The EDSEL--Car of the Future--Really?

I grew up in the Dearborn, Michigan--the center of what is commonly known as Ford Country. Most people in the area buy Ford products--unless of course they work for Chrysler or General Motors. Brand loyalty is encouraged by the automotive companies and most workers comply--especially when the company offers employee discounts.

When Ford Motor Company came out with the Edsel in 1958, the company upgraded its Lincoln Division to compete with General Motor's luxury Cadillac. Ford needed a premium vehicle to fill the intermediate slot vacated by Lincoln to compete with Oldsmobile, Buick, and DeSoto. Ford promoted the Edsel as the product of extensive research and development. Their sophisticated market analysis indicated to the suits at Ford's that they had a winner.

The Edsel was touted as the car of the future. Ford executives were confident of brand acceptance by the car buying public. Innovative features like a rolling-dome speedometer, engine warning lights, an available Teletouch pushbutton shifting system, self-adjusting brakes, optional seat belts, and child-proof rear door locks would surely capture the imagination of modern-thinking consumers.

The day after the Edsel was introduced, The New York Times dubbed it the "reborn LaSalle"--a nameplate that disappeared in the early 1940s. So much for the car of the future concept. Once the Edsel hit the streets, the public thought it was unattractive, overpriced, and overhyped. The car's production was stopped after three years of under performing in Ford and Mercury showrooms.

Ford Motor Company lost $250 million on the project. Edsel's failure was across the board. Popular culture thought the car's styling was odd. The nameplate's trademark horsecollar grille was said to resemble "an Oldsmobile sucking a lemon." The Teletouch pushbutton transmission was problematic being centered on the steering wheel hub where most cars had their warning horn. Some drivers accidently shifted when they meant to sound their horn. Another unforeseen problem was that the pushbutton transmission was not suited for street racing, so the Edsel became known as an old man's car.

What turned off other consumers was the car's sticker price which placed it in direct competition with Mercury--Ford's sister division. Further complicating matters, the low priced Volkswagen Beetle hit the American car market in 1957. Many younger buyers were fascinated by the odd-looking vehicle with the incredible gas mileage. The Edsel was a gas guzzler.

Consumer Reports blamed the car's poor workmanship. For instance, the trunk leaked in heavy rain, and the pushbutton transmission was fraught with technical problems. Marketing experts insisted the Edsel was doomed from the start because of Ford's inability to understand the American consumer and market trends. Automotive historians believe the Edsel was the wrong car at the wrong time.

Edsel Ford

Unfairly, the name Edsel became synonymous with epic failure. Named after Henry Ford's only son, this car became a posthumous slap in the face to the man who mobilized his family's vast industrial resources to produce B-24 Liberator bombers, instrumental in helping win World War II. Edsel Ford's legacy deserved better.

As luck would have it, my father bought a brand-new Edsel in 1959. It was Christmas time and I was eleven years old. After my brothers and I had our photograph taken with Santa at Muirhead's Department Store, my dad brought us to the Ford Dealership across the street for our family Christmas present.

He went into an office and signed a few papers, then the salesman handed over the keys. As we were driving away from the dealership, I remember snowflake clusters illuminated by the car's headlights. It was magical. By the time my family got home, we were intoxicated with the new-car smell of fresh upholstery and uncured lacquer.

Later that week, my dad was celebrating with his friends on Friday and had a few too many before coming home from work. On the way, he hit an ice patch and lost control of the car, wrapping it around a telephone pole. He was relatively uninjured, but the Edsel was totaled. We had that Edsel for such a short time I can't remember what color it was. 

Edsel concept car.

Misfortune aside, I've always had a love for the Edsel and often wished Ford would find a market for the nameplate and start production again. That may never happen, but a boy can dream.

Here is a Psychology Today article on how the Edsel got its name: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/psychology-yesterday/201311/how-the-edsel-got-its-name

The Mustang Gallops into Automotive History

New York World's Fair Mustang Introduction.

The recession of the late 1950s hit Detroit especially hard. Money was tight and car sales fell for the Big Three [General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler]. Factories were struggling to keep their workers employed and their plants open. In response to that, Ford Motor Company (FoMoCo) reorganized their corporation and formed an Automotive Assembly Division promoting middle-management marketing man Lee Iacocca to head the division.

