Classic Cars and Trucks / Photos Specs Model History, Production Numbers

1942 Chevrolet / Town Sedan

Chevrolet sold three different models during the 1942 model year. These were the Master Deluxe, the Special Deluxe and the Fleetwood. The 1942 models were not too much different than the 1941’s although the 41’s did have significant restyling. The 42’s however had a longer hood, an “American Eagle” Grille and a “fadeaway” front fender. The 1942 Chevy had a starting price of about $800.

The Chevrolet Sedans were popular. The 1942 Chevy Town Sedan was a two door, five passenger vehicle with a built in trunk. The vehicle came with 16 inch wheels and two tone cord upholstery as an option over the standard gray cloth seats. Weight for the Town sedan was 3,220 lbs. Additional specifications for the 1942 Chevrolet was 195 7/8 inches in length, a 116 inch wheelbase, a maximum height of 66 1/8 inches when fully loaded and 69 3/8 inched when empty and a body width of 70 7/8 inches.

The windows on the 1942 Chevrolet Town Sedan were Hi-Test Safety Plate. These included the windshield as well as the side windows.

The 1942 Chevy Sedan had a six cylinder in-line cast iron block overhead valve engine. Displacement was 216.5 cid and could deliver 90 HP. The transmission was a standard three forward speed, one rear speed unit. Options on this car were many including white wall tires, a signal seeking radio, fender skirts, a spotlight, fog lamps and exterior sunshades.

Production on the 1942 Chevrolets began in September of 1941. Even at that date, military vehicle production was being ramped up. Production totals for the 1942 model year was 258,795 units of which 84,800 Master Deluxe models and 173,900 Super Deluxe models. All production was stopped on February 1, 1942 due to World War Two and President Roosevelt’s banning of civilian car production. The low production totals for this model year were a direct result of the February civilian car stoppage. Every Chevrolet factory except the Saginaw Michigan Service plant was converted to war material manufacturing. The 1942 Chevy models were the very last prior to the war. Civilian car manufacturing didn’t begin again until the summer of 1945. The U.S. automakers by the very nature of their business had a huge infrastructure in place at the time of the U.S. entry into World War Two.

1942 chevrolet town sedan interior — 42 Chevy Town Sedan interior

They also had an in place workforce. U.S. automobile plants produced one-fifth of the total war production of the United States military. Obviously, at wars end, there was a great demand for automobiles, many of the buyers being servicemen returning home.

An interesting change concerning war time production was the building of what is referred to as the “blackout” models. This particular production type affected all automakers and only occurred during January 1942, the month before all civilian production halted. The “Blackout” was mandated to the automakers for the purpose of making things even among the car companies so that no one could gain a competitive advantage since raw materials were very limited. This historic commercial mandate prohibited exposed stainless or chrome trim except for bumpers, bumper hardware, and windshield wipers. In the case of Chevrolet, the company painted the trim on it’s 1942 models that were built in January.

1942 chevy sedan — 1942 Chevy rear side view

When the federal order to stop civilian production took effect, auto dealer showrooms would have about 340,000 vehicles stockpiled including the relatively small number of blackout models. The Office of Production Management put a freeze on all dealer inventories until a rationing program took effect in March of 1942. Interestingly enough, and probably as no surprise, used car sales prices nearly doubled.

Links to additional articles and photos on AutoMuseumOnline you’ll be interested in include the 1939 Chevy Master Deluxe Business Coupe and the 1931 Chevy Coupe.

The 1942 Chevrolet Town Sedan shown in this article is on display at the Western Antique Aeroplane and Auto Museum located at 1600 Air Museum Road in Hood River, Oregon. Hood River is located along the scenic Columbia River Gorge and makes a great stop while exploring the Columbia River east of Portland.

Other automobile museums where you can see restored 1940’s Chevys include a 1942 Chevrolet Blackout model at the LeMay America’s Car Museum located in Tacoma Washington. Because the production of these Blackout models only took place in January of 1942, there were only about 2,300 cars built. The LeMay Museum also has a 1942 Ford Deluxe which you can compare to the Chevy styling for that year.

For those in Brazil, the excellent Automobile Museum of Curitiba which opened in 1968 also has a fine vintage 1942 Chevrolet on display.

Fordson

Fordson Tractors were first manufactured by Henry Ford and his son, thus the name Fordson. Eventually the division merged with the Ford Motor Company and the Fordson brand of tractor was manufactured by Ford Motor until 1991 when the tractor division was sold to Fiat.

Although Henry Ford started experimenting with tractors as early as 1905, it wouldn’t be until 1915 that success took hold. His key idea was to mass produce his tractors the same way he was building his cars.

The photo at left is of a 1920 Fordson tractor displayed at the Heritage Farmstead Museum in Plano Texas, a northern suburb of Dallas. Assembly line mass production would make the tractors affordable and hopefully help Ford dominate the market. The first Fordson tractors were for general use and as you can imagine were very welcomed by farmers during the early decades of the 1900’s. By the same token, the early models would at times be tough to start and required quite a bit of hand cranking. With this being said, they were still more convenient than harnessing a team of mules.

By the second decade, thousands of Fordson tractors were in use in the U.S., Britain and Canada. By 1928 however, Fordson tractors were built only in Cork Ireland and eventually in Essex England. The operation was transferred out of the U.S. due to a severe economic downturn in the U.S. in the mid 1920’s and tractors were then imported back to America. Ford’s two biggest tractor competitors in the U.S. were General Motors and International Harvester.

1941 fordson tractor photo — 1941 Ford 8N Tractor

Ford’s mass production methods were so successful, that by the 1920’s most competitors had to follow the same method or perhaps go out of business. Only the most competitive of tractor companies would survive the Ford mass production success. The earlier Ford tractors it was said were built to replace the power of four mules.

There were a series of different Ford tractors over the years. The first were the B Models in 1915, then the Ford F series which sold some 750,000 tractors between 1917 and 1928. No other tractor model has ever sold those many units. Then came the Ford N series which debuted in 1927. The Ford N series had a more powerful 27 HP engine, rear fenders, optional pneumatic tires and a higher voltage ignition system. Not for another ten years would Ford make significant improvements with it’s tractor models. In the late 1930’s, models such as the 9N, 2N and 8N were introduced. The 9N’s big change was that it was more powerful and could pull more weight. The 2N was put on the market in 1942 and the 8N in 1947. The next Ford tractor model after that was the 1953 “Golden Jubilee“. During the 1940’s Ford received a lot of publicity for the ruggedness of it’s tractors and how they allowed farmers to increase their harvest. Lots of testimonials from farmers were published and how the increased output allowed the farmers to make a better living.

An interesting thing about tractors as opposed to automobiles is that they are capable of turning over backwards. This can happen in about 1 1/2 seconds. There is a point of no return which usually is figured at about 3/4 of a second. There is little time indeed for the driver to react.

rear tractor turnover — Rear tractor turn-over diagram

This is the type of tractor accident that causes most tractor related fatalities. Causes are usually several happening at one time. Rear axle torque along with shifts in center of gravity are the main factors. Jumping tractors out of mud holes and frozen ground also result in rear overturns. Safety experts suggest using another tractor to pull you out rather than to risk the backwards over turn.

In 1957, Ford produced the Fordson Dexta. The Dexta model was a relatively smaller tractor and it’s creation was aimed at competing with Massey Ferguson’s 35 model. These were built in both gas and diesel models. In the U.S., the model was sold as the Dexta 2000. This included a 52 inch width narrow model, an industrial model and from Germany a Dexta Special. The tractors offered a 3 cylinder diesel or 4 cylinder gasoline engines putting out 32 HP.

