The start of the Japs!
This Day in Automotive History
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Thread Starter
#227
August 19th 1909
In front of some 12,000 spectators, automotive engineer Louis Schwitzer wins the two-lap, five-mile inaugural race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Indiana, on August 19, 1909.
Conceived by local businessmen as a testing facility for Indiana's growing automobile industry, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway would later become famous as the home to the now world-famous Indianapolis 500 race, which was first held in 1911. In that inaugural race, Schwitzer (then the chief engineer at Stoddard-Dayton) drove a stripped-down Stoddard Dayton touring car with a four-cylinder engine. He achieved an average speed of 57.4 mph on the new track, which was then covered in macadam, or crushed pieces of rock layered and bound by tar. Later, the speedway would be covered with 3.2 million paving bricks, which earned it its enduring nickname, "The Brickyard."
Born in Silesia in northwestern Austria in 1881, Schwitzer earned advanced degrees in electrical and mechanical engineering before immigrating to America around the turn of the century. His first job in the auto industry was with Pierce Arrow, as an engineer, working on one of the very first six-cylinder engines; he then began working for Canada Cycle and Motor Company, designing the Russell motor car. There, he met the prosperous automaker Howard Marmon (of the Marmon Motor Car Company), and would later earn lasting fame as the designer of the famous "Marmon Yellow Jacket" engine, which powered the vehicle of Ray Harroun, winner of the first Indianapolis 500 in 1911.
After leaving racing, Schwitzer remained active in the sport's development, joining the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Technical Committee in 1912 (he was its chairman from 1919 through 1945). He served in the United States Army Motor Transport Corps during World War I, then returned to Indianapolis to start his own business, which later became Schwitzer-Cummins. After developing improved automotive cooling systems and water pumps, Schwitzer began producing superchargers for gasoline and diesel engines, which helped both truck and boat engines produce increased horsepower. He then moved on to so-called "turbochargers," the first of which was introduced on a Cummins diesel-powered racing car which won the pole position for the 1952 Indianapolis 500.
In 1965, Schwitzer suffered a stroke while riding a horse on his farm. He was paralyzed, and for a time lost his ability to speak English, reverting to Hungarian. He died in 1967.
To honor Schwitzer's legacy, the Society of Professional Engineers now presents an individual or group involved with the Indianapolis 500 with the annual Louis Schwitzer Award for Engineering Excellence.
August 19th 1927
Henry and Edsel Ford drove the fifteen millionth Model T off the assembly line at the Highland Park plant in Michigan, officially ending Model T production. Production in England ended on August 19; in Ireland on December 31. After revolutionizing the automobile market, sales of the Model T had started to falter due to its failure to keep up with the competition. Total world Model T production: 15,458,781.
August 19th 1958
The production of the elegant Packard line came to a halt on this day. Studebaker-Packard attributed the decision to lagging luxury car sales, but many Packard fans were disgruntled by the decision, which came shortly after Packard's merge with Studebaker. Many wondered why Packard, with its reputation for high-quality cars and knowledgeable management would join with the debt-ridden Studebaker Company. Studebaker management assumed the company reins after the merger, not Packard.
Louis Schwitzer
Louis Schwitzer and his Indianapolis Crew
In front of some 12,000 spectators, automotive engineer Louis Schwitzer wins the two-lap, five-mile inaugural race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Indiana, on August 19, 1909.
Conceived by local businessmen as a testing facility for Indiana's growing automobile industry, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway would later become famous as the home to the now world-famous Indianapolis 500 race, which was first held in 1911. In that inaugural race, Schwitzer (then the chief engineer at Stoddard-Dayton) drove a stripped-down Stoddard Dayton touring car with a four-cylinder engine. He achieved an average speed of 57.4 mph on the new track, which was then covered in macadam, or crushed pieces of rock layered and bound by tar. Later, the speedway would be covered with 3.2 million paving bricks, which earned it its enduring nickname, "The Brickyard."
Born in Silesia in northwestern Austria in 1881, Schwitzer earned advanced degrees in electrical and mechanical engineering before immigrating to America around the turn of the century. His first job in the auto industry was with Pierce Arrow, as an engineer, working on one of the very first six-cylinder engines; he then began working for Canada Cycle and Motor Company, designing the Russell motor car. There, he met the prosperous automaker Howard Marmon (of the Marmon Motor Car Company), and would later earn lasting fame as the designer of the famous "Marmon Yellow Jacket" engine, which powered the vehicle of Ray Harroun, winner of the first Indianapolis 500 in 1911.
After leaving racing, Schwitzer remained active in the sport's development, joining the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Technical Committee in 1912 (he was its chairman from 1919 through 1945). He served in the United States Army Motor Transport Corps during World War I, then returned to Indianapolis to start his own business, which later became Schwitzer-Cummins. After developing improved automotive cooling systems and water pumps, Schwitzer began producing superchargers for gasoline and diesel engines, which helped both truck and boat engines produce increased horsepower. He then moved on to so-called "turbochargers," the first of which was introduced on a Cummins diesel-powered racing car which won the pole position for the 1952 Indianapolis 500.
In 1965, Schwitzer suffered a stroke while riding a horse on his farm. He was paralyzed, and for a time lost his ability to speak English, reverting to Hungarian. He died in 1967.
To honor Schwitzer's legacy, the Society of Professional Engineers now presents an individual or group involved with the Indianapolis 500 with the annual Louis Schwitzer Award for Engineering Excellence.
August 19th 1927
Henry and Edsel Ford drove the fifteen millionth Model T off the assembly line at the Highland Park plant in Michigan, officially ending Model T production. Production in England ended on August 19; in Ireland on December 31. After revolutionizing the automobile market, sales of the Model T had started to falter due to its failure to keep up with the competition. Total world Model T production: 15,458,781.
August 19th 1958
The production of the elegant Packard line came to a halt on this day. Studebaker-Packard attributed the decision to lagging luxury car sales, but many Packard fans were disgruntled by the decision, which came shortly after Packard's merge with Studebaker. Many wondered why Packard, with its reputation for high-quality cars and knowledgeable management would join with the debt-ridden Studebaker Company. Studebaker management assumed the company reins after the merger, not Packard.
Louis Schwitzer
Louis Schwitzer and his Indianapolis Crew
Source:
The History Channel
Wikipedia
The History Channel
Wikipedia
Last edited:
Thread Starter
#228
There is a very interesting story about Toyota's first production Model AA.
When Toyota decided to open their museum, they were in a fix. They were not able to locate their very first model that they ever mad. It is not uncommon that manufacturer buying their iconic model at exorbitant price. But problem with Toyota was that their very first Model " Toyota AA" was simply not available anywhere.
What the Japs did was, they decided to create a replica with exact specs of the original to keep it in their museum. Problem was that all the plans and blueprint of this model was destroyed during the WWII. Yet they manage to recreate their iconic model.
When Toyota decided to open their museum, they were in a fix. They were not able to locate their very first model that they ever mad. It is not uncommon that manufacturer buying their iconic model at exorbitant price. But problem with Toyota was that their very first Model " Toyota AA" was simply not available anywhere.
What the Japs did was, they decided to create a replica with exact specs of the original to keep it in their museum. Problem was that all the plans and blueprint of this model was destroyed during the WWII. Yet they manage to recreate their iconic model.
Thread Starter
#229
20th August
August 20th 1946
World War II civilian truck restrictions were lifted in the U.S. Truck restrictions were only the beginning of special regulations during the war. Civilian auto production virtually ceased after the attack on Pearl Harbor as the U.S. automotive industry turned to war production, and gas rationing began in 1942.
August 20th 1991
The Mazda Motor Corporation of Japan announced on this day that it planned to enter the luxury car market in 1994 with the Amati. Several other high-end brands from Japan had already been introduced: Lexus, Infiniti, and Acura. But the plan never took off.
August 20th 2004
On August 20, 2004, 83 tow trucks roll through the streets of Wenatchee, Washington, in an event arranged by the Washington Tow Truck Association (WTTA). "The Guinness Book of World Records" dubbed it the world's largest parade of tow trucks.
According to the International Towing and Recovery Hall of Fame and Museum in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the first tow truck was the invention of a Chattanooga native named Ernest Holmes, who helped his friend retrieve his Model T Ford after the car slid into a creek. Holmes had previously assembled a system consisting of three poles, a pulley and a chain, all connected to the frame of a 1913 Cadillac. Holmes soon patented his invention, and began manufacturing the equipment to sell to garages and other interested customers out of a small shop on Chattanooga's Market Street. The Holmes brand went on to earn an international reputation for quality in the towing industry.
