50 Amazing Photographs of Auto Transporters From the 1970s and 1980s

Car shipping can be traced all the way back to the invention of the automobile. Cars were originally extremely expensive luxuries imported from Europe in the late 19th century. There wasn’t a very high for demand for cars because of the expense. However, car shipping was still necessary because of the long distances between manufacturers, dealers and buyers.

 

Most car transportation was done through the railroads in the 19th century. Unfortunately, this was quite expensive and took an exceptionally long time with the American transportation infrastructure still in its infancy. So, car designer and inventor Alexander Winton went on to invent the first auto carrier in 1898 shortly after he was the first person to make a commercial sale of an automobile in the United States.

 

Winton was from Scotland but moved to America where he saw a great opportunity to design and sell his cars. Once he realized that transporting the cars via the railroad wasn’t affordable or timely enough and that driving each car to each of the buyers (located all across the country) individually wasn’t feasible either, he invented the semi-truck.

 

More specifically, he attached a cart with two wheels in the back with a flatbed on top to the back of one of his motor carriages (cars). He then placed a motor carriage he had sold on the cart and drove it to the buyer.

The 1980s are the time that the auto transport company really expanded and the iconic carrier we have today have not really changed in style, but their technology has greatly improved. There are now more carriers available such as open carriers, enclosed carriers, flatbeds to transport materials and certain specialized vehicles, and even expedite carriers to get your vehicle to you faster. There are now ramps and elevators that can make loading and unloading vehicles faster than ever.

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Vintage Car in the Gidding’s Drawing Room, 1966

For three months Mrs. Christine Giddings has had the bits and pieces of a vintage motor car cluttering up her best drawing room. Her car enthusiast husband, Peter, is assembling a car in which he hopes tor race, and the only suitable place he had to be it as drawing room. Scheduled to be finished in April, the car will have to be taken down again to get it out of the Giddings Old Portslade, Sussex, home.

The chassis is built from vintage Frazer – Nash parts and the engine is pure Atlanta – Gough. When it’s finished, the car will have cost Mr. Giddings over ~£250 – not counting the hours of labour he has put into it himself – but he hopes that it will do a maximum speed of 120 mph when it’s on the road.

Here, Christine gets on with her knitting in an arm – chair in the drawing room – while Peter gets on with the car.

The AMC Gremlin, One of the Ugliest Cars of the 1970s

When the AMC Gremlin was introduced in 1970, it was ugly. It was also under $2,000. It looked exactly like what it was: someone took a hacksaw to a Hornet, pushed it to the front of the production line and crossed their fingers that the American public wouldn’t notice the gas guzzling rust bucket for what it actually was. During its manufacturing run from April 1, 1970 through 1978, a total of 671,475 Gremlins were built in the United States and Canada.

The idea for the Gremlin began in 1966 when design chief at American Motors, Dick Teague, and stylist Bob Nixon discussed the possibility of a shortened version of AMC’s compact car. On an airline flight, Teague’s solution, which he said he sketched on an air sickness bag, was to truncate the tail of a Javelin. Bob Nixon joined AMC as a 23-year-old and did the first formal design sketches in 1967 for the car that was to be the Gremlin.

Ford and General Motors were to launch new subcompact cars for 1971, but AMC did not have the financial resources to compete with an entirely new design. Teague’s idea of using the pony car Javelin resulted in the AMX-GT concept, first shown at the New York International Auto Show in April 1968. This version did not go into production, but the AMX name was used from 1968 to 1970 on a shortened, two-seat sports car built from the Javelin.

Instead, Bob Nixon, AMC’s future Chief of Design, designed the new subcompact based on the automaker's Hornet model, a compact car. The design reduced the wheelbase from 108 to 96 inches (2,743 to 2,438 mm) and the overall length from 179 to 161 in (4,547 to 4,089 mm), making the Gremlin two inches (50 mm) longer than the Volkswagen Beetle and shorter than the Ford Pinto and Chevrolet Vega.

Capitalizing on AMC’s advantage as a small car producer, the Gremlin was introduced on April 1, 1970. The April 6, 1970, cover of Newsweek magazine featured a red Gremlin for its article, “Detroit Fights Back: The Gremlin”. The car was available as a “base” two-passenger version with no rear seat and a fixed rear window, at a suggested retail price of $1,879, and as a four-seat hatchback with an opening rear window, at $1,959 (about US$13,000 in today dollars).

