Seventies customs...? Probably the ultimate in displays of personal opulance and the 'ME!' factor. And who do we have to blame?
*n
Well, first, I wasn't being negative or blaming anyone for anything. Nothing pejorative.
As for seventies customs, I was there, lived it and did it. I drove a 1965 GTO 389, 1968 GTO 400, and a 1969 GTO Ram Air IV - all during the 70's. Back when they were just used musclecars for every day use. My mates drove the following: a 1965 Buick Wildcat, a 1966 Charger 383, a 1970 Charger RT 440, VW Squareback, a 1970 Impala, a 1976 Capri Rally Cat, a 1967 Tempest, a 1967 Chevelle SS, a 1966 Mustang GT, and a 1970 Riviera 455 --- and more.
Not everybody in America was Ed Roth or George Barris. The idea of a "customized" car to Joe Sixpack was aftermarket wheels, a hood scoop, a Hurst shifter, and an Edelbrock/Holley upgrade. People who actually customized cars back then, like Roth or Barris, were UNUSUAL. They were not the norm.
In the end, you see, we Joe Sixpacks were conforming to the magazine upgrades and what was considered "normal".
The most exotic thing I ever did to a car back then was doing all-metal flares to my GTO. I was WAY WAY off the reservation by doing that. Most guys kept the bodywork 100% OE.
Rebels back then were, well, rebels.
Todays rebels are a fungible good, they're everywhere, and most ordinary.