Lee Iacocca's challenges were many, but his goals were well-defined. He championed shifting production to smaller, fuel efficient cars and dressing them up to enhance their appeal to an economy-minded market. His first success was the Falcon Futura. The car was stylish, comfortable, and economical. Afterall, gas averaged thirty-one cents a gallon in 1961.

Iacocca formed a secret Fairlane Committee to come up with a new car concept unlike anything else on the market. FoMoCo needed a dynamic new car to capture a greater share of the youth market.

Their market research in 1961 indicated that a tidal wave of teenaged Baby Boomers [post World War II babies] were coming of age soon and itching to get behind the wheel of a sporty-looking car they could afford. By 1965, 40% of the United States population would be under 20 years old. By 1970, half of Americans would be under 25 years old. FoMoCo wanted to tap into that market.

The Edsel's 1958 introduction with Edsel Ford's three sons.

The wounds from the Edsel debacle were still fresh at FoMoCo leading to a company shakeup. Iacocca knew the Edsel was advertised as the Car of the Future, but it was a product in search of a market it never found. Here was a market in search of a product. FoMoCo tailored their new product for this new market.

Since the original 1955 two-seater Thunderbird was reborn as a four-seater, suburban luxury car in 1958, FoMoCo received lots of mail asking for another two-seater. But Ford's market research indicated a two-seater did not have the mass appeal they were looking for. That market was limited to a mere 100,000 units.

The parameters for their new concept car required it to be sporty but capable of seating four passengers; it had to be lightweight, under 2,500 pounds; and it had to be inexpensive, no more than $2,500 with special equipment included as part of their standard model to sweeten the deal.

Helping to cut engineering and production costs, the chassis and the power train of the Ford Falcon were chosen. What this car needed was a new skin. Iacocca initiated a competition among seven designers to come up with clay mockups of the exterior design fit to specific platform specifications.

On August 15, 1962, Henry Ford II picked the model he liked best by saying "That's it!" The winning model was designed by Dave Ash's design team, for Joe Oros, FoMoCo's Design Studio head. In profile, the car had a long hood, a swept-back cabin, and a short deck [trunk].

Car designers want to see their vision transformed into sleek sculpted steel, but automotive engineers have to figure how to put the actual car together and make it work. Once the model was approved, the battle between the designers and the engineers began in what they called "the battles of the inch."

First was the battle of the radiator cap that would not fit under the stylist's low hood. The solution was to raise the hood a quarter inch and the engineers counter-sunk the cap.

Next, the stylists designed the back bumper to fit flush with the rear quarter panels for a clean look. The engineers wanted to simply bolt the bumper with brackets onto the back of the car like they had always done. The designers won that battle.

The last disagreement was between Henry Ford II and Lee Iacocca over leg-room for the rear seats. Ford was a large man who wanted an extra inch. Iacocca argued that it would spoil the lines of the car. Ford won that battle.

Next, the car needed a name. Hundreds of names were whittled down to several finalists including Colt, Bronco, Mustang, Puma, Cougar, and Cheetah. Cougar was the front runner until Mr. Ford became embroiled in a messy divorce, and the publicity department was afraid the name Cougar might cause some unnecessary notority or embarassment for their boss.

At the same time, the name Mustang did well in their market research. The name was felt to embody the spirit of the wide open spaces and recalled the famous World War II fighter plane. Once the name was decided upon, the Mustang's signature galloping horse front grill was designed.

What has become one of the most iconic and famous emblems in automobile history was criticized early on by a reporter at a FoMoCo press conference. His observation was that the horse was running in the wrong direction. Obviously, the reporter spent too much time at the track where the ponies only run counter-clockwise. Iacocco's wise reply was "Wild horses run anywhere they damn well please."

The Mustang was introduced in Ford showrooms on April 17, 1964. It came as a two-door coupe or convertible. Five months later, a three-door hatchback was introduced. The Mustang came with a three-speed automatic transmission or a four speed manual, both console mounted on the floor. At first, there were two, straight-six engine choices available, with V-6 and V-8 options offered later in the Mustang's run. The basic car was equipped with front disk brakes, all for the low sticker price of $2,368.

