finless violence
If you associate American classics with meter-long tail fins and the heavenly noise of hammering V8 engines, you are not alone. However, there is also a category of American classics that breathes the dark atmosphere of a gangster film. Such a car is now in our classic range: a Chevrolet Fleetline De Luxe 2100 from 1949.
There was a time when car design trends were set in America. At General Motors, Harley Earl presided over the design departments of the various brands. Earl is the inventor of the tail fin; the first jet-engined fighter planes were a fertile source of inspiration. In 1948 Cadillac had the scoop and in the years that followed more and more models from the GM tube would get these tail decorations.
Chevrolet buyers didn’t want tail fins
This Chevrolet Fleetline De Luxe 2100 for sale dates from 1949. In this year tail fins were far from being established. It even took until 1955 before Chevrolet models were also fitted with a set of wings of any proportion. After all, Chevy was General Motors’ best-selling and one of the more accessible brands. Not everyone could appreciate those tail fins at first.
In the second half of the 1950s, however, the Chevy buyer had no choice. General Motors management had given Harley Earl carte blanche: the size of the tail fins grew over the years. The highlight – literally and figuratively – was 1959. In this year the largest tail fins ever appeared.
The tail fin had also made its appearance in Europe. Just look at the Mercedes ‘Heckflosse’ models and the Sunbeam Alpine, for example. Even at Italian design houses such as Pininfarina and Bertone, the draftsmen were guided by the American school. With cars like the Lancia Pininfarina, the Peugeot 404 and the Alfa Romeo BAT 5, 7 and 9 as well-known examples.
Chevrolet Fleetline
Unsuitable as a getaway car
What makes this Chevrolet Fleetline so special is the combination of the curved, fastback-like roofline with four doors. A body style that had to be paid extra at the time. In the end, some 166,000 Chevrolet buyers did. To put this into perspective, no fewer than 1.1 million Chevys were built in 1949.
With its black paint and modest amount of frosting, the Fleetline has a sober appearance. This car is from the time of Jack Karouag’s On the Road and the rule of the mafia in American cities. As if it was specially designed for gangsters.
The interior of the car makes a sober impression, with two three-seater sofas, striped and a minimum of accessories. Incidentally, this Chevrolet was not so suitable as a getaway car. The old-fashioned six-cylinder OHV has a capacity of 3.5 liters, but delivers a modest power of only 95 hp.
Chevrolet Fleetline
The Fleetline is in exceptionally good condition. This is due to a major restoration that the classic has undergone in Switzerland. As if the car just rolled off the assembly line in Detroit, everything looks like new. A unique American, with an asking price of €26,500. Considering the quality of the restoration, that amount is not even that very high …
Are you on the hunt for a forgotten classic, a nice youngtimer or just a young used car? Then take a look at the AutoWeek second-hand offer.
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– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl