Scroll down to read this post.

 

Please consider supporting my work here at Behind the Black. I keep the website clean from pop-ups and annoying demands. Instead, I depend entirely on my readers to support me. Though this means I am sacrificing some income, it also means that I remain entirely independent from outside pressure. By depending solely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, no one can threaten me with censorship. You don't like what I write, you can simply go elsewhere.

 

You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are five ways of doing so:

 

1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.

 

2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
 

3. A Paypal Donation:

4. A Paypal subscription:


5. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
 
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652

 

You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above. And if you buy the books through the ebookit links, I get a larger cut and I get it sooner.


Driving the same car for 53 years

An evening pause: An American car before Robert McNamara introduced built-in obsolescence.

Hat tip Cotour.

Genesis cover

On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.

 
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.


The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
 

"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News

14 comments

  • Chops

    Awesome !

  • m d mill

    I did not do quite as well as her. My only car was a 1981 honda civic hatchback, which was bought new and my only car for 37 years. I finally had to break down and buy a new 2017 Hyundai Accent hatchback , and let the old girl go.
    Hopefully this vehicle will be as dependable.

  • pzatchok

    Post less four doors are hard to find.

  • hondo

    Whoa! She has more mileage on her car than me! 116K to 114K
    ’02 Ford Explorer XT

  • Kevin R.

    Sweet. But I hope she’s got seat belts.

    Robert, she’s had it since ‘57 – 63 years.

  • wodun

    Not even 2k miles a year? Not certain that qualifies as dependable. I have a car nearing 300,000 miles.

  • wayne

    This is pretty cool, but I as well, hope she added seat-belts somewhere along the line.
    That steering column alone will kill her with blunt force trauma in an accident.

    Q:
    I thought William Knudsen (from GM) was the genius behind yearly model changes? (Which granted, is slightly different than planned-obsolescence.)

    pivoting…..

    “Signal 30”
    – Highway Safety Films 1959-
    https://youtu.be/dn5h-ksO63M
    27:09
    (Lots of authentic gore— I’m surprised YouTube doesn’t age-restrict it.)

  • wayne: Knudsen very well could have come up with yearly model changes. I have read several histories that all cite McNamara with coming up with the terrible idea of planned obsolescence, which is nothing more than lowering the standards of construction so that the vehicles go bad sooner.

    McNamara went on to give us the Vietnam war, badly fought with no end game.

  • wayne

    Mr. Z.–
    Thanks for that. Apparently, Knudsen introduced the ability to do yearly model changes with a relatively brief change-over period.
    Totally agree our auto-industry got very sloppy in the 1960’s/70’s.

    tangentially—
    How to win WW-2 by unleashing private enterprise:

    Mason Lecture Series –
    “Freedom’s Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II”
    Dr. Arthur Herman
    National WW-2 Museum April 2013
    https://youtu.be/QlKOdT0SEOY
    1:17:59

    –wherein, William Knudsen & Henry J. Kaiser get a lot of credit for mobilizing private enterprise to produce for WW-2.

  • commodude

    And McNamara also gave us the light force into Iraq that gave us the mess we have now.

    Some people are just gifts that keep on giving.

  • Call Me Ishmael

    “Signal 30”

    Ah, memories. I was required to watch “Signal 30” in driver’s ed, which would have made me about 15.

  • wayne

    “The Perfect Crime”
    Calvin Company Kansas City, Missouri 1954
    (Directed by Robert Altman)
    https://youtu.be/opLrT9FaknU
    20:25

    (a plea for better roads, sponsored by Caterpillar Tractor Co.)

  • Lee S

    Bob…. Sorry I’m so rubbish at this stuff… But I changed my email again to a Google account… ( Don’t judge me…) I have a couple of decent evening pauses for you, but don’t know where to send them… You hide your address well! ( As so you should!)
    And I hope you are well… Your posting had been brief the last few days…
    Best wishes from your left winger fan in Sweden ;-)

  • eddie willers

    I can understand her loyalty. First car I bought was a ’57 Chevy (210 model, 283ci engine, 3 on the tree with overdrive) that I got in 1967 from the original, fastidious owner. The only real regret I have in life is selling that car!

Readers: the rules for commenting!

 

No registration is required. I welcome all opinions, even those that strongly criticize my commentary.

 

However, name-calling and obscenities will not be tolerated. First time offenders who are new to the site will be warned. Second time offenders or first time offenders who have been here awhile will be suspended for a week. After that, I will ban you. Period.

 

Note also that first time commenters as well as any comment with more than one link will be placed in moderation for my approval. Be patient, I will get to it.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *