Happy to see my old green Checker Model A8 in your video!!!!!! Owned that car for 25 years. Post World War II Checkers were engineered by Herb Snow, the chassis design is essentially a copy of his 1931 Auburn design. Styling was performed by Raymond Dietrich

I think the narrator ought to focus on the true subject of the documentary and stop the sarcasm. Be objective.

In 1965, my Dad bought a 1960 Checker, and as for us 5 children, it was the 2nd best car in our childhood. Then, in 1966 at Christmas time we had our usual family Christmas together in southern Wisconsin, and our grandparents lived near Green Bay and as we passed through, Milwaukee Dad said I have to make a stop, so we proceed to the stop we all stayed in the car and Dad got out and about 30 - 40 minutes later my Dad came back with some paperwork and drove into the building and said take everything out of the car and put them into that green car, so we did with smiles. It was a 1967 Checker wagon with 10 miles on it. 😊😅 One sad day, my Dad had an accident with a drunk checker, had $50.00 damage, and the 1967 Ford was totaled. Some time later, my Mom had an accident, and the car at fault had $50.00 damage, and I had to pull the tags out of the car grill.😊

I drove a Checker cab in NYC. 1975-80s. Very comfortable, drove well, never had a mechanical breakdown. You could easily sit five in back, three in the back row, and they had two pull out stools. As a cabbie you preferred a checker, because most customers preferred them, easy in/out, roomy, and carried more passengers. Fares would pass up other cars and hail the checker, essentially you got an extra hour worth of fares each night. Also I am guessing on some late night rides with drunken customers, there was some coitus and bj's going on, plenty of room for that. Also lots of trunk space for luggage. If I could buy a checker today I would. Those 6 cylinder engines seemed pretty indestructible, also the body seemed to be made of fiberglass in later models that would bend not break, and easy to repair.

Very delightful. Thanks for the great video.

We were taught that checker spent large sums trying to develop engines for MPG and longevity. Also they developed the first valve-in head cylinder head design for production engines. The design was poorly protected and pirated by both GM and Chrysler. And that is why both companies used the same identical port gaskets on their small block V8 motors. .

I find that in the UK at least, the most we see is the occasional Mustang and even then they're only brought by 40+ year olds who have a decent steady job and are having a bit of a midlife crisis. Maybe you'll see an occasional Dodge Ram too but thats about it.

I think it's a shame u s cities made cab companies keep up with Detroit styles, I drove a Checker cab in the mid sixties and it was a good strong car In Ithaca NY there are streets as steep as SF and we used to jump them a la Steve McQueen, with no problems.

Chinese cars are becoming better and better, just to name a few - BYD, NIO, Xpeng, GWM so Russia might be covered in this regard.

Modern USA SUVs are so fat that cannot fit in European parking spots and get usually ticket for taking 2 parking spots ;0

In San Diego county there's a gentleman who owns a few Checker Airobuses, sadly the last time I saw him out on the road was around 2015. Hopefully he's still with us, or at least his family still has those vehicles.

Back in the '60's, every town had a rock 'n roll band that would play gigs in the general area for a few Dollars and expenses. My good friend was in the top band in my town of about 50,000 people and used to get gigs each weekend. They covered a radius of about 40 miles, playing at High School dances and teen centers. One day he asked me if I would be the "Road Manager" for the band. The job paid $10 for the night. Hey, I'm 16, have a license to drive and it was a good reason to stay out until 3:00 AM on a weekend. What's not to like? The band had a Checker as a band vehicle. My job was to move the equipment, drive the Checker and provide security. We had a blast with it all! This lasted for about a year or so until I went in the Navy. Let me assure you that the Checker hauled 3 guitars, all of the amplifiers, a complete drum set and 6 guys with room to spare. To me, it was a "beater" that couldn't be beat into the ground from all of the abuse it took. The Checker was the car that I have the most memories of, 55 years down the line. I would love to buy an old Checker and have it for weekend use but it's really hard to find a good one for a reasonable price these days. Thanks Ed, good one!

Yer full of shit, they were cool cars dummy!

I always liked Checkers because they had the spaciousness of cars in the 30s and 40s but they were new into the early 80s. I hated seeing perfectly good Checkers being sunk into the water!

I have been waiting for a documentary on the Checker. 😊

I remember long, cold snowy or rainy days shopping with Mom downtown. Sometimes she would splurge and hail a Checker Cab. It's hard to describe how warm and and comforting it was hopping in one of these roomy beautiful relics.

So many memories. My ex's father had a 1960 Marathon station wagon in black and a 1977 sedan in lime green. He was just like your description (you really nailed that - impressive). He and his wife had kids when they were older, and they were young adults during the Great Depression which formed their way of thinking. Also, Louwmans is so very Dutch.

The Gilmore Car Museum in Michigan has a wonderful room full of Checkers. It's a must see.

The fear of specific cars was not unique to the Soviet Union. My wife was from Argentina. And there the preferred vehicle during the "Dirty War" were black Ford Falcons (which were actually built in Argentina). And whenever she would see one like that on the road in the US she would get a little panic attack because of the memories that would bring back.

Drove em in Boston back in the day….Cheers was a favorite watering hole.

Dear Ed. The reasoning of people whose country did not go through hell during the rise of the automobile industry is very amusing. Do you know about “Russo-Balt” cars that were produced before the sunset of the Russian Empire? That, for your information, is a competitor to Rolls Roy's. I assume that your jokes are not appropriate, considering that the Netherlands did not suffer from “stupid communist revolution (not supported by the people, but only by degenerates sponsored by Germany)”. I find that very strange. I will be glad if you justify and answer my comment. Regards, Grigory. What's up with you and Eysink, though.

