You wish you were this cool. Click to enlarge
But is it....rich? Sadly, no. Not yet.
In this particular Chrysler ad starring Ricardo Montalban (of course), the pimptacular brown '76 Cordoba he rolls in is equipped with the super-fly velourish interior, and the Corinthian leather we all know and love is merely given lip service as being "smooth." No matter. We know how it all turns out. In Cordoba, the "new small Chrysler" (cough -- 17.9 feet -- cough), Ricardo has what he needs.
Watch it after the jump, and then practice rolling your "R's" so that you too can be as suave as The Montalban.
Chrysler Cordoba/Ricardo Montalban photo via The Old Car Manual Project.
[Source: YouTube]
London 2008: Honda OSM concept roadster says, "Cheerio!"
London 2008: Lotus unveils the Evora
2010 Chevy Camaro - Official Details and Images
2010 Chevy Camaro - LIVE from the reveal
Volkswagen unveiling two-door Elise fighter in LA, new sports car
First Drive: 2008 MINI Cooper S JCW
In the Autoblog Garage:2009 Nissan GT-R
North American Exclusive First Drive: Alfa MiTo
First Drive: 2009 Kia Borrego
In The Autoblog Garage: 2008 Mercedes SLK55 AMG
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
BOB @ Oct 21st 2006 7:54PM
THE CAR SUITED THE TIMES, AND WAS NOT PIMPISH, JUST A BIT AUDACIOUS. EVERY DOMESTIC CAR EXEC SHOULD WATCH THIS, TO SEE A SUCCESSFULLY PROMOTED, VERY AMERICAN PRODUCT THAT SOMEONE 27 OR 70 COULD DRIVE.
cordobaman @ Oct 21st 2006 8:11PM
I love my 1975 Cordoba. Original 63k miles, not a spec of rust, paint still shines. Have alway owned one (or two). Got my first when I was 20...a used 1975. My Grandfather had a 77 at the same time, we worked on them together...very fond memories.
piglet @ Oct 21st 2006 8:25PM
Small????? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA Except for the crappy Lean Burn system, Mopar made some decent cars in the 70's. An old girlfriend had a mildly tuned Cordoba as her first car & she put many a spoiled H.S. boy in his place!
Gardiner Westbound @ Oct 21st 2006 9:26PM
They were a magnificent looking car, with a good engine and transmission. Straight line performance was good. Gasoline mileage was terrible, but nobody much cared because the early 70s gasoline crisis had faded from memory. The fit and finish was atrocious. Within two or three years the very long, heavy doors were sagging on their hinges and you couldn't hear the radio for squeaks and rattles.
That One Person @ Oct 21st 2006 9:46PM
I still cant get the damn image of him being Kahn out of my head. Damn Star Trek!
Anyways, those were one of my favorite Chryslers of all time. There was a 1977 Cordoba in my neighborhood a guy was trying to sell...it was on my list of possible cars to purchase. But I didnt want to pay for the crappy mileage.
Edsel @ Oct 21st 2006 9:57PM
Ricardo and Cordoba make the perfect pimp companion to the "Outrageous C6 Corvette" by Mid America Motorworks. We all laughed at the car and marketing in 1975, a time when the best Corvette only had 165 hp. The 1970's sucked.
Jon @ Oct 21st 2006 10:13PM
Ah Kirk,my old friend...Have you ever heard the old klingon proverb, "revenge is a dish best served cold".It is...very cold ...in space.
Ryan @ Oct 21st 2006 11:03PM
LMAO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My sister had a 1995 Honda Civic, EX spoiler, sunroof, power everything, v-tec, etc... Her and her boyfriend were expecting, sooooo go figure there Civic BLEW UP at no joke: 199,980 miles on the odo. Because they were expecting they went from that cute, pretty fast, kinda cool looking civic to this sick Cordoba. My sister, cried, and cried and cried. Luckly (she said) the Cordoba blew up within weeks so they just "bit it" and purchased a brand new 2002 Honda Civic EX, she is once again happy, BUT has since moved onto a 2006 Honda Civic EX and now has 2 kids. She refuses to give up (in her words) her "cute cars" for some sick big car.
Emil Rensing @ Oct 21st 2006 11:04PM
Quien es mas macho? Lorenzo Lamas o Ricardo Montalban?
Dave M. @ Oct 21st 2006 11:21PM
Laugh all you want - it WAS the small Chrysler in '75! These (personal luxury cars) were all the shit back in college, along with the Monte Carlo, Gran Prix, Buick Regal, Olds Cutlass, Ford T-Bird, and Gran Torino Elite (a specialty model for 2 years).
