I’m going to be working through the massive pile of content I absorbed, sponge-like, during Monterey Car Week, and that includes some things that were not officially part of the goings-on. Like the public parking lots, which in many cases had plenty going on, despite not being part of the aforementioned goings-on. Like this incredible Ford Thames 400E van, an impossibly rare sight in America.
The Thames 400E was a very useful little light commercial van released in 1957, and of the same forward-control design like the Volkswagen Type 2 Transporter or Ford’s later Econoline or Dodge A100 and many more. Built almost unchanged to 1965, the van came in a dizzying variety of body styles, including pickup truck and chassis-cab options.
They’re really appealing little vans, as you can tell from the tomato-red one I saw in that parking lot. Ford had an unusual and really genuinely charming promo film made for the van in 1958 that features zero spoken dialog but lots of music from the Cy Laurie Band, a popular jazz group that was very big in 1950s London.
The film was called Band Wagon, and hey, look, you can watch it right here:
It’s great, right? I’mm impressed with a lot of things shown here: that flip-down step that opens mechanically when the side door is open, that potent Consul engine between the front seats, how well that kitten is dealing with the noise and chaos, and, significantly, seeing that a tire can be punctured with a violin bow shot like an arrow.
Also, what the hell was going on with London’s violent street musicians?
Morning, the Violent Violinist is I think none other than Stephane Grapelli
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St%C3%A9phane_Grappelli
So I met both you and David in a parking lot on Wednesday on Muras Blvd
And thought out the week sometimes seeing the car’s in the lots was better because they drove them
That video ranks up there with the best of music videos! Plot, music, story, villans, heros, and a point. Excellent!
Sounds like a Woody Allen movie soundtrack!
(like from the movie “Sleeper”)
I love how bouncy the vehicles are in European films of this era. It’s great when you see something like a car chase and the getaway car is just happily bopping along.
What does the 15 signify on the nose??????
Thomas the tank engine is number 1.
Edward is number 2.
Henry is number 3
Gordon is number 4
And Fauntleroy the Ford van is number 15.
(Or it’s the load rating in hundredweight)
I loved the film. Now I’ll turn down the sound and play it again to Yakkity Sax.
That van looks sort of tired but resigned, like it doesn’t really want to be up at 4 am to deliver milk, but if it doesn’t, who’s going to?
Helluvan Ad! Sign me up, Ford!
“Also, what the hell was going on with London’s violent street musicians?”
Leaded gas? Residual trauma from multiple great wars? If guys in mid-century London who dressed like Edwardian dandies, or rode fancy Vespas could still be behind notorious violence, I’m pretty sure everyone back then was just one mispoured cup of tea away from starting a riot.
They were crazy times. Killer grandmas, Droogs…
So Jason, thanks for your take on what you think is interesting. I will pray for you. But seriously really just wanted to say a big thank you to you, DT, The smart girl, and everyone else who has helped to create a great, interesting, fun website. I know it’s a shit load of effort and work. Did I already say thank you?
This place is an oasis in a sea of not so great sites, which are like watching the network news. Everyone copies the pr food fed to them and spits out their take on an issue related to cars, travel, etc. You guys don’t appear to cut from the same bolt of cloth. We all probably prefer a little bit of “nuts” in the writers here. The fact that there is no click bait BS knee jerk articles filled with fake outrage at the subject up for discussion also lends a ton of credibility here. So I only can say a huge GRACIAS Amigos , and hope there is some cash flowing into everyone”s pockets. May the Gods of the Internet grant you wisdom and everlasting protection from the douche bags of the world. Now go in peace, and write more shit. NOW please. As soon as I can get the other place to let me delete my account, I am gone. God bless you children. Amen.
Huh. This was what commercials were like before the 30-second Super Bowl spot?
Kind of modernized Silent Film-esque thing.
WTF did I just watch?
That was delightful! Real Hanna Barbera vibe to the whole thing, too.
My dad would sometimes refer to Transits as Ford Thames vans. Cue eye rolling from six year old me. Thank you for educating me 45 years on what a Thames van actually was. Love that ‘deployable step’ and traumatised about the poor kitten.
This thing is both cute and ugly at the same time.
The violent street musicians are the good guys in this film. They are trying to prevent the deplorable practice of using kittens as trumpet and trombone mutes that was a, thankfully short lived, fad in some of the less respectable jazz clubs at the time.
Nah. They were just jellie.
Where did you think the sound guy got his “dead cat” from, anyhow?
Wow wow wow, that drop-down step is the cat’s meow! What a fun little video and a fantastic little van.
Great commercial. Even better van. You are right, that is a keeper.
That 12 passenger van looked really crowded with 6 people and a kitten.
The kitten’s probably still young enough to have all nine lives, so they really should have gone with a 15-passenger van.
Kittens are passengers, too! How do you think they got the 12-passenger rating?
Jason, thank you for getting my day started with a smile! Fresh cup of coffee and The Autopian make the world a a better place.
There’s a lot to unpack in that video. My favorite was that woman with the kitten. Who is she? A groupie or a girl friend, manager of the band? I like the way she gets out and changes a tire in a skirt while all the guys just stay in the van and keep on playing. Then gets back in and resumes rubbing that kitten.
That drop-down step is cool. My A100 has a sliding step but it’s only wide as one door. I wonder if the fixed rear step is removable. So many questions. I also like the weaponized musical instruments.
I assumed the woman was a singer; it looked like she was scatting.
I forgot to mention that this the first time I’ve seen eyebrows on a vehicle.
She’s a traditional “Scat” singer. They fill in sorta like the “doo whop” singers in 50’s rock and roll.
Dang, that film was seriously fun to watch; the world sure could use more stuff such as that film and the ads Madness did for the Honda City in the 80s. Is there anything comparable being produced for advertising cars today? There’s the Nissan ad campaign with Brie Lawson which includes a pretty cool ad involving a montage of their SUVs from the earliest Nissan Patrol to the present but AFAIK none of those commercials have lethal violin bows or going one step beyond…
I had never seen those Madness ads before, holy cow.
Yeah, those ads really go one step beyond.
They were actually pretty middle of the road for their time.
I see what you did there. Even brightened up my Grey Day.
Going about a decade back, and far less violent (unless you’re a piano), but there was OK Go playing one of their songs using a Chevy Sonic.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Op9owJiujY
thank you for the Madness/Honda City reference, those were a trip too..
https://youtu.be/VAYd2AK53P8
the Honda City became the Honda Jazz sold here as the Honda Fit, which I drove today.. I’d buy a City 😉
I like how the others couldn’t be bothered to get out of the van while the tyre was being changed. Lazy sods.
It was demonstrating how powerful the jack was. If they got out the van would have flipped.