The 40's
The 40's suffered the worst car production in years. One of the major reasons for the decreased production in cars is because of World War II. In fact car production was stopped in the US for 4 years. Car manufacture was halted on 9th February 1942 because of the war and the production of civilian cars resumed on 1st July 1945. During the dry period of car production the military had converted most car factories in to military production plants and they were producing a widely known military vehicle known as Jeep. In 1940 car sales were very low and had only sold around 4 million cars by the end of the year before the war would start compared with a 5.3 million sales in 1929.
It was at the start of the 40's that car companies started to produce 'luxury' vehicles. It started rolling off production lines in 1940 till 1942 but was then halted due to the World War. These luxury cars were a symbol of wealth and status among society. The most sought after luxury car in 1940 was the Delahaye 135 convertible it was very luxurious as you can see in the image above and it could reach speeds of up to 95 miles an hour. It was the ultimate luxury car of its time. This car resembles the new design the cars in the fourties had, it was more broader, lower, longer and the detail was much sharper.
Technology was increasing and this changed the designs of the cars. By 1946 the first radio telephones were used in cars and the first electrically powered windows were available in cars,turn signals were also introduced to cars. For the first time driving schools were set up and instructors used to teach high school students how to drive a car.In 1948 most cars had adapted their cars to start the engine with an ignition key and this had become standard throughout all cars produced afterwards. Also in 1948 the tubeless tires were introduced.
It is safe to say that this is period of time when cars started to take their modern shape with technological gadgets and features.
The 40's suffered the worst car production in years. One of the major reasons for the decreased production in cars is because of World War II. In fact car production was stopped in the US for 4 years. Car manufacture was halted on 9th February 1942 because of the war and the production of civilian cars resumed on 1st July 1945. During the dry period of car production the military had converted most car factories in to military production plants and they were producing a widely known military vehicle known as Jeep. In 1940 car sales were very low and had only sold around 4 million cars by the end of the year before the war would start compared with a 5.3 million sales in 1929.
It was at the start of the 40's that car companies started to produce 'luxury' vehicles. It started rolling off production lines in 1940 till 1942 but was then halted due to the World War. These luxury cars were a symbol of wealth and status among society. The most sought after luxury car in 1940 was the Delahaye 135 convertible it was very luxurious as you can see in the image above and it could reach speeds of up to 95 miles an hour. It was the ultimate luxury car of its time. This car resembles the new design the cars in the fourties had, it was more broader, lower, longer and the detail was much sharper.
Technology was increasing and this changed the designs of the cars. By 1946 the first radio telephones were used in cars and the first electrically powered windows were available in cars,turn signals were also introduced to cars. For the first time driving schools were set up and instructors used to teach high school students how to drive a car.In 1948 most cars had adapted their cars to start the engine with an ignition key and this had become standard throughout all cars produced afterwards. Also in 1948 the tubeless tires were introduced.
It is safe to say that this is period of time when cars started to take their modern shape with technological gadgets and features.
The 50's
By the 1950's the United States Of America had accounted for nearly 2/3 of world total production of cars having produced approximately 8 million units and United Kingdom had produced 784,000 units.
The 1950's was known as the decade of car culture or the Jet Age. This is because cars were now increasingly common in most American households and a new culture of 'driving without any particular destination' became a common pass time for many Americans. Cars were now more of a necessity rather than a luxury item. Celebrities set high standards when choosing cars and this made some cars more worthy than others for example the 1955 Cadillac El Dorado which was popularized by Rock n Roll Legend Elvis Presley. It is still one of the most sought after cars till date. Cadillac's were not outsold by any other car for four years which shows you the popularity of their cars.
In the 1950's the cars rarely had any mechanical changes from the previous model. Most of the changes came with the design and the features included in the car. During this period each model's look would change dramatically every year and the showrooms would cover the windows with paper until the release day and make a huge show out of the release.
The styling of the new cars in this era were mostly dominant with chrome trims on the bumpers,hood and tail lights and usually interior features like the door handles, window knobs and dashboards were finished with chrome add to the 'luxury' of the car. Three tone paint jobs became very popular and one of the most defining feature of a 50's car was the the tail fin rear lights attached to the wings. Brand new features and some existing old features, which were not widely used before had become popular and enhanced the driving experience with features such as Power Assisted Steering, Power Brakes and Automatic Transmission, Air Conditioning, Automatic Dimming Headlights, Fuel Injection and Retractable Hard Top Roofs.
By the 1950's the United States Of America had accounted for nearly 2/3 of world total production of cars having produced approximately 8 million units and United Kingdom had produced 784,000 units.