From the front of the car to the B-pillars, the Gremlin was essentially the same as the AMC Hornet. Although it was only fractionally longer than the contemporary Volkswagen Beetle, Time said the length of its hood over the front-mounted engine made “the difference seem considerably more”, adding that the car “resembles a sawed-off station wagon, with a long, low hood and swept-up rear, and is faintly reminiscent of the original Studebaker Avanti.” As with the Volkswagen, the Gremlin's styling set it apart from other cars. Time said, “like some other cars of less than standard size, the back seat is designed for small children only.” The Gremlin’s wider stance gave it “a stable, quiet and relatively comfortable ride—for the two front passengers”, for whom, by small-car standards, there was more than average interior width, seat room, and legroom. The six cubic feet of luggage space behind the back seat was less than in the rear-engined Volkswagen Beetle, but with the seat folded the cargo area tripled to 18 cubic feet (509.7 l).

The upright design of the tail, which enlarged interior space, was aerodynamically efficient. Later, European and Japanese manufacturers similarly created different body styles on one compact car chassis by extending or curtailing the trunk (e.g. Volkswagen's Jetta and Golf models).

Designed and named by Teague to look either “cute or controversial - depending on one’s viewpoint ... for many, it seemed perfect for the free-thinking early 1970s.” American Motors executives apparently felt confident enough to not worry that the Gremlin name might have negative connotations. Time magazine noted two definitions for gremlin: “Defined by Webster’s as ’a small gnome held to be responsible for malfunction of equipment.’ American Motors’ definition: ‘a pal to its friends and an ogre to its enemies.’” The Gremlin’s hatchback design was also needed to make the car stand out in the competitive marketplace, and according to Teague: “Nobody would have paid it any attention if it had looked like one of the Big Three” automobiles.

AMC promoted the Gremlin as “America’s first subcompact”. AMC marketed the Gremlin as “cute and different,” a strategy successful in attracting more than 60 percent of purchasers under the age of 35.

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Here’s the First Semi-Truck Which Was Invented in 1898 by Alexander Winton

The semi-truck was invented by Alexander Winton in 1898. He lived in Cleveland, Ohio. Winton sold his first semi-truck in 1899 and from that year onward, this product became a symbol of American freight transport.

The story goes that Winton was perfectly happy building cars to sell to people in his home state of Ohio, but realized he could reach more customers if he had some way of easily transporting his product. He didn’t want any wear-and-tear on his new cars before they got to customers, though, so he had to figure out something that didn’t involve driving them.

Winton came up with a way of loading the car onto a flat cart, which he modified to sit on top of the engine of a modified truck platform. The connection was supposedly similar to the removable gooseneck on trucks today. The setup could only transport one car at a time, and it required at least three people to load and unload the vehicle being transported.

Alexander Winton was a serial entrepreneur; his first product was a bicycle. His next product was a car, the Winton Six. The Six was perhaps the first car that crossed the North American continent from the Atlantic to the Pacific coast. To popularize this brand, Winton participated in several car races and even hired acclaimed race drivers.

A Beautiful Photo Series of the 1960 Ford Galaxie

The Ford Galaxie is a full-sized car that was built in the United States by Ford for model years 1959 through to 1974. The name was used for the top models in Ford's full-size range from 1958 until 1961, in a marketing attempt to appeal to the excitement surrounding the Space Race.

The 1960 Galaxie introduced all-new design with less ornamentation. A new body style was the Starliner, featuring a huge, curving rear observation window on a pillarless, hardtop bodyshell. The thin, sloping rear roof pillar featured three “star” emblems that served as the Galaxie signature badge for all 1960 - 62 models.

The formal roofed 2-door hardtop was not available this year, but the roofline was used for the Galaxie 2-door pillared sedan, complete with chromed window frames. It had been the most popular body style in the line for 1959, and sales dropped off sharply.

Contrary to Ford’s tradition of pie-plate round taillights, the 1960 featured “half-moon” lenses turned downward. The “A” pillar now swept forward instead of backward, making entering and exiting the car more convenient.

Here below is a beautiful photo series of the 1960 Ford Galaxie.

