A year or two later, I was barely old enough to read when I found myself in the presence of Chrysler’s futuristic Turbine Car at the Illinois State Fair. Maybe I couldn’t read very well, but I could gawk with the best of them. Little Ralphie lusting after the official Red Ryder carbine action, 200-shot, range model air rifle in A Christmas Story had nothing on me. My parents literally had to drag me out of the tent that hot August day. They were embarrassed. I was in love. I still remember every inch of that car.
My point is this. Decades ago, we were promised flying cars, turbine cars, and atomic cars (yes, those too!) requiring no energy - no cost - in certain cases no wheels…..and leaving no carbon footprint. I share that nugget of prehistoric prognostication after paying $4.09 a gallon at the pump this morning. Buzz Lightyear isn’t anywhere in sight, so I think we are safe driving whatever puts a smile on our faces for a good long while yet.
On the subject of smiles, few vehicles grab a grin any faster than the first “real” hybrid. No, I’m not talking about the 1997 Toyota Prius heaven forbid, I’m talking about “the half car-half truck” hybrid known as the Ford Ranchero and the Chevrolet El Camino. The Ranchero was first in 1957 and had a steady run until 1979 when it quietly faded away.
