The Golden Sahara, a remote control custom luxury car of the 1960s
January 26, 2017 5:34 AM Subscribe
The Golden Sahara turned a wrecked 1953 Lincoln Capri into an ultimate luxury custom car in the late 1950s, with "a TV set mounted in the dash, a hi-fi radio mounted below the TV, a tape recorder installed between the driver and passenger in the front seat, and a complete cocktail bar with its own refrigerator unit installed in the back seat. Golden frieze material and white Naugahyde covered the seats, dash, and side panels. A shag rug with two-inch padding made the floor of the car luxuriously soft to the feet. All interior trim were gold-plated." If that wasn't enough, it was reworked as the Golden Sahara II, as seen in the 1960 movie Cinderfella, starring Jerry Lewis, and on June 25, 1962 it was on the TV-show I've Got a Secret (via Presurfer).
You can see and read more stories of the Golden Sahara on Custom Car Chronicle, but if you're looking for the Golden Sahara II these days, it's likely in poor shape, as back in the 1980's it was falling a part then and needed a full restoration.
If that makes you sad, check out The VooDoo Sahara, loosely based on a 1954 Kaiser Manhattan, which was first shown in 2016.
You can see and read more stories of the Golden Sahara on Custom Car Chronicle, but if you're looking for the Golden Sahara II these days, it's likely in poor shape, as back in the 1980's it was falling a part then and needed a full restoration.
If that makes you sad, check out The VooDoo Sahara, loosely based on a 1954 Kaiser Manhattan, which was first shown in 2016.
Paging Ralph Spoilsport!
Let's just look at the extras on this fabulous car! Wire-wheel spoke fenders and two-way sneeze through wind vents, star-studded mud guard, sponge-coated edible steering column, chrome fender dents - and factory air conditioned air from our fully factory-equipped air conditioned factory!
It's a beautiful car friends, with doors to match! Birch's Blacklist says this car was stolen but for you friends a complete price: only two-ninety-five hundred dollars in easy monthly payments of twenty dollars a week twice a week and never on Sunday!
posted by tommasz at 6:48 AM on January 26, 2017 [4 favorites]
Let's just look at the extras on this fabulous car! Wire-wheel spoke fenders and two-way sneeze through wind vents, star-studded mud guard, sponge-coated edible steering column, chrome fender dents - and factory air conditioned air from our fully factory-equipped air conditioned factory!
It's a beautiful car friends, with doors to match! Birch's Blacklist says this car was stolen but for you friends a complete price: only two-ninety-five hundred dollars in easy monthly payments of twenty dollars a week twice a week and never on Sunday!
posted by tommasz at 6:48 AM on January 26, 2017 [4 favorites]
Being a kid in the 70s meant you dreamed about all kinds of wacky cars, which were usually customs built by crazy-creative people like George Barris. You could at least buy the Matchbox cars.
Man, I miss those days.
posted by JoeZydeco at 6:50 AM on January 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
Man, I miss those days.
posted by JoeZydeco at 6:50 AM on January 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
Those split tailfins are really sweet.
The all glass bubble top, though, screams "terrarium" and "hothouse" to me, though.
posted by Thorzdad at 7:08 AM on January 26, 2017
The all glass bubble top, though, screams "terrarium" and "hothouse" to me, though.
posted by Thorzdad at 7:08 AM on January 26, 2017
The origin story is absolutely slaying me:
The car went under the truck, as they went under the truck they leaned over and ducked under the dash. After the smoke cleared and the cops came Geroge needed medical attention for some cuts on his face.They guys were in the middle of nowhere, and George had to walk a few miles in order to reach the local bar were the doctor was at. The doctor was drunk, but managed to clean George's bloody face.
posted by queensissy at 8:49 AM on January 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
The car went under the truck, as they went under the truck they leaned over and ducked under the dash. After the smoke cleared and the cops came Geroge needed medical attention for some cuts on his face.They guys were in the middle of nowhere, and George had to walk a few miles in order to reach the local bar were the doctor was at. The doctor was drunk, but managed to clean George's bloody face.
posted by queensissy at 8:49 AM on January 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
That car is nuts. I want to take my kids to school in it.
