Another Crazy Accessory

[Guest shadetree77]

I can now see why people collect vintage car accessories. I run across them on EBAY all the time. Is there anything that wasn't thought of back then? I've seen everything from an automatic cigarette dispenser that dispenses LIT cigarettes to a plug-in electric shaver. Now I've come across this unique item. It mounts in the trunk. You then drill a hole in the wheel well right above your tires. When you hit the switch up front, it pours sand onto your tires through tubes for traction in the snow. I don't know how well it would work but man, that's a cool idea in theory. Anyone else have some pictures of crazy vintage accessories?

[R Walling]

Tire sanders were very common on tractor trailers in the 50's.

There was a container with two down spouts that directed the sand to just in front of the tires.

[rocketraider]

Most GM carlines offered this gadget as a factory authorized option in 1969-70; I know for sure Chevrolet and Pontiac. The GM version used a spray can of "AC Liquid Tire Chain" that was mounted upside down in brackets in the trunk, over the rear wheelhouses. Pushing the system's button sprayed this sticky chemical onto the rear tires and supposedly would give enough traction to get you going. The cans operated a lot like a cheese can or Reddi-Wip can- bend the nozzle and you get product.

From current ebay listings: liquid tire chain in Parts & Accessories | eBay though I can't imagine why some of these sellers are targeting their ads to COPO owners- I guess they're going after the guys who have to have every option available.

Apparently not a popular option as it lasted only two years. I've read that the goo itself was some pretty nasty stuff.

Edited January 17, 2013 by rocketraider (see edit history)

[ex98thdrill]

If you want to see a car with a ton of accessories, check out Ron Green's Pontiac. I've judged that car before and that car will make you stir crazy with all of the accessories that are on it.

Ironically Ron has the documentation to prove that every one of them are correct.

[Marty Roth]

I had this "SAND-SPREADER" accessory - It had been installed, probably as an authorized accessory, by the dealer, on my 1954 Mercury convertible.

It worked very well in the New Jersey winters in 1961 and 1962.

I reccommended it to my friends who also installed a couple of them.

There was a container in the trunk ahead of each rear wheel well which held a good-sized sand bag. pulling the lever attached to the steering column released sand just ahead of each rear wheel. Very simple and effective!

[D Yaros]

Most GM carlines offered this gadget as a factory authorized option in 1969-70; The GM version used a spray can of "AC Liquid Tire Chain" that was mounted upside down in brackets in the trunk, over the rear wheelhouses. Pushing the system's button sprayed this sticky chemical onto the rear tires and supposedly would give enough traction to get you going. The cans operated a lot like a cheese can or Reddi-Wip can- bend the nozzle and you get product.

Hmm, the directions say to "shake can well before using"? Kind of hard to do after can is mounted in holder, in trunk, is it not? I wonder how well it sprayed in cold weather?

I was alive and aware back in that era, and have no recollection of this stuff.

[rocketraider]

Dave, that's probably a big reason the option never really took off! Sand spreaders OTOH, simple and effective long as the sand didn't get wet and clump up. I remember my folks putting sandbags in the trunks of their cars in winter weather, and they got where they needed to go with the weight of the sandbags and studded snow tires.

We had four inches of snow here last night and half of what I saw in the ditch this morning were 4WD SUVs, including one big Nissan Armada that passes me like a bat out of hell every morning. Roads were mostly clear but with overnight temps around 29 degrees, black ice everywhere. Sure 'nough the Nissan passed me and walked away, as usual running about 70 in a 55 when most traffic was running 35-40. Three miles down the road, there it sat in a freshly plowed field stuck up to the axles, because we have also had five inches of rain this week and the ground is completely rotten.

And I saw absolutely no use in offering my 4WD F150 to help pull it out.

[Guest Texas Old Car Guy]

Sure 'nough the Nissan passed me and walked away, as usual running about 70 in a 55 when most traffic was running 35-40. Three miles down the road, there it sat in a freshly plowed field stuck up to the axles, because we have also had five inches of rain this week and the ground is completely rotten.

And I saw absolutely no use in offering my 4WD F150 to help pull it out.

Glenn: As my dear old Dad used to say, "Time wounds all heels."

