertised their cars as "Something to believe in". Apparently believing in your Buick will make you a surfer and more popular with the ladies. Or at least you can trust that it won't rust underneath from being parked on wet sand 30 feet from the ocean.
The '71 Skylark Custom was marketed as a luxurious midsize car at a relatively low price point. Being based on the low-priced Chevelle probably helped keep costs down. The Buicks were available in a variety of trims and powertrain combinations, and offered features not available on other cars in its class. What do you think? Does Buick give better reasons to buy a new car than anybody else?

This ad appeared in the Feb 5, 1971 issue of Life magazine.

Classic Ads: 1971 Volvo 144

This is a pretty famous ad. In 1971 Volvo created this publicity photo by stacking seven Volvo 144 sedans very carefully with what looks like specially designed pallets between them. The point was to demonstrate the roof strength of their cars as evidence both of their safety and durability. Volvo ads of this era love to mention that in their home market of Sweden, Volvos lasted an average of 11 years. Modern American cars, not that long ago, were built to have a useful life of about seven years. It's a testament to Volvo reliability that many of their older models are still running around decades after they were built.

This ad appeared in the January 22, 1971 issue of Life magazine.

Classic Ads: 1971 Mercury Montego

Better ideas make better cars. That's true, and better marketing helps even more. This lovely color ad appeared in the November 27, 1970 issue of Life magazine to advertise the 1971 Montego MX coupe. When your better idea is a slightly less attractive Ford Torino with a beak and a body from 1969, you may be in trouble. I'm not sure if I've ever seen one of these cars, at least not in recent memory.

The fact that the ad is worded as "Mercury makes better cars to buy, rent, or lease" hints that the brand was perhaps on a slow downward spiral a lot longer than most of us thought.