1960 Ford Galaxie Starliner

1960 Ford Galaxie Starliner

1960 Ford Galaxie Country Squire

1960 Ford Galaxie Country Squire

1960 Ford Galaxie Special Starliner

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Millicent, Duchess of Sutherland and Her Daughter at the First Meeting of the Ladies Automobile Club, 1903

The Ladies’ Automobile Club was Great Britain’s first dedicated motor club for women. It was not exclusively a motorsport association, but it was one of the first bodies to organize motor races for women in the UK.

Talk of a women’s motor club began in 1899. Newspapers described the actress Lily Langtry as one of its first members, and Viscountess Haberton as the founder. Little else was heard for three or four years. In 1903, it starts to be mentioned in the papers again, with Lady Cecil Scott Montagu was its first acknowledged leader.

Between 1903 and 1904, the original club seems to have collapsed. Contemporary reports claim this was due to disagreements about membership criteria. Only ladies in “society” were intended to join. Most of the early members were from the titled classes.

Millicent Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, Duchess of Sutherland, with her daughter Lady Rosemary Millicent Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, at the first meeting of the Ladies Automobile Club, 1903.

Millicent, the Duchess of Sutherland, became its first president in 1904. She oversaw the first Club event in June, a meeting and group drive from Carlton Terrace in central London to the Ranelagh Club in Barnes, via Pall Mall and the park. Fifty-six cars were involved. Many of the ladies drove themselves, although some relied on their chauffeurs. This fact was did not go un-noticed by observers. Among the observers on the day was Queen Alexandra, who watched the parade from the window at Buckingham Palace.

The club’s first annual general meeting was the following month. Rooms were acquired at Claridges Hotel for the use of members, as well as a garage.

Most of the LAC’s activities were social in nature. Typically, one member would hold a meeting at her house. This was followed by a drive out, often to the Ranelagh or Hurlingham clubs, for tea. In 1904, an engineer was booked to give a series of talks on the workings of the internal combustion engine. From time to time, other talks were given, sometimes by members themselves, on aspects of motoring, or their own four-wheeled adventures.

(via Speedqueens)

Steve McQueen With His Jaguar XKSS

“Racing is life. Anything before or after is just waiting.” – Steve McQueen

When Jaguar pulled out of racing at the end of 1956, they were left with an excess of D-type chassis. Company founder, William Lyons, decided that, with a few light modifications, the now surplus-to-requirement D-types could be sold as the ultimate road cars of their day. Dubbed the XKSS, 16 were sold, but none became more famous then chassis 713.

Originally finished in cream with a red interior, XKSS 713 was constructed on D-type chassis XKD 569. Dispatched to the USA on April 19th 1957, it was delivered to Jaguar Cars North America and sold to James Peterson of Altadena, California.

Peterson did not keep the car for long. In early 1958, he sold 713 to Bill Leyden of Beverly Hills who, at the time, was host of the game show It Could Be You. Leyden frequently kept 713 in a parking lot on Sunset Boulevard where it was spotted by upcoming actor, Steve McQueen.

Later in 1958, McQueen managed to purchase 713 for $5000. However, he preferred darker colors for his cars and soon had famed customizer, Tony Nancy, redo the Jaguar in British racing green with a black interior and polished wheels. Kenny ‘Von Dutch’ Howard also fitted a cover to the glovebox to keep McQueen’s sunglasses safe. McQueen nicknamed 713 The Green Rat and reputedly picked up so many speeding tickets he feared for his license.

During the 1960s, McQueen became the highest paid actor in Hollywood. He had 713 repainted again (this time in red) before reverting back to his favored shade of green.

After eleven years of ownership, McQueen sold the Jaguar to gambling tycoon, William Harrah. The XKSS was to be displayed as part of the William Harrah Automobile Collection in Reno, Nevada, with the understanding it was not be sold or driven.

However, McQueen sorely missed the car and first tried to repurchase it in 1976. He was eventually successful and, in early 1978, took ownership of 713 for the second time. After a mechanical refresh, McQueen drove 713 until 1980, when he died from lung cancer at the age of just 50.