Your lack of help to the "poor" Nissan guy stuck in the field reminds me of one of my pet peeves - idiots who see that the road up ahead is blocked and even though the warning sign says "Lane Closed Ahead 500 feet - Merge Right", they continue up the inside lane trying to get ahead of everyone else who is patiently waiting in the right lane . . . I love 18 wheelers who purposely straddle the line to block their passage. :mad:

And don't you just love it when a kid in a Corvette or Dodge Viper zooms past you and when you top the next hill a State Trooper has him pulled over to the side? Here in Texas they just opened a new tollway in late October running along the eastern side of Austin with the legal posted speed limit of 85 mph - and of course everyone drives 10 mph over the limit. At 85 you can feel the tires literally "floating" on the road even on dry pavement!

Now add another element to the situation - packs of feral (wild) hogs crossing the toll road! Can you imagine what kind of damage it does to your "totaled car" when you hit a 300 pound feral hog going 85 mph? Sort of like running into a refrigerator!!! Check out this news video about the first day the new toll road opened and four cars hit feral hogs:

Drivers hit wild hogs on SH 130 | KXAN.com

The day before the toll road opened the state wanted to test the reliability of their "toll tag cameras" and had a company bring in a 1,226 horsepower Cadillac CTV-S Coupe. With the toll way obviously unihabited since it was going to open the following day, the Caddy ran 220.5 mph with State Troopers supervising the run. Here's a cool video of the 220 mph trip - notice how fast the striped lines are coming at you at that speed.

Hennessey Tests the Limits of Texas Toll Road

Fred

[PONTIAC1953]

If you want to see a car with a ton of accessories, check out Ron Green's Pontiac. I've judged that car before and that car will make you stir crazy with all of the accessories that are on it.

Ironically Ron has the documentation to prove that every one of them are correct.

hi, how do you check out ron green's pontiac ?, i thought my 1953 pontiac chieftain custom catalina had more options and accessories than any other pontiac. charles coker, 1953 pontiac tech advisor.

[Dave@Moon]

Your lack of help to the "poor" Nissan guy stuck in the field reminds me of one of my pet peeves - idiots who see that the road up ahead is blocked and even though the warning sign says "Lane Closed Ahead 500 feet - Merge Right", they continue up the inside lane trying to get ahead of everyone else who is patiently waiting in the right lane . . . I love 18 wheelers who purposely straddle the line to block their passage. :mad:

In Ohio and many other states (these images are from Colorado) you'll find signs like this before construction zones:

Ohio does this routinely. I wish every state did.

[Marty Roth]

In Ohio and many other states (these images are from Colorado) you'll find signs like this before construction zones:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]173320[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=CONFIG]173321[/ATTACH]

Ohio does this routinely. I wish every state did.

Life would be simpler if more states would do this!

More people should be doing this instead of causing traffic to back up twice the length down the highway! Of course that would mean having to actually take turns!

[Ron Green]

hi, how do you check out ron green's pontiac ?, i thought my 1953 pontiac chieftain custom catalina had more options and accessories than any other pontiac. charles coker, 1953 pontiac tech advisor.

Hi Charles,

Been crazy busy and haven’t been posting here for a while. My 55 Custom Catalina has 51 out of a possible 62 factory options and accessories. A few of the oddballs; Thermaster refrigerator, Thermaster hot/cold liquid jug, rear window defogger, ladies purse holder, Remington auto/home shaver, autronic eye, compass, etc. Paul Decker has one similar to mine however it was a dealers wife’s car and has a few more goodies.

A few of the awards are; POCI gold (3 times), AACA grand national senior (4 times), Amelia Island Concours and Greenwich Concours (1^st in class), featured on My Classic Car with Dennis Gage. Vehicle currently is on loan to the America on Wheels Museum in Allentown PA.

[Sweepspear]

Tire sanders were very common on tractor trailers in the 50's.

There was a container with two down spouts that directed the sand to just in front of the tires.

I see them on many Fire trucks in my area even today.

[PONTIAC1953]

Hi Charles,

Been crazy busy and haven’t been posting here for a while. My 55 Custom Catalina has 51 out of a possible 62 factory options and accessories. A few of the oddballs; Thermaster refrigerator, Thermaster hot/cold liquid jug, rear window defogger, ladies purse holder, Remington auto/home shaver, autronic eye, compass, etc. Paul Decker has one similar to mine however it was a dealers wife’s car and has a few more goodies.

