Here’s a special treat for all of you classic car lovers out there. I found 10 different car ads from various car brands who advertised their latest models in 1964. All came from one magazine–the February 1964 edition of Holiday magazine. These are fabulous ads that are a treat to our twenty-first century eyes.
8 of them are American cars. The other 2 are imports. How well do you know your 1964 cars? Can you name all 10 of them?
Here they are. Enjoy.
Oldsmobile advertised the 1964 Starfire in this ad. It boasted the V-8, 345 horsepower, power brakes, power steering, and leather-trimmed buck seats.
When you flip the key to a new ’64 Starfire, you’re pulling the pin on one of America’s most exciting performers.
Yup. This was an ad for Buick. According to the ad copy, they are advertising their sporty Buick Sports Cars: Wildcat, Skylark, and the Riviera.
You too can be a rally driver . . . in the first Buick Sports Car Rally. Really.
Here’s the two page ad.
If you enjoy a classic Cadillac, you will likely recognize this car. Cadillac was tempting potential buyers by bragging about its new hydra-matic and turbo hydra-matic engine.
The new 1964 Cadillac engine is the most powerful in Cadillac history.
You likely guessed that there was a Chevrolet somewhere on the list. Pictured is a 1964 Chevrolet Impala Sport Sedan.
Get in for a spin and you’ll learn just how responsive this great highway performer can be.
My dad was a Chevy man. We didn’t have an Impala, but we did have a 1961 Chevy Corvair. Here is a picture that I got from my mom’s scrapbook. It shows a much younger me posing in front of our blue Corvair. She tells the story of our ride home from the car dealer where the family picked up our brand new car. My sister and I were in the back seat. Apparently we were playing with a set of marbles that got loose in the brand new car. Everytime the car turned a corner, my dad fumed as he heard the sound of rolling marbles in his cherished Chevy.
We’ve seen an Olds, a Buick, a Cadillac, and a Chevy. What about a Ford? You got it. Here’s a favorite classic. It’s a Ford Thunderbird in a great red-orange color named Rangoon-red.
Pick out a runway and prepare to soar. Thunderbird’s smooth, silent motion is the nearest thing to flight itself!
Here’s another Ford. This one is for the luxury market. Its a 1964 Lincoln Continental.
You will know why more than half the people who buy in our price range choose the Continental, the modern American classic.
Here’s one more from Ford. Its the Mercury station wagon, and a woody to boot. It’s complete with a luggage rack on the roof. Now that’s a classic.
Mercury knew that with most owners the station wagon is their only car. It has to do triple duty . . . as a family car, and dress-up car, and a cargo carrier.
Here’s another one for the luxury market. Chrysler’s dark monochromatic ad for their Imperial looked stunning in the magazine. The simple ad had only 3 words.
The Incomparable Imperial
Chrysler also had this ad in the February 1964 edition of Holiday magazine. It told about the Chrysler Institute of Engineering in Detroit. It was described as a school chartered by the state of Michigan.
What’s Chrysler Corporation doing in higher education? Training people to carry on Chrysler’s engineering traditions.
No second guessing here. The 9th ad found in the February 1964 edition of Holiday magazine was the good old VW. Here they were suggesting that Americans traveling to Europe make arrangements for a Volkswagen for use in major European countries.
Volkswagen of America, Tourist Delivery Department.
Just tell them where you want it delivered:
The final car ad found in the February 1964 edition of Holiday magazine is the Renault. Similar to the VW ad, this Renault ad suggests that Americans traveling “Overseas” make arrangements to buy a Renault. It boasts of its automatic transmission and high gas mileage.
You might wonder why the Ford Mustang was not advertised with the rest of the classic cars outlined above. I wondered too. According to my husband, the Ford Mustang was not released until later in 1964. As you can imagine, it was an instant hit and was advertised in mid-century women’s magazines in late 1964. For more about the Ford Mustang, check out my earlier post.
Mid-Century Page 
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