A GDYNETS® PUBLICATION © 2016, G. DAVID YAROS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Car Collector Chronicles ®
Volume IX, Issue 11
Exploring:
Ca
Car Collecting Today
High RPMs
Classic Rides Reports From the Field Oldsmobile (1897-2004) Cadillac (1902- ) Allanté (1987-1993)
Corvair (1960-1969)
◄ = Clickable Link
IN THIS ISSUE: High RPMs
November 2016
s
1
The DeSoto Motor Car
2
Pics to Ponder
5
Hard to believe, but way back in Nov of 2008, the very first issue of CCC® debuted. In the second issue I revealed my desire to own a mid-fifties Cadillac. In the intervening years my 1955 Coupé deVille, the Gray Lady, has come and gone from the Yaros Car Barn; as well as a few other rides! Even harder to believe, before I was even born way, way back in 1945, the Chicago Cubs played in the World Series. 71 years later they have finally returned. Cubs fans, no matter the outcome, rejoice! November Automotive Milestones 1-1895 1st U.S. auto club formed & 1st car mag published, "The Horseless Age" 1-1955 Studebaker Hawk debuts ® 1-2008 CCC debuts
2-1935 Cord debuts 810 Ford Zephyr debuts 3-1900 1st national auto show-Madison Sq. Garden31911 Louis Chevrolet & Billy Durant found Chevrolet Motor Car Co. 5-1863 James Ward Packard born 6-1893 Edsel Ford born 6-1899 1st test run of a Packard 10-1925 Ford debuts TriMotor airplane 10-1775 USMC 241st b’day! 11-1940 Jeep makes its 1st appearance 12-1908 Oldsmobile joins GM 14-1914 1st Dodge rolls off assembly line 14-1945 Tony Hulman buys Indy Spdwy from Eddie Rickenbacker for $750K 15-1895 George Selden patents gas-powered car 18-1940 Buick builds its fourmillionth car 19-1959 Ford ceases Edsel production
20-1920 GM names Pierre du Pont president 20-1951 Sears, Roebuck & Co. debuts Kaiser-built Allstate 25-1844 Karl Benz born 30-1900 Germany patents frontwheel-drive 30-1960 DeSoto production ends
- Go Cubs, Go!
GDYNets® on the Web Find GDYNets on the web: ®
CCC -THE FORUM ◄-A web site to discuss the newsletter, the hobby and our cars.
CCC® Forum EMail:
◄
OldsD88@gmail.com ◄
Car Collector Chronicles® ◄ Saved 62 ◄-Our 1962 Olds convertible, Ransom Eli Olds and things Oldsmobile related web site. The Gray Lady ◄-1955 Cadillac Coupé de Ville web site.
SAVED 62: A website devoted
to our 1962 Oldsmobile Dynamic 88 convertible. The site also has a lot of information on Oldsmobile cars and the company founder, Ransom Eli Olds.
THE GRAY LADY: This website features our 1955 Cadillac Coupé de Ville, lots of Caddy information and an extensive repair library.
DAVE’S DEN: ◄-A site devoted to a myriad of interests. Foremost is extensive information on the “Steel City” of Gary, IN. There are also offerings on steel making, U.S. Steel-Gary Works, U.S. Marine Corps, M14 assault rifle, of course Oldsmobile, and the tragic story of the murder of Gary, IN Police Lt. George Yaros.
