WardsAuto Flashback – September 2014

85 Years Ago (September 1929): Ford Boosts Industry; American Austin Detailed; Low-Cost Small Car

U.S. car and truck production in the first six months of 1929 totaled 3,223,000, up more than 1,021,000 units from like-1928’s 2,201,500 units. Ford accounted for nearly all of the increase, according to data compiled by Cram’s Automotive Reports.

Having returned to full production this year, Ford plants turned out an estimated 1,020,000 vehicles in the first six months, up from an estimated 220,300 in like-1928, when it was in the midst of a model changeover from the venerable Model T to the all-new Model A.

Excluding Ford, the industry built 2,203,000 cars and trucks in the first six months of 1929, an 11.2% gain from 1,981,300 in first-half 1928.

New-car registrations show a similar increase with 683,600 Fords added to the rolls in January-June, compared with just 114,400 in the same period a year earlier. Thus, Ford’s market share has risen to 32.1% so far this year from just 6.4% year-ago and 15.8% for entire 1928.

1930 Austin among first U.S. transplant autos.

American Austin Car Co. reveals its upcoming model, to be built under license from Austin Motors, will be mechanically the same as the one manufactured in England, but will have an American-designed body with left-hand drive.

Featuring a 75-in. (1,905-mm) wheelbase, it will be propelled by a 7-hp 4-cyl. Austin engine.

Production of a coupe, sedan and commercial delivery truck will take place at a former Standard Steel plant in Butler, PA. The base model is expected to sell for less than $500.

In its Sept. 21, 1929, issue, Crams’ tells readers production of a new “baby automobile to be shipped in a packing case, which can be used as a garage, is being arranged by Eastern interests."

James V. Martin plans unique “baby” car.

The $45 million deal is said to be the brainchild of James V. Martin, head of Martin Airplane, who has enlisted the support of “the DuPont interests,” Sears-Roebuck and others.

Expected to sell for less than $200, the 2-passenger car is of unit-body construction with each of its four wheels powered independently from an air-cooled 4-cyl. engine. In place of springs, the wheels will be suspended by rubber aviation cord of the type used in airplane suspensions.

The car reportedly will weigh 600 lbs. (272 kg) and has a top speed of 50 mph (81 km/h).

75 Years Ago (September 1939): '40-Model Outlook; Chevy Leads Race; European War Effects

“Appearance-wise, the new cars have much to recommend them – longer bodies, longer wheelbases, extremely flowing front ends distinguished by broad fenders melting into the hood sides, tailed back with the continuity of the streamlines which begin at the front, all tastefully decorated with a more restrained use of chromium and stainless steel than ever before,” opines Ward’s Automotive Reports in a Sept. 2, 1939, assessment of upcoming ’40-model cars.

’40 Willys seen as hot seller in lower-price field.

Except for transmissions, there is little mechanical change in the new cars, WAR notes, pointing out that the bulk of the design changes come from General Motors, Chrysler and Ford.

Independent producers, except Hudson, offer only minor tweaks.

Major changes promise to heighten interest in, and competition among, low-price brands Chevrolet, Ford, Plymouth and Willys.

On the other hand, the “top price class is left to Cadillac, alone, for 1940. Packard has discontinued its V-12 line and Lincoln has not been in production on its senior jobs (those above the Zephyr in size and price), except for scattered custom orders, almost all of this year.”

At $975, ’40 One-Ten Touring Sedan is one of the lowest price Packards ever.

Meanwhile, with the ’39-model-year sales race nearing a close, year-to-date deliveries through July, “as estimated by Ward’s, show Chevrolet definitely first, followed by this equally definite order: Ford, Plymouth, Buick, Dodge, Pontiac, and Olds.”

The “transposition of Buick and Dodge positions,” is seen as an “outside chance if recent Dodge sales gains continue as Buick field stocks run low.”

Studebaker stands every chance of besting Chrysler for seventh place, the publication says.

Studebaker vies with Chrysler for seventh spot in ’39 sales race.

In an assessment of the effects of the war in Europe on U.S. automotive operations, Ward’s anticipates mid-winter sales increases and increased exports to “non- belligerent” countries due to the start of war materiel production in England and Canada.

U.S. industry is expected to benefit from exports of other materials as well, based on reports that negotiations are under way with Norway for U.S. coal and Japan for machine tools, products previously supplied to them by England and Germany, respectively.

Summing up, Ward’s editorializes, “Over the long term, the war’s effect is tragic and pitiable. Amidst the temporary false prosperity engendered by war, it should be well to keep constantly in mind that capital goods are being wasted which must someday be replaced, that such replacement is much the same as an individual buying a new car to replace one without insurance which has been wrecked. The individual is set back in his personal planning; so will the world be set back when the ultimate payoff for destruction comes. That was proved in 1929.”   

60 Years Ago (September 1954):  Ford Studies Stock Sale; 4-Door Hardtop Due; Michigan Share Up; GT Tubeless Tire

Privately held Ford has set up a committee to study the possibility of the public stock offering.

The action reportedly involves the sale of some of the 3,098,908 shares of non-voting stock held by the Ford Foundation and would not take place for a year or two, at the earliest.

The Foundation’s Class A shares would have to be converted to voting stock if it were to be sold on the New York Stock Exchange, Ward’s notes.

The Ford family controls the company through its 172,645 shares of Class B voting stock. An additional 16 million shares of Class A non-voting stock are held in the company’s treasury.  

Based on WAR data, Michigan is expected to increase its share of U.S. car output to 35% for entire 1954, up from 30% in the first half of the year.

The increase stems largely from a major effort by Chrysler in the upcoming ’55 model year to recoup volume and market share lost due to public apathy toward its modestly facelifted ’54s.  

’54 Dodge suffers from stodgy styling.

Chrysler’s all-new ’55 cars are expected to garner wide buyer acceptance thanks to advanced styling and upgraded powertrains.

Chrysler is a major force in Michigan car production, sourcing some 80% of its annual output in the state. Plymouth builds more cars in Michigan than any other single brand, Ward’s says, followed, in order, by Buick and Ford.

While Michigan still leads all other states in car production, its output share has fallen steadily in the post-WWII era as automakers decentralize production to more areas of the country to defray shipping costs. As part of that movement, Ford Div. is constructing new, larger facilities in Louisville, KY; San Jose, CA, and Mahwah, NJ, to replace older plants.

GM is adding capacity with its just-completed facility in Arlington, TX, slated to build Buick, Oldsmobile and Pontiac models, while Chevrolet is adding 1.0 million sq.-ft. (92,903 sq.-m) to its Tonawanda, NY, plant.

’55 Dodge shows all-new look.

A new body style, the 4-door pillarless hardtop, will make its debut at 7,400 new-car dealers in the ’55 model year.

“Rousing demand for the 4-door hardtop, with its unobstructed visibility between beltline and roof, could touch off a rash of introductions not seen since the (2-door) hardtop coupe bowed in 1949,” Ward’s says.

Pontiac previewed such a body style on a concept car featured in GM’s 1953 Motorama show in New York, but reports indicate it will not be among the brands offering the design in ’55.

Based on other reports, WAR says it believes only Buick, Olds and Cadillac, among GM brands, will offer the 4-door hardtop in the coming model year, with Chevrolet and Pontiac getting in on the action in ’56. 

General Tire and Rubber unveils a new “puncture-proof” tubeless tire, marketed as the General Silent Safety, that “avoids 90% of blowout accidents.”

In development since 1950, the tire is made of a special nylon fabric called Nygen and reportedly uses a softer, more pliable construction in its tread.

It “may be the tire that will last as long as the car,” a company official says, adding that it has the ability to last longer than anything yet produced and with proper care could give tread mileage never before known by motorists.

Sizes for cars and light trucks currently are offered, but similar tires for larger trucks are at least a year or two away.

50 Years Ago (September 1964): Manuals Hang Tough; UAW Pacts Benefits; Corvair Sports car; New Ford Suspensions

With an estimated 77.7% installation rate in ’64 model year domestic-make cars, the automatic transmission may be nearing its peak, says WAR, citing 80% as the likely high-water mark for the self-shifting transmission.

Thanks to the popularity of 4-speed gearboxes in the industry’s growing list of sport-specialty cars, the manual transmission’s installation rate is unlikely to fall much below 20%, the publication says. “In an era when annual car production volumes average 8.0-10.0 million, the manual gearbox may have carved out a permanent volume of at least 2.0 million units annually.” 

