Cars Of The 1950s

Cars of the 1950s and 1950s automobiles have claimed a niche in the minds of both the general public and motorists alike.

Many of us have only seen them from films of the time, but they have a design and character that is no longer seen in the modern day car.

The 1950s were a time of resurgence for motor industry. Production and development of the motor car had stopped during the war years of the 1940s.

America, the home of motor manufacture ceased car production in 1941 – but as economies picked up in the 1950s, the car designers and manufacturers were one again able to unleash their talents.

The cars of the 1950s display a rich variety of type, model and design. Many of the car manufacturers of the 1950s have merged or gone to the wall, while some are still familiar names and continue to produce vehicles for a car obsessed public.

The major car manufacturers of the 1950s were based in America, mainly in Detroit, but the industry was also growing in Britain and Europe as they put the shortage of the war years behind them.

In the 1950's Buick were a major name associated with cars of the 1950s. In 1950 they produced the Buick super, and in 1952 they put on sale a four door sedan with a redesigned front.

Buick continued to turn out more new designs during the decade with the powerful Buick Special. Later in the decade Buick had treated the motoring public to Lesabre which incorporated electric windscreen wipers, power steering an in-car ventilation.
 
To this day Cadillac is renowned as a luxury car, and so it was during the 1950s. In 1950 Cadillac produced the series 62 Ragtop with leather upholstery. By that same year Cadillac also installed one piece windscreens as standard. Two years later they also  introduced dual exhaust outlet  tips in bumpers as standard. 

In 1954 the only open top sports car to be made by an American company – the Chevrolet Corvette – was produced As the decade progressed Chevrolet also introduced further innovations in their motor cars, such as power brakes and automatic controls for windows and seats.

Across the Atlantic, the cars of the 1950s were less sleek, but innovative.
 
In 1952 Austin launched the new redesigned A40 with better hydraulic brakes, a gear stick on the steering column air conditioning. By the end of the 1950s Austin were producing their A55 at a price to the motorist of a princely £685.

The Europeans were also not being left out of the 1950s car manufacturing boom. In Germany the VW Beetle, first designed pre-war, was becoming a popular car of the 1950s.