Car Collector Chronicles
Page 2
The DeSoto Motor Car
“In its first year DeSoto manufactured more cars than either its parent company Chrysler, Pontiac or GrahamPaige. ”
For reasons inexplicable to me, the DeSoto has been on my mind of late. When I was a mere lad a neighbor two doors down owned one that routinely caught my eye. At any rate, I thought it would be both interesting and informative to take a look at the car. Before we do, in the interest of full disclosure let me divulge that what follows is not original from me. Rather, it is the product of searching the net and gathering info. The most relied upon sources are: the DeSoto Wiki ◄, the DeSotoLand ◄ web site, Allpar ◄, and the Automotive Oddity ◄ web site. Having given credit where credit is due, let’s sit back and enjoy the ride! While Walter P. Chrysler formed the division in 1928, the first models were not introduced to the motoring public until 1929. Needless to say, his timing in this regard was not the best? The DeSoto was placed to compete with the mid-price offerings from General Motors, Studebaker and Willys-Knight. Despite the timing, sales of the inaugural DeSoto totaled 81,065 cars. In its first year DeSoto manufactured more cars than either its parent company Chrysler, Pontiac or GrahamPaige. At the time this figure set a first year sales record. Not only was it a record in 1929, the record stood until 1960, when it was finally superseded by Ford Falcon debut sales. DeSoto provided the car buying public with more than a few engineering advantages, including an oil filter and Lockheed hydraulic brakes. Hydraulic brakes were either optional or not even available from competing manufacturers. Standard equipment on a DeSoto also included automatic windshield wiper, ignition lock, brake light, full-instrumentation, steering hub controls for headlights, and a tool kit with grease gun. Throughout the depression years automobile manufacturers had to be creative in terms of marketing to keep their brand in the public eye and get people into the showrooms. Chrysler was not above resorting to gimmicks when it came to the DeSoto. In 1932 Walter P. put race car driver Peter DePalo behind the wheel of a DeSoto and speed across the U.S. in ten days. At the conclusion of the trek DePalo then put the car on the track and drove it for 300 more miles while attaining speeds in excess of 80 m.p.h. Even more attention getting was the the 1933 cross-country trip by racer Harry Hartz. What made it notable was that the entire trip was driven with the DeSoto in reverse! That had to make for more than a crick or two in the neck I suspect? What was not made known to the public was that this trip was more than a mere stunt. It was actually engineering research into aerodynamics. It confirmed that the gentle slope of body contour found in the rear of cars produced less wind resistance and yielded better gas mileage. In fact, the test results ultimately led to the introduction of the DeSoto Airflow in 1934. The Airflow, bearing both Chrysler and DeSoto badging is a whole other subject in and of itself. Suffice it to say the design was leading edge and remains a classic example
Car Collector Chronicles
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The DeSoto Motor Car—Cont’d. of the form follows function principle. That is, it did what it was designed to do; increase fuel efficiency. In the process it propelled DeSoto to 32 stock car records. Airflow scorched the flying mile at 86.2 m.p.h., averaged 80.9 m.p.h. for 100 miles, 76.2 m.p.h. for 500 miles, and 74.7 m.p.h. for 2,000 miles. Putting icing on the cake, Walter P. had Harry Hartz drive a DeSoto Airflow 3,114 miles from New York to San Francisco. The DeSoto averaged 21.4 m.p.g., consuming 145.5 gallons of gas and incurring a total gas bill of $33.06. Interestingly, the DeSoto Airflow was not a big success in the U.S. It was only produced by Chrysler Corporation from 1934 through 1937. That said, it was big hit overseas. In distant Japan the first mass produced Toyota was styled to resemble the 1934 DeSoto Airflow. That is an understatement, is it not? Looking at the 1936 Toyoda Model AA it is a wonder that Walter P. Chrysler did not sue the Japanese auto builder. The reason for the similarity is understood when it is known that Toyota bought a ‘34 Airflow, had it shipped to Japan and then reverse engineered it by completely disassembling the car. Eight years after forming the DeSoto division, Chrysler was pleased with the rollout. He felt DeSoto was successful enough to merit its own production facility. He opened a DeSoto assembly plant on Wyoming Avenue in Detroit. Before Chrysler used it for DeSoto manufacture, Saxon Motor Cars were made there. GM also owned the plant for a time and produced both Buicks and LaSales at the the site. The pre-war 40s were notable for DeSoto for a couple of reasons. In 1941 DeSoto introduced the Simplimatic transmission. This was a precursor of the fully automatic transmission. While it did have a clutch, its use was not required to shift into all gears. The second pre-war highlight for DeSoto was the covered, pop-up headlight design of 1942. This was a first for the U.S. auto industry. Like all car manufacturers, DeSoto ceased production during WWII. Instead it contributed to the war effort by making Sherman tank parts, B-26 Marauder fuselages, B-29 nose sections, Curtiss Helldiver wings and anti-aircraft gun parts. The early to mid-1950s were kind to DeSoto. No engine delivered more horse power per cubic inch than the 1952 Desoto Firedome. A 2 bbl. carb on a 276.1 c.i. Hemi V8 engine with 7.0:1 compression produced 160 h.p. at 4,400 r.p.m. running on regular gasoline. The placid Eisenhower years were not as quiet as some would have you believe. This is particularly true when one speaks in terms of automobile design. Think of the radical body design changes presented by say Chevrolet, Pontiac and Plymouth for example. DeSoto had its contribution too. The 1955 DeSoto could be had in not only a twotone color scheme, but also a three-tone version on the Fireflight Coronado!
