PERSONAL LUXURY COUPE CONTEMPORARIES

CHEVY MONTE CARLO 1973-’77 Sharing its platform with the Grand Prix, the Buick Century Regal Coupe and fourth-generation Oldsmobile Cutlass, this second incarnation of the Monte Carlo set new records for Chevrolet, with 250,000 cars sold in the first year alone. It featured bodyon-frame construction, a double-skinned ‘colonnade’ roof, full coil-sprung suspension and V8 engines from 145bhp to 235bhp, almost always with Turbo-Hydramatic transmission. Yearly styling changes made it progressively slower and uglier; the downsized 1978 Monte Carlo was 15in shorter and 800lb lighter.

AMC MATADOR 1974-’76 Dick Teague’s bug-eyed Matador was restyled for 1974 and continued the trend for ‘designer series’ versions: for $299 you could have an Oleg Cassini Matador with orange carpets and black velour trim, while choosing between a selection of anaemic straight-sixes, 304 and 306cu in V8s, and a big-block 401 good for 235bhp, 12 secs to 60mph and 11mpg.

CHRYSLER CORDOBA 1975-’79 Chrysler Corp had vowed never to build a junior edition of its senior brand, but relented with the mid-sized Cordoba, which was originally meant to be launched as a Dodge. Famously advertised by Mexican film star Ricardo Montalbán, its ‘rich Corinthian leather’ was about as real as his hair. The Cordoba was powered by 5.9- and 6.6-litre V8s, and pretty much kept Chrysler alive in the late ’70s, selling 150,000 examples in 1975 alone.

FORD ELITE 1974-’76 The Elite was built to tackle the wildly successful Monte Carlo, and marketed as a ‘Thunderbird-inspired’ mid-sized luxury coupe. It was based on the Mercury XR7, with the usual Landau roof and opera window features. All V8s, from 5.7 to 7.5 litres – the latter seemingly just a way of burning fuel more quickly rather than gaining performance. Gruesome to look at and little better to drive: even a fresh-faced Tom Selleck’s ads could persuade ‘only’ 366,000 people to buy an Elite before it fell victim to downsizing across Ford’s range.

MERCURY MONARCH GHIA COUPE 1975-’80 A posh version of Ford’s ’75 Granada, the Mercury Monarch was an early downsizing effort to convince buyers that they could have a Euro-look ‘precision’ luxury car for a Us-style price, complete with ‘exquisitely proportioned’ styling that featured a Mercedes-like ‘fine grille’. Beyond the burled walnut appliqué and fake leather, the underpinnings were first-gen Mustang/ Falcon, with 302 or 361cu in V8s, or a pair of dire ‘sixes’.