Fun with a vintage defensive driving video

Still image from video below.

I’m a pushover for old drivers’ education videos, and this one is entertaining. Digitized and uploaded by A/V Geeks for the Prelinger Archives in San Francisco, this film was produced in 1964. It’s called The ABCs of Defensive Driving Tactics, and was made with the cooperation of the Chicago Police Department, National Safety Council, Citizens Traffic Safety Board and the Evanston Police Department.

The husband and wife argument scenes in the beginning are corny but stay with it because the film does get better. Its period soundtrack and the authoritative and at times, animated, delivery of facts by the narrator remind you of the era in which it was made. These qualities only enhance the experience of scanning the scenes for interesting cars of the time, observing what’s going on in the background and of course, absorbing the lessons presented.

Tons of 1950s and early 1960s cars can be spotted on the roads throughout this film. The white 1963 Chevy four-door depicted in the beginning argument scenes magically changes into a 1962 model at 2:11 in the film, once it’s wrecked.

A blue 1964 Impala convertible, a red 1964 Plymouth Sport Fury convertible and a silver 1964 Plymouth hardtop are also shown in multiple scenes. At 3:55, for a split second you can see the fuel prices at the gas station behind the girl driving the Impala—30 9/10 and 32 9/10 cents per gallon!

Later in the film, a test is performed using a blue 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 four-door sedan with dual exhaust and a white-with-side-paneling 1964 Ford Country Squire station wagon, also with dual exhaust. The objective is to prove that “jack rabbit” driving is not worth the risk.

A route in the Chicago and Evanston, Illinois, areas was mapped out and the test was performed with the cooperation of the police. The driver of the station wagon was to strictly adhere to all traffic laws. The driver of the sedan was to drive like he was, “late for an important business appointment.” An observer rode in each car to note the time and what each driver did over the course of the trip. I won’t ruin the surprise and say who finished first, but I will tell you that the driver in the sedan broke 138 traffic laws in the process.

If you have about 12-and-a-half minutes to spare, this nostalgic glimpse into driver safety, as taught in the 1960s, is worth watching.