What would you drive in 1975?

Last week, we took a trip down memory lane to ponder what we would drive in 1985 — you know, if we accidentally got left behind after a crazy old man in a flying DeLorean kidnapped us and left us on a porch somewhere with only a five-year-old hoverboard and a Sports Almanac remaining from our lives in 2020.

Seeing as folks seemed to like that little exercise, we decided to try it again, dropping things back a decade to ask "what would you drive in 1975?" Admittedly, this was going to be a lot harder, as the mid-1970s were not exactly a golden era. More like tin, and inevitably just rust. Nevertheless, in post-Watergate America people still needed to pick a car and so shall we. As before, our only rules were, "It has to be a model year 1975" and in terms of price, "Come on, man, just be realistic."

So, put on your finest oversized collar shirt and join us in a verdant field somewhere as we share what we would drive in 1975.

Associate Editor Byron Hurd: I've always been a fan of rotary-powered coupes, and while the FD RX-7 may represent the pinnacle of production Wankel design and performance, the RX-3 (Savanna) was a great-looking car that now holds a ton of nostalgia appeal. I'd drive one of these today, and I definitely would have driven one in '75.

Consumer Editor Jeremy Korzeniewski: I didn't exist in 1975, but, unlike every other member of the Autoblog staff, I do own a vehicle from that year. But as much as I love my 1975 Volkswagen camper van, I wouldn't have bought one brand new. It's a fun playmobile that my family has a great time putting to use, but as a daily driver it's horribly compromised.

So, what to pick? Well, I inherited my automotive tastes from my father, and he bought a brand new orange Pontiac Firebird Esprit with a 350 V8 in 1973 and followed that up with a proper black and gold Trans Am in '77. I'd like to think I'd have made similar choices. My mythical 1975 would be a Trans Am, possibly in black (although the silver one in the image above looks superb, as does the red Firebird Formula with its twin hood scoops), and definitely with the 455 cubic-inch H.O. V8 (a $150 mid-year option) and four-speed manual transmission.

Photo Credit: Flickr user Paul

Senior Editor, Green, John Beltz Snyder: Easy: Volkswagen Beetle. Sure, I’m probably going to kiss my legs goodbye if I get in an accident, but this is a car I’ve wanted almost my entire life, and I still plan on owning one at some point anyway. I’ve had a blast puttering around the Oregon coast in my friend’s old Beetle. If I’m buying this new in 1975, I’m keeping it mostly stock, buying that groovy manual and doing my damnedest to keep it running like the Compleat Idiot that I am. Maybe I’ll decide to convert it to electric after driving it for 30 years. One thing’s certain, I’d find so much joy whenever I saw a kid punch their sibling as I drive on by.

Managing Editor Greg Rasa: I turned 16 in 1975, and though I remember thinking about cars almost constantly, I don't recall thinking about a Ford Bronco much. I didn't know anyone with a Bronco — in those days when you went into the outdoors to hunt or fish, it was usually in a station wagon. My dad was focused on ensuring that my first car was practical, not fast and not cool, and would have called the Bronco, as he later called any SUV, "a truck you can't haul anything in." But today of course we think about the Ford Bronco a lot, as anticipation runs hot for the new Bronco and Bronco Sport.

The starting price was $4,979 in 1975. That's about $24,000 in today's money, and given the current enthusiasm for Broncos, you often see nice examples with an asking price of two or even three times that. So, $4,979, you say? I'll take one in Bold Orange, one in New Lime, and one in Caribbean Turquoise, please.