With UAW members and leadership meeting to debate the union’s future, it’s the perfect time to look back at the conditions from which the UAW emerged. Here is 1936 film titled “Master Hands” which portrays the men and machines that built Chevrolets on the eve of the UAW’s recognition. According to the excellent Youtube channel USAutoindustry, “Master Hands” was
filmed in Flint, Michigan, just months before the United Auto Workers won union recognition with their famous sitdown strikes.
Clearly a lot has changed since then. But has the UAW?
So, GM’s ban on use of the term “Chevy” hasn’t quite taken effect yet. Above is an image of the front page at Chevrolet.com, and clearly there are still a number of references to the old abbreviation. And no wonder: the term “Chevy” has been a mainstay of Chevrolet’s advertising from time immemorial… up until very recently, you could even catch Chevy ads that never used the whole word “Chevrolet.” We’ve assembled a few ads featuring the word “Chevy” throughout the years, and we present them now in memoriam of a convenient and iconic nickname.
There’s no doubt that cars can be time machines… but so can cameras. These pictures of the LUC Chopard classic car rally in Moscow were taken a week ago today, but thanks to the impeccable cars, time-warp setting and old-school photo techniques, they somehow manage to capture the flavor of a lost era. Even when a blinged-out Infiniti QX intrudes, reminding the viewer that these are just a bunch of plutocrats playing with their expensive toys circa 2010. As is so often the case, the fantasy is far more satisfying than the reality. It’s Sunday… why not indulge a little?
[Courtesy: EnglishRussia, Hat Tip: commenter rodehardputupwet]
This video is the kind of thing that a pretentious grad student would call “an artifact.” For one thing, it proves that Germans do have a sense of humor… they just need Porsche to add enough consonants to the end of its racing models to be activated. This, in turn, gives a keen insight into the reason nobody mentions Germany when it comes to identifying nations that build the “coolest” cars. The Germans, and I say this as an often-overly-serious person of Germanic descent, are just too damn serious. In fact, the satire here is so seriously deadpan as to be almost un-funny. If the humor isn’t obvious enough for you, go ahead and start calculating how much Porsche charges for each “G,” “T,” “R,” and “S.” You’ll be laughing in no time.
What is it about former (or ostensible) communist leaders and retro limousines? China’s Hu Jintao got a tip of the hat from us last October for stepping out in style at the country’s National Day celebrations in a retro-fabulous Hongqi HQE. Now, The Guardian reports that
President Dmitry Medvedev has decided to trade in his Mercedes and bring back the ZiL, in what appears to be the latest attempt by Russia’s nostalgic leadership to turn the country into a Soviet theme park. Medvedev has asked aides to examine whether the austere and enduringly sinister limousine can be brought back into production.
And why not? After all, what’s more authentically Russian than being ferried through Red Square in an “enduringly sinister” vehicle made by a company that was at one time known as “Stalin’s Factory”? Is it too soon to ask about American-market availability?
Today, we’re setting the way-back machine for 1999 for an ABC “exclusive” behind the scenes of General Motors. Rick Wagoner is in charge, market share is dropping and the Aztek still hasn’t emerged from its camouflage. It’s a more innocent time, as evidenced by ABC’s breathless, toothless reportage, and it makes for good nostalgia and good schadenfreude. Does it get any better than that? (Read More…)
Worried that a ride-over-handling-oriented California, the end of manual transmissions and flirtations with hybrid power have left Ferrari without any kind of brand focus? Don’t be, Maranello spokesfolks tell Autocar. There is at least one line that Ferrari will never cross: building a four-door to compete with Aston-Martin’s Rapide, Porsche’s Panamera or Audi’s A7.
As Enzo [Ferrari, company founder] would say, we will never do four doors. And we will keep this tradition. Frankly speaking no-one is asking for a four-door Ferrari. If you want a four door Ferrari we have a Maserati. We stand 60 years and we never needed four doors. What never means, I don’t know, but one of the strong points of Ferrari is to keep the product in the right way. I’m not saying four doors is not right for the image, but it’s not part of our heritage.