The WTTA organized the August 2004 tow-truck parade as part of its annual Tow Show & Road-E-O event. Wenatchee's tow-truck world record came under assault from at least two quarters in 2008. In Hampton Beach, New Hampshire, that May 18, more than 250 tow trucks took part in a single-file parade organized by the New Hampshire Towing Association (NHTA). According to an article in The Hampton Union newspaper, all kinds of trucks--"Flatbeds, wheel-hook tow trucks, massive, 72-ton big-rig wreckers"--participated in the parade, which was followed by a driving skills competition and a tow-truck "beauty" contest. Rene Fortin, president of the NHTA, said that his organization had unofficially broken Wenatchee's record in 2005 with a parade of 235 trucks, but as the parade didn't fit Guinness' long list of requirements, it hadn't been accepted. World records aside, Fortin told The Hampton Union, the central goal of the parade was to revamp the image of the towing industry: "People don't often like towers, so this is our chance to show our good side."
On September 20, 2008, the Metropolitan New York Towing Association threw its own hat into the ring. Two hundred and ninety-two tow trucks, including flatbeds, wreckers and 50-ton rotators, left Shea Stadium in Queens (previously the home of the New York Mets, the baseball park has since been demolished to make way for the Mets' new Citi Field) and traveled along the Van Wyck Expressway and the Belt Parkway before ending up at an abandoned airport tarmac at Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn. There, the trucks parked in a formation that spelled out the words "New York."
Mazda Millenia
August 20th 1946
World War II civilian truck restrictions were lifted in the U.S. Truck restrictions were only the beginning of special regulations during the war. Civilian auto production virtually ceased after the attack on Pearl Harbor as the U.S. automotive industry turned to war production, and gas rationing began in 1942.
August 20th 1991
The Mazda Motor Corporation of Japan announced on this day that it planned to enter the luxury car market in 1994 with the Amati. Several other high-end brands from Japan had already been introduced: Lexus, Infiniti, and Acura. But the plan never took off.
August 20th 2004
On August 20, 2004, 83 tow trucks roll through the streets of Wenatchee, Washington, in an event arranged by the Washington Tow Truck Association (WTTA). "The Guinness Book of World Records" dubbed it the world's largest parade of tow trucks.
According to the International Towing and Recovery Hall of Fame and Museum in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the first tow truck was the invention of a Chattanooga native named Ernest Holmes, who helped his friend retrieve his Model T Ford after the car slid into a creek. Holmes had previously assembled a system consisting of three poles, a pulley and a chain, all connected to the frame of a 1913 Cadillac. Holmes soon patented his invention, and began manufacturing the equipment to sell to garages and other interested customers out of a small shop on Chattanooga's Market Street. The Holmes brand went on to earn an international reputation for quality in the towing industry.
The WTTA organized the August 2004 tow-truck parade as part of its annual Tow Show & Road-E-O event. Wenatchee's tow-truck world record came under assault from at least two quarters in 2008. In Hampton Beach, New Hampshire, that May 18, more than 250 tow trucks took part in a single-file parade organized by the New Hampshire Towing Association (NHTA). According to an article in The Hampton Union newspaper, all kinds of trucks--"Flatbeds, wheel-hook tow trucks, massive, 72-ton big-rig wreckers"--participated in the parade, which was followed by a driving skills competition and a tow-truck "beauty" contest. Rene Fortin, president of the NHTA, said that his organization had unofficially broken Wenatchee's record in 2005 with a parade of 235 trucks, but as the parade didn't fit Guinness' long list of requirements, it hadn't been accepted. World records aside, Fortin told The Hampton Union, the central goal of the parade was to revamp the image of the towing industry: "People don't often like towers, so this is our chance to show our good side."
On September 20, 2008, the Metropolitan New York Towing Association threw its own hat into the ring. Two hundred and ninety-two tow trucks, including flatbeds, wreckers and 50-ton rotators, left Shea Stadium in Queens (previously the home of the New York Mets, the baseball park has since been demolished to make way for the Mets' new Citi Field) and traveled along the Van Wyck Expressway and the Belt Parkway before ending up at an abandoned airport tarmac at Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn. There, the trucks parked in a formation that spelled out the words "New York."
Mazda Millenia
Source:
The History Channel
Wikipedia
The History Channel
Wikipedia
Thread Starter
#230
21st August
August 21st 1897
Ransom Eli Olds of Lansing, Michigan, founds Olds Motors Works--which will later become Oldsmobile--on August 21, 1897.
Born in Geneva, Ohio, in 1864, Olds went to work for his family's machine-repair and engine-building business in 1883. In 1896, Olds completed his first gasoline-powered vehicle, and the following year he founded Olds Motor Works with financial backing from Samuel L. Smith, who had made his fortune in lumber. After the company moved from Lansing to Detroit in 1900, a fire destroyed all of its cars except its small, one-cylinder curved-dash model. Light, reliable and relatively powerful, the curved-dash Oldsmobile (as Olds had renamed his company) became a commercial sensation after appearing at the New York Auto Show in 1901. Olds returned to Lansing in 1902 and began large-scale production of the car.
The curved-dash Oldsmobile was the first American car to be produced using the progressive assembly-line system, and the first to become a commercial success. Olds soon split with Smith and his board of directors over the future direction of the company, however: Olds wanted to continue the focus on smaller cars, while the others favored the production of larger, more expensive automobiles. In 1904, Olds left to found the Reo Motor Car Company (for his initials, R.E.O.). After his departure, Oldsmobile struggled, and in 1908 it was swallowed up by the new General Motors (GM) conglomerate.
By the 1920s, Oldsmobile's six- and eight-cylinder models sat solidly in the middle of GM's lineup--less expensive than Buick or Cadillac, but still comfortably ahead of Chevrolet. Oldsmobile survived the Great Depression years and earned a reputation as GM's "experimental" division, introducing the so-called "safety automatic transmission" in 1938, a precursor to 1940's "Hydra-Matic," which was the first successful fully automatic transmission. The 135-horsepower "Rocket" engine, introduced in the new 88 model in 1949, made Oldsmobile one of the world's top-performing cars. In 1961, with the release of the upscale compact F-85 (powered by a V-8 engine), Oldsmobile launched its Cutlass, which would become one of the industry's longest-running and most successful names. The Cutlass Supreme would reign as the best-selling American car for much of the 1970s and early 1980s.
In the 1980s, however, Oldsmobile sales declined, and in 1992 a story in The Washington Post--denied by both Oldsmobile and GM--claimed that GM had seriously considered killing the brand. In August 1997, Oldsmobile celebrated the 100th anniversary of its founding. Despite efforts to compete with foreign imports with smaller, more fuel-efficient models like the Aurora, Intrigue, Alero and Bravada, Oldsmobile continued to struggle, and in 2004 GM finally discontinued the brand. At the time of its demise, Oldsmobile was America's oldest continuously operating automaker.
August 21st 1903
America's first transcontinental auto race, stretching from New York City to San Francisco, was completed on this day. The race was finished by Tom Fetch and M.C. Karrup in two Model F Packards, travelling an average of 80 miles per day for 51 days. They arrived covered in mud and exhausted. Along the way, the two travelers and their motorcars generated quite a bit of interest as they drove through many rural areas where automobiles were a rare sight. In one instance, a couple of Nebraska farmers, suspicious of the vehicles, threatened Fetch and Karrup with shotguns.
August 21st 1909
Barney Oldfield broke five world records on this day, pushing his Benz to new speeds on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. However, the record-breaking feat was marred by tragedy. Three other drivers died on the same track as 20,000 spectators watched in disbelief, and the three-day meet was ended early.
August 21st 1947
Ettore Bugatti, the French car manufacturer, died on this day. Born on September 15, 1881, in Brescia, Italy, Bugatti specialized in racing and luxury automobiles, and his factory in Alsace turned out some of the most expensive cars ever produced. The best-known Bugatti car was Type 41, known as the "Golden Bugatti" or "La Royale." It was produced in the 1920s, meticulously constructed and inordinately expensive--only a few were ever built. After Bugatti's death, the firm failed to survive, at least in part because Ettore's eldest son and chosen successor died before Bugatti himself.
Barney Oldfield sitting in his Blitzen Benz at Daytona
Ettore Bugatti
August 21st 1897
Ransom Eli Olds of Lansing, Michigan, founds Olds Motors Works--which will later become Oldsmobile--on August 21, 1897.
Born in Geneva, Ohio, in 1864, Olds went to work for his family's machine-repair and engine-building business in 1883. In 1896, Olds completed his first gasoline-powered vehicle, and the following year he founded Olds Motor Works with financial backing from Samuel L. Smith, who had made his fortune in lumber. After the company moved from Lansing to Detroit in 1900, a fire destroyed all of its cars except its small, one-cylinder curved-dash model. Light, reliable and relatively powerful, the curved-dash Oldsmobile (as Olds had renamed his company) became a commercial sensation after appearing at the New York Auto Show in 1901. Olds returned to Lansing in 1902 and began large-scale production of the car.
