The 1958 Oldsmobile had a very interesting option. A first for the industry. It was a portable radio built into dash. You could pull out and take with you.

Here is a version in dash:

Edited September 5, 200520 yr by HarleyEarl

It had an all chrome face...very classy:

Apparently a variety of portable radios were offered in '58 and '59 in some Pontiacs and Buicks as well.

Yes, the car record player, forgot about those. Will have to do some research, see who was the first.

The Trans-Portable radios were '58 & 59 options on Olds, Buick & Pontiac for sure. I have never seen this option available for either Cadillac or Chevrolet, but perhaps it was. I am certain GM never offered a RPO record player, but all ChryCo divisions did: '56 (for sure) thru '60 (off the top of my head). Just saw a gorgeous '56 DeSoto with a 'Highway Hi-Fi' unit this weekend.

So it sounds like ChryCo was the first with the record player. Darn it.

An under-dash record player is great...until you drive over a brick road. Seriously, though, I've heard of the Trans-Portable radio before. Allegedly, it was a fine portable unit, but a mediocre in-dash reciever. It naturally lacked the then-breakthrough SEEK feature found on the Wonderbar radios at the time. Like airbags, Guidestar, and CRT touch-screen displays, its yet another lost Oldsmobile/GM innovation...

Highway Hi-Fi actually worked(s) quite well on rougher roads; it's not merely a table-top record player in a chromey case.

*raises eyebrow*

COOL! Heh...those portable radios look a bit more innovative than some things in cars today....


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From the front with the key it looks like a mobile hard drive rack seen on some computers.

HarleyEarl, you are just a fountain of cool stuff! Do you sit around at night looking this stuff up? j/k http://www.cheersandgears.com/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/AH-HA_wink.gif

That's really cool!

I'm so obsessed with cars, I really need to get a hobby lol. It's eating me alive.

I'm so obsessed with cars, I really need to get a hobby lol.  It's eating me alive.

*shakes head*

Nah, I'd say you already have a hobby ... cars ;). Keep the cool stuff coming, please!

*shakes head*

Nah, I'd say you already have a hobby ... cars ;).  Keep the cool stuff coming, please!

[post="10583"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post]

Absolutely!
More of an addiction than a hobby......but it's a good addiction!

Is it ever an addiction. I always thought I was weird until I discovered a whole bunch of car nuts on the net that were just as obsessed. Now I don't feel so alone.

Now I don't feel so alone.

GOOD!

...and, uh, keep it that way ;).

lol...I promise. Of course not a hard promise to keep. :)

lol...I promise.  Of course not a hard promise to keep.  :)

Heh...don't I know it ;).

As many Olds carshows as I have been to (which has to be a ton in my 24 years on this planet) I don't think I have ever seen one of those... Great find!