Car Models from the 1950s
In the late 1940s, the pent up demand for new cars was so great after civilian automobile production resumed following World War II that Americans would purchase anything. The Detroit Big Three -- Ford, Chrysler and General Motors -- produced warmed-over prewar designed cars laden with chrome. The model year 1950 saw supply catch up with demand with 6.6 million new cars sold. By 1955, that number leaped to 7.9 million new autos when models finally shed their 1940s trappings.
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Ford
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Ford benefited greatly from the demand for new cars. Its most popular models were the Tudor, Crestliner and Custom Coupe powered by an in-line six-cylinder engine or the famed flathead V-8. The Custom sedan was a favorite of police departments across the United States for its reliability and speed. Fords of 1950 featured its trademark grille spinner, which looked like a bullet nose, and Ford's 17th century coat of arms badging on the hood. In 1955, Ford answered the 1953 Chevrolet Corvette with a smaller, but sharper designed two-seater Thunderbird with a 292 cubic-inch V-8 under the hood. The 1957 Fairlane equipped with a retractable hardtop would not be effectively copied for another three decades. Ford stumbled in 1958 with its disastrous Edsel, with its ungainly "horse collar" grille, but rebounded six years later with the revolutionary 1964 Mustang.
General Motors
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General Motors produced the Chevrolet, Buick, Oldsmobile, Pontiac and Cadillac. GM chief designer Harley Earl ruled the styling department roost that set the tone for 1950s cars: chrome-bedecked behemoths in which engineering advances in safety and handling failed to keep up with design changes. GM produced two breakthrough models. The 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air featured understated styling, judicious use of chrome and a 265 cubic-inch "Turbo Fire" V-8 engine. The 1953 Corvette debuted with a fiberglass body but powered by a tepid straight-six engine. It got the 265 V-8 two years later. The 1959 Cadillac Eldorado featured tailfins so large and pointed that it put any pedestrian walking behind it in danger. Equally formidable was the 1959 Buick LeSabre sitting on a massive 123-inch wheelbase.
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Chrysler
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Chrysler offered its economical Plymouth, mid-range Dodge, the upscale DeSoto and the luxury Imperial. Prewar thinking drove Chrysler, which hampered overall styling. While Ford, GM and Studebaker developed more streamlined models, Chrysler President K.T. Keller believed that cars should be tall enough, like the stodgy 1950 Wayfarer, to accommodate a man wearing a hat. Chrysler's competitors hammered the automaker in sales until the automaker brought on board stylist Virgil Exner. Exner introduced the "Forward Look" with the low-slung 1956 Chrysler Imperial and the Chrysler 300 series. The underappreciated DeSoto, which ceased production in 1960, displayed remarkable styling sophistication, such as the 1955 Firesweep, Firedome and Fireflite models that could be equipped with a 350-horsepower 383-cubic-inch V-8.
Studebaker
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The South Bend, Indiana-based Studebaker was always ahead of its time in styling and perhaps its best example was the futuristic "bullet-nose" 1950 Studebaker Champion with its wrap-around rear window. Under stylist Raymond Loewy's supervision, Studebaker introduced the 1953 Starliner coupe, the antithesis of Detroit auto making with a low profile, clean lines and minimal use of chrome. The similarly designed upscale Power Hawk and Golden Hawk followed.
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References
Resources
- Oldride: 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air
- OldRide: 1959 Buick LeSabre
- Allpar: Chrysler Corporation History
- Imperial Web Pages: Virgil M. Exner, Chief Stylist
- The Age: Lines of Beauty
- Old Ride: 1957 Chrysler 300
- Allpar: A Full History of DeSoto
- Concept Carz: 1950 Studebaker Champion Starlite Coupe
- Old Ride: 1956 Studebaker Golden Hawk
- Raymond Loewy: About -- Biography
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
