Wagons in vintage Street scenes

Wide shot of the Dodge exhibit area at the 1953 Chicago Auto Show includes a Coronet four-door sedan in the foreground, with optional wire wheels and two-tone paint. Dodges were redesigned for 1953, and could now be equipped with a V8 Hemi engine, named Red Ram.

 

Based on the 1953 Pontiac convertible, the Parisienne Landau Town Sedan featured an open front roof section and Panoramic wraparound windshield. Custom-built for show purposes only, the black beauty wowed the crowds with pink leather front bucket seats, black nylon satin frieze passenger compartment and luxurious black broadtail carpeting. Accenting the entire rear side panels were long, vertical air scoops. Another one-of-a-kind Pontiac flaunted at the 45th annual auto show was called the “Avalon,” which was a production four-door sedan finished in a custom chartreuse and black color combination. Notice the special display on the far left of the Pontiac cutaway body and chassis, which was sliced in half in a manner to retain the lines of the front end, one piece windshield, rear deck and window, yet exposing the differential, drive shaft, transmission and engine. All exposed parts were finished in brilliant color or chrome.

*was this the first time Pontiac used the Parisienne name?

 

Chicago Auto Show, 1954:

Double celebration in time for the 1954 Chicago Auto Show, included the 46th annual show and the 50th anniversary of the Chicago Automobile Trade Association (CATA). The CATA started in 1904, was actively involved in the show for years, and assumed show sponsorship in 1935. Celebration ran throughout the 1954 auto show event, with celebrities such as future US President Ronald Reagan and entertainer Cab Calloway making appearances. New at the 1954 show was a "winner's circle," which displayed competition cars. Visitors also saw the panoramic windshields new to Buicks and Cadillacs, the new "Y-block" engines which replaced Ford's flathead V-8s, and the sharp, Loewy-styled Studebaker. Later that year, Nash-Kelvinator and Hudson would merge to form American Motors Corporation, and Studebaker and Packard would join to become Studebaker-Packard Corporation. On the right is a view of the enormous 10-tier cake that was served during the the anniversary dinner, held on March 15, 1954.





I recognize this handsome fellow...

Ronald Reagan, future California governor and 40th President of the United States, served as the Grand Marshall at the 1954 show. The sign on the antique curve-dash Olds states that the 1904 car was built the same year the Chicago Auto Trade Association was chartered.

 

Close-up view of 1954 Studebaker Commander Starliner two-door hardtop on a raised platform with rotating floor. A sign states that this is "The Only Dream Car You Can Buy Today!" Other Studebaker models are in the background. The station wagon at right rear, is a Commander Regal. Note the horse-drawn stagecoach artwork on the wall hanging in background

 

Five car models are positioned around a center exhibit of three V-8 engines at the Buick display area on the show floor. At left front is a Special four-door sedan; at right front, a Century two-door hardtop with rare vinyl roof and wire wheel options. Note the Skylark sign and a partial (obscured) view of that car far to the rear in this photo.

 

Plymouth's sleek Belmont concept car rode on a Dodge chassis and was powered by a Dodge V-8. It was the first Plymouth experimental car with a light plastic body; had an overall length of nearly 192-inches and was only 32 inch high at the top of the door. The 150 horsepower engine came mated to Plymouth's Hy-Drive three-speed semi-automatic transmission. Finished in a light green metallic paint, the Belmont’s exterior went well with the white leather two-seater interior and had a full set of racing instruments, and radio controls built-into the center armrest.

 

Chicago Auto show, 1955:

Looking down one of the main aisles in the International Amphitheatre has the Pontiac exhibit situated on the right, with various 1955 models visible, including a Star Chief convertible. Oldsmobile's exhibit can be glimpsed directly behind the Pontiacs.

 

On the display floor at the Lincoln-Mercury exhibit area, a Lincoln Capri two-door hardtop is in the foreground. Several other Lincolns and a Mercury station wagon are in the scene. The Lincoln Futura concept car is on the left, at the rear of the photo.

