This day in history...

[Mr. Cheese]

December 27, 1943
Auto engineer and inventor dies
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-hist ... le&id=7890

Curtis Veeder, the engineer who invented the modern automotive tachometer and odometer, died on this day. A tachometer is a device which indicates speed of rotation, and an odometer is an instrument for measuring distance travelled.


December 27, 1941
U.S. begins rubber rationing
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-hist ... le&id=7889

Rubber rationing was instituted by the U.S. government, due to shortages caused by World War II. Tires were the first items to be restricted by law.

[200sx]

hmmmmmmmmmmm

[Idle_Torque]

wah ah gwannnnn ............ niceeeee info

[~Vēġó~]

I thought the OP would keep the thread updated daily.....

[Idle_Torque]

IT doesnt look so, but it would have been nice to know some of these stuff...
Speed is in da blood...

[kurpal_v2]

I thought the OP would keep the thread updated daily.....

Could be left up to the individual useers to do so by adding automotive bits of the days past..

[Mr. Cheese]

January 8, 1916
Bugatti brother ends own life
Rembrandt Bugatti, brother of race-car maker Ettore Bugatti, committed suicide on this day. The Bugatti brothers were a talented crew: Carlo Bugatti was a noted furniture designer. Ettore, a self-taught engineer, produced some of the world's most striking early race cars. Rembrandt Bugatti was a sculptor noted for his depictions of wild animal



January 8, 1927
Marmon's latest roadster
The Little Marmon, later known as the Marmon Eight, was introduced in New York City.

Pics of the Marmon Speedster > http://www.conceptcarz.com/vehicle/z162 ... dster.aspx

[~Vēġó~]

^^^dais wah we talkin 'bout!!

Good stuff!!!! Looking out for tomorrow

[AYE_SOLDIER]

^^^dais wah we talkin 'bout!!

Good stuff!!!! Looking out for tomorrow

x2

[Mr. Cheese]

This one is interesting....


January 9, 1958
Japanese cars arrive in California
The Toyota and Datsun (later Nissan) brand names made their first appearances in the United States at the Imported Motor Car Show in Los Angeles, California. Previously, these auto makers had sold in the U.S. only under American-brand names, as part of joint ventures with Ford and GM.

[~Vēġó~]

January 10, 1979

Convertible "Bug" retires

The last convertible Volkswagen Beetle was produced on this day. The VW "Bug" was a popular car throughout the 1970s, leading to innovations such as sun roofs and convertible tops, in an otherwise unchanging design.

[~Vēġó~]

January 13, 1942

Henry Ford patents plastic car

On this day in 1942, Henry Ford patented a plastic-bodied automobile. The car was 30 percent lighter than ordinary cars. Plastic, a relatively new material in 1942, was revolutionizing industry after industry in the United States. Today most car bodies are still made of metal, but plastic parts are becoming more and more common.

[~Vēġó~]

January 14, 1954

Hudson and Nash merge

The Hudson Motor Car Company merged with Nash-Kelvinator, an automaker formed in turn by the merger of the Nash automobile firm and the Kelvinator kitchen-appliance company. The new concern was called the American Motors Corporation.

[~Vēġó~]

January 15, 1909

1. Hearse used for first time

A motorized hearse was used for the first time in a Chicago funeral procession by funeral director H.D. Ludlow. It was a sharp break with tradition: stately horse-drawn hearses had been in use for centuries.

January 15, 1936

Ford Foundation is established

Henry Ford established the Ford Foundation, a philanthropic organization, on this day. The foundation was set up partly to allow the Ford family to retain control of the Ford Motor Company after Henry Ford's death, avoiding new inheritance laws. But its charitable works were very real. At its height, the Ford Foundation had assets of $4 billion. The foundation works to promote population control and to prevent famine; to promote the arts and educational media; and to work for peace and the protection of the environment.

January 15, 1942

First "blackout" Caddy is built

The first "blackout" Cadillacs were completed. Due to restrictions on materials necessary to the war effort, these cars had painted trim rather than chrome. They also lacked spare tires and other luxuries.

[Damien]

Good info

[~Vēġó~]

January 16, 1913

First hardtop sedan is introduced

The first closed car for four passengers was introduced by Frank Duryea at the Stanley Motor Show. All earlier cars had open cabs, or convertible tops. Frank Duryea and his brother, Charles, built the first American-made automobile in 1893. Duryea was one of the best-known names in automobile manufacturing into the early 1900s.

