Beauty that gives you that “New Car” thrill all over again…from Allstate

Sears Catalog, 1953

If your car is a bit old (as much as 15 years old according to this catalog page) evidently you can make it feel newer by fitting a plastic seat cover over your existing car seats. People of a certain age will recall just how that vinyl felt when you slid onto it. The rest of us can merely gaze upon at the colors and patterns, and wonder why, say, Toyota doesn’t offer a Prius with seats in bright plaid stripes of blue, green, and black. To heck with microfiber – bring back Deep Quilted Saran Plastic panels!

Apologies for the far left edge of the scan – this Sears catalog was bound into a hardback cover, which has preserved it beautifully but makes it difficult to open fully for scanning. But never mind the copy, what is the lovely gloved lady’s dog doing on that plastic seat cover? (Whatever he does, it would be easy to clean off!)

It’s a bit of a shock to see the brand name. Allstate, we all know, is all about insurance. But in the mid 20th century, that brand was also applied to tires, batteries, seat covers – and even an Allstate automobile itself available to order from Sears. Which would truly put you in good hands…with Allstate.