By the early 1940s, Chevrolet was truly America's car. The public, from the big city to the farm, appreciated Chevrolet reliability, resale value and No. 1 reputation.
Louis Chevrolet, the man whose name inspired America's premier marque, died in Detroit on June 6, 1941. He was buried in Indianapolis, the city where his cars won the "500-mile classic" twice, in 1920 and 1921.
PRE-WAR AND NEW MODELS
By early 1941, the war in Europe was taking its toll on U.S. auto production.
Chevrolet had already been awarded a U.S. government contract to build 75mm high-explosive shells. And months before the attack on Pearl Harbor, Chevrolet plants were churning out military trucks, parts for anti-aircraft guns and aircraft engines. This would be the last year until the late '40s that civilian production would thrive.
Chevrolet built a then-record l.6 million-plus cars and trucks in the 1941 model year.
Running boards disappeared from the 1941 models and were replaced by flared bottoms on the doors. Newly revealed rocker panels were trimmed with bright strips, adding a sparkle to the lower body. The wheelbase was stretched to 116 inches, three inches longer than the 1940 model, providing more legroom in the passenger compartment.
The Chevrolet advertising theme in '41 and '42 was "Bigger is Better," telling America to "Look at the Length of the Leader Now!" Americans believed the larger the car, the more prestigious. And drivers could have a big car without paying a big price. Chevrolet "big" value came through, keeping the "bowtie" number one in sales.
Ads also carried a patriotic theme. Small corner illustrations showed how Chevrolet aided the war effort by making trucks and aircraft engines as well as training maintenance officers.
The models at that time were Master Deluxe and Special Deluxe. The Fleetline Sedan arrived at mid-year. Buyers were able to feast on a delightful assortment of accessories - from whitewall tires (one of the favorites) to foglamps, and spotlights and stylish front fender chrome appliques - dubbed "washboards" for their resemblance to the household laundry tool. Radios also appeared in dashboards as regular- production options, and Chevy offered a variety of units, including a five-band unit for shortwave frequencies.
CHEVROLET SUPPLIES THE ARMED FORCES
World War II brought the civilian automotive world to a halt. In fact, the 1942 models were just arriving at dealerships in force when Japan attacked. Among the '42s were an all-new Fleetline Aerosedan and Sport Sedan, 2-door fastback models. They were the "newest of the Torpedo models" (so-called for their bulky front end and tapered rears) and accommodated six passengers.
Their introduction was short-lived. Civilian production ended on January 30, 1942. One of the Flint assembly plant workers marked the day by writing, "Last Chevrolet Off," as the final car left the line.
It would be four years before new models were seen again. The last production models featured no bright trim other than their bumpers. Features that were previously chromed were now painted or enamel. The public dubbed these "Blackout Specials," erroneously believing they were camouflaged for darkness. These models were put into a government warehouse for contingency, but several dribbled out to high- priority customers. Some may have been registered as 1943 Chevrolets due to various state title laws, but they're extremely scarce today.
The war snapped the string of growth years
for Chevrolet. All plants were converted to military production, except for the Service Manufacturing facility in Saginaw, Michigan, which had the mission of supplying service parts for military and civilian vehicles in America and overseas.
Many Chevrolet plants were awarded the Army-Navy "E" pennant for excellence in production during the war.
A Chevrolet dealer service program - "Save the Wheels that Serve America" - was instituted through the war years. The program helped preserve the nation's automobiles to keep civilians rolling, and a grateful government would later congratulate the Chevrolet dealer body for its tremendous efforts.
POST-WAR AND NEW CHEVY LEADERSHIP
The end of World War II did not herald any new car designs. Manufacturers, including Chevrolet, simply refurbished the pre-war cars to replace the nation's worn-out vehicles.