That would be so cool! I would do the same, but my daughter is at a painfully self-conscious age and would die if I did that. She had a fit when I picked her up in a loaner car while mine was being serviced at the dealer because the loaner had "BUY THIS CAR!" in 18 inch letters across the passenger side.
posted by TedW at 8:49 AM on January 26, 2017
That would be so cool! I would do the same, but my daughter is at a painfully self-conscious age and would die if I did that. She had a fit when I picked her up in a loaner car while mine was being serviced at the dealer because the loaner had "BUY THIS CAR!" in 18 inch letters across the passenger side.
posted by TedW at 8:49 AM on January 26, 2017
Being a kid in the 70s meant you dreamed about all kinds of wacky cars
What, the Pacer and Gremlin weren't wacky enough? : )
posted by Beholder at 8:54 AM on January 26, 2017
What, the Pacer and Gremlin weren't wacky enough? : )
posted by Beholder at 8:54 AM on January 26, 2017
Let's see:
- Remote door opener.
- Remote car starter.
- Phone in-car.
- In-car TV and audio.
- Collision avoidance system.
Other than the steering and flooring, that's a modern upmarket car. It's a pretty good prediction of the future compared to some of the other ones that were coming out at the time.
posted by clawsoon at 9:16 AM on January 26, 2017
- Remote door opener.
- Remote car starter.
- Phone in-car.
- In-car TV and audio.
- Collision avoidance system.
Other than the steering and flooring, that's a modern upmarket car. It's a pretty good prediction of the future compared to some of the other ones that were coming out at the time.
posted by clawsoon at 9:16 AM on January 26, 2017
It looks like something Donald Trump would drive. Not even Homer Simpson could be so gaudy.
In comparison it makes FAB 1 look like a demonstration of refinement and good taste. Lady Penelope wouldn't be caught dead in such a vulgar display of an automobile as the Golden Sahara. Even if it had weaponry.
posted by 2N2222 at 9:33 AM on January 26, 2017
In comparison it makes FAB 1 look like a demonstration of refinement and good taste. Lady Penelope wouldn't be caught dead in such a vulgar display of an automobile as the Golden Sahara. Even if it had weaponry.
posted by 2N2222 at 9:33 AM on January 26, 2017
What, the Pacer and Gremlin weren't wacky enough? : )
Nah man. We wanted the Red Baron.
posted by srboisvert at 9:57 AM on January 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
Nah man. We wanted the Red Baron.
posted by srboisvert at 9:57 AM on January 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
>> That car is nuts. I want to take my kids to school in it.
> That would be so cool! I would do the same, but my daughter is at a painfully self-conscious age and would die if I did that.
TedW, I certainly wouldn't want to put evil, evil ideas in your head, but...
posted by kleinsteradikaleminderheit at 10:18 AM on January 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
> That would be so cool! I would do the same, but my daughter is at a painfully self-conscious age and would die if I did that.
TedW, I certainly wouldn't want to put evil, evil ideas in your head, but...
posted by kleinsteradikaleminderheit at 10:18 AM on January 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
The cars current state is ridiculous. Owned by an angry man who won't fix it, won't sell, won't even let anyone look at it. It sounds like he let it rot to dust on purpose.
posted by 1adam12 at 10:29 AM on January 26, 2017
posted by 1adam12 at 10:29 AM on January 26, 2017
I'm just picturing trying to changing the reel-to-reel with the top down at 60 mph.
posted by doctor_negative at 11:06 AM on January 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by doctor_negative at 11:06 AM on January 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
Wow, the first family car I can remember was our 1953 Lincoln sedan. Way back in the days when pushbutton windows were the highest of tech, when tow headed toddler me would stand on my tippy toes and look at the vacuum tubes glow orange in in the back of the radio console because I thought that was where and how one watched TV.
posted by y2karl at 2:42 PM on January 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by y2karl at 2:42 PM on January 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
I keep waiting for a car designed with a unitrol. I saw a car with such a device in a long-ago Popular Mechanics, and it looked pretty spiffy. Much easier to see the dashboard without a steering wheel in the way, too.
But to see a car without seat belts makes me cringe.
posted by bryon at 9:42 PM on January 26, 2017
But to see a car without seat belts makes me cringe.
posted by bryon at 9:42 PM on January 26, 2017
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I wish they would bring back tail fins.
posted by middleclasstool at 5:48 AM on January 26, 2017 [1 favorite]