The curved-dash Oldsmobile was the first American car to be produced using the progressive assembly-line system, and the first to become a commercial success. Olds soon split with Smith and his board of directors over the future direction of the company, however: Olds wanted to continue the focus on smaller cars, while the others favored the production of larger, more expensive automobiles. In 1904, Olds left to found the Reo Motor Car Company (for his initials, R.E.O.). After his departure, Oldsmobile struggled, and in 1908 it was swallowed up by the new General Motors (GM) conglomerate.
By the 1920s, Oldsmobile's six- and eight-cylinder models sat solidly in the middle of GM's lineup--less expensive than Buick or Cadillac, but still comfortably ahead of Chevrolet. Oldsmobile survived the Great Depression years and earned a reputation as GM's "experimental" division, introducing the so-called "safety automatic transmission" in 1938, a precursor to 1940's "Hydra-Matic," which was the first successful fully automatic transmission. The 135-horsepower "Rocket" engine, introduced in the new 88 model in 1949, made Oldsmobile one of the world's top-performing cars. In 1961, with the release of the upscale compact F-85 (powered by a V-8 engine), Oldsmobile launched its Cutlass, which would become one of the industry's longest-running and most successful names. The Cutlass Supreme would reign as the best-selling American car for much of the 1970s and early 1980s.
In the 1980s, however, Oldsmobile sales declined, and in 1992 a story in The Washington Post--denied by both Oldsmobile and GM--claimed that GM had seriously considered killing the brand. In August 1997, Oldsmobile celebrated the 100th anniversary of its founding. Despite efforts to compete with foreign imports with smaller, more fuel-efficient models like the Aurora, Intrigue, Alero and Bravada, Oldsmobile continued to struggle, and in 2004 GM finally discontinued the brand. At the time of its demise, Oldsmobile was America's oldest continuously operating automaker.
August 21st 1903
America's first transcontinental auto race, stretching from New York City to San Francisco, was completed on this day. The race was finished by Tom Fetch and M.C. Karrup in two Model F Packards, travelling an average of 80 miles per day for 51 days. They arrived covered in mud and exhausted. Along the way, the two travelers and their motorcars generated quite a bit of interest as they drove through many rural areas where automobiles were a rare sight. In one instance, a couple of Nebraska farmers, suspicious of the vehicles, threatened Fetch and Karrup with shotguns.
August 21st 1909
Barney Oldfield broke five world records on this day, pushing his Benz to new speeds on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. However, the record-breaking feat was marred by tragedy. Three other drivers died on the same track as 20,000 spectators watched in disbelief, and the three-day meet was ended early.
August 21st 1947
Ettore Bugatti, the French car manufacturer, died on this day. Born on September 15, 1881, in Brescia, Italy, Bugatti specialized in racing and luxury automobiles, and his factory in Alsace turned out some of the most expensive cars ever produced. The best-known Bugatti car was Type 41, known as the "Golden Bugatti" or "La Royale." It was produced in the 1920s, meticulously constructed and inordinately expensive--only a few were ever built. After Bugatti's death, the firm failed to survive, at least in part because Ettore's eldest son and chosen successor died before Bugatti himself.
Barney Oldfield sitting in his Blitzen Benz at Daytona
Ettore Bugatti
Source:
The History Channel
Wikipedia
The History Channel
Wikipedia
Thread Starter
#231
22nd August
August 22nd 1647
Denis Papin, inventor of the piston steam engine (Steam digester), was born in Blois, France. This British physicist, who also invented the pressure cooker, got the first seedlings of an idea when he noticed the enclosed steam in the cooker raising the lid. Why couldn't one use steam to drive a piston? Though he never actually constructed an engine, nor had a practical design, his sketches were improved on by others and led to the development of the steam engine.
August 22nd 1901
The Cadillac Company, named after eighteenth century French explorer Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac, founder of the city of Detroit, was established on this day. Henry Leland, a former mechanic and precision machinist, founded the company that would come to be known as the maker of America's luxury car. The Cadillac reached its height of popularity during the 1950s. The Cadillac Debutante, which debuted at the Waldorf-Astoria, was based on the play The Solid Gold Cadillac. Cadillac sales decreased during the 1970s as the American car market experienced an influx of smaller imports, but luxury car sales, Cadillac included, have rebounded in recent years.
August 22nd 1902
On this day, President Theodore Roosevelt became the first U.S. chief executive to ride in an automobile. His first drive took place in Hartford, Connecticut, adding yet another first to Roosevelt's presidential accomplishments. He was also the first president to entertain an African-American in the White House. With a reputation for aggressiveness, righteousness, and pride, Roosevelt was not the kind of man to fear uncharted waters; he also wrote almost 40 books, cleared the building of the Panama Canal, and won a Nobel Peace Prize for his contributions toward the resolution of the Russo-Japanese War.
August 22nd 1962
On August 22, 1962, President Charles De Gaulle of France survives one of several assassination attempts against him thanks to the superior performance of the presidential automobile: The sleek, aerodynamic Citroen DS 19, known as "La Deesse" (The Goddess).
When the Citroen DS made its sensational debut at the 1955 Paris Motor Show, its streamlined, understated form stood out among the tail-finned and chrome-covered cars popular in that era. A far cry from Citroen's famous 2CV (dubbed the "ugly duckling"), the DS had a 1.9-liter engine and power-assisted gearshift, clutch, steering and brake systems. Its crowning aspect, however, was a hydropneumatic suspension system that Citroen would become known for, which automatically adjusted the height of the car to keep it level and enable the driver to maintain control more easily. Citroen took 12,000 orders for the DS by the end of that first day, and it soon became known as the preferred mode of transportation among France's wealthy and most powerful citizens.
In August 1962, a group called the OAS (Secret Army Organization in English) plotted an assassination attempt on President De Gaulle, who they believed had betrayed France by giving up Algeria (in northern Africa) to Algerian nationalists. Near dusk on August 22, 1962, De Gaulle and his wife were riding from the Elysee Palace to Orly Airport. As his black Citroen DS sped along the Avenue de la Liberation in Paris at 70 miles per hour, 12 OAS gunmen opened fire on the car. A hail of 140 bullets, most of them coming from behind, killed two of the president's motorcycle bodyguards, shattered the car's rear window and punctured all four of its tires. Though the Citroen went into a front-wheel skid, De Gaulle's chauffeur was able to accelerate out of the skid and drive to safety, all thanks to the car's superior suspension system. De Gaulle and his wife kept their heads down and came out unharmed.
Frederick Forsyth dramatized the events of that August in his best-selling novel "The Day of the Jackal," later made into a film. In 1969, De Gaulle--knowing that he owed his life to that Citroen--attempted to prevent the outright sale of France's premier auto manufacturer (owned by the Michelin family of tire fame) to the Italian automaker Fiat by limiting the stake Fiat could buy to 15 percent. In 1975, to avert potential bankruptcy, the French government funded Citroen's sale to a group that included its French rival, Peugeot; the result was PSA Peugeot Citroen SA, formed in 1976.
Denis Papin
Denis Papin's steam digester (1679)
Charles de Gaulle's Citroen DS
August 22nd 1647
Denis Papin, inventor of the piston steam engine (Steam digester), was born in Blois, France. This British physicist, who also invented the pressure cooker, got the first seedlings of an idea when he noticed the enclosed steam in the cooker raising the lid. Why couldn't one use steam to drive a piston? Though he never actually constructed an engine, nor had a practical design, his sketches were improved on by others and led to the development of the steam engine.
August 22nd 1901
The Cadillac Company, named after eighteenth century French explorer Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac, founder of the city of Detroit, was established on this day. Henry Leland, a former mechanic and precision machinist, founded the company that would come to be known as the maker of America's luxury car. The Cadillac reached its height of popularity during the 1950s. The Cadillac Debutante, which debuted at the Waldorf-Astoria, was based on the play The Solid Gold Cadillac. Cadillac sales decreased during the 1970s as the American car market experienced an influx of smaller imports, but luxury car sales, Cadillac included, have rebounded in recent years.
August 22nd 1902
On this day, President Theodore Roosevelt became the first U.S. chief executive to ride in an automobile. His first drive took place in Hartford, Connecticut, adding yet another first to Roosevelt's presidential accomplishments. He was also the first president to entertain an African-American in the White House. With a reputation for aggressiveness, righteousness, and pride, Roosevelt was not the kind of man to fear uncharted waters; he also wrote almost 40 books, cleared the building of the Panama Canal, and won a Nobel Peace Prize for his contributions toward the resolution of the Russo-Japanese War.
August 22nd 1962
On August 22, 1962, President Charles De Gaulle of France survives one of several assassination attempts against him thanks to the superior performance of the presidential automobile: The sleek, aerodynamic Citroen DS 19, known as "La Deesse" (The Goddess).