Production of civilian Chevy trucks restarted on August 20, 1945, while new cars rolled on October 3. Chevrolet reintroduced three models - the Stylemaster coupes and sedans, the Fleetmaster (with a convertible coupe and wood-bodied wagon added to the line), and the "top-of-the-line" torpedo-style Fleetline Aerosedans. After many stable years of one man at the helm, Chevrolet experienced several managerial shifts during the next two years. Marvin Coyle was promoted to GM Executive Vice President in 1946 and Nicholas Dreystadt, General Manager of Cadillac, succeeded him at Chevrolet. Dreystadt was a hard charger who pushed production to the limits to satisfy America's resurgent transportation demands. But his untimely death in 1948 left the General Manager's post vacant.
Dreystadt was succeeded briefly by W. F. Armstrong, who received a different assignment a short time later. Thomas Keating was then advanced from General Sales Manager to the General Manager post. Keating would help guide the way through much of the '50s for the automotive leader.
Chevrolet also took advantage of the new television medium that was quickly gaining popularity across the country, and aired its first television ad in 1948.
CONVERTIBLES, PICKUPS AND WAGONS
Convertible models picked up sales steam in the late-'40s, and Chevrolet built a then-record 20,471 convertibles in 1948.
The 1948 model year saw new Chevrolet truck designs on America's roads. "Thriftmaster" pickups stretched to a new 116-inch wheelbase and featured an alligator jaw-type hood for easy servicing. The design would remain until 1955.
Wagons were gaining in popularity, but consumers were increasingly choosing all-steel models over the wood-bodied models then on the market. In 1949, Chevrolet offered a wagon with a partial wood body, then shifted mid-year to an all-steel body to challenge its main rival, Plymouth. The Chevy caught on quickly, with a more "rounded" appeal than the boxier Plymouth model. In fact, many buyers found the entire Chevrolet line more attractive than the "squarish" 1949 Ford and Plymouth designs, and Chevy models far outsold them.
"THE LINES OF A SWIFT JET PLANE ..."
The public had been sufficiently "teased" about the styling. Advertisements proclaimed, "Some people will say ... ÎIt has the lines of a swift jet plane.' And some people will say ... ÎIt has the smart lines of a fast express cruiser.' "
The car was unveiled at New York's Waldorf Hotel in January 1949. The public was not disappointed.
The '49 Chevy models represented the first all-new designs in eight years, yet they still retained the "bigness" Americans wanted. Advertising again capitalized on it - "Longest ... heaviest car in its field, with the widest tread."
Fourteen models and two series were offered, providing two contrasting styling directions - the Fleetline "fastback" with its sleeker look, and the Styleline "bustleback" with a heavier feel. Most body styles were available in Deluxe and Special editions.
America was back in the car-buying mood, and Chevy sales for 1949 topped one million for the first time since 1927.
"POWERGLIDE" AND "BLUE FLAME"
1950 saw the arrival of the Chevrolet Powerglide, the first automatic transmission available in a low-priced car. Even though management had spilled the secret a year earlier at the Waldorf, Chevrolet Public Relations delighted in arousing the interest of the press by mailing out cryptic clues. First came a medallion bearing the likeness of a foot - a "distinguished service" citation retiring it from manual clutch service. This was followed by a small replica of a mattress that would "rest that foot."
The press chuckled, but waited to see how the transmission actually performed in real-world tests. Although many reporters clung to their beloved manual transmissions, the public greeted the new "Powerglide" enthusiastically.
Teamed with a more powerful "Blue Flame" Six (with 235 cubic inches), 300,000 Chevrolet cars equipped with "Powerglide" models were sold the first year ... a record production year in which 2,108,273 Chevrolets were built.
The other big news for 1950 was the arrival of the Bel Air, the first Chevrolet heralded as a "convertible hardtop." The Bel Air relieved a lot of concerns about regular convertibles - they were too cold, too drafty and often leaked. The Bel Air lacked a "B" pillar, and instead used frame reinforcements to support the top. Its interior combined leather and fabric trim, for a plush cabin look and feel. With the most glass area in its class, it also provided excellent visibility. It proved to be extremely popular, with more than 75,000 sales.
Chevrolet was enjoying a prosperity that would be tough for the other manufacturers to counter. But Ford mounted a threat early in the '50s that Chevy had to answer.
