Where have all the early Chevies gone?

[poci1957]

During the scrap metal drives fewer T's were scrapped because of the tremendous nostalgia factor folks had for the T, and the huge numbers that were made in the first place. Those numbers also contributed to the large the amount of NOS parts available for the T - not to mention the aftermarket parts.

Welcome to the group 490touring, glad to have your comments!

I was going to make this very point, that the key turning point was scrappage during WWII and even before. The scrap drives were hazardous to the survival of most old cars, but especially orphan cars or those with obsolete parts that were hard to get. I do not know about the nostalgia, but from a practical standpoint Model Ts were old and slow, but very servicable--you could get parts anywhere and cheap, AND they had the (mostly) all metal bodies. So I suspect people were more likely to hold on to them, especially in rural areas.

Avanty questions the quality and desirability of 1912-1915 Chevys compared to other early cars. I know the few early collectors in the 1940s were saving brass cars and cars of the teens were of little value to them, so this did not help either. Good topic, Todd C

[poci1957]

This past July, in Flint, MI, Chevrolet celebrated 100 Years. 1911-2011. I understand there are no examples of the 1911 left, but did the company not start in 1911? Did I miss something somewhere?

I think the date of incorporation was Nov 3, 1911, so it was probably 1912 by the time they produced cars. I do not know this for sure though, Todd C

[Guest De Soto Frank]

I think the date of incorporation was Nov 3, 1911, so it was probably 1912 by the time they produced cars. I do not know this for sure though, Todd C

I think Louis Chevrolet's prototype "Classic Six" is dated as being from 1911.

The attached photo is the familiar photo of Louis Chevrolet behind the wheel of the prototype, note there is neither windshield nor top...

Does anyone know what became of this car ?

:confused:

Edited October 31, 2011 by De Soto Frank
added a photo (see edit history)

[Guest De Soto Frank]

Here is another photo of the Chevrolet C, from the GM Heritage:

People are identified as follows:

Louis Chevrolet is in the white coat; Billy Durant is at the far right of the spectators (wearing a derby); and Durant’s son Cliff is at the wheel of a 1912 Chevrolet Classic Six Touring, with his wife seated next to him.

[490touring]

....hit this link and hop in. (Still learning to double clutch!)

[Guest Al Brass]

Feels kinda bad to be sitting on the right without a steering wheel and on the wrong side of the road !~!

Well done getting her back on the road.

Al

[Dave Mellor NJ]

I'm pretty sure the Boyertown(Pa.) Museum has a 490. They had it at the "Duryea Day" Festival in september. You can contact them to see it or go to next year's show. Boyertown is about 60 miles west of Philadelphia on Rt 100 (about 10 miles north of Rt 422) or about 20 miles east of Reading.

[nzcarnerd]

Those first few months of Chevrolet history are quite complex - true of anything Billy Durant was involved in - you have to remember that Little and Mason were involved as well and I think that initially, production was concentrated on the Little car. The Standard Catalog says that the first Chevy Classic Six did not reach the public until late 1912.

Remember that none of these very early models were built in very large numbers and each model had a fairly short production life so it is understandable that the survival rate is low.

Compare; 1914 Chevrolet production about 5,000 cars, 1919 production over 125,000 cars.

[avantey]

I am glad there is more info coming out on this topic. The idea of the scrap drives getting more of the orphan and unrepairable cars makes sense. With no new cars and a T easier to keep running why keep the 490-dead in the yard for years with no parts to fix it?

I still think the production numbers for the early Chevies were actually quite large for the times/compared to other makes. This is the biggest reason why the very low survival rates are an anomaly to me when looking at the hobby today where we have examples of many lower production cars in existence. Not too many makes were over 5000 units in 1914. The ones who were going to make it were well over that as the industry had started to sort itself out by then with capitalization being a big issue.

Al- I think we have started threads within threads here on the Hupps. If I glance through the N parts book, Oct 1915 issue, many parts have are noted "same as K". The entire front axle assy, the igniter, carb, brakes, some frame members, wheels and hubs, fender brackets, headlamps and tail lamp, drive shaft and U joints,etc. all get this description. It appears they used a lot of stuff over. Others are changed like the camshaft, axle shafts and other internal components. Also most body parts have unique numbers and no reference.

[Guest ChaplainLar]

There is a 1915 Baby Grand listed on Ebay right now.....

[poci1957]

Hey avantey, your thread here inspired me to post a related new one, see "Production Figures." Chime in and let me know what you think, thanks, Todd C

[nzcarnerd]

Re the comment in post #38, breaking axles seems to be a GM thing. I recall that the Vauxhalls sold here in the 1950s had a reputation for axle breaking. I have a 1934 Buick which has been in the family since 1946 - and with a known history before that - and I believe in the past has broken at least one axle.

[Guest Al Brass]

Many cars broke axles, Ford Mk1 Zephyrs were extremely bad at it, 30's Chevs, even WW2 jeeps.

Regards

Al