Beginning in 1964, all tractors that Ford Motor Company sold were sold under the “Ford” name. This included all tractors in the U.S. and abroad. Most farm historians contend that the first basic Fordson design as being the model used to design more modern tractors for decades later.

Another AutoMuseumOnline article and photos you’ll be interested in is the vintage 1929 Ford Model A automobile.

(1920 Fordson photo from author’s private collection. Remainder of photos and images from the public domain)

1939 Chevy / Master Deluxe Business Coupe

The 1939 Chevy is a top collector’s car. This vintage automobile can be seen at auto museums and at car club shows throughout the U.S.

One of the significant changes seen on the 1939 Chevrolet Master Series JB’s included a longer hood. The headlights also sat atop the front fenders. Many though the the new fender and grill design of the 1939 models gave it a look similar to the Cadillac of it’s time. By means of its 1939 production line, Chevrolet truly attempted to attract the business class buyer. The model offered luxurious and top-of-the-line designs and accessories. The 1939 Chevy JA and JB models both met with excellent sales success.

Chevrolet advertising for the 1939 models was aggressive in offering you the highest trade-in value for your current car, speedy delivery by placing priority for all advance orders and stating that your early purchase will allow you the time for “breaking it in” before winter weather arrives“. The ads go on with the new advancements available with the 39 Chevys and higher quality at lower prices.

Another advance ad states that the new 1939 Chevy is the biggest and most beautiful Chevrolet ever built. Chevrolet offered it’s new car buyer a free 1,000 check up and tune up. The service offered at 1,000 mile was considered a final adjustment to the vehicle. Chevrolet service during 1939 included having the owner lubricate the chassis every 1,000 miles and have the car taken in for tightening of bolts, etc every 5,000 miles as well as a transmission and rear axle flush plus tune up at 5,000 mile intervals.

1939 chevrolet master business deluxe — Rear view of the 1939 Cevrolet Master Deluxe

During the same 1939 model year promotion, Ford Motor Company advertising pushed “better engineering” very hard along with the economy of offering either a 60 HP or 85 HP V-8 engine. Ford said they were selling a higher quality automobile in the lower price category. Ford’s used the slogan in 39 as “The quality car in the low-priced field”. Both Chevrolet and Ford were making the same claims.

1939 chevy coupe — New front grille on the 39 Chevrolet

Another big change with the 1939 Chevrolet had to do with the car’s suspension design. The 1939’s were built with coil springs and wishbones as opposed to the Dubonnet type Knee Action suspension design although this option was seen only with the Master Deluxe series which is the model shown in this article. There was also a vacuum assisted, column-mounted gearshift that reportedly helped ease gear changing. The transmission was a rear three speed. The car was built with a 6 cylinder, 216.5 cubic inch, 3.5L cast iron block engine that produced 85 HP. The wheel base was 112.25 inches. The Business Coupe was a two passenger, five window design with luggage compartments in the rear body and rear deck.

1939 chevy coupe interior — 1939 Chevrolet interior with newly designed dashboard

The 1939 Chevy Master Deluxe had a weight between 2,845 – 3,060 pounds and a price range between about $680 to $850 depending on options added. Based on what the car had to offer the buying public, the price tag was good.

There was a bit over 386,000 units built. About 33,800 Business Coupes were produced in 1939. During the same model year about 20,900 Sports Coupes were built.

There were two series of the Chevy 1939 Deluxe produced. This was the JA and the JB series. The diffference with the JA’s were that they were somewhat more fancier and had a higher price tag. A lot of the equipment that was optional on the JB’s were standard with the JA’s. The two models were essentially the same in bodies, engines, transmissions,clutches, brakes and rear axles.

See the AutoMuseumOnline articles on the links below…

The 1939 Ford Deluxe Convertible Coupe

The 1937 Ford Club Coupe

The 1939 Model year was a good one for Chevrolet and the Master Deluxe series sold very well. The car is a top collector’s pick and some of the restorations done have been great.