The 1931 Basic Car Lineup

[Gunsmoke]

At a car show back in 2015, as event was winding down I asked my friends to line up this foursome of manufacturers offerings for 1931. My '31 Chevrolet Deluxe Coach (under restoration)(627K Chevs built that year), David's '31 Studebaker (49K built), Dave's (since deceased) '31 Dodge DH (56K built, 162K for Dodge/Plymouth)), and Larry's '31 Ford Model A Tudor (542K built). Interesting that body lines are so uniform, a comment we often hear today about all the lozenges currently being offered. For 1931, other top models production wise were Buick 88K, Pontiac/Oakland 86K, Hudson/Essex 58K, Willys/Overland 74K, and Chrysler 53K. Other models were Oldsmobile, Nash, Auburn, DeSoto, Hupmobile, Cadillac/LaSalle, Packard and Durant in top 18. The following year, in midst of depression, production dropped by about half for most models.

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

Nothing really changes. Folks then probably made the same complaints folks do today.

 

  Ben

[zepher]

They all do look remarkably the same from pretty much every angle.

[nzcarnerd]

The Studebaker is the most distinctive, but then it cost a lot more. I am guessing it is a Commander so new price circa $1600 - roughly a thousand more than the others.

[58L-Y8]

 General body architecture of production cars in any period follows an evolutionary form that the majority of buyers will accept.  There are inflection points which periodically interrupt that slow evolution.    The marque identity still centered on the radiator, headlights ensemble in the early 1930's, something the streamlining trend would rapidly change.

[Buffalowed Bill]

On 6/28/2023 at 3:04 PM, nzcarnerd said:

The Studebaker is the most distinctive, but then it cost a lot more. I am guessing it is a Commander so new price circa $1600 - roughly a thousand more than the others.

I hate to contradict a Studebaker guy, but with the round headlights the Studebaker is, more likely, a Dictator. The Dictator had a price tag of about $1100, so the difference in price although not negligible, would not be as as pronounced   

[nzcarnerd]

1 hour ago, Buffalowed Bill said:

I hate to contradict a Studebaker guy, but with the round headlights the Studebaker is, more likely, a Dictator. The Dictator had a price tag of about $1100, so the difference in price although not negligible, would not be as as pronounced   

I found another pic of that Stude - a 1931 Dictator Regal, which according to The Standard Catalog was $1415, unless it was the new Series 61 that came out later in 1931 on a one inch shorter wheelbase (the same 114" as the Six) was $1225 - remembering that in 1931 all Dictators were (221 cid) eights. The 'low price' Series 53 Six (built through 1930) was $995 for the Regal sedan, and the new for 1931 Series 54 (the real 1931 model) was $970. Still a lot more than the $850 for the Dodge DH, or the $630 for the most expensive Ford sedan in 1931, or the $545 for the Chev coach.

 

Prices kept dropping through that era. My much more primitive 1928-built Studebaker was $1395 in the US according to the Standard Catalog.  My car sold, more than 18 months after it arrived in the country, for 599 pounds sterling - more than twice the price of a new 1930 Model A at the time. It was one of only two imported, the other one having sold as soon as it arrived just before Christmas 1928.

 

Seems the Stude here is a Canadian one. I have no information on Canadian prices.

 

 

 

[58L-Y8]

The Ford and Chevrolet two door sedans were price competitive within their segment which included Plymouth. the storied "Low-Priced Three."  The Dodge DH would have been a step up. shopped by those also considering a Pontiac Six Series 401, DeSoto Six Series SA, Chrysler Six Series CJ, Studebaker Model 53, Essex Super Six Model E, Nash Six Model 660, Graham Standard/Prosperity Six, Wiilys Six Series 98D.   Quite a selection to choose from for those who still felt secure enough to splurge on a new car.