Then came the Trans Am, Camaro, and Mustang II Cobra years.....LMAO. I even remember a Volare-based Road Runner for a year.....
I remember the first time I saw that peculiar new car that came out....the, uh, what was it....oh yeah, the Honda Accord hatchback.
Brian W @ Oct 21st 2006 11:30PM
My sister had a 1995 Honda Civic, EX spoiler, sunroof, power everything, v-tec, they went from that cute, pretty fast, kinda cool looking civic to this sick Cordoba.
Now that's funny. Cool looking!
Oh the difference in generations.
I love the old 80s Caprices, no one whats them, they run good, easy, cheap to keep and work on. One repair won't force you to junk them like a foreign car.
Tab @ Oct 21st 2006 11:53PM
I've owned 2 'dobas and a 1975 Dodge Charger along the way. They were great cars. Not small by any stretch, yet they handled very well for their size. They were the last of the "B" bodies, so parts could be swapped from other older B bodies...such as Chargers, Coronets and Satellites.
I haven't had one in over 15 years now, but they remain high on my list as my favorite cars. Perfect sleeper vehicles.
Jim @ Oct 22nd 2006 12:06AM
This has always been one of the commercials I've loved for all time. I always get a laugh out of "Corinthian leather" - which Chrysler made up for marketing purposes.
James
Flo @ Oct 22nd 2006 12:13AM
Wow... that thing is hideous... I'm sure that is just a generational thing, but geez. I don't imagine that any pimp would want to be seen in such a creation. It makes me think of John Candy as Uncle Buck driving his backfiring, ruined-shock jalopy:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/nl/6/61/De_auto_van_Buck.jpg
" Laugh all you want - it WAS the small Chrysler in '75!" Yes, we know. That is why Japanese lightweights like Honda and Toyota were laughing all the way to the bank within 10 years, while Chrysler was bleeding red ink like an Enron retirement account.
I have a good friend with a mid-80's Cutlass... That Cordoba looks just as useless. Spongy suspension, nasty recirculating ball steering with more slop than a hog farm, unsupportive seats (note the lack of bolstering so that far old ladies can sit comfortably), and horrid space utilization. It's acceptable for two, miserable if you're in the back seat, and a pain to get out if you're parked anywhere other than the 50 yardline of an empty football stadium; the doors have huge swinging arcs and invariably sag over time. For all the downsides, there really is no upside... it's not sporty to drive, the V8 has such tall gearing that it can't get out of its own way, and it leans in corners like an intoxicated unicyclist. It's basically worthless, and thus the entire genre has ceased to exist.
Rich Corinthian leather? Why not put seats in the damn thing that will hold you in place?
Jason @ Oct 22nd 2006 12:26AM
LOL! That totally made my day. I remember those commercials and that car when it was the shiznit. My neighbor always had one and he was Mr. Suave. I can't believe I remember the 70's!!!
Steve2 @ Oct 22nd 2006 12:30AM
"Look what they've done to my car."
Wow, I don't even remember this ad, I only remember the later one.
Flo:
The BMW 5 series, at least until 1999, had recirculating ball steeering. And people liked it. There's nothing wrong with it as a technology.
It's silly to compare a 1975 car to a 1985. American cars were a lot smaller in 1985 than 1975 too.
The doors on those cars do definitely sag over time, and not even all that long a time. Did that ever stop happening on 2 door cars? I haven't seen it happen in a while, but then again I moved to a state they don't put salt on roads and people generally stopped buying 2 door cars.
Spule4 @ Oct 22nd 2006 12:34AM
#9
Why did I remember this when I saw the pic, and better yet, why did I read this right when my kids turned on SNL!
cheezedog420 @ Oct 22nd 2006 12:38AM
Wow... that what I call one ugly car... It like someone melted a early 70s camaro, late 70s buick Regal, early 80s caddilac, all into one car, then painted it some metallic puke brown color, and slaped a Chrysler badge on it...
Now we know why Chrysler was so close to bankruptys in the 80s... too much that Cordoba.
Spule4 @ Oct 22nd 2006 12:48AM
#18
You have never seen a Pontiac Grand Prix of that era then....
http://www.dealsonwheels.com/database/cars/107394big.jpg
The Cordoba was a lot cleaner and a nicer ride....I had two neighbors as a kid, one had the Prix, the other the Doba.....
Bargamon @ Oct 22nd 2006 12:57AM
That car was "Too Sexy!"
Ricardo loooged "Mahvalous!".......