Why Ford cars becames so popular!!

Race wise, they were also very light... lighter = faster. Gary

 

Yep! But as far as Fords being better looking, back in the square body days they almost all looked alike so that had nothing to do with it. I had many people tell me my 33 Chevy was a nice looking Ford. Even today most non-car people can't tell a Whippit from a Studebaker.
Chevy had a V-8 back in 1917 but like the Cord, Tucker, Airflow, people weren't ready for a radical change.

 

Fords target audiance was the working man. So he made more of the cars and made them cheeper than anyone else. With the success of the T and the A the flat head was the nail in the coffin to make Ford the "working mans" car. By becomming the working mans hero that set up long term loyalty with many familys. The boys bought a ford because the dad drove a ford. By the time Hot Rodding hit, like others have said, many of the light body fords were still available and many others built in the late 20' early 30's with wood framed bodies had been junked out and recycled for WWII.

 

Seriously?
See post # 3

 

I think the correct answer is in the ability of the Ford motor company had to build a car in m***, strong and cheap so that everyone can buy it, spare parts at an affordable price, with a technical service and sales offices everywhere...

I think if the strategy of Chevrolet company was manufacturing its cars with a wooden structure to rot in a short time we are talking about the first case of planned obsolescence...

 

It amazes me the amount of saftey wire in bolts on the model a. Thats ****in quality. Did the other manufactures do that?

 

Also, Chevies used babbit bearings until 36 or 38, hence the old claim,"Fords for gow, Chevies for plow".

You could buy a Ford cheap, not have to swap out the engine in the car for the engine that was number one in bolt-on parts...even back then, many hotrodders were really just folks who unbolted one part, and bolted on another one they saw win the race at the horsetrack or boardtrack on Sunday.

Easy is, as easy does. And some of those early rodders were doughboys returning with what they learned in the field, and the sportsters they saw in europe and england--truck engines in low slung cars. If dad had kept his T to make a "doodlebug" yard tractor out of...then it was still there for son to hotrod....just like he saw other kids hotrodding their's.

Hotrodders copy? Naw.... lol

as for the Chevies using wood...I know Ford used his leftover pallet wood to make KingsFORD charoal, did Chevy just use its leftover wood for their cars instead?

 

Louis Chevrolet started out making aftermarket parts for Model T Fords. Even he knew which cars made the best gow jobs. 15,000,000 T's certainly helped with availability. They were everywhere and cheap.

 

as for the Chevys using wood...I know Ford used his leftover pallet wood to make KingsFORD charoal, did Chevy just use its leftover wood for their cars instead?[/QUOTE]

I remember restoring a very low mileage 1926 Ford T and the original floorboards were stamped FORD MOTOR CO. with some part numbers below. They did use everything they could to build them cheap. Yet even Model T's were built to last.

 

A lot of right things being said here but in my eyes besides all of the above is the porportions of the bodies, styling was second to none. The other brands came close on some models but Ford nailed it in every year in styling and design. For years the 37 Ford was dubbed the ugly ducking. If that's the ugliest of the Fords, which it's not in my opinion, the others didn't even come close even in that model. It's all about curb appeal and Ford is king in the blue collar world.

 

And they stood the test of time. They LASTED !!!! Now they are being copied more than any other brand of car.

 

Fords were the most common hot rods because they were the most common car. Not just easy to get but easy to get hop up parts for. Everybody who made accessories or speed parts for cars, made them for Ford first. Reason, there were 19,000,000 Model Ts on the road and less than 1/10th that many of any other make.

In the 20s you could get speed parts for Dodge and other makes but Fords were by far the most common, cheapest most available just like building a Chev 350 today.

This held over into the Model A days and eventually into the V8 Ford.

Only after 1955 did Chev give Ford some real compe***ion in the hot rod popularity stakes.

 

Ford provided hot rodders with perfectly proportioned bodies and a HUGE parts bin from the different years that combined make THE BEST hot rods hands down. Henry Ford is the single most important person in hot rodding with no close second. Period.

 

You pretty much nailed it.

Lots of cars to buy, lots of parts in every junk yard and the flathead V8. Most of the cars were built cheap. Cheap means using what's common just like the 350 chevy today.

The reason that Chevy took over in 55 is again the new engine.

Parts availability and cost to make power have way more to do with what's popular in hot rods in any given era than looks.
If you look at the late 20's and early 30's the styling of many cars is close.
Number of parts you can scrounge from the junk yard wasn't close though.

 

i.y.a.a.y.a.s.

 

I had the honor of growing up in a free country where my grandparents grew up driving model T's and A's...

 

I wanted to emphasize that the speed parts and accessory companies automatically made parts for Ford because it was the biggest market. This in turn made Fords easy to hop up because you had the best selection of speed parts at the lowest cost, like a Chev 350 today.

 

FORD found dead on road but very popular, as there are many more to kill

 

They were cheap to buy, new.
So Ford sold a lot of them, which made them cheap to buy, used.

 

ratamahata,

from 1927 to 1954, General Motors produced almost 2 cars to every 1 Ford.

But general motors cars were poorly designed and made.

Even though GM out produced Ford, the quality of those Ford vehicles meant that
they did not get s****ped. Many Ford cars/trucks would be driven into the pasture when it was time for a new car while gm cars were so poorly constructed that they went for s**** because every single part would be worn out due to GM building cars as cheaply as possible.
GM motors, transmissions, differentials and just about every part of the gm cars were designed to break down and wear out simply because gm wanted you to 'buy more parts, buy more cars' in order to make the company and stock holders very rich.

This time period (1927 and up) is referred to as the period of "Fordism vs Sloanism"
Henry Ford wanted to build the highest quality cars and parts available, parts that would last, parts that were durable -and he did.

While Alfred P. Sloan (the man who ran General Motors (Cheif Executive Officer)) invented the idea of "Planned Obsolescence" (1927)

The major part/idea of GM's Planned Obsolescence was that every part should break down forcing the GM owner to buy more parts -as well as- buy more cars, so even though GM outsold Ford by 1.8 to 1, those same GM cars died an early death (just as they are supposed to do).

GM's marketing plan was to outsell the compe***ion by designing their cars to die an early death and GM was very successful but the fact that Ford cars were made of well designed quality parts means that today we will see 1000 1940 Fords to every 1 1940 GM car at car shows today.

Your question as to "Why Fords are so popular" is perhaps the wrong question,

Maybe if you ask ?why GM outproduced Ford by almost 2 to 1 from 1927 though to 1954 yet there are few surviving GM cars? would lead you to discover that Ford cars are "Popular" today only because the stock holders and accountants at GM were more concerned with squeezing every penny out of their customers by leading them to believe (lying) that GM cars were great while designing every part to break down after warranty.

Ford cars were good, they were durable and lasted many many years and today the false sense of "popularity" is due to the fact that 1000 GM cars died an early death while each and every single Ford car gave good service even to this day.

moe

 

Doc.

(D'OH! But I wasn't Ammo!!)

 

They were popular because they all had Chevy motors in them

 

To every body that mistakenly believes that "Ford built a lot of them",

here are the figures.

GM Production = Chevrolet + Pontiac + Buick + Olds + Cadillac + Lasalle + Oakland
Ford production = Ford + Mercury + Lincoln

If you add up all the GM vehicle lines/brands and compare them to the Ford vehicle lines/brands,
You will find that GM as a whole outproduced Ford by a factor of 1.8 to 1 from 1927 thru to 1954.