January 16, 1953

Corvette introduced in New York

The Chevrolet Corvette was introduced as a show car at New York's Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. The car became an American classic almost instantly. Its sporty fiberglass body didn't look like anything else on the road. Although some car buffs criticized the sportscar for being underpowered, that didn't stop Corvettes from speeding off the showroom floors.

[~Vēġó~]

January 18, 1919

Bentley Motors founded

Bentley Motors was established in London, England. A manufacturer of sports cars and luxury automobiles, Bentley was acquired by Rolls-Royce in November, 1931. From that point forward, the Bentley line acquired more and more features of the Rolls-Royce, until the two makes became nearly indistinguishable.

January 18, 1986

Jeep-maker returns to auto business

The Willys-Overland Company, the primary contractor that built the Jeep for the U.S. military during World War II, reentered the commercial automobile market on this day. It offered the Willys Aero, a sporty two-seater.

[~Vēġó~]

January 21, 1899

Opel opens for business

In 1898, the five Opel brothers began converting the sewing machine and appliance factory of Adam Opel into an automobile works in Russelheim, Germany. On this day in 1899, they acquired the rights to the Lutzmann automobile, and began production. The Opel-Lutzmann was soon abandoned, and in 1902, Opel introduced its first original car, a 2-cylinder runabout. In the decades that followed, Opel became one of the premier forces in the European automobile industry, modernizing its factories relentlessly and adopting the continuous-motion assembly line before its European competitors. Today, Opel is a wholly owned subsidiary of General Motors. It produces about a quarter of all German cars, and exports heavily to South America and Africa.

January 21, 1954

Turbine power drives GM car

General Motors introduced the Firebird XP-21 show car, the world's first gas-turbine powered car. It was named in imitation of the U.S. military's experimental jet-powered aircraft, which had code numbers like XP-59A.

[~Vēġó~]

January 22, 1912

Bridge to Florida Keys opens
Florida East Coast Railroad opened, running between Key West and the mainland. The railroad closed in 1935. Three years later, the roadway was paved, bringing automotive traffic to the Florida Keys for the first time.

January 22, 1950

Tucker declared innocent

Throughout the twentieth century, independent automobile manufacturers have fallen again and again before the industrial power of the "Big Three"--Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler. Most often, these independent firms are swallowed, bought up, like Nash, Austin, Studebaker, Hudson, Packard, and many others. The story of Preston Tucker is a little darker. Tucker was a Chicago businessman who built 50 extraordinary automobiles in 1947 and 1948. His cars had many modern amenities and remarkable horsepower. But he was indicted on 31 counts of fraud; and as he fought for his freedom in court, his company failed. On this day in 1950, Preston Tucker was cleared of all fraud charges against him. But it was too little, too late. The Tucker automobile was history. Many believe that the legal actions against Tucker were sponsored by the Big Three auto makers, who feared his competition.

[~Vēġó~]

January 25, 1905

Brit scorches Daytona Beach

Arthur MacDonald of Great Britain set a new land speed record of 149.875mph at Daytona Beach, Florida.


January 25, 1991

Early automobile appears on stamp

The United States Postal Service issued a four-cent stamp commemorating the Dudgeon Steam Wagon, a steam-powered vehicle built in 1866 by steam pioneer Richard Dudgeon. Scottish-born Dudgeon completed his first steam wagon in 1857, and with the exception of its steering mechanism, the vehicle was essentially a steam locomotive, complete with a smokestack and exposed cylinders at the forward end of its boiler. The vehicle, capable of holding 10 passengers, was exhibited in New York City's Crystal Palace, where it was destroyed in October of 1857 when the Palace was leveled by fire. In 1866, Dudgeon built a second steam-powered vehicle similar to his 1857 prototype. However, unlike the first, this vehicle survived and is currently on display at the Smithsonian Institute's National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. Artist Richard Schlecht commemorated Dudgeon's creation in a 1991 U.S. stamp.

[Greypatch]

ahh boi dwag yuh have some free time

[~Vēġó~]

^^^lol...

January 26, 1906

Wogglebug steams competition

American driver Fred Marriott set a new land speed record of 127.659mph in his steam-powered "Wogglebug" at Ormond Beach, Florida. It was the last time that a steam-powered vehicle would claim a new land speed record.

January 26, 1920

Lincoln is born

The Lincoln Motor Car Company was founded on this day. It was acquired by the Ford Motor Company just two years later. Under Ford's protective wing, the Lincoln brand name flourished, and the Lincoln Continental would become one of the world's most famous luxury cars.

January 26, 1979

Dukes of Hazzard debuts

The Dukes of Hazzard, a prime-time television action/comedy show, aired for the first time on this day. The show starred John Schneider and Tom Wopat as the mischievous Duke cousins, two "good old boys," who tangled with the crooked law enforcement officers of Hazzard County every week. However, the real star of the show was their car, "The General Lee," a 1969 Dodge Charger with a bright orange paint job and a Confederate flag on its roof. The car was a suitable choice: Dodge Chargers won 22 of the 54 major NASCAR races in 1969. The Dukes of Hazzard ran for seven seasons. A Dukes of Hazzard movie, starring pop singer Jessica Simpson, was released in 2005.

[Rooki3]

nice ched

[~Vēġó~]

^^thought so too but I eh know what happen to the OP, so I say leh meh continue......anyway,

January 27, 1899

New land speed record set

Frenchman Camille Jenatzy captured the land-speed record (49.932 miles per hour) in a battery-powered automobile of his own design.

January 27, 1904

Gas-powered Mors makes mark

American racer William K. Vanderbilt set a new land-speed record of 76.086mph in a gasoline-driven Mors automobile at Ablis, France. It was the first major speed record to be set by an internal-combustion car. All previous records had been set by steam- and battery-powered cars.

[~Vēġó~]

January 28, 1937

Rolls makes test run

The prototype of the Rolls-Royce Wraith made its first test run on this day. The first model of the postwar period was called the Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith, and it became the principal luxury sedan sold by Rolls-Royce in the decades following World War II.

January 28, 1938

Record set in Germany

Driver Rudolf Caracciola set a new land-speed record (not recognized by all organizations) of 268.496 mph on the German Autobahn between Frankfurt and Darmstadt. His record remains the highest speed ever achieved on a public road. Later in the same day, a young driver named Bernd Rosemeyer died in a crash on the Autobahn in an attempt to surpass Caracciola's record.

[~Vēġó~]

January 29, 1886

Benz gets patent

Karl Benz received a patent for his "Motorwagen" on this day. The Motorwagen, a three-wheeled automobile powered by an internal-combustion engine, was the first practical internal-combustion vehicle ever constructed. It made its first test run in early 1885. Benz completed his first four-wheeled motorcar in 1893, and went on to build many successful racing cars. In 1926, his company, Benz and Co., merged with Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft to form Daimler-Benz, an industry giant that has remained a formidable auto maker to the present day.

January 29, 1989

Yugo files for bankruptcy

Global Motors, the American company that imported the Yugo, filed for bankruptcy. The Yugo was a Yugoslavian-made economy car that sold for thousands of dollars less than its nearest competitor. Its astonishingly low price made it a popular car for a few years in the mid-1980s, but the car's flaws soon became apparent. It was underpowered, unreliable, and, famously, you could punch holes in the body with a wooden pencil. The cars were also poorly warrantied, to the dismay of thousands of disappointed Yugo owners.

[~Vēġó~]

January 30, 1920

Future Mazda-maker founded

The Toyo Kogyo Company, Ltd., was founded in Hiroshima, Japan, on this day. In 1960, the company began manufacturing Mazda automobiles.


January 30, 1942

Last pre-WWII cars roll off the line

The last pre-war automobiles produced by Chevrolet and DeSoto rolled off the assembly lines today. Wartime restrictions had shut down the commercial automobile industry almost completely, and auto manufacturers were racing to retool their factories for production of military gear.

[~Vēġó~]

January 31, 1897

First speed hill climb run

The final stage of the Marseille-Nice automobile race posed an unusual challenge: a steep slope that motorists had to climb at speed. It was the first speed hill climb in auto-racing history. The uphill dash was won by M. Pary in a steam-powered DeDion-Bouton automobile.

January 31, 1942

Chrysler, Plymouth, And Studebaker retool for war

The last pre-war automobiles produced by Chrysler, Plymouth, and Studebaker rolled off the assembly lines today. Wartime restrictions had shut down the commercial automobile industry almost completely, and auto manufacturers were racing to retool their factories for military gear.