When the Citroen DS made its sensational debut at the 1955 Paris Motor Show, its streamlined, understated form stood out among the tail-finned and chrome-covered cars popular in that era. A far cry from Citroen's famous 2CV (dubbed the "ugly duckling"), the DS had a 1.9-liter engine and power-assisted gearshift, clutch, steering and brake systems. Its crowning aspect, however, was a hydropneumatic suspension system that Citroen would become known for, which automatically adjusted the height of the car to keep it level and enable the driver to maintain control more easily. Citroen took 12,000 orders for the DS by the end of that first day, and it soon became known as the preferred mode of transportation among France's wealthy and most powerful citizens.
In August 1962, a group called the OAS (Secret Army Organization in English) plotted an assassination attempt on President De Gaulle, who they believed had betrayed France by giving up Algeria (in northern Africa) to Algerian nationalists. Near dusk on August 22, 1962, De Gaulle and his wife were riding from the Elysee Palace to Orly Airport. As his black Citroen DS sped along the Avenue de la Liberation in Paris at 70 miles per hour, 12 OAS gunmen opened fire on the car. A hail of 140 bullets, most of them coming from behind, killed two of the president's motorcycle bodyguards, shattered the car's rear window and punctured all four of its tires. Though the Citroen went into a front-wheel skid, De Gaulle's chauffeur was able to accelerate out of the skid and drive to safety, all thanks to the car's superior suspension system. De Gaulle and his wife kept their heads down and came out unharmed.
Frederick Forsyth dramatized the events of that August in his best-selling novel "The Day of the Jackal," later made into a film. In 1969, De Gaulle--knowing that he owed his life to that Citroen--attempted to prevent the outright sale of France's premier auto manufacturer (owned by the Michelin family of tire fame) to the Italian automaker Fiat by limiting the stake Fiat could buy to 15 percent. In 1975, to avert potential bankruptcy, the French government funded Citroen's sale to a group that included its French rival, Peugeot; the result was PSA Peugeot Citroen SA, formed in 1976.
Denis Papin
Denis Papin's steam digester (1679)
Charles de Gaulle's Citroen DS
Source:
The History Channel
Wikipedia
The History Channel
Wikipedia
Thread Starter
#232
23rd August
August 23rd 1904
On this day in 1904, Harold D. Weed of Canastota, New York, is issued U.S. Patent No. 768,495 for his "Grip-Tread for Pneumatic Tires," a non-skid tire chain to be used on automobiles in order to increase traction on roads slick with mud, snow or ice.
At the time, Weed worked for the Marvin and Casler Company, a Canastota machine shop that made a range of products including automobile engines, name plate machines, automatic palm readers and motion picture equipment. He reportedly drew inspiration for his tire chain from the habit of some local motorists who wrapped rope around their tires to increase traction on muddy country roads. In his patent, Weed said that his invention aimed to "provide a flexible and collapsible grip or tread composed entirely of chains linked together and applied to the sides and periphery of the tire and held in place solely by the inflation of the tire, and which is reversible." The tire chain was assembled around a tire when it was partially deflated; after hooks on either end of the chain were fastened, the tire was then reinflated. Weed's tire chains were soon found to work just as well on snow and ice as on mud.
In 1908, in a promotional effort, representatives of the Weed Chain Tire Grip Company challenged the master magician Harry Houdini to escape from a prison created by their product. According to "The Secret Life of Houdini," by William Kalush and Larry Sloman, Houdini was enmeshed in a series of looped, locked tire chains, then chained into two steel-rimmed automobile tires. At one point during the escape, the chains had to be moved lower, as Houdini was turning blue from one of them binding his throat; he was then able to release himself. Houdini performed this famous stunt during a weeklong engagement at Hammerstein's Theatre in New York.
Harry Weed eventually sold his tire chain patents to the American Chain and Cable Company, the successor to the Weed Chain Tire Grip Co. After serving as a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army during World War I, he held patents for devices related to the tire chain and was honored by the Army Ordnance Committee for his work in designing bomb-release mechanisms and machine gun synchronizing devices for use in aircraft. He died in Palm Beach, Florida, in 1961, at the age of 89.
August 23rd 1913
Automobiles were legally allowed to enter Yosemite National Park, California, for the first time; marked huge change in national park system.
August 23rd 1922
A 23-litre car named "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" won the first Southsea Speed Carnival in 1922, driven by Count Louis Zborowski at 73.1mph. It is to be noted that the name "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" reappeared much later in Ian Fleming's book about a magical car, and again in the 1968 movie of the same name starring Dick Van Dyke.
August 23rd 1967
Georges Berger, a Belgian racing driver was killed racing a Porsche 911 in the 1967 Marathon de la Route at Nürburgring.
He raced a Gordini Type 15/16 in his two World Championship Formula One Grands Prix.
August 23rd 1987
Didier Pironi, a racing driver from France who decided to take powerboat racing crashed his powerboat near the Isle of Wight. The accident also took the life of his two crew members, journalist Bernard Giroux and his old friend Jean-Claude Guenard.
During his career he competed in 72 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, mostly driving for Tyrrell and Ferrari, and won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1978 driving a Renault Alpine A442B.
Georges Berger
Didier Pironi
August 23rd 1904
On this day in 1904, Harold D. Weed of Canastota, New York, is issued U.S. Patent No. 768,495 for his "Grip-Tread for Pneumatic Tires," a non-skid tire chain to be used on automobiles in order to increase traction on roads slick with mud, snow or ice.
At the time, Weed worked for the Marvin and Casler Company, a Canastota machine shop that made a range of products including automobile engines, name plate machines, automatic palm readers and motion picture equipment. He reportedly drew inspiration for his tire chain from the habit of some local motorists who wrapped rope around their tires to increase traction on muddy country roads. In his patent, Weed said that his invention aimed to "provide a flexible and collapsible grip or tread composed entirely of chains linked together and applied to the sides and periphery of the tire and held in place solely by the inflation of the tire, and which is reversible." The tire chain was assembled around a tire when it was partially deflated; after hooks on either end of the chain were fastened, the tire was then reinflated. Weed's tire chains were soon found to work just as well on snow and ice as on mud.
In 1908, in a promotional effort, representatives of the Weed Chain Tire Grip Company challenged the master magician Harry Houdini to escape from a prison created by their product. According to "The Secret Life of Houdini," by William Kalush and Larry Sloman, Houdini was enmeshed in a series of looped, locked tire chains, then chained into two steel-rimmed automobile tires. At one point during the escape, the chains had to be moved lower, as Houdini was turning blue from one of them binding his throat; he was then able to release himself. Houdini performed this famous stunt during a weeklong engagement at Hammerstein's Theatre in New York.
Harry Weed eventually sold his tire chain patents to the American Chain and Cable Company, the successor to the Weed Chain Tire Grip Co. After serving as a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army during World War I, he held patents for devices related to the tire chain and was honored by the Army Ordnance Committee for his work in designing bomb-release mechanisms and machine gun synchronizing devices for use in aircraft. He died in Palm Beach, Florida, in 1961, at the age of 89.
August 23rd 1913
Automobiles were legally allowed to enter Yosemite National Park, California, for the first time; marked huge change in national park system.
August 23rd 1922
A 23-litre car named "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" won the first Southsea Speed Carnival in 1922, driven by Count Louis Zborowski at 73.1mph. It is to be noted that the name "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" reappeared much later in Ian Fleming's book about a magical car, and again in the 1968 movie of the same name starring Dick Van Dyke.
August 23rd 1967
Georges Berger, a Belgian racing driver was killed racing a Porsche 911 in the 1967 Marathon de la Route at Nürburgring.
He raced a Gordini Type 15/16 in his two World Championship Formula One Grands Prix.
August 23rd 1987
Didier Pironi, a racing driver from France who decided to take powerboat racing crashed his powerboat near the Isle of Wight. The accident also took the life of his two crew members, journalist Bernard Giroux and his old friend Jean-Claude Guenard.
During his career he competed in 72 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, mostly driving for Tyrrell and Ferrari, and won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1978 driving a Renault Alpine A442B.
Georges Berger
Didier Pironi
Source:
The History Channel
Wikipedia
The History Channel
Wikipedia
Thread Starter
#233
24th August
August 24th 1832
Nicolas Carnot, a pioneer in the development of the internal combustion engine, died in Paris at age 36. The import of advanced British engines dismayed Carnot, for he saw how far behind French design had fallen. However, his own work would change that. He would go on to develop the Carnot cycle and Carnot efficiency, improving the efficiency of all types of engines.
August 24th 1945
The last Cadillac-built M-24 tank was produced on this day, ending the company's World War II effort. Civilian auto production virtually ceased after the attack on Pearl Harbor, as the U.S. automotive industry turned to war production. Between 1940 and 1945, automotive firms made almost $29 billion worth of military materials, including jeeps, trucks, machine guns, carbines, tanks, helmets, and aerial bombs.
August 24th 1958
Maria Teresa de Filippis--the first woman ever to compete in Formula One racing--drives a Maserati in the Portuguese Grand Prix at Oporto on August 24, 1958.
