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Car Radio-Interesting Story


nifty 6

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Guest Al Brass

I'm sure I've read that Hupmobile were the first US maker to offer a radio as an option in 1930 (i think). I have seen a '31 with a factory radio.

Al

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Although these men did invent and create from parts a car radio, they were not the first. I don't know who first managed to install a radio in a car but it was Marmon in 1929 that first offered factory installed radios in the Roosevelt line of cars. By 1934 the radio was so ubiquitous to the american cars that our 34 Chevy has an antennae built into the fabric roof panel. This was done to all Masters (I don't know which other cars received this and I wonder what they did with convertibles) at the factory, whether they were to have a radio installed or not. It's really quite nifty - a long wire strung in a pattern similar to a sine wave between the padding and the vinyl top, insulated from the body by the padding and terminating at the passenger side of the dash.

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...34 Chevy has an antennae built into the fabric roof panel. This was done to all Masters (I don't know which other cars received this and I wonder what they did with convertibles) at the factory, whether they were to have a radio installed or not. ....

Would those have been under the runningboard?

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34 Auburns used the chicken wire in the roof as the antenna. It worked really well, as it was isolated from the body by the surounding wood. Yes, all closed cars were wired for a radio antenna.

Open cars suffered with the under running board antennas, which gave poor reception at best.

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Gentlemen, I had to get a friend to find the link for the story above. This story is copywrited. Even though the link shows permission granted, it was not granted to the AACA or the original poster though.

Please keep this in mind in the future. Links are welcome here, but we can not allow copywrited material to be posted on our forums.

Thank you,

Wayne

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