The United Auto Workers union has set a new industry standard with the 3-year labor pact reached with Chrysler on Sept. 9, 1964. The agreement gives Chrysler workers an “unprecedented” pension benefit of $4.25 per month per year of service, two additional paid holidays (including the worker’s birthday), new and improved early retirement benefits, company-paid life, sickness and accident insurance and “substantial” wage increases.

’65 Corvair Corsa Chevy’s answer to Ford Mustang.

On Sept. 18, Ford and the UAW agree to a 3-year pact that includes all of the Chrysler contract’s benefits plus $25-$100 Christmas bonuses and improved language covering production standards. Both agreements provide a 50% increase in on-the-job relief time.

The compact rear-engine Corvair is completely redesigned for ’65 and includes a new top-of-the-line Corsa model that, according to Chevrolet, is designed to compete with Ford’s hot-selling Mustang.

Along with Corvette-influenced styling, the Corsa sports an optional turbocharged 180-hp variant of Corvair’s air-cooled H-6 engine and model-specific interior and exterior trim. The new turbo engine produces 30 hp more than the “blown” engine in the now discontinued ’64 Monza Spyder.

Ford F-100 features Twin-I-Beam front suspension in ’65.

Other models in the Corvair line include the Monza and 500 series. Body styles include 2- and 4-door hardtops and a convertible, all of which are available in Monza trim. Corsa is offered only as a 2-door hardtop and convertible. Only the 2- and 4-door hardtops are offered in the 500-series. 

Ford F-100 finally gains an independent front suspension system for ’65. It features a “revolutionary” design called Twin-I-Beam that “combines two front axles, coil springs and radius rods for a passenger-car ride and big-truck ruggedness.” 

The design virtually locks in wheel alignment, eliminates front-end “dive” in sudden stops, does away with the need for front-wheel caster and camber adjustments and has fewer lubrication points, WAR says.

The F-Series also offers three new engines, 260-cid (4.1-L) and 300-cid (4.9-L) I-6s and a 352-cid (5.8-L) V-8.

At the same time, totally redesigned ’65 full-size Ford models, Custom, Galaxie 500 and the new LTD, feature an all-new rear suspension that uses coil springs in place of leaf springs for the first time.

25 Years Ago (September 1989):  Buick 'Roadmonster'; Hyundai Comments; UAW on CAFE; Chrysler-Renault ARCAD

Buick is readying a prototype of its all-new large sedan due to reach dealer showrooms in late 1990 as a ’91 model. Built on a GM 350 platform, derived from the GM 300 architecture underpinning the redesigned Chevy Caprice bowing in April, the new Buick reportedly will revive the Roadmaster moniker last used in ’58.

However, some GM personnel reportedly refer to it as the “Roadmonster” due to its overall size and its more powerful 5.7L V-8 compared with the Caprice’s 5.0L V-8. An even larger GM 380 variant, known internally as the Cadillac “D,” also is being prepped for introduction.

In a Ward’s interview at the unveiling of the all-new ’90-model Sonata sedan, a Hyundai America executive calls Honda “Wooden, Conservative, Vulnerable. They produce a wonderful car … but you only stay on top so long if you begin playing everything safe.” Asked which domestic automaker is the strongest, the executive answers, “Ford, clearly. Their problem is dealing with the challenge of being in the leadership position. GM has made so many mistakes, it’s incredible.”

’91 Buick Roadmaster set for late 1990.

UAW leaders testify at Congressional hearings in favor of a Senate bill mandating percentage increases in corporate average fuel economy requirements for individual manufacturers.

A “blanket” increase in fuel-economy mandates would allow foreign manufacturers more flexibility at the expense of U.S. jobs, the union says.

It also says proposed requirements for a 20% increase in CAFE by 1995 and a 40% hike by 2000 are not feasible, adding the union would like to see an incentive for producers to build more small cars in “underutilized” U.S. plants.  

Association of Renault and Chrysler for Automotive Development (ARCAD) is the name chosen for a new joint venture to develop and build new vehicles, starting with the Jeep “JJ” small SUV.

About the same size as the Suzuki Sidekick/Geo Tracker, it is expected to debut in model year ’93 and be sold in North America by Chrysler and in Europe by both Chrysler and Renault.

It will be built in North America and Europe. Reportedly, the North American variant would be powered by Chrysler’s 2.2L 4-cyl. engine mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox from the Dodge Omni/Plymouth Horizon.