January 31, 1960

Valiant performs valiantly

In a special racing series for small-bodied cars at the Daytona International Speedway, the Valiant captured the top seven positions in the 10-lap race. The Valiant was introduced by Chrysler in 1959 (the 1960 models) as a separate make. Its light handling and curvaceous European styling set the Valiant apart from other American compact cars. Over the following years, the Valiant became part of the Plymouth line, and its styling became more typically American. It retained its record for reliability and speed, however, and still has a fan club today

[~Vēġó~]

February 1, 1898

First auto insurance policy is issued

The Travelers Insurance Company of Hartford, Connecticut, extended coverage to an automobile owner, making them the first company to issue an automobile insurance policy to an individual. Dr. Truman J. Martin of Buffalo, New York, paid a premium of $11.25 for the policy that covered $5,000 to $10,000 of liability. In 1925, Massachusetts became the first state to mandate automobile insurance, "requiring owners of certain motor vehicles and trailers to furnish security for their civil liabilities." Today, auto insurance is a fact of life for American drivers as nearly every state requires some insurance for the operator of a motor vehicle. In a country where the driver's license serves as the primary form of identification, the challenge of selecting a coverage policy and paying the car insurance premium has become a rite of passage for many young Americans.

February 1, 1921

Cabby sets record

Carmen Fasanella of Princeton, New Jersey, obtained his cab driver's license at the tender age of 17. Mr. Fasanella would go on to drive his taxi for the next 68 years and 243 days, setting an unofficial record for the longest continuous career for a cabbie. Incidentally, the term "cab" comes from "cabriolet," a single-horse carriage used by coach drivers.

February 1, 1969

DeLorean gets top job at Chevy

On this day in 1969, John DeLorean was named the top executive at Chevrolet. DeLorean had risen precipitously through the ranks at Pontiac, where he pioneered the successful GTO and Grand Prix models. As the general manager of Chevrolet, DeLorean sold a record 3,000,000 cars and trucks in 1973. Poised as a top candidate for the presidency of General Motors (GM), DeLorean walked away from Chevrolet in late 1973 to start his own company. He brashly predicted he would "show [GM] how to make cars." DeLorean raised nearly $200 million to finance his new venture, the DeLorean Motor Company. He built a factory in Northern Ireland and began production on the sleek, futuristic DMC-12 car. Interest in the car was high, but the company ran into serious financial trouble. Refusing to abandon his project, DeLorean involved himself in racketeering and drug trafficking in a desperate attempt to make the money that would save his company. In 1982, after being caught on film trying to broker a $24 million cocaine deal, DeLorean was arrested on charges of drug trafficking and money laundering. A federal jury later ruled that DeLorean had been the victim of entrapment, and he was acquitted of all charges. Nevertheless, DeLorean's career and reputation were ruined.

[~Vēġó~]

February 2, 1880

First electric streetlight installed

The first electric streetlight was installed in Wabash, Indiana. The city paid the Brush Electric Light Company of Cleveland, Ohio, $100 to install a light on the top of the courthouse. A month later the city commissioned four more lights to be installed. Residents of Wabash became the first Americans to wear their sunglasses at night.

February 2, 1923

Leaded gasoline goes on sale

Gasoline mixed with Tetraethyl lead was first sold to the public at a roadside gas station owned by Willard Talbott in Dayton, Ohio. Coined "ethyl gasoline" by Charles Kettering of General Motors, the blend was discovered by General Motors laboratory technician Thomas Midgley to beneficially alter the combustion rate of gasoline. Reportedly, in seven years of research and development General Motors labs tested at least 33,000 compounds for their propensity to reduce knocks. Leaded gasoline would fill the world's gas tanks until emissions concerns lead to the invention of unleaded gasoline.

February 2, 1992

First Japanese winner at "24 Hours of Daytona"

A Nissan R91 became the first Japanese car to win an international 24-hour race, winning the "24 Hours of Daytona" event in Daytona Beach, Florida. Japanese engineering quality became the standard for consumer compact vehicles in the 1970s and early 1980s. It was not until the late 1980s and early 1990s, however, that Japanese manufacturers were able to compete with European and American manufacturers at the highest levels of automotive performance technology. Nissan's victory in the 24-hour race proved that Japanese automobiles had achieved the highest level of performance and engineering.