The 1950's was known as the decade of car culture or the Jet Age. This is because cars were now increasingly common in most American households and a new culture of 'driving without any particular destination' became a common pass time for many Americans. Cars were now more of a necessity rather than a luxury item. Celebrities set high standards when choosing cars and this made some cars more worthy than others for example the 1955 Cadillac El Dorado which was popularized by Rock n Roll Legend Elvis Presley. It is still one of the most sought after cars till date. Cadillac's were not outsold by any other car for four years which shows you the popularity of their cars.
In the 1950's the cars rarely had any mechanical changes from the previous model. Most of the changes came with the design and the features included in the car. During this period each model's look would change dramatically every year and the showrooms would cover the windows with paper until the release day and make a huge show out of the release.
The styling of the new cars in this era were mostly dominant with chrome trims on the bumpers,hood and tail lights and usually interior features like the door handles, window knobs and dashboards were finished with chrome add to the 'luxury' of the car. Three tone paint jobs became very popular and one of the most defining feature of a 50's car was the the tail fin rear lights attached to the wings. Brand new features and some existing old features, which were not widely used before had become popular and enhanced the driving experience with features such as Power Assisted Steering, Power Brakes and Automatic Transmission, Air Conditioning, Automatic Dimming Headlights, Fuel Injection and Retractable Hard Top Roofs.
The 60's
The new breed of cars in this period were known as 'pony' cars. The flamboyant and extravagance design of the 50's continued into the 60's but then gave way in favour of new fresh ideas. You may have heard of cars such as Ford Mustang and Shelby Mustang GT500, Chevrolet Camero, Dodge Charger. These were all muscle cars and these were the new cars that were the symbol of speed, power and huge engine size.
By the 60's cars from different parts of the world had started producing better cars, USA was no longer the home of powerful and speedy cars, Detroit's domination of the world car market had came to an end with new emerging markets from other parts of world. To name a few contenders to american muscle cars they now had some serious competition in the likes of Aston Martin DB 5 Jaguar E-Type, Porsche 911, Lamborghini Miura, AC Cobra and Ferrari 275. These European cars had completely different and separate types of design compared to American car designs, most of the designs from the aforementioned European cars are still appreciated and admired as of today. Many sports car manufacturers used to pit there cars on a track aiming to boost their sales and the most well known and popular track Le Mans, it is still the worlds oldest active race track and it became a common testing track for sports manufacturers. During this time the Ford GT40 had a firm hold on the performance side of sports cars and had continued to dominate the race track for nearly 4 years keeping Ferrari on the side having dominated for years before the GT40 became a contender.
Till the late 60's, Muscle cars or 'pony' cars were the big fashion statements of American car companies. However most of the world continued to move on to much sleeker and composed finishes of the European car manufacturers. It signalled the decline of American cars. Although U.S auto industry had bounced back from previous slumps to sell around 11.1 million cars in 1964-1965, the world market was ever expanding and Americans had dropped from a whopping 76% of world car production in 1950 to a mere 48% of total world car production which clearly indicated the beginning of the end for the declining U.S auto industry.
The new breed of cars in this period were known as 'pony' cars. The flamboyant and extravagance design of the 50's continued into the 60's but then gave way in favour of new fresh ideas. You may have heard of cars such as Ford Mustang and Shelby Mustang GT500, Chevrolet Camero, Dodge Charger. These were all muscle cars and these were the new cars that were the symbol of speed, power and huge engine size.
By the 60's cars from different parts of the world had started producing better cars, USA was no longer the home of powerful and speedy cars, Detroit's domination of the world car market had came to an end with new emerging markets from other parts of world. To name a few contenders to american muscle cars they now had some serious competition in the likes of Aston Martin DB 5 Jaguar E-Type, Porsche 911, Lamborghini Miura, AC Cobra and Ferrari 275. These European cars had completely different and separate types of design compared to American car designs, most of the designs from the aforementioned European cars are still appreciated and admired as of today. Many sports car manufacturers used to pit there cars on a track aiming to boost their sales and the most well known and popular track Le Mans, it is still the worlds oldest active race track and it became a common testing track for sports manufacturers. During this time the Ford GT40 had a firm hold on the performance side of sports cars and had continued to dominate the race track for nearly 4 years keeping Ferrari on the side having dominated for years before the GT40 became a contender.
Till the late 60's, Muscle cars or 'pony' cars were the big fashion statements of American car companies. However most of the world continued to move on to much sleeker and composed finishes of the European car manufacturers. It signalled the decline of American cars. Although U.S auto industry had bounced back from previous slumps to sell around 11.1 million cars in 1964-1965, the world market was ever expanding and Americans had dropped from a whopping 76% of world car production in 1950 to a mere 48% of total world car production which clearly indicated the beginning of the end for the declining U.S auto industry.