Mistake of '58?

For my taste in the 50's each car company had their greatest styling year and their worst.  1955 was a year when the big 3 were in a 3 way tie for decent styling.  1956 was Fords.  1957 GMC. 1958 Chrysler.  1959 was nobodies styling look good across their line.  I would say '56 & '57 were the best styling years for all the American cars.

For my taste, each year of the 1950's:

1950 Hudson Commodore straight flat head 8 cylinder 2 door sedan

1951 Ford Victoria flat head V8 2 door hard top 

1952 Chevrolet OHV inline six 2 door sedan

1953 Hudson Hornet Hollywood flat head inline six  2 door hardtop

1954 Mercury Montery Sun Valley  ohv V8 2 door hard top

1955 Two way tie:

        Chevrolet Bel Air ohv V8 2 door convertible 

        Ford Crown Victoria ohv V8 2 door coupe

1956 Two way tie:

        Lincoln Premiere ohv V8 2 door hardtop

        Mercury Montclair ohv V8 2 door hardtop

1957 4 way tie:

        Cadillac Series 62 ohv V8 2 door convertible  

        Thunderbird ohv V8 two seat

        Pontiac Bonneville ohv V8 convertible

        DeSoto Adventurer ohv V8 2 door hardtop

1958 Two way tie:

        DeSoto Adventurer ohv V8 2 door hardtop

        Dodge Royal Lancer ohv V8 2 door hardtop

1959 Dodge Royal Lancer ohv V8 2 door hardtop

1960 Buick Electra 225 ohv V8 convertible

61 Ford Galaxie

     Mercury Montery 

     Pontiac Bonneville

62 Cadillac Coupe DeVille

     Oldsmobile Starfire

     Chevy Corvette

     Chrysler 300 H

Went to '62 to get a Buick & Chrysler & Vette & Olds. which makes most of the big 3 divisions, except Plymouth, Continental, Imperial.

Very interesting JK. Certainly some creative but ugly designs.  I disliked the 1958 GMs but to me the 1959s were even worse.  It might have worked for many, but this is when I got more involved with European designs.

Well, I may be in the minority, but to my eyes, the General Motor Chevy's, Pontiac's, Oldsmobile's, Buick's, and Cadillac's for 1958 are the best looking machines of the Big Three car company's.  I thought each brand was tasteful and decorated very well.  

The '58 Chevrolet, Pontiac and Cadillac are gorgeous, granted the '58 Buick and Oldsmobile are a bit extreme. Bottom line I love them all.

@georgeschire I agree when it comes to the Chevys and Pontiacs. The Cadillac is acceptable but the Buicks and Oldsmobiles...Never.

Posted by: @bob-jackman

@georgeschire I agree when it comes to the Chevys and Pontiacs. The Cadillac is acceptable but the Buicks and Oldsmobiles...Never.

For General Motors '58's, I thought the Chevy was the standout of the ladder.  Next I liked the Oldsmobile, followed by Pontiac.  Buick was okay and the Cadillac I thought was the dog of the group.  After its beautiful '56 Caddy, the '57 went south and the '58 went even farther south.  JMO.  

I thought the '58 Chevy Impala and Pontiac Parisienne were beautiful cars, with the Cadillac right up there as well (prefer the single light '57).  The Olds and Buick were grotesque looking to me then but now, although I still find them unattractive, I enjoy seeing them for the design history they represent.

A very interesting video, John. Although I disagree with a lot of what (or the way) he says things, I think the recession of (essentially) 1958 tended to play more of a role in automobile downturn that year than perhaps anything. I like all the designs from the manufacturers that year, including the "GM Five for '58".

@mikedetorrice, I agree. He seems to have missed the impact of that recession. But then, most of this type of video is based on personal opinion. I don't know that there were a whole lot of people running around saying, "Those cars are ugly!" They were new and exciting offerings.

Good point, John.