In Formula One (also known as F1), the highest class of automobile racing sanctioned by the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile, drivers compete in single-seat, open-wheel vehicles capable of speeds above 230 mph and typically built by large automakers, or "constructors" in racing parlance. The F1 season consists of a series of events known as Grand Prix races; since 1950, the circuit has awarded a driver's world championship title, and since 1958, it has given one for the top constructor. From 1958 to 2009, only five women have ever competed in F1 racing; in 1980, the South African driver Desire Wilson became the only female driver to win a F1 race, at Britain's Brands Hatch circuit.
Born in Naples, Italy, in 1926, De Filippis got her start racing small Fiat 500s when she was around 22. As she told the British newspaper The Observer during a 2006 interview, she began her racing career after two of her brothers made a bet with each other that she couldn't drive fast. De Fillipis won her first race at Salerno-Cava dei Tirreni in a 500. After she finished second in the 1954 Italian sports car championship, the Italian automaker Maserati hired her as a works driver, testing their high-performance cars, and in 1958 she became the first woman to compete in a Formula One world championship race.
De Filippis raced in three Grand Prix events for Maserati that year, posting her best finish--10th place, two laps behind the winner--in her first race, the Belgian Grand Prix. At Oporto that August 24, she was forced to quit the race due to engine troubles. The British driver Stirling Moss, driving a Vanwall, won the event after his countryman Mike Hawthorn (the year's eventual world champion) spun out and stalled his Ferrari and was forced to push-start it in order to get back in the race.
De Filippis used the same Maserati that the great Argentine driver Juan Manuel Fangio drove when he won his then-record fifth world championship title in 1957. As De Filippis told The Observer, Fangio had warned her of her tendency to drive too fast, to take risks: "I wasn't frightened of speed, you see, and that's not always a good thing. He worried I might have an accident." As it turned out, De Filippis quit the sport the following year and started a family. In 1979, she joined the International Club of Former F1 Grand Prix Drivers; she became its vice president in 1997, and was also president of the Maserati Club.
August 24th 1967
The famous industrialist Henry J. Kaiser passed away in Honolulu, Hawaii, at the age of 85 on this day. Along with a construction company, a shipyard, an aircraft company, and an aluminum manufacturing plant, Kaiser owned an automobile company. Co-founded with Joseph W. Frazer in 1945, the company produced only a few models before production was ceased in 1954.
Maria Teresa de Filippis
Henry J. Kaiser
August 24th 1832
Nicolas Carnot, a pioneer in the development of the internal combustion engine, died in Paris at age 36. The import of advanced British engines dismayed Carnot, for he saw how far behind French design had fallen. However, his own work would change that. He would go on to develop the Carnot cycle and Carnot efficiency, improving the efficiency of all types of engines.
August 24th 1945
The last Cadillac-built M-24 tank was produced on this day, ending the company's World War II effort. Civilian auto production virtually ceased after the attack on Pearl Harbor, as the U.S. automotive industry turned to war production. Between 1940 and 1945, automotive firms made almost $29 billion worth of military materials, including jeeps, trucks, machine guns, carbines, tanks, helmets, and aerial bombs.
August 24th 1958
Maria Teresa de Filippis--the first woman ever to compete in Formula One racing--drives a Maserati in the Portuguese Grand Prix at Oporto on August 24, 1958.
In Formula One (also known as F1), the highest class of automobile racing sanctioned by the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile, drivers compete in single-seat, open-wheel vehicles capable of speeds above 230 mph and typically built by large automakers, or "constructors" in racing parlance. The F1 season consists of a series of events known as Grand Prix races; since 1950, the circuit has awarded a driver's world championship title, and since 1958, it has given one for the top constructor. From 1958 to 2009, only five women have ever competed in F1 racing; in 1980, the South African driver Desire Wilson became the only female driver to win a F1 race, at Britain's Brands Hatch circuit.
Born in Naples, Italy, in 1926, De Filippis got her start racing small Fiat 500s when she was around 22. As she told the British newspaper The Observer during a 2006 interview, she began her racing career after two of her brothers made a bet with each other that she couldn't drive fast. De Fillipis won her first race at Salerno-Cava dei Tirreni in a 500. After she finished second in the 1954 Italian sports car championship, the Italian automaker Maserati hired her as a works driver, testing their high-performance cars, and in 1958 she became the first woman to compete in a Formula One world championship race.
De Filippis raced in three Grand Prix events for Maserati that year, posting her best finish--10th place, two laps behind the winner--in her first race, the Belgian Grand Prix. At Oporto that August 24, she was forced to quit the race due to engine troubles. The British driver Stirling Moss, driving a Vanwall, won the event after his countryman Mike Hawthorn (the year's eventual world champion) spun out and stalled his Ferrari and was forced to push-start it in order to get back in the race.
De Filippis used the same Maserati that the great Argentine driver Juan Manuel Fangio drove when he won his then-record fifth world championship title in 1957. As De Filippis told The Observer, Fangio had warned her of her tendency to drive too fast, to take risks: "I wasn't frightened of speed, you see, and that's not always a good thing. He worried I might have an accident." As it turned out, De Filippis quit the sport the following year and started a family. In 1979, she joined the International Club of Former F1 Grand Prix Drivers; she became its vice president in 1997, and was also president of the Maserati Club.
August 24th 1967
The famous industrialist Henry J. Kaiser passed away in Honolulu, Hawaii, at the age of 85 on this day. Along with a construction company, a shipyard, an aircraft company, and an aluminum manufacturing plant, Kaiser owned an automobile company. Co-founded with Joseph W. Frazer in 1945, the company produced only a few models before production was ceased in 1954.
Maria Teresa de Filippis
Henry J. Kaiser
Source:
The History Channel
Wikipedia
The History Channel
Wikipedia
Thread Starter
#234
25th August
August 25th 1910
Walden W. Shaw and John D. Hertz formed the Walden W. Shaw Livery Company, which later became the Yellow Cab Company. In 1907, the Shaw Livery Company purchased a number of small taxicabs equipped with meters. The first yellow cab (the Model J) hit the streets in 1915, and its distinctive color became the company's trademark. The company was also the first to use automatic windshield wipers, ultrahigh frequency two-way radios, and passenger seat belts.
August 25th 1910
Horch Automobil-Werke GmbH forced to change company name due to legal dispute over Horch trademark. It was renamed Audi Automobilwerke GmbH. Audi in Latin translation to Horch.
August 25th 1921
Six-Cylinder Love, the first full-length play based on the motor car, opened at the Sam H. Harris Theatre in New York City. The play traces a family's purchase of an expensive car and their resulting woes. A silent film version of the play was produced in 1923, and a talkie starring Spencer Tracy followed in 1931.
August 25, 1954
The United States Postal Service began issuing a Classic Cars booklet of stamps on this day. The special edition stamps, designed by Ken Dallison, featured five different designs: a 1928 Locomobile, a 1929 Pierce-Arrow, a 1931 Cord, a 1932 Packard, and a 1935 Dusenberg.
August 25, 1991
The German race car driver Michael Schumacher makes his Formula One (Europe's top racing circuit) debut in the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa Francorchamps on this day in 1991.
Schumacher was born in Hurth-Hermulhein, West Germany, in 1969. His father managed a go-kart track in the town of Kerpen, and young Michael won the German junior karting championship in 1984 and 1985 and the German and European titles in 1987. He left school to work as a car mechanic and in 1988 began racing on the Formula Three circuit, which features less-powerful vehicles than those of Formula One. After winning the German Formula Three championship in 1990, Schumacher made the move to the big time: The next August, he made his Formula One debut at Spa, racing for Irish businessman Eddie Jordan's team.
Though Schumacher retired during the first lap of that first Grand Prix (as individual Formula One events are called) with clutch problems, he drew the attention of Benetton, another Formula One constructor owned by the same family as the international clothing store chain. Benetton soon snapped up the rising young star (he and Jordan had not signed a contract), beginning a successful five-year collaboration. Schumacher won the drivers' world championship, Formula One's top honor, for the team in 1994--a season marred by the death of the Brazilian driver Ayrton Senna in the San Marino Grand Prix and accusations of technical irregularities against the Benetton team--and 1995.
Schumacher signed with the venerable Ferrari team before the 1996 season. Things began well, despite an incident in 1997 when Schumacher tried in vain to ram the car of his top rival, Jacques Villeneuve, off the road during the final race, at Jerez in Spain; he was stripped of his second-place finish as punishment. After crashing his Ferrari during the 1999 British Grand Prix--he emerged with a broken leg, the only injury of his career to date--Schumacher won the 2000 drivers' world championship (Ferrari's first since 1979). He went on to win the title another four years in a row, racking up nine Grand Prix wins in 2001 and 11 in 2002. His sixth drivers' title in 2003 broke the previous record, held by the Argentine driver Juan Manual Fangio. In 2004, Schumacher won 13 of 18 total Grand Prix races held that year, easily securing his seventh championship.