Iacocca gave free rein to his marketing expertise and saturated the media with Mustang ads like no product had before. FoMoCo ran glossy ads in national magazines with stories about their youth-oriented car, and 420 local television stations were sent footage of the car for their feature stories.

Radio DJs were given Mustangs to test drive and plug over their airwaves. In Detroit, radio jocks were allowed to put the Mustang through its paces on Ford's test track in Dearborn, Michigan. Images of the Mustang appeared on 15,500 outdoor billboards nationwide and the car was displayed in the lobby of Holiday Inn motels and other high traffic venues like airport terminals in twelve major United States cities.

The evening before the car's debut, FoMoCo bought simultaneous time on all three major television networks from 9:30 to 10:00 pm. Twenty-eight million viewers of Perry Mason [CBS], Hazel [NBC], and Jimmy Dean [ABC] were wowed with Mustang advertising. 

Forty-four college newspaper editors were given the use of Mustangs to show off on their campuses for the spring term. No stone was left unturned to generate interest. As a final touch, Hayden Fry, football coach of the Southern Methodist University Mustangs, received a blue and red [school colors] Mustang as part of the car's debut launch.

After the Mustang's meteoric rise in the marketplace, Time and Newsweek featured simultaneous cover stories on the Mustang that Iacocca said led to the sale of an extra 100,000 units. By December of 1964, the Mustang had "the most successful new car launch ever introduced by the auto industry," reported Frank Zimmerman, Ford marketing chief.

At first, FoMoCo planned to produce only 100,000 Mustangs using only a portion of the Dearborn Assembly Plant. Before the car went to market, it was clear that demand was going to be greater than anticipated, so the whole plant was changed over to exclusive "Pony Car" production. Soon, another Ford plant in San Jose, California went online to boost yearly capacity to 360,000 cars.

In 1965, a third Ford plant in Metuchen, New Jersey was added to boost output to 440,000 cars prompting FoMoCo Assistant General Manager Don Frey to credit the Mustang's success on unprecedented market penetration. The Mustang is the only Ford nameplate that has been in continuous production since its introduction.

Latest Mustang Trotted Out

Preston Tucker from Ypsilanti, Michigan

One of the least recognized of Ypsilanti's notable citizens was Preston Tucker, an automobile innovator who many automotive historians believed was way ahead of his time.

                                                     

In 1939, Tucker moved to Ypsilanti, Michigan, and opened the Ypsilanti Machine and Tool Company. There he innovated and produced the Tucker Turret used on PT boats, landing craft, the B-17, and the B-29 during World War II. That's where he made his fortune. After the war, he turned his attention toward his life-long passion--automobiles.

The Big Three (Ford, GM, and Chrysler) Detroit automakers had not developed a new car since World War II began. This opened the door for small, independent automakers to produce post-war cars for a starving market. Studebaker--out of Indiana--was the first to produce an entirely new automobile after the war.

But Tucker's vision was to design and build a car with modern styling and safety innovations. He pioneered hydraulic drive systems, fuel injection, direct-drive torque converters, disc brakes, easily accessible instrument panel, padded dashboard, self-sealing tubeless tires, independent springless suspension, laminated windshield, an air-cooled aircraft engine, and a "cyclops" center headlight which would turn when steering around a corner for better visibility while driving at night. The "cyclops" became a fixed headlamp on the production model. There were only fifty Tuckers built.

Academy Award winner, Jeff Bridges, played Preston Tucker

masterfully in the 1988 movie--Tucker: A Man and His Dream. An interesting aside to the film is that Jeff's father, Lloyd Bridges, played the Michigan senator that kicked the legs out from under the automotive innovator. It's fun to see the real-life father and son actors battle it out in the film. Baby Boomer's will remember Lloyd Bridges from the 1950s television series--Sea Hunt. Younger viewers may remember him from the movie--Airplane.

