This particular car, which I found in a small town in western Washington, has a regional vibe with its Native American and howling-coyote imagery. Since then fancy graphics such as on this circa 2005 BMW 550i have not been very common. Factory-installed two-tone paint and loud stripes on the 1975 Ford Econoline looked tame compared to the individualized murals and other graphics that local van-customization shops offered during the 1970s ( Old Car Brochures). One might also point out that the young people who were most attracted to these “love making machines” eventually grew up (Heitmann, 2018 p. This could get expensive - which may help explain why the van fad died out in the recession of the early-1980s. The custom exterior of vans was often matched by an interior that could include “soft lighting, shag carpeting, mirrors, wine racks, water beds, and refrigerators” (Heitmann, 2018 p. Elaborate murals and other graphic treatments were quite common (at least in southern California). The only time I can remember when this has been a mass-market phenomenon was during the surfer van boomlet of the 1970s. This BMW reminded me of how rarely automobiles in the United States display customized paint schemes.
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