*Before mister Barris transformed it into the Caped Crusader's awesome ride.

 

First exhibited at General Motors 1954 Motorama, the Chevrolet Nomad was on display during the 1955 Chicago Auto Show. Though styled like an early Corvette, the concept was actually mounted on Chevy’s larger 115-inch wheelbase station wagon chassis. Stylish roof featured frameless doors, slanted B-pillar and side window treatment found on the 1955-56-57 Nomad production models. Under the hood of the prototype was the 150 horsepower, 235.5 cubic inch six-cylinder engine, equipped with triple carburetors. Chevrolet has exhibited modern interpretations of its original Nomad wagon at the 1999 and 2004 Chicago show.





For funzies the afore mentioned 99 Concept Nomad at the 99 Chicago Auto show:

Chevy picked the name and design cues from its 1954 Nomad dream car for a Nomad concept two-door wagon that was displayed at the 1999 Chicago Auto Show. The retro-styled Nomad was considered a "contemporary high-performance vehicle" that would have been a future Camaro-type model. With sports car like handling that came from an independent rear suspension, the Nomad prototype for ’99 had power to the rear wheels supplied by a 5.7 liter V-8 linked to a shift-by-wire four-speed automatic transmission.



And the 2004 example:

Inspired by the 1954 Chevrolet Nomad Motorama dream car, the 2004 Nomad concept was based on GM's new Kappa rear-drive architecture. Power was provided by a turbocharged 210-hp Ecotec 2.2-liter four cylinder engine, linked to an electronically controlled five-speed automatic with finger-operated tap shifting. Inside, the black leather-trimmed 2+2 cockpit was accented by blue nubuck inserts and anodized blue aluminum gauges.

 

Chicago Auto show, 1956:


Pre-show scene reveals the Nash and Hudson exhibit that is under construction, looking across to the Ford exhibit. The car in front, seen in 3/4-rear view, is a 1956 Hudson four-door sedan. A Rambler wagon is next to the Hudson. Visible in part on the far right are the tail of a Studebaker, and above it the rear of a 1956 Ford. The Ford Mystere dream car is under covers. On a turntable sits a Ford Sunliner convertible.

 

Chrysler Corporation unveiled the experimental Plainsman 'idea station wagon' during the 1956 Chicago Auto Show. Mounted on a 115-inch wheelbase Plymouth chassis, the two-door wagon accented a Western theme with its "Palomino beige" finish, gold-colored Texas longhorn medallion and hand-worked bronze trim which was chrome plated. A unique cantilever, stepped roof contained a centered louvered ventilator that provided draft-free ventilation of the eight-passenger cabin, and the padded white fabric top covering the rear two-thirds of the all-steel roof was weather-resistant. Clever idea on the Plainsman that made its way into the 1957 station wagon models by Chrysler Corp. was the spare tire and wheel hidden behind the right wheel and accessed via a lift-up panel.

 

Chicago Auto show, 1957:


A Suburban station wagon is in the foreground just outside the Plymouth display area on the auto-show floor. The 1957 Plymouth Suburban on the left had a spare tire mounted in the right rear fender, an idea adapted from the Plainsman show car seen a year earlier. In addition to other Plymouth models, an exposed chassis is visible in this photo.

 

This years Auto Show wouldn't be complete without the mention of the 57 Chevy.

Many Chevrolet models are visible in this photo, taken from above at the company's exhibit area on the auto-show floor. A midrange model four-door sedan is at left; a Bel Air two-door sedan at right. Restyled this year with sharply-pointed fins, Chevrolets came in three series: 150, 210, and top-of-the-line Bel Air. Upscale models featured tapered rear-quarter trim panels.

 

Dreaming of a newly minted 57 Nomad...

Taken from above, this long shot of the Chevrolet exhibit area has the utilitarian-looking top of a decorative pillar in the foreground, with a row of cars to its rear. Second in the auto lineup is the stylish Nomad station wagon with its characteristic angled B-pillar, produced only in 1955-57.