I have been fortunate to have seen two working Tuckers, and a third fiberglass mock up used in the filming of the movie. One of the cars is in the Henry Ford Museum; another is in Auburn, Indiana, at their Auburn/Cord/Dussenberg Automobile Museum; and the fiberglass mock-up used in the movie was at the Ypsilanti Automotive Heritage Museum in Depot Town on East Cross Street in Ypsilanti, Michigan before it was sold to a private collector. The museum needed the operating funds.

More information on Preston Tucker can be found in the link below. He died of lung cancer on December 26th, 1956, at the age of fifty-three. He is buried at Michigan Memorial Park in Flatrock, Michigan.

http://autos.yahoo.com/blogs/motoramic/january-22-preston-tucker-acquitted-fraud-date-1950-151952951.html;_ylt=AkOM9L2H5esPYXIrOL6L.VRQ0.d_;_ylu=X3oDMTRsYm10MWx1BG1pdANCbG9nIEZlYXR1cmVkIFBvc3RzIE1vdG9yYW1pYwRwa2cDZDM5ZWY5M2QtYWEzYS0zMGQ3LWIzOTgtNjVmYjNiNWE0NzRlBHBvcwMxBHNlYwNNZWRpYUJMaXN0TWl4ZWRMUENBVGVtcAR2ZXIDMmZmMDljMzAtNjRhNy0xMWUyLWJmYmYtMGM3YzZjZGUxZDcw;_ylg=X3oDMTFpMm9iMzh1BGludGwDdXMEbGFuZwNlbi11cwRwc3RhaWQDBHBzdGNhdANibG9nBHB0A3NlY3Rpb25z;_ylv=3

Detroit's Big Three Drive Out of the Red and Into the Black

The Motor City has always be a boom or bust town. Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler are in their second year of profits and the future looks promising. When long time sales leader -Toyota - received bad press world-wide over a braking issue a few years ago, it damaged the company's reputation for reliability and customer loyalty as the world's best made car.

Along with Nissan, Kia, and Hyundai, The Big Three took advantage of Toyota's stumble and wrestled away a significant portion of their business. This wouldn't have been possible for GM or Chrysler without the government bailout which positioned them to reclaim some of the auto market from foreign competitors.

Ford was able to avoid a bailout because of an extensive European market which gave them a leg up over their rivals, and GM got on the ground floor in the Republic of China - with the Buick being the most popular car there. This helped GM repay their government loan.

The modern styling, fit and finish, and reliable state-of-the art technology of domestic cars have paved the way for this comeback - and not a second too soon for Detroit - as the domestic automakers continue to turn the corner in the consumer's mind. For more information, click on the following link.

The Big Three's dramatic U-turn - "Sunday Morning" - CBS News www.cbsnews.com

Detroit Shout Out 3 - The Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History

A wonderful surprise on the last stop of my Zug Island: A Detroit Riot Novel book tour in Detroit was The Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History on E. Warren Ave. This awesome building sits nicely on a landscaped city block, flanked by the Detroit Institute of Arts on one end and adjacent to the Detroit Science Center on another. For people who think modern architecture lacks style and passion, they need to see this unique museum. This building is just one of a number of signs that this city is far from defeated.

The museum has two levels crowned by an eye catching glass and steel dome which covers the Ford Freedom Rotunda on the upper level. The dome illuminates the Ring of Genealogy centered beneath it on the floor. The ring is comprised of brass tiles engraved with the names of notable African-Americans from American history. The General Motors Theater, the Museum Store, the Research Library, and the four exhibit areas radiate from this expansive, circular public area.

 

The lower level is dedicated primarily to the museum’s educational mission with classrooms, an Orientation Theater, a large Multipurpose Room, and an exhibit on the Tuskegee Airmen Project. The museum café is also on this level.  This is one of the best museums I’ve been to in the United States. It was an honor to speak here about about my novel, Zug Island. Many thanks to the museum staff for being so helpful and making me feel welcome.

In addition to its museum and education functions, this venue can be hired out for business, corporate, public, or private gatherings with a full array of services. The Charles H. Wright Museum is truly a community resource and a welcome addition to Detroit’s long overdue recovery. For more details, check out their website at www.CharlesHWrightMuseum.org.