1977 Chevrolet Monte Carlo - Outlier Me

1973-1977 Chevrolet Monte Carlo's - the go to first car of better off cool kids in my graduating class of 1982 at Oceanside High School back on Long Island. These were de rigueur back in the day with scores of them with their exaggerated, swoopy "suitcase fender" styling filling up the parking lot of OHS. Our subject here is from the class of 1977.

I may be in the minority here with my affection for these big brutes what with many an auto pundit finding the 1970-1972 Monte Carlo's more aesthetically pleasing. Thing is, I don't recall seeing anyone in high school having one of those. These, again, were seemingly aplenty and outlier me with his squeaky Comet sedan wanted one very badly.

I'm not sure I really liked these cars back then as much as I wanted one just to fit in. Honestly, much like lava lamps, disco music and bell bottom jeans they weren't for everyone but it seemed like everyone either had one, wanted one or at least knew someone who had one. I look at them now and I don't see a beautiful, desirable car as much as I see a mental appliance of sorts for nostalgia trips. Can you learn to love or at least like something? Apparently, yes.

In comparison to the do everything well cross-overs that fill up high school parking lots today, these cars are a joke. They're a Chevrolet Chevelle four door sedan with two less doors and all of the extra length compared to a Chevelle coupe all up in front of the firewall accented with the largest hood Chevrolet ever made. It may have made for a unique sculpture but all the extra real estate out there  pushed the limits on an automobile that were already stretching the limits on how large a car could be and still be manageable.

My time behind the wheel of one of these, like all large cars of yore, was fun but at the same time fairly terrifying. They rode and handled decently enough but never gave the driver the sense of confidence you get today in even the cheapest Kia.

1977 was literally and figuratively a big year for the Monte Carlo with Chevrolet pushing out over four-hundred thousand of them. Perhaps that was because word got out these would be dramatically (and disappointingly) downsized come 1978; the masses wanting to get in on the party before it ended.

All I know for certain is that there's no way the modern crossovers that kids drive today will ever be the time machine one of these is.