Watch (Most of) These 1958 Sedans Destroy Their Suspensions

Steph Willems
by Steph Willems

If 1958 wasn’t the peak of automotive glitz and excess, it was damn close to it.

American automakers, emboldened by a never-ending postwar buying spree, heaped more chrome and new technology onto their models that year than ever before. Uplevel models — Lincoln, Buick and Olds, especially — were the worst offenders, somehow managing to make themselves look 1,000 pounds heavier than their tasteful ’57 predecessors.

Chrysler Corporation vehicles opted for minor updates to their radical 1957 restyle, a status quo that lasted until 1960.

However, lurking underneath some these gleaming behemoths was an Achilles heel that didn’t reveal itself until the going got rough. A lot of new weight rode atop coil springs that year, or in the case of Buick, newfangled airbag cushions.

Tom McCahill, the famed automotive journalist from Mechanix Illustrated, was a big fan of Chrysler’s front torsion bar suspension, and took deep pleasure in calling out other automakers for their weak legs.

Armed with a folksy vocabulary (about 90 percent metaphors and similes), McCahill narrated a 1958 suspension test that may or may not be a legit infomercial for Chrysler Corporation products. McCahill, who looks like he spends half of his life at a racetrack, clearly enjoys the brutal torture test, which leads to catastrophic rear suspension failure on several models.

GM and Ford executives no doubt had a few poison martinis ready for the guy after this film came out.

We apologize for the graininess of the dated clips, but the information in it gets across just fine. Speed and handling tests are in Part 1, with the suspension-snapping action in Part 2. Enjoy watching the trunk and rear doors fly open on the Caddy after both rear shock absorber mounts break loose.

[Image: JOHN LLOYD/ Flickr ( CC BY 2.0)]

Steph Willems
Steph Willems

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  • Jeff S Jeff S on Apr 25, 2016

    Kenmore--My parents had a black and white RCA Victor 26 inch in a mahogany veneer cabinet for about 16 years until they decided to get a Zenith color TV in 1971. I missed all those vibrant colors but have seen some of the old shows in color on Me TV.

    • Old Man Pants Old Man Pants on Apr 25, 2016

      Mine kept an Admiral B&W with the electromechanical remote till I flew the coop in '72. *ka-chunk!..whirr..whirr..whirr..ka-chunk!* Today I'm still floored by watching Beverly Hillbillies or Get Smart in living color!

  • Dukeisduke Dukeisduke on Apr 26, 2016

    Sure, Chrysler products had torsion bars at the front, but they were still leaf sprung in the rear, all the way up to the bitter end of their RWD cars. GM went to full coil suspensions for '58, and were even using upper and lower control arms in the rear, for better lateral control.

    • BigOldChryslers BigOldChryslers on Apr 27, 2016

      There are trade-offs either way. Vehicles with leaf spring suspension use the springs as both suspension and to position the rear axle. Vehicles with coil springs require control arms to position the rear axle, adding to unsprung weight and more failure points. Today some critics diss the RAM1500 pickups because they use coil springs out back for a softer ride at the expense of load capacity, while the F and GM competitors still use leaf springs. I guess they just can't win. :)

  • ToolGuy North America is already the greatest country on the planet, and I have learned to be careful about what I wish for in terms of making changes. I mean, if Greenland wants to buy JDM vehicles, isn't that for the Danes to decide?
  • ToolGuy Once again my home did not catch on fire and my fire extinguisher(s) stayed in the closet, unused. I guess I threw my money away on fire extinguishers.(And by fire extinguishers I mean nuclear missiles.)
  • Carson D The UAW has succeeded in organizing a US VW plant before. There's a reason they don't teach history in the schools any longer. People wouldn't make the same mistakes.
  • B-BodyBuick84 Mitsubishi Pajero Sport of course, a 7 seater, 2.4 turbo-diesel I4 BOF SUV with Super-Select 4WD, centre and rear locking diffs standard of course.
  • Corey Lewis Think how dated this 80s design was by 1995!
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