<table cl***="wikitable" border="1"><tbody><tr><th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1927</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1928</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1929</th> </tr> <tr> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>1,001,820</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>1,193,212</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>1,507,132</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Ford</td> <td>367,213</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>607,592</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>1,328,605</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Hudson/Es***</td> <td>276,414</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Willys-Overland/Whippet</td> <td>315,000</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Hudson/Es***</td> <td>300,962</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Buick</td> <td>255,160</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Hudson/Es***</td> <td>282,203</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Willys-Overland/Whippet</td> <td>242,000</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Pontiac/Oakland</td> <td>188,168</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac/Oakland</td> <td>244,584</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac/Oakland</td> <td>211,054</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Willys-Overland/Whippet</td> <td>188,000</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>221,758</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>196,104</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>182,195</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>160,670</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Dodge</td> <td>124,557</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Dodge</td> <td>180,000</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Nash</td> <td>138,137</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Nash</td> <td>116,622</td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1930</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1931</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1932</th> </tr> <tr> <td>Ford</td> <td>1,140,710</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>619,554</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>313,404</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>640,980</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>615,455</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>210,824</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Buick</td> <td>181,743</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>138,965</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>186,106</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Studebaker</td> <td>123,215</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Studebaker</td> <td>96,173</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Hudson/Es***</td> <td>57,550</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Hudson/Es***</td> <td>113,898</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>84,708</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>56,790</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>108,350</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>75,510</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>45,340</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Dodge</td> <td>90,755</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Willys</td> <td>65,800</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Nash</td> <td>30,834</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>77,881</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>65,500</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Willys</td> <td>27,800</td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1933</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1934</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1935</th> </tr> <tr> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>486,261</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>563,921</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>820,253</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Ford</td> <td>334,969</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>551,191</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>548,215</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>298,557</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>321,171</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>350,884</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Dodge</td> <td>106,103</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Dodge</td> <td>95,011</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>178,770</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>90,198</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Hudson/Terraplane</td> <td>85,835</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Dodge</td> <td>158,999</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Buick</td> <td>46,924</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>79,814</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>126,768</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Studebaker/Rockne</td> <td>43,024</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>78,859</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Hudson/Terraplane</td> <td>101,080</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Hudson/Es***</td> <td>40,982</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>71,009</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>53,249</td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1936</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1937</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1938</th> </tr> <tr> <td>Ford</td> <td>930,778</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>942,005</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>465,158</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>918,278</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>815,375</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>410,263</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>520,025</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>566,128</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>285,704</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Dodge</td> <td>263,647</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Dodge</td> <td>295,047</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>168,689</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>200,546</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>236,189</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Dodge</td> <td>114,529</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>176,270</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>220,346</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>99,951</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Buick</td> <td>168,596</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>200,886</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>97,139</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Hudson/Terraplane</td> <td>123,266</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Packard</td> <td>122,593</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Packard</td> <td>55,718</td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1939</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1940</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1941</th> </tr> <tr> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>577,278</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>764,616</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>1,008,976</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Ford</td> <td>487,031</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>541,896</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>691,455</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>423,850</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>430,208</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>522,080</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Buick</td> <td>208,259</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>278,784</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>374,196</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Dodge</td> <td>186,474</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Dodge</td> <td>225,595</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>330,061</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>144,340</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>217,001</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>270,040</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>137,249</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>192,692</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Dodge</td> <td>215,575</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Studebaker</td> <td>85,834</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Studebaker</td> <td>107,185</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>161,704</td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1942</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1946</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1947</th> </tr> <tr> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>254,885</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>468,022</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>671,546</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Ford</td> <td>160,432</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>398,028</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>429,674</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>152,427</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>264,660</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>382,290</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Buick</td> <td>92,573</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Dodge</td> <td>163,490</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>272,827</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>83,555</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>153,627</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Dodge</td> <td>243,160</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Dodge</td> <td>68,522</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>137,640</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>230,600</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>67,783</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>117,623</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>193,895</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Studebaker</td> <td>50,678</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Nash</td> <td>94,000</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Studebaker</td> <td>161,496</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Hudson</td> <td>40,661</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Hudson</td> <td>91,039</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>119,260</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>36,586</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Mercury</td> <td>86,608</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Nash</td> <td>101,000</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Packard</td> <td>33,776</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>83,310</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Hudson</td> <td>92,038</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Nash</td> <td>31,780</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>DeSoto</td> <td>66,900</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>DeSoto</td> <td>87,000</td> </tr> <tr> <td>DeSoto</td> <td>24,015</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Packard</td> <td>30,793</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Mercury</td> <td>85,383</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Mercury</td> <td>22,816</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Cadillac</td> <td>29,214</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Kaiser</td> <td>70,474</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Cadillac</td> <td>16,511</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Studebaker</td> <td>19,275</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Frazer</td> <td>68,775</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Lincoln</td> <td>6,547</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Lincoln</td> <td>16,645</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Cadillac</td> <td>61,926</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Crosley</td> <td>1,029</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Crosley</td> <td>4999</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Packard</td> <td>51,086</td> </tr> <tr> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Lincoln</td> <td>21,460</td> </tr> <tr> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Crosley</td> <td>19,344</td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1948</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1949</