Very funny

"helped win the war" yeah in the pacific, where there was pretty much only britain. in europe. the equipment was there, the troops weren't till right at the end, typical of america. as for rebuilding? lol fuck no. they sabotaged and spewed propaganda left, right, center, political. and so many lies.

The summer after highschool I was working at a service station. One of our customers was the local mortuary. They left one of their hearses for service and weren't going to pick it up until Monday. Myself and two of my friends spent the night in it.

I remember that Bill Blass Lincoln. I had an employer that had a "Ducks Unlimited" Suburban SUV. TALK ABOUT GAUDY.

Would've been cool a space efficient large hatchback.

Comet is pronounced "Com" like "Tom" for sure in the states. Or "Comedy." My dad was a garage station mechanic (me too at 15) and in 1974 he bought an old lady's 1963 Corvair 4-door that I drove for about a year between high school and college. I LOVED it. My first car was a half-beaten 1966 GTO so I knew speed, but the Corvair felt so low to the ground and cornered flat. I didn't drive it like a sports car, more like touring rate. The terraplane. First car I drove that didn't float around. Nader can take a hike. Cheers!

A part from the size, the main problem in Europe are gas prices and, most of all, taxation. Decades of terror upon displacement and horsepower made us european think that small engines are somehow "better", but in reality we almost always had cars with undersized engines, just for the sake of taxation. Displacement and horsepower mean absolutely nothing tax wise: I can buy a 5.0l with 400hp for 5k € and a 1.0l with 100hp for 25k €, but for some unknown reason if I buy the 5.0 I'm "rich" and I need to be killed with taxes. Tax the cars based upon their value, that would be (anywhere in the world) the only fair thing to do. If a car costs (new or used) 10k it cannot be taxed more than a car costing 50k. Size, displacemente, horsepower and weight are just stupid excuses to steal money from the taxpayers. Maybe emissions could be acceptable, but not as retail value. Also, we literally have maybe a third of the cars available in the US (just take a look at any Toyota's european website and compare it to the american one), which also costs always more in UE than US. In the end, the USA are the real paradise for cars, trucks and automotive enthusiasts in general. Europe instead is becoming more and more like a living hell.

How can you not mention DC Cab when talking about cabs in movies? Great video otherwise maybe give your sister her pants back.

American cars are so oversized and fuel inefficient that most places in the world don't want them.

leekey bum

Bought a Town Landau in 2017 from a 92 year old man for 900 bucks. It had 74k original miles and was kept in immaculate condition. I didn't even test drive it. The car was amazing. Southern California roads it ate them up. The nose is long and it's really just for 2 passengers. I loved the pop up headlights. I sold it in 2021 for a small profit to a friend. He drove it and beat it up and made some modifications. Found out 3 days ago he was going over 100 lost control and wrapped it against an electrical pole and died. I'm sad that he pushed it to extremes and crashed.. The sound of impact and collision must have been incredible at thst speed. RIP Damon. You loved that car a d kept bugging me to sell it to you. I shouldn't have sold it to you for your own good. Damm Bro what the fuck! Why Why Why????

Like if you're compelled to watch the film 'Taxi Driver' after viewing this.

looks cool, what about a compact after the pinto or escort.

I the early 70s my uncle worked for a college in south central Michigan, it had a fleet of Checker Airobus. On Several occasions, my cousin and I would drive the cars to Kalamazoo for maintenance. Two of my uncles owned Checkers, one had a1970 Marathon and the other had a Checker station wagon. Great cars, incredibly spacious.

They had Chevy motors in them

In the nineties i drove for Yellow cab of Tucson for a few years then switched to another cabco named Allstate. Yellow had one Checker cab that originated from Washington DC I drove several times. it had a chevy straight 6. It was big, heavy ,and slow. It felt like you were driving a truck. Yellow moved to a new yard and the Checker eventually disappeared.

In other words, it's a vehicle that's durable, sensible and iconic. I've always admired this car; it makes a plain statement. It says, ''I'm here, I'm my own man and don't need recognition from anyone to feel significant.

Well gosh looks like we know where Porsche and MBZ got the idea for the Peoples Car project styling... the Chrysler Airflow sure looks like it inspired the KdF Wagen and VW Type1 final body lines.... Ive never really thought about it but wow thats a REAL similarity... You agree?? 👇

I'm an American and I had no idea there was multiple generations of them. I was aware of the aerobus and wagon there's a gentleman in Chicago who has a black one still driving around.

What did Cadillac in for good? Putting their cars at airport rental counters, starting in the 70’s. When was the last time you rented a Bentley or Rolls Royce on a vacation or business trip? Once that happened, who would want to drive a car that wasn’t exclusive anymore? GM got greedy, that was the problem.

I loved those cars. If they were still being made, I would have to look into buying one. Roomy and reliable.

Love woodie cars 4ever!!!

Porsche 911 with white walls 🤨🧐 hmmm 🤔...

I knew the VP, and his son has been one of my best friends since HS. Rode in 2 different Marathons, several times. Smooth and big. Rode in an experimental X-11 that had been stretched, from Kalamazoo to Ludington. That was a nice cruiser, for an X car, and a prototype. That's the car at 18:19 The blue X-11. The extra window was plexiglass.

Oi Bruce

What engine and transmission did they have

What will it take to save Lincoln today? Cadillac has far outpaced its longtime rival.

Hey Pierre, why do you have Raised white lettering tires on it?

The 310 reminds me of the Volkswagen Karmen Ghia