“In distant Japan the first mass produced Toyota was styled to resemble the 1934 DeSoto Airlow.”
Car Collector Chronicles
Page 4;;
The DeSoto Motor Car—Cont’d. The 1956 model year was remarkable in that it saw the first DeSoto 4door hardtop. It also was the only year DeSoto paced the Indianapolis 500 race. It did so in fine fashion, attaining pace lap speeds in excess of 100 m.p.h. Breaking the one hundred mile per hour barrier was quite an accomplishment at the time, and a well earned feather in the cap of DeSoto. The car that did it was a white and gold Fireflite convertible sporting Adventurer trim. Performance wise, 1957 may be characterized as a banner year for DeSoto. At that point in time the brass ring for automotive engineers was to create an engine that produced one horse for every cubic inch. DeSoto accomplished this feat on its dual 4 bbl. carb engine; 345 h.p. out off 345 cubic inches. Albeit, undoubtedly, an aberration, one cannot leave the 1957 model year without taking note of the DeSoto Sweptside. Who made it is unknown, other than it was not DeSoto. The vehicle consisted of a Dodge front clip/ doghouse and cab, 1956 Plymouth rear quarters and a tailgate embossed DeSoto. This is the only available picture of this creation. When and where it was taken is not known. Nor is the whereabouts of the truck, if it still exists. In actuality, 1957 marked the beginning of the end for DeSoto. DeSoto cars began looking more and more like Chryslers. They were only slightly distinguishable by reason of the grille and taillights In an era of strong vehicle make identification, the decision to clone became a recipe for disaster. Chrysler compounded their DeSoto problems in 1958 when it introduced its fuel injected engine. By forking over an extra $637.20 the buyer got 10 more horsepower. While cutting edge, the system proved nearly inoperable. Most all the Bendix EFI cars were recalled and retro-fitted with dual four barrel carburetors. The series of errors saw sales drop by a whopping 70%! Chrysler panicked. It closed down the Wyoming Av operations and moved production to its Jefferson Av facility. DeSoto sales further declined in 1959. In November of 1960, shortly after introducing the 1961 models, Chrysler pulled the plug on DeSoto. Chrysler left their DeSoto dealers hanging in the breeze. Many, if not most, had no choice but to sell their existing inventory at a loss, closing the books on another American marque.
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Car Collector Chronicles
Pics to Ponder
Ok, I’ve had my say for the month. Now it’s your turn! I invite/encourage submission of your comments, opinions and article contributions. I also ask that you please help spread the word about our publication. Everything sent shall indeed be reviewed by me. Submissions should be sent to CCC® at OldsD88@gmail.com.
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-- RESTORE 'EM, AND DRIVE 'EM! COMING NEXT ISSUE: TBD