The 1949 Ford models ushered in a significant styling change. 1948 was the final year for the old-style Ford. The 1946 through 1948 models were mostly a continuation of the 1941 models and the short lived 1942’s due to the war.
The 1949 Fords gave forth a new modern look. The design for the 1949 Ford’s actually began in 1946 when designers were tasked to come up with designs and quarter sized models in a matter of only a few months. There were several features that the bosses wanted and among others these included an entirely new design and a larger interior. How the 1949 Ford design was conceived is one of the more interesting stories about the automotive industry.
The Two Design Teams
The design of the 1949 Ford turned out to actually be a contest between two groups of designers. One group was headed by Bob Gregorie and the other by George Walker. Gregorie had at one time worked for General Motors as a designer and the went on to work for Ford Motor Company several times on and off through 1946.
Gregorie was also considered Ford’s first designer and worked close with Edsel Ford. Bob Gregorie and Edsel Ford worked on many projects together and this helped elevate Gregorie to be head of Ford’s design department in 1935. Edsel Ford died unexpectedly in 1943. The story is that Gregorie had differences with the new management team brought in after the younger Ford’s death and opted to resign in 1946 at only thirty-eight years of age.
George Walker started his automotive career at the Peerless automobile company, then moved to General Motors and later to a few smaller companies. At the time that designs were made for the 1949 Ford, Walker was working as an outside design consultant.
Your first impression might be that any design rushed through in this short of time might have something lacking. You may be correct. In some ways, many have said this was the case with the 1949 Fords.
The tale of this hasty design challenge is that each of the two designers actually purchased another automaker’s car to use as a starting point. The Gregorie designers bought a Kaiser and the Ford engineering department bought a Studebaker.
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