A few of the awards are; POCI gold (3 times), AACA grand national senior (4 times), Amelia Island Concours and Greenwich Concours (1^st in class), featured on My Classic Car with Dennis Gage. Vehicle currently is on loan to the America on Wheels Museum in Allentown PA.

well let's see

powerpack four barrel 287 V8 200hp

dual range hydra-matic

power steering

power brakes

power antenna

power windows

power seat six way

autronic eye

underseat heater & defroster

radio

front & rear speakers

turn signals

dual back up lamps

large rear-view mirror

rear fender panels

exhaust deflector

fuel door guard

illuminated hood ornament

windshield sun visor

traffic light viewer

windshield washer

dual spotlights with mirrors

foglights

visor vanity mirrors

glovebox lamp

trunk lamp

dual underhood lamps

ash tray & floor lamp

hand brake signal

grille guard

front wing guard

rear wing guard

e-z-eye glass

electric clock

wire wheel wheelcovers

safti-jack

oil bath air cleaner

white sidewall tires

19 plate battery

oversize tires

hand spotlamp

catalina venti-shades

draft deflectors

rear window wiper

tissue dispenser

magnatray

fuel door lock

illuminated car compass

color tipon

factory in dash air conditioning

rear trunk air conditioning

floor mats

instrument panel courtesy lights

rear courtesy lights

rear floor courtesy lights

door edge guards

door handle guards

insect screen

license plate frame

purse hanger

pontiac undercoating

rear window wiper

continential kit

R11 overdrive will be installed to the dual range hydra-matic

i think that's 64 options & accessories.

i know that my list goes beyond 1953 and into 1954,55, and 56

i think that should be all of them. charles coker, 1953 pontiac tech advisor.

Edited January 21, 2013 by pontiac1953
added (see edit history)

[Dave@Moon]

Life would be simpler if more states would do this!

More people should be doing this instead of causing traffic to back up twice the length down the highway! Of course that would mean having to actually take turns!

You always have to take turns, it's just a matter of where. Better right in front of the construction than 2-3 miles away from it.

[Ron Green]

well let's see

powerpack four barrel 287 V8 200hp

dual range hydra-matic

power steering

power brakes

power antenna

power windows

power seat six way

autronic eye

underseat heater & defroster

radio

front & rear speakers

turn signals

dual back up lamps

large rear-view mirror

rear fender panels

exhaust deflector

fuel door guard

illuminated hood ornament

windshield sun visor

traffic light viewer

windshield washer

dual spotlights with mirrors

foglights

visor vanity mirrors

glovebox lamp

trunk lamp

dual underhood lamps

ash tray & floor lamp

hand brake signal

grille guard

front wing guard

rear wing guard

e-z-eye glass

electric clock

wire wheel wheelcovers

safti-jack

oil bath air cleaner

white sidewall tires

19 plate battery

oversize tires

hand spotlamp

catalina venti-shades

draft deflectors

rear window wiper

tissue dispenser

magnatray

fuel door lock

illuminated car compass

color tipon

factory in dash air conditioning

rear trunk air conditioning

floor mats

instrument panel courtesy lights

rear courtesy lights

rear floor courtesy lights

door edge guards

door handle guards

insect screen

license plate frame

purse hanger

pontiac undercoating

rear window wiper

continential kit

R11 overdrive will be installed to the dual range hydra-matic

i think that's 64 options & accessories.

i know that my list goes beyond 1953 and into 1954,55, and 56

i think that should be all of them. charles coker, 1953 pontiac tech advisor.

You win. My 55’s accessories and options are all correct for the year and model. Certain accessories like the deluxe steering wheel, stainless fender skirts, etc were not available on the lower end Chieftain series. The traffic light viewer (not offered separately) and visor were a packaged unit (I have NOS in the box set-up) thus one accessory as the viewer was not needed without the visor. A 6-way power seat wasn’t available until 1956 and dual spotlights were not available for 55. 1955 was the first year the 287 V8 was offered.

I have been looking for the following correct for 1955 accessories: radiator insect screen, exterior extremely large 3 piece bumper mounted insect screen and the umbrella (4 styles offered). My vehicle has the umbrella holder however the umbrella is missing. Willing to pay top $ for any of these items.