Chrysler won’t officially confirm it, but the Detroit Free Press cites Chrysler dealers who say that the tarnished-to-death Sebring nameplate will be replaced with the name “Nassau,” when Chrysler brings out a Fiat-facelifted version of the midsized sedan later this year. The Nassau name first entered Mopar history with the 1955 Windsor Nassau, a a two-door coupe advertised as having “the 100 million dollar look.” After a mere two model years as the Windsor Coupe nameplate, the Nassau name lay dormant for decades before returning as a 2000 styling buck for the Chrysler 300, and again as a midsized sedan/wagon concept in 2007. (Read More…)
TVR has never been a well-known brand in the United States, where its closest brush with fame was a cameo by a TVR Tuscan in the excrescent JohnTravolta vehicle Swordfish. In the UK, however, the TVR name is as rich in legend as Lotus or Morgan, speaking to a proud history of wild, hairy, fiberglass muscle cars with bizarre styling and even more bizarre handling characteristics. And like most blue-collar, British, backyard shed-based sportscar makers, TVR has not had an easy time of it lately. Having spent ruinous amounts developing an in-house V8 and a derivative straight-six engine under Peter Wheeler’s leadership in the 90s, the company fell on hard times and was bought in 2004 by 24 year-old Russian oligarchlet Alexander Smolensky. Despite promising to keep TVR British, Smolensky broke up the firm, kept the IP and brand rights, and reportedly moved production to Turin. Now, suddenly, Smolensky says he’s bringing TVR back, promising an appearance by an all-new Chevy LS-powered TVR at this summer’s Goodwood Festival of Speed. And yet TVR fans aren’t exactly falling all over themselves with glee… now why would that be? (Read More…)
It’s a curious coincidence of history that the most anti-American parts of the globe are so dependent on old American cars. Havana is the classic example of this, and its still-rolling examples of classic American cars have become photographic icons, simultaneously representing both the failures of the communist government and the excesses of the preceding (but long-gone) American-backed regime. Another example of history written in the automotive landscape comes to us today from The BBC, which hosts a slideshow of cars from the Gaza Strip.
From our regular Curbside Classic Clues, to a recent headline hunt for This American Life, TTAC’s Best and Brightest have proven again and again that they’re the internet’s go-to resource for crowdsourced identification of the most obscure elements of automotive esoterica. In fact, I’m beginning to wonder if it’s even possible to stump some of you guys. Which is why I sat up and took notice of Hemmings Motor News’s Twitter appeal for help identifying this obscure, coachbuilt baby, posted at Coachbuilt.com. I figure this is as good a shot as I’ll ever have at pushing the limits of your collective automotive knowledge. Or, proverbially, not.
Terrence Steven McQueen was born to a stunt pilot father and an alcoholic mother on this day in 1930. His father left them both halfway to Steve’s first birthday. In the ensuing years he would find a home on his Uncle’s farm in Indiana, be moved to Indianapolis and L.A. where he was shipped off to a Junior Republic by an abusive stepfather, lumberjack, be a Marine guard for President Harry Turman’s yacht and become the highest paid movie star in the world.
Alfa Romeo has launched an official fine art collection, which can be found at www.alfaromeoart.com. With their gracious permission, we bring you this selection of some of the luscious images now on sale there. Too bad none of them answer any of the pressing questionsfacing Alfa today.
If there’s one certainty in the car business, it’s that you know a company is in trouble when their ads forgo showing off their latest models in favor of gauzy images of beloved products past. It’s a trick that the Detroit firms have played to death over their 30 years of decline, and now Toyota is dipping a toe in the soothing waters of nostalgia. For contrast, check out Hyundai’s “more-Toyota-than-Toyota” Super Bowl spot after the jump. (Read More…)
The Standard Of The World meets cold reality, as the prominent Detroit-area Cadillac dealer, Dalgleish Cadillac, calls it a night. The Detroit News, which eulogizes the dealership “with bitterness, hope and history bound together,” reports that the Dalgleish Cadillac building will become a high-tech business incubator run by Wayne State University’s Tech Town.
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