At the age of 41, still at the top of his game, Schumacher retired from racing. During his final season in 2006, he won seven Grand Prix races, bringing his career total to 91, and making him by far the winningest driver in Formula One history (his closest rival, the French driver Alain Prost, had 51).
Michael Schumacher
August 25th 1910
Walden W. Shaw and John D. Hertz formed the Walden W. Shaw Livery Company, which later became the Yellow Cab Company. In 1907, the Shaw Livery Company purchased a number of small taxicabs equipped with meters. The first yellow cab (the Model J) hit the streets in 1915, and its distinctive color became the company's trademark. The company was also the first to use automatic windshield wipers, ultrahigh frequency two-way radios, and passenger seat belts.
August 25th 1910
Horch Automobil-Werke GmbH forced to change company name due to legal dispute over Horch trademark. It was renamed Audi Automobilwerke GmbH. Audi in Latin translation to Horch.
August 25th 1921
Six-Cylinder Love, the first full-length play based on the motor car, opened at the Sam H. Harris Theatre in New York City. The play traces a family's purchase of an expensive car and their resulting woes. A silent film version of the play was produced in 1923, and a talkie starring Spencer Tracy followed in 1931.
August 25, 1954
The United States Postal Service began issuing a Classic Cars booklet of stamps on this day. The special edition stamps, designed by Ken Dallison, featured five different designs: a 1928 Locomobile, a 1929 Pierce-Arrow, a 1931 Cord, a 1932 Packard, and a 1935 Dusenberg.
August 25, 1991
The German race car driver Michael Schumacher makes his Formula One (Europe's top racing circuit) debut in the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa Francorchamps on this day in 1991.
Schumacher was born in Hurth-Hermulhein, West Germany, in 1969. His father managed a go-kart track in the town of Kerpen, and young Michael won the German junior karting championship in 1984 and 1985 and the German and European titles in 1987. He left school to work as a car mechanic and in 1988 began racing on the Formula Three circuit, which features less-powerful vehicles than those of Formula One. After winning the German Formula Three championship in 1990, Schumacher made the move to the big time: The next August, he made his Formula One debut at Spa, racing for Irish businessman Eddie Jordan's team.
Though Schumacher retired during the first lap of that first Grand Prix (as individual Formula One events are called) with clutch problems, he drew the attention of Benetton, another Formula One constructor owned by the same family as the international clothing store chain. Benetton soon snapped up the rising young star (he and Jordan had not signed a contract), beginning a successful five-year collaboration. Schumacher won the drivers' world championship, Formula One's top honor, for the team in 1994--a season marred by the death of the Brazilian driver Ayrton Senna in the San Marino Grand Prix and accusations of technical irregularities against the Benetton team--and 1995.
Schumacher signed with the venerable Ferrari team before the 1996 season. Things began well, despite an incident in 1997 when Schumacher tried in vain to ram the car of his top rival, Jacques Villeneuve, off the road during the final race, at Jerez in Spain; he was stripped of his second-place finish as punishment. After crashing his Ferrari during the 1999 British Grand Prix--he emerged with a broken leg, the only injury of his career to date--Schumacher won the 2000 drivers' world championship (Ferrari's first since 1979). He went on to win the title another four years in a row, racking up nine Grand Prix wins in 2001 and 11 in 2002. His sixth drivers' title in 2003 broke the previous record, held by the Argentine driver Juan Manual Fangio. In 2004, Schumacher won 13 of 18 total Grand Prix races held that year, easily securing his seventh championship.
At the age of 41, still at the top of his game, Schumacher retired from racing. During his final season in 2006, he won seven Grand Prix races, bringing his career total to 91, and making him by far the winningest driver in Formula One history (his closest rival, the French driver Alain Prost, had 51).
Michael Schumacher
Source:
The History Channel
Wikipedia
The History Channel
Wikipedia
Thread Starter
#235
August 26th 1940
The LaSalle, manufactured by Cadillac, was discontinued after 14 years of production. Intended to boost profits during a lag in luxury car sales, the LaSalle was a moderately priced alternative to the opulence of the Cadillac. The company chose to market the car under a new name so as not to lessen the value of the Cadillac name.
August 26th 1957
The Ford Motor Company rolled out the first Edsel automobile on this day. The car was named after Henry Ford's son, Edsel Bryant Ford. 110,847 Edsels were built before the company pulled the plug after three years due to lack of sales and negative press. Ironically, market research conducted just a few years earlier had pointed to the Edsel's success; consumers had said they wanted more horsepower, tailfins, three-tone paint jobs, and wraparound windshields. However, by 1957, fickle consumers had changed their minds, and despite a relatively low price, Edsel sales lagged. Today, due to the limited number produced, the Edsel has become a collector's item.
August 26th 1959
On this day in 1959, the British Motor Corporation (BMC) launches its newest car, the small, affordable–at a price tag of less than $800–Mark I Mini. The diminutive Mini went on to become one of the best-selling British cars in history.
The story behind the Mini began in August 1956, when President Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal in response to the American and British decision to withdraw funding for a new dam's construction due to Egypt's Communist ties. The international crisis that followed led to fuel shortages and gasoline rationing across Europe. Sir Leonard Lord, head of BMC--formed by the merger of automakers Austin and Morris in 1952--wanted to produce a British alternative to the tiny, fuel-efficient German cars that were cornering the market after the Suez Crisis. He turned to Alec Issigonis, a Turkish immigrant who as chief engineer at Morris Motors had produced the Morris Minor, a teapot-shaped cult favorite that had nonetheless never seriously competed with the Volkswagen "Beetle" or Fiat's 500 or Cinquecento.
Mini development began in 1957 and took place under a veil of secrecy; the project was known only as ADO (for Austin Drawing Office) 15. After about two and a half years–a relatively short design period–the new car was ready for the approval of Lord, who immediately signed off on its production.
Launched on August 26, 1959, the new front-wheel-drive car was priced at around $800 and marketed under two names: Austin Seven and Morris Mini-Minor. The two vehicles were the same except for each had a different radiator grille, and by 1962 both were known simply as the Mini. Issigonis' design, including an engine mounted sideways to take up less space, had created a surprising amount of space for a small-bodied car: At only 10 feet long, the Mini could sit four adults, and had a trunk big enough for a reasonable amount of luggage. With a starting price of around $800, the Mini was truly a "people's car," but its popularity transcended class, and it was also used by affluent Londoners as a second car to easily maneuver in city traffic.
By the time production was halted in 2000, 5.3 million Minis had been produced. Around that same time, a panel of 130 international journalists voted the Mini "European Car of the Century." A high-performance version of the Mini engineered by the race car builder John Cooper had first been released in 1961; known as the Mini Cooper, it became one of the favorites of Mini enthusiasts worldwide. In 2003, the Mini Cooper was updated for a new generation of buyers by the German automaker BMW.
August 26th 1985
The Yugo, manufactured in Yugoslavia, was first introduced to the U.S. market on this day. Originally marketed as a lower-cost alternative, the Yugo quickly became infamous for its poor quality of construction.
1938 Cadillac LeSalle Coupe
1959 Edsel Corsair convertible.
1959 Original mini.
The first Morris Mini-Minor sold in Texas being delivered to a family in Arlington, Texas in 1959.
Cross-section shows how Mini maximizes passenger space
Yugo
The LaSalle, manufactured by Cadillac, was discontinued after 14 years of production. Intended to boost profits during a lag in luxury car sales, the LaSalle was a moderately priced alternative to the opulence of the Cadillac. The company chose to market the car under a new name so as not to lessen the value of the Cadillac name.
August 26th 1957
The Ford Motor Company rolled out the first Edsel automobile on this day. The car was named after Henry Ford's son, Edsel Bryant Ford. 110,847 Edsels were built before the company pulled the plug after three years due to lack of sales and negative press. Ironically, market research conducted just a few years earlier had pointed to the Edsel's success; consumers had said they wanted more horsepower, tailfins, three-tone paint jobs, and wraparound windshields. However, by 1957, fickle consumers had changed their minds, and despite a relatively low price, Edsel sales lagged. Today, due to the limited number produced, the Edsel has become a collector's item.
August 26th 1959
On this day in 1959, the British Motor Corporation (BMC) launches its newest car, the small, affordable–at a price tag of less than $800–Mark I Mini. The diminutive Mini went on to become one of the best-selling British cars in history.
The story behind the Mini began in August 1956, when President Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal in response to the American and British decision to withdraw funding for a new dam's construction due to Egypt's Communist ties. The international crisis that followed led to fuel shortages and gasoline rationing across Europe. Sir Leonard Lord, head of BMC--formed by the merger of automakers Austin and Morris in 1952--wanted to produce a British alternative to the tiny, fuel-efficient German cars that were cornering the market after the Suez Crisis. He turned to Alec Issigonis, a Turkish immigrant who as chief engineer at Morris Motors had produced the Morris Minor, a teapot-shaped cult favorite that had nonetheless never seriously competed with the Volkswagen "Beetle" or Fiat's 500 or Cinquecento.
