Once again, the one word I never see in any of these stories is “WEIGHT”. The typical small car of 1965 was a thousand pounds lighter than today’s typical small car, which is inexcusable in our present age of miracle materials. Honda Civics and Accords and cars of similar size should weigh 1300 - 1800 lbs.
“Honda Civics and Accords and cars of similar size should weigh 1300 - 1800 lbs.”
Not many people want to ride in a car that would have a 100% kill-rate in any 30 mph accident.
Indeed - my 1983 3000 pound, 28 mpg Ford Ranger is now a 4000 pound 21 mpg heavyweight. Even the Escape has gained a few hundred pounds in the last 4 or 5 years. This is all due to the safety nazis who have decided to mandate certain safety standards rather than let people decide for themselves what safety features they want on their car.
Imagine the performance and mileage you'd get with today's engines in the cars of 20 years ago.