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1950</th> </tr> <tr> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>696,449</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>1,118,308</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>1,498,590</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Ford</td> <td>430,198</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>1,010,013</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>1,208,912</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>412,540</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>520,385</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>610,954</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Dodge</td> <td>243,340</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>409,138</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>588,439</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>235,419</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>304,819</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>446,429</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Buick</td> <td>213,599</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Mercury</td> <td>301,319</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>408,060</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Studebaker</td> <td>184,993</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>288,310</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Dodge</td> <td>341,797</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>172,852</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Dodge</td> <td>256,857</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Studebaker</td> <td>320,884</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>130,110</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Hudson</td> <td>159,100</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Mercury</td> <td>293,658</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Hudson</td> <td>117,200</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Nash</td> <td>135,328</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>179,299;</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Nash</td> <td>110,000</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Studebaker</td> <td>129,301</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Nash</td> <td>171,782</td> </tr> <tr> <td>DeSoto</td> <td>98,890</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>124,218</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>DeSoto</td> <td>136,203</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Packard</td> <td>92,251</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Packard</td> <td>116,955</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Hudson</td> <td>121,408</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Kaiser</td> <td>91,851</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>DeSoto</td> <td>95,051</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Cadillac</td> <td>103,857</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Cadillac</td> <td>52,706</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Cadillac</td> <td>92,554</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Packard</td> <td>42,627</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Mercury</td> <td>50,268</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Kaiser</td> <td>79,947</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Lincoln</td> <td>28,190</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Frazer</td> <td>48,071</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Lincoln</td> <td>73,507</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Kaiser</td> <td>15,228</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Crosley</td> <td>26,239</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Frazer</td> <td>21,223</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Crosley</td> <td>6,792</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Lincoln</td> <td>7,769</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Crosley</td> <td>7,431</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Frazer</td> <td>3,700</td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1951</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1952</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1953</th> </tr> <tr> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>1,229,986</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>818,142</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>1,346,475</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Ford</td> <td>1,013,381</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>671,733</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>1,247,542</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>611,000</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>396,000</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>650,451</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Buick</td> <td>404,657</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>303,745</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>488,755</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>370,159</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>271,373</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>418,619</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Mercury</td> <td>310,387</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>213,490</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>334,462</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Dodge</td> <td>290,000</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Dodge</td> <td>206,000</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Dodge</td> <td>320,008</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>285,615</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Mercury</td> <td>172,087</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Mercury</td> <td>305,863</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Studebaker</td> <td>246,195</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Studebaker</td> <td>167,662</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>170,006</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Nash</td> <td>205,307</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Nash</td> <td>154,291</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Studebaker</td> <td>151,576</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>163,613</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Cadillac</td> <td>90,259</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>DeSoto</td> <td>132,104</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Kaiser</td> <td>139,452</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>DeSoto</td> <td>88,000</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Nash</td> <td>121,793</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Hudson</td> <td>131,915</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>87,470</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Cadillac</td> <td>109,651</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Cadillac</td> <td>110,340</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Hudson</td> <td>70,000</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Packard</td> <td>90,252</td> </tr> <tr> <td>DeSoto</td> <td>106,000</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Packard</td> <td>62,921</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Hudson</td> <td>66,143</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Packard</td> <td>100,713</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Kaiser</td> <td>32,131</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Willys</td> <td>42,224</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Henry J</td> <td>81,942</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Willys</td> <td>31,363</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Lincoln</td> <td>40,762</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Lincoln</td> <td>32,574</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Henry J</td> <td>30,585</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Kaiser</td> <td>27,652</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Frazer</td> <td>10,214</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Lincoln</td> <td>27,271</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Henry J</td> <td>16,672</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Crosley</td> <td>6,614</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Crosley</td> <td>6,614</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Metropolitan</td> <td>743
(calendar year sales)</td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1954</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1955</th> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <th colspan="2">Production Figures for 1956</th> </tr> <tr> <td>Ford</td> <td>1,165,942</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>1,704,667</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>1,567,117</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Chevrolet</td> <td>1,143,561</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>1,451,157</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Ford</td> <td>1,408,478</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>463,148</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>738,814</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Buick</td> <td>572,024</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Buick</td> <td>444,609</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>705,455</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Plymouth</td> <td>571,634</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>354,001</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>583,179</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Oldsmobile</td> <td>485,458</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>287,744</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>554,090</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Pontiac</td> <td>405,730</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Mercury</td> <td>259,305</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Mercury</td> <td>329,808</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Mercury</td> <td>327,943</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Dodge</td> <td>154,648</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Dodge</td> <td>276,936</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Dodge</td> <td>240,686</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>105,030</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>152,777</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Cadillac</td> <td>154,577</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Cadillac</td> <td>96,680</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Cadillac</td> <td>140,777</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Chrysler</td> <td>128,322</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Nash</td> <td>91,121</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Studebaker</td> <td>116,333</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>DeSoto</td> <td>109,442</td> </tr> <tr> <td>DeSoto</td> <td>76,580</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>DeSoto</td> <td>115,485</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Nash</td> <td>83,420</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Studebaker</td> <td>68,708</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Nash</td> <td>96,156</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Studebaker</td> <td>69,593</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Hudson</td> <td>50,660</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Packard</td> <td>55,247</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Lincoln</td> <td>50,322</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Lincoln</td> <td>36,993</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Hudson</td> <td>45,535</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Hudson</td> <td>22,588</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Packard</td> <td>31,291</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Lincoln</td> <td>27,222</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Clipper</td> <td>18,482</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Metropolitan</td> <td>13,162</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Imperial</td> <td>11,432</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Imperial</td> <td>10,684</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Willys</td> <td>11,856</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Willys</td> <td>6,565</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Packard</td> <td>10,353</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Kaiser</td> <td>8,539</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Metropolitan</td> <td>6,096</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Metropolitan</td> <td>9,068</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Henry J</td> <td>1,123</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Kaiser</td> <td>1,291</td> <td bgcolor="gray">
</td> <td>Continental</td> <td>2,550</td></tr></tbody></table>

