Fuel prices may not have been a concern at the time, but America was still in the Depression, and it was in any manufacturer's best interest to convey as much value to the buyer as possible. Period advertising for Chrysler's streamlined models touted increased fuel efficiency in a time when a gallon of gas cost less than 20 cents. As the years progressed, Chrysler's designers watered down the original styling to increase sales, adopting a more conventional grille design in 1935. The American public did not agree, finding it too radical, and Chrysler persevered only until 1937, before dropping the model altogether.
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The press was initially enthusiastic about the Airflow, with Harper's Bazaar stating the styling 'took your breath away'. Starting with the CU series, the longer wheelbase Imperial CV and CX and the limited production Imperial CW, the latter the largest cars yet built by the Chrysler Corporation with a huge 137.5-inch wheelbase. Described as 'The beauty of nature itself' by Chrysler's marketing gurus, the streamlined Airflow was sold in four different versions in its initial year, 1934. The flowing lines of the body were assisted by the first major use of a unibody type construction where the 'truss-bridge' chassis was actually the backbone of the body.Ĭhrysler's Airflow was unveiled at the 1934 New York Auto Show and is now acknowledged as the first mass-produced streamlined car. With the engine moved forward, it achieved better weight distribution and the passenger compartment was also moved to where it was completely between the axles which improved the ride and comfort. In designing the Airflow, this team looked to the latest in aircraft design, incorporating a 'form follows function' goal using lines developed in a wind tunnel. All three had decades of automotive engineering, skill, and design talents. Chrysler formed his own company, he was accompanied by the talents of three individuals, Owen Skelton, Fred Zeder, and the unofficial leader of this group, Carl Breer. The buying public was either put-off by its advanced aerodynamic design or just found it unappealing but either way, sales were dismal, mirrored by its siamese sibling, the Chrysler Airflow.
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Its design was beyond modern, it was futuristic.
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The DeSoto Airflow was aerodynamic, curvaceous, and smooth with full fender skirts enclosing the rear fenders, a vee-shaped windshield, rounded radiator grille, and headlamps incorporated into the body.