Mini development began in 1957 and took place under a veil of secrecy; the project was known only as ADO (for Austin Drawing Office) 15. After about two and a half years–a relatively short design period–the new car was ready for the approval of Lord, who immediately signed off on its production.
Launched on August 26, 1959, the new front-wheel-drive car was priced at around $800 and marketed under two names: Austin Seven and Morris Mini-Minor. The two vehicles were the same except for each had a different radiator grille, and by 1962 both were known simply as the Mini. Issigonis' design, including an engine mounted sideways to take up less space, had created a surprising amount of space for a small-bodied car: At only 10 feet long, the Mini could sit four adults, and had a trunk big enough for a reasonable amount of luggage. With a starting price of around $800, the Mini was truly a "people's car," but its popularity transcended class, and it was also used by affluent Londoners as a second car to easily maneuver in city traffic.
By the time production was halted in 2000, 5.3 million Minis had been produced. Around that same time, a panel of 130 international journalists voted the Mini "European Car of the Century." A high-performance version of the Mini engineered by the race car builder John Cooper had first been released in 1961; known as the Mini Cooper, it became one of the favorites of Mini enthusiasts worldwide. In 2003, the Mini Cooper was updated for a new generation of buyers by the German automaker BMW.
August 26th 1985
The Yugo, manufactured in Yugoslavia, was first introduced to the U.S. market on this day. Originally marketed as a lower-cost alternative, the Yugo quickly became infamous for its poor quality of construction.
1938 Cadillac LeSalle Coupe
1959 Edsel Corsair convertible.
1959 Original mini.
The first Morris Mini-Minor sold in Texas being delivered to a family in Arlington, Texas in 1959.
Cross-section shows how Mini maximizes passenger space
Yugo
Source:
The History Channel
Wikipedia
The History Channel
Wikipedia
Thread Starter
#236
August 27th 1904
Newport, Rhode Island, imposed the first jail sentence for a speeding violation on this day. This was a harsh sentence in 1904 because traffic laws were still relatively new--the first traffic code wasn't implemented until 1903, when New York introduced a two-page book of regulations. Early traffic regulations varied drastically from state to state, some having no speed limits at all.
August 27th 1938
On August 27, 1937, Captain George E. T. Eyston breaks his own automobile land speed record at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, raising the mark to 345.49 mph.
Located approximately 80 miles west of Salt Lake City, Utah, the Bonneville Salt Flats were formed by the evaporation of a huge Ice Age-era lake. Near the end of the 19th century, the flats hosted a bicycle competition arranged as a publicity stunt by the publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst. Then, in 1914, the daredevil racer Teddy Tezlaff drove his Blitzen Benz vehicle at 141.73 mph to set an unofficial land speed record at the flats. Bonneville truly took off as a racing destination thanks to the efforts of Utah native Ab Jenkins, who set several endurance speed records there beginning in 1925, driving a Studebaker dubbed the Mormon Meteor. In 1935, the British racing legend Sir Malcolm Campbell set a world land speed record of 301.126 mph in his famous Bluebird, and since then the flats became the standard course for land speed record attempts.
Drivers who attempted to set the world land speed record, or the fastest speed traveled on land in a wheeled vehicle, had to complete two mile-long runs in opposite directions, within a space of sixty minutes. George Eyston, an engineer and retired British Army captain, had set the previous record of 311.42 mph at Bonneville in November 1936. On his August 27 run, he hit 347.49 mph on the outbound trip and 343.51 on the return; his new record, 345.49, was the average of the two. As Eyston told the press at the time, he did not even bring his vehicle, the Thunderbolt, to full throttle to achieve the record-setting speed: "I had a very comfortable ride and not once did I feel there was any danger….I wanted to be certain I set a new record, but I also wanted to be sure that the car and I got through in good shape."
By September 1938, Eyston had raised the land speed record to 357.5 mph. In a lecture he delivered that month, Eyston described his built-for-speed Thunderbolt as having two 2,000-horsepower Rolls Royce motors geared together; the vehicle measured 35 feet long and weighed nearly 7 tons. One of Eyston's rivals, John Cobb, set a new world land speed record of 394.194 mph in 1947 at Bonneville in a car with a piston engine; thereafter, most record holders have driven jet- or rocket-powered vehicles. In October 1997, a twin turbofan jet-powered car dubbed ThrustSSC achieved 763.035 mph (the first supersonic world land speed record) over one mile at Nevada's Black Rock Desert.
Captain George Eyston
Newport, Rhode Island, imposed the first jail sentence for a speeding violation on this day. This was a harsh sentence in 1904 because traffic laws were still relatively new--the first traffic code wasn't implemented until 1903, when New York introduced a two-page book of regulations. Early traffic regulations varied drastically from state to state, some having no speed limits at all.
August 27th 1938
On August 27, 1937, Captain George E. T. Eyston breaks his own automobile land speed record at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, raising the mark to 345.49 mph.
Located approximately 80 miles west of Salt Lake City, Utah, the Bonneville Salt Flats were formed by the evaporation of a huge Ice Age-era lake. Near the end of the 19th century, the flats hosted a bicycle competition arranged as a publicity stunt by the publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst. Then, in 1914, the daredevil racer Teddy Tezlaff drove his Blitzen Benz vehicle at 141.73 mph to set an unofficial land speed record at the flats. Bonneville truly took off as a racing destination thanks to the efforts of Utah native Ab Jenkins, who set several endurance speed records there beginning in 1925, driving a Studebaker dubbed the Mormon Meteor. In 1935, the British racing legend Sir Malcolm Campbell set a world land speed record of 301.126 mph in his famous Bluebird, and since then the flats became the standard course for land speed record attempts.
Drivers who attempted to set the world land speed record, or the fastest speed traveled on land in a wheeled vehicle, had to complete two mile-long runs in opposite directions, within a space of sixty minutes. George Eyston, an engineer and retired British Army captain, had set the previous record of 311.42 mph at Bonneville in November 1936. On his August 27 run, he hit 347.49 mph on the outbound trip and 343.51 on the return; his new record, 345.49, was the average of the two. As Eyston told the press at the time, he did not even bring his vehicle, the Thunderbolt, to full throttle to achieve the record-setting speed: "I had a very comfortable ride and not once did I feel there was any danger….I wanted to be certain I set a new record, but I also wanted to be sure that the car and I got through in good shape."
By September 1938, Eyston had raised the land speed record to 357.5 mph. In a lecture he delivered that month, Eyston described his built-for-speed Thunderbolt as having two 2,000-horsepower Rolls Royce motors geared together; the vehicle measured 35 feet long and weighed nearly 7 tons. One of Eyston's rivals, John Cobb, set a new world land speed record of 394.194 mph in 1947 at Bonneville in a car with a piston engine; thereafter, most record holders have driven jet- or rocket-powered vehicles. In October 1997, a twin turbofan jet-powered car dubbed ThrustSSC achieved 763.035 mph (the first supersonic world land speed record) over one mile at Nevada's Black Rock Desert.
Captain George Eyston
Source:
The History Channel
Wikipedia
The History Channel
Wikipedia
Thread Starter
#237
August 28th 1877
Charles Stewart Rolls, the pioneering British motorist, aviator and co-founder (with Henry Royce) of the Rolls-Royce Ltd. luxury automobile company, is born on August 28, 1877, in London's upscale Mayfair district.
The third son of Lord and Lady Llangattock, who had their ancestral seat in Monmouth, Wales, Rolls was a card-carrying member of the British aristocracy. He was educated at Eton and at Cambridge University's Trinity College, where he first developed his love for the new sport of motoring. His first vehicle, a Peugeot with 3.75 horsepower, was the first car to be seen at Cambridge, and enabled him to drive home to Monmouth in an astonishingly quick time of two days. In 1900, Rolls drove a 12-horsepower Panhard car in the famous British auto race the Thousand Mile Trial; he also took part in a number of other early long-distance European races. Considered the best driver in Wales, he was reportedly responsible for changing the national speed limit at the time from 4 to 12 miles per hour.
In 1902, Rolls went into the business of selling cars. Two years later, at the Midland Hotel in Manchester, England, he met with Frederick Henry Royce, an electrical engineer of modest background who had his own engineering business, Royce Ltd., and had built several experimental cars of his own design. After that historic meeting, Rolls and Royce merged their firms in 1906 to form Rolls-Royce Ltd. The Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost, produced that year, became one of the world's most admired cars. While Royce was responsible for every aspect of car design, Rolls provided the bulk of the financing, as well as the social connections that helped make sales.