713 remained part of the McQueen estate until its liquidation in 1984. The Jaguar was sold for $148,000 to Richard Freshman, McQueen’s friend and neighbor. Freshman sent 713 to Lynx in England, where it was given a sympathetic restoration. He retained it until 1999, when it was sold to current custodians, Robert and Margie Petersen, for their Petersen Automotive Museum on Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles.

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35 Vintage Photos of People With ’60s Automobiles

The average 1960s cars costs about $2,752, and a gallon of gas was around 31 cents. The 1960s were a time of change: the Civil Rights movement as led by Martin Luther King Jr., the Women’s Movement with its demand for equal rights, Russia beat the US into outer space, Elvis hits the UK, the Beatles hit world big time, the advent of the counterculture when hair grew longer and beards became common and reaching its zenith in August 1969 at Woodstock, and later in the decade, man set foot on the moon.

The 1960s automobiles belonged to a distinct decade of automobile history with the advent of economy, muscle and pony cars. The 1960s saw the American automobile industry consolidating into the Big Three: General Motors, FordChrysler and American Motors. These firms not only dominated the domestic market with the sales of the 1960s cars, but the global market as well. In 1960, American companies built 93 percent of the autos sold in the United States and 48 percent of world .

In the mid 1950s, however, led by Volkswagen and soon followed by Fiat, Renault, Datsun (Nissan), and Hillman, imports began to nibble their way into the rich American market. The growing presence of imports disturbed Detroit, and the Big Three responded with their own small 1960s cars. GM produced the Corvair, Ford the Falcon, and Chrysler the Valiant.

Here below is a set of amazing vintage photos that shows people with ’60s automobiles.

1960 Ford Galaxie 4-Door Sedan

1960 Chevolet Impala

1960 Edsel Villager Station Wagon

1960 Ford Country Squire

1960 Ford Thunderbird Convertible

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National Hot Rod Association’s Drag Racing Meet Held in Santa Ana, California in the 1950s

Drag racing was born in the dry lake beds in the California deserts. In the 1930s as engines got better and drivers got braver, speeds began topping 100mph. But it wasn’t until after World War II that a bunch of kids with cars, hanging out with nowhere in particular to go, turned into something more serious.

Popularity grew steadily but drag racing still remained largely an underground pastime. Races frequently took place on disused military runways with the first organized event dating back to 1949 at the Goleta Air Base in California.

Things were simple and low-tech in those days. Cars were driven to the track or towed in makeshift trailers. Drivers raced over a quarter of a mile, the length of a city block, but without the aid of safety barriers or regulated track conditions. The spectators in particular got a raw deal with no proper grandstands or seating.

As the decade turned drag racing began to get organized. The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) was founded in 1951 by Wally Parks, and within the decade two classes of competition had developed ‘Unmodified Stock’ and ‘Top Eliminator’. 

As the sport grew the first drag racing superstars emerged. The Albertson Olds and Dragmaster Dart were the cars to beat. The Dragmaster Dart was famously owned by Dode Martin and Jim Nelson, and was so successful they used it as a model on which to base cars built for other drivers. Here are some amazing color photographs of National Hot Rod Association’s drag racing meet held in Santa Ana, California in the 1950s:

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Publicity Stills of Akiko Wakabayashi Posing With the Toyota 2000GT as Featured in ’You Only Live Twice’ (1967)

You Only Live Twice was the fifth James Bond movie and was set largely in Japan. Bond was once again played by Sean Connery and the plot for this latest adventure involved the terrorist organization SPECTRE hijacking American and Soviet space capsules in a bid to start World War 3.

Although Bond wouldn’t do much driving in You Only Live Twice, the film’s producer, Albert ‘Cubby’ Broccoli, had seen Toyota’s prototype 2000GT at the Tokyo Motor Show in October 1965 and thought it would make an ideal machine for 007’s accomplice, Aki (played by Akiko Wakabayashi).

In early 1966, Broccoli called Toyota with the offer of an appearance for the 2000GT in You Only Live Twice. However, there was a problem as Connery’s large frame meant it was impossible for him to fit comfortably: with several scenes viewed from around the cockpit, a solution would need to be found. Broccoli ultimately decided the only way a 2000GT could make it into the movie was if a Roadster version could be produced as this would solve all the visibility issues.