 

Henry Ford spoke out many times in regards to General Motors and their practice of building things to wear out (Planned Obsolescence) in order to to pad the pockets of GM share holders ...

Ford was disgusted with Alfred Sloan (a thief) and his/General Motors invention of "Planned Obsolescence".....

This is an exert of just one of those times...




"Ford was being cynical when he stated "It is considered good marketing practice, and not bad ethics"







Some years later Harley Earl (in 1955) admits his early (1927/up) involvement in GM's, in Alfred Sloan grand scheme of "Planned Obsolescence" and how the new small block powered general motors cars were merely just a continuation of planned obsolescence...














.

 

The reason was the V-8. When Olds and Cadillac introduced V-8's they were popular and so were the Fords. When Chev introduced their V-8 they were popular and so were Olds, Cadillac, and Fords. It was what you could afford and what was available.

 

Gotta be the V8 and it was hopped up early on with extra carbs, fancy heads, cams. The flattie always had this mystique to it, at least to me. Fords always had the eye-candy appeal to them as well.

Bob

 

I don't personally think it was looks, there were LOTS of better looking cars out there at the time. It comes down to 3 things, 1: they were plentiful 2: they were cheap 3: they were fairly reliable and durable compared to the other stuff around. The same reasons that the small block Chevy was so popular after it stole Ford's thunder in '55. (And still is even though GM has produced nothing but **** for the last 30 years.)

 

Found Dead On Road?

You mean Found On Road Dead? If you are gonna hate get it right!!!

 

the flathead v8 put them on the front step.

 

They look the best,most steel,flathead v8. And lets not kid ourself.its the most american