In addition to automobiles, Rolls became passionate about aviation, including hot air balloons and early airplanes. In February 1910, Rolls wrote to the inventor Wilbur Wright to complain about the Wright plane he had bought in Europe. In the letter, Rolls told Wright he had resigned his former position at Rolls Royce and taken another, which "does not require any regular attendance at the office," in order "to devote myself to flight." That June, Rolls became the first aviator to fly nonstop across the English Channel and back. Tragically, on July 12, 1910, Rolls was killed when the tail of his plane snapped off in mid-air during a flying exhibition in Bournemouth, England. He was 32 years old.
August 28th 1921
Construction of the Paragon Motor Company factory began in Cumberland, Maryland. The company's production was limited to only four prototypes, and the factory was never completed.
August 28th 1922
The famous Autodromo, an automobile-racing track, was opened in Monza, Italy, on this day. Set in a busy industrial center along the Lambro River, this track, with its elliptical shape and concrete banked curves, is said to be the fastest in the world.
August 28th 1937
The Toyota Motor Company, Ltd., originally a division of the Toyota Automatic Loom Works, became a corporation on this day. The company underwent huge expansion in the 1960s and 1970s, exporting its smaller, more fuel-efficient cars to countless foreign markets. During this period, Toyota also acquired Hino Motors, Ltd., Nippondenso Company Ltd., and Daihitsu Motor Company, Ltd. Toyota has been Japan's largest automobile manufacturer for several decades and is headquartered in Toyota City, Japan.
Charles Stewart Rolls with a Wolseley ca. 1905
Charles Stewart Rolls, the pioneering British motorist, aviator and co-founder (with Henry Royce) of the Rolls-Royce Ltd. luxury automobile company, is born on August 28, 1877, in London's upscale Mayfair district.
The third son of Lord and Lady Llangattock, who had their ancestral seat in Monmouth, Wales, Rolls was a card-carrying member of the British aristocracy. He was educated at Eton and at Cambridge University's Trinity College, where he first developed his love for the new sport of motoring. His first vehicle, a Peugeot with 3.75 horsepower, was the first car to be seen at Cambridge, and enabled him to drive home to Monmouth in an astonishingly quick time of two days. In 1900, Rolls drove a 12-horsepower Panhard car in the famous British auto race the Thousand Mile Trial; he also took part in a number of other early long-distance European races. Considered the best driver in Wales, he was reportedly responsible for changing the national speed limit at the time from 4 to 12 miles per hour.
In 1902, Rolls went into the business of selling cars. Two years later, at the Midland Hotel in Manchester, England, he met with Frederick Henry Royce, an electrical engineer of modest background who had his own engineering business, Royce Ltd., and had built several experimental cars of his own design. After that historic meeting, Rolls and Royce merged their firms in 1906 to form Rolls-Royce Ltd. The Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost, produced that year, became one of the world's most admired cars. While Royce was responsible for every aspect of car design, Rolls provided the bulk of the financing, as well as the social connections that helped make sales.
In addition to automobiles, Rolls became passionate about aviation, including hot air balloons and early airplanes. In February 1910, Rolls wrote to the inventor Wilbur Wright to complain about the Wright plane he had bought in Europe. In the letter, Rolls told Wright he had resigned his former position at Rolls Royce and taken another, which "does not require any regular attendance at the office," in order "to devote myself to flight." That June, Rolls became the first aviator to fly nonstop across the English Channel and back. Tragically, on July 12, 1910, Rolls was killed when the tail of his plane snapped off in mid-air during a flying exhibition in Bournemouth, England. He was 32 years old.
August 28th 1921
Construction of the Paragon Motor Company factory began in Cumberland, Maryland. The company's production was limited to only four prototypes, and the factory was never completed.
August 28th 1922
The famous Autodromo, an automobile-racing track, was opened in Monza, Italy, on this day. Set in a busy industrial center along the Lambro River, this track, with its elliptical shape and concrete banked curves, is said to be the fastest in the world.
August 28th 1937
The Toyota Motor Company, Ltd., originally a division of the Toyota Automatic Loom Works, became a corporation on this day. The company underwent huge expansion in the 1960s and 1970s, exporting its smaller, more fuel-efficient cars to countless foreign markets. During this period, Toyota also acquired Hino Motors, Ltd., Nippondenso Company Ltd., and Daihitsu Motor Company, Ltd. Toyota has been Japan's largest automobile manufacturer for several decades and is headquartered in Toyota City, Japan.
Charles Stewart Rolls with a Wolseley ca. 1905
Source:
The History Channel
Wikipedia
The History Channel
Wikipedia
Thread Starter
#238
29th August
August 29th 1876
Charles F. Kettering, inventor of the electric starter, was born on this day in Detroit. Kettering, along with Edward A. Deeds, founded Delco (Dayton Engineering Laboratories Company). He and his company invented countless improvements for the automobile, including lighting and ignition systems, lacquer finishes, antilock fuels, and leaded gasoline. The Cadillac was the first car to use the electric starter, and Delco would later become a subsidiary of General Motors. Incidentally, Kettering also invented the first electric cash register before he started working on cars.
August 29th 1885
The world's first motorcycle, made by Gottlieb Daimler, was patented on this day. The two-wheeled vehicle gained immense popularity after 1910, when it was used heavily by all branches of the armed forces during World War I. The motorcycle's popularity lagged during the Great Depression, but came back with a vengeance after World War II and remains popular today. Often associated with a rebellious image, the vehicle is often used for high-speed touring and sport competitions.
August 29th 1898
The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. was incorporated in Ohio. Originally founded as a rubber company by the Seiberling brothers, the company began manufacturing tires shortly after its establishment. Today, Goodyear makes passenger and industrial tires, in addition to producing rubber, chemical, and plastic products. The company also is well-known for its marketing skill--its Goodyear blimp is one of the most recognizable corporate symbols in America.
The first motorcycle, made by Gottlieb Daimler, at the Deutsches Zweirad-und NSU-Museum in Neckarsulm, Germany.
August 29th 1876
Charles F. Kettering, inventor of the electric starter, was born on this day in Detroit. Kettering, along with Edward A. Deeds, founded Delco (Dayton Engineering Laboratories Company). He and his company invented countless improvements for the automobile, including lighting and ignition systems, lacquer finishes, antilock fuels, and leaded gasoline. The Cadillac was the first car to use the electric starter, and Delco would later become a subsidiary of General Motors. Incidentally, Kettering also invented the first electric cash register before he started working on cars.
August 29th 1885
The world's first motorcycle, made by Gottlieb Daimler, was patented on this day. The two-wheeled vehicle gained immense popularity after 1910, when it was used heavily by all branches of the armed forces during World War I. The motorcycle's popularity lagged during the Great Depression, but came back with a vengeance after World War II and remains popular today. Often associated with a rebellious image, the vehicle is often used for high-speed touring and sport competitions.
August 29th 1898
The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. was incorporated in Ohio. Originally founded as a rubber company by the Seiberling brothers, the company began manufacturing tires shortly after its establishment. Today, Goodyear makes passenger and industrial tires, in addition to producing rubber, chemical, and plastic products. The company also is well-known for its marketing skill--its Goodyear blimp is one of the most recognizable corporate symbols in America.
The first motorcycle, made by Gottlieb Daimler, at the Deutsches Zweirad-und NSU-Museum in Neckarsulm, Germany.
Source:
The History Channel
Wikipedia
The History Channel
Wikipedia
I'm in love with the cars in post # 235.
Thread Starter
#240
August 30th 1898
Henry Ford, of Detroit, Michigan, received a patent for a "Carbureter" (fuel injector) especially designed for use in connection with gas or vapor engines.
August 30th 1916
Studebaker announced the release of the Heaslet Special, a semi-custom touring car. The car was named in honor of Studebaker's vice president of engineering, James G. Heaslet.
August 30th 1945
A pale green Super Six coupe rolled off the Hudson Company's assembly line, the first post-World War II car to be produced by the auto manufacturer. Like all other U.S. auto manufacturers, Hudson had halted production of civilian cars in order to produce armaments during the war. The Super Six boasted the first modern, high-compression L-head motor, though it garnered its name from the original Hudson-manufactured engine produced in 1916. The name stayed, though the engines became more sophisticated.
Henry Ford's Fuel Injector design.
Hudson Super Six
Henry Ford, of Detroit, Michigan, received a patent for a "Carbureter" (fuel injector) especially designed for use in connection with gas or vapor engines.
August 30th 1916
Studebaker announced the release of the Heaslet Special, a semi-custom touring car. The car was named in honor of Studebaker's vice president of engineering, James G. Heaslet.
August 30th 1945
A pale green Super Six coupe rolled off the Hudson Company's assembly line, the first post-World War II car to be produced by the auto manufacturer. Like all other U.S. auto manufacturers, Hudson had halted production of civilian cars in order to produce armaments during the war. The Super Six boasted the first modern, high-compression L-head motor, though it garnered its name from the original Hudson-manufactured engine produced in 1916. The name stayed, though the engines became more sophisticated.
Henry Ford's Fuel Injector design.
Hudson Super Six
Source:
The History Channel
Wikipedia
The History Channel
Wikipedia