At the time, Toyota had still only built a couple of prototype Coupe 2000GTs and series production wouldn’t begin until May 1967. They were nevertheless enthusiastic and managed to complete the order for a pair of cars within a frantic few weeks. 

Two beautiful Roadsters were created. The work took place at Toyota’s special Toyopet Service Centre in Tsunashima. Both cars were painted white with black upholstery and wire wheels. Neither had side windows or a hood of any sort.

One of the Roadsters would be used for filming and the other would act as a back-up. When shooting was over, the back-up car stayed with Toyota in Japan. It was equipped with a largely standard interior. By contrast, the film car was kitted out with a variety of gadgets by John Stears and his renowned special-effects team at Pinewood Studios in England.

After the movie was completed, the gadget-laden car that had been taken to England mysteriously disappeared. Its control panel later turned up on a recreation in the old ‘Cars of the Stars’ museum in Keswick.

Meanwhile, the back-up car with its standard interior was used for promotional purposes and went on display at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1967. It was then re-painted blue and emblazoned with 007 decals. Another repaint followed (this time in grey) and it briefly served as the Fuji Speedway course car before turning up in Hawaii in 1977. Toyota bought it back, restored it and this car now forms a central part of their factory museum.

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Man Experiences Irony, 1966

A man experiences irony as his car, laden with used tires, has a flat tire, Houston, Texas, March 1966.

(Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

Lovely Vintage Photos of ’30s Couples Posing With Their Cars

At home or in public, ’30s women most commonly wore dresses with wide shoulders; puffy sleeves; modest necklines; higher, belted waistlines; and mid-calf flared hemlines. Frilly bows, ruffles, buttons, and other details often decorated dresses.

’30s couples pose with their cars

Formal dresses most dramatically displayed the decade’s willowy, elegant silhouette. Evening gowns in fluid fabrics were cut on the bias to create flowing, figure-hugging lines that reached the floor. Popular fabrics included satin, rayon, and chiffon.

Hollywood screen stars Katherine Hepburn and Marlene Dietrich helped introduce women’s trousers for sports and leisure. These trousers were wide-legged and high-waisted, often styled like sailors’ pants. Women wore baggier, casual lounge pants on vacation and at the beach.

For men, suits of the 1930s typically had high waists and slightly tapered, creased trousers with turned-up cuffs. Younger men preferred baggier trousers and longer jackets. Suits were darker blue, brown, or gray for cooler weather, with lighter tones for warm weather. Bold patterns included stripes, checks, and plaids.

A vest, pocket handkerchief, shorter tie, hat (such as a fedora or bowler), and dark or two-toned leather dress shoes completed the look.

Here is a set of vintage photos from Vintage Cars & People that shows couples posing with their cars in the 1930s.

A middle-aged couple posing with a Steyr XX Cabriolet on a gravel road running along the bank of a lake on a bleak summer's day, circa 1930

A stylish couple posing with a Röhr 8 9/50 PS Typ R in front of a monumental equestrian statue at Deutsches Eck, a landmark in the town of Koblenz at the confluence of the rivers Rhine and Moselle, circa 1930

A cheerful lady in a floral dress and a dapper fellow in a suit posing with a Hanomag 4/20 PS Cabriolet-Limousine in the backyard of a private home. The car is registered in the Bavarian province of Middle Franconia, June 1932

A middle-class couple posing with a 1932 DeSoto Six on a sunny spring day in the countryside. The car is registered in the state of Michigan with 1932 license plates, May 1932

A stylish couple posing on the running board of an Opel 4/20 PS Cabriolet 2 convertible in the countryside. The car is registered in the Saxon district of Leipzig, circa 1933

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1954 Henney-Packard Super Station Wagon Which Seats 12 Persons

There’s lots of Station Wagon in this 21-foot, 12-passenger job in which rear-seat occupants ride sitting backwards. Seats and walls are covered with two-tone leather. The carpeting is inch-thick, turquoise wool chenille. The car is air-conditioned, and recessed in one wall is a completely fitted beverage cabinet.

The chassis and 180-horsepower motor are by Packard. The super de luxe body and interior are by the Henney Motor Co., Freeport, Illinois, custom-car builders and the biggest makers of hearses in the U.S.

The company’s president, C. Russell Feldmann, had the king-size buggy built for his personal use and for advertising. Want one?