Well we seem to be clear of snow here in West Berkshire, for the moment at least, but not to miss out on the theme for this week's Sepia Saturday I found this vintage advertisement in the March 1959 edition of Motor Sport magazine. It's for BP Energol Visco-static motor oil, and the picture on the advert is of Mr McCarthy's Ford Zephyr after a night out in the New Zealand Alps. I particularly like the strap line of advert, "Snowed up in the mountains yet it started first touch". This feels very much like 1950's langauge to me and I can imagine someone like Leslie Philips saying this ... possibly followed by "ding, dong", or "woof".
Vintage advertisement for BP Energol Visco-static motor oil, c.1959
More vintage magazines can be found on my web site
Ah...those were the days when we had the dynaflow, hydromatic, jetaway engines to use the viscostatic oil. They must have run out of names and now they seem to prefer to number engines. Takes some of the romance out of things. I swear there was a health tonic named "Energol" - something full of cod liver oil and alcohol?
ReplyDeleteSeems they told Porkies back then, it's not a new thing.
ReplyDeleteI remember cars in those days. If you were an alien and arrived on a Sunday you would have believed cars ate people. Up and down the road there were cars with their bonnets up and backsides hanging out of them as plugs were taken out and cleaned and gaps reset. Cars froze in the cold and carbs dried out in the heat. Starting was an art in coaxing.
I just wonder what Mr McCarthy has been doing there. A night out in the New Zealand Alps? Maybe he was there just for the ad.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if Mr McCarthy was even there! I knew nothing about the joys of motoring in the 1950s as we didn't have a car back then.
ReplyDeleteGreat advertisement ... good thing that the oil really worked.
ReplyDeleteKathy M.
Perfect image for the prompt this week! Was this gentleman on holiday? We'll never know.
ReplyDeleteIt looks like it would be hard to go anywhere even if the car did start.
ReplyDeleteAmazing story- but imagine their moving about in it too- sometimes it's fun to just sit out the blizzard if you can!
ReplyDeleteHaving stayed a night at Mt Cook village on New Zealand's South Island - where I suspect this was taken - and waking up after a heavy snowfall to see many cars in this state, I know exactly what they were talking about. Thankfully our hired 4x4 needed only a quick brush off and started straight away too.
ReplyDeleteMotor oil used to be such an important part of a motorists' life back in those days. I remember working in a petrol station back in the mid sixties and tins of oil were a big seller. Wouldn't know where to put the stuff today!
ReplyDeleteBang on theme.
ReplyDeleteLove these old ads. Perfect for the theme.
ReplyDeleteHow could anyone purchase a different brand after that?
ReplyDeleteA super choice for the theme. Energol and Visco-static could easily sell pharmaceuticals today.
ReplyDeleteSome of my neighbors, too cheap to rent a parking space indoor, could have used this product recently, when it was grueling cold.
ReplyDelete:D~
HUGZ