Buick
Buick is a division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors. It has the distinction of being among the first American marques of automobiles, was the company that established General Motors in 1908. Before the establishment of General Motors, GM founder William C. Durant had served as Buick's general manager and major investor. Buick has the distinction of being the first production automobile maker in the world to equip its cars with overhead valve engines, which it did in 1904. For much of its existence in the North American market, Buick has been marketed as a premium automobile brand, selling large and luxury vehicles positioned above GM's mainstream brands, while below the flagship luxury Cadillac division. In addition to wealthier buyers, Buick has had a reputation of appealing to older buyers. In 2015, Buick sold a record for the brand; the main market is China. Buicks are sold in the United States and Mexico. Buick is one of the oldest automobile brands in the world and the oldest in the United States..
The first two Buick automobiles were made in 1899 and 1900 at the "Buick Auto-Vim and Power Company" by chief-engineer Walter Marr, but company owner David Dunbar Buick was reluctant to begin making automobiles, being satisfied with stationary and marine engine production, so Marr left Buick in 1901 to found his own automobile company under his own name. His replacement was Eugene Richard, who applied for a patent in 1902 for Marr's valve-in-head engine, which patent, number 771,095, was awarded to Richard in the name of Buick in 1904. In 1903, the third Buick automobile was made, this time by Richard, but in 1904 Buick, whose company was now called "Buick Motor Company", moved to Flint and Richard stayed behind. Marr was rehired in Flint as chief engineer; that year, 37 Buick automobiles were made, production increasing to 750 in 1905, 1,400 in 1906, 4,641 in 1907, 8,800 in 1908, taking the number one spot away from close competitors Oldsmobile and Maxwell. David Buick incorporated his company as the Buick Motor Company on May 19, 1903, in Detroit, Michigan.
Buick had been financed by friend and fellow automobile enthusiast, Benjamin Briscoe, who in September, 1903 sold control of the business to James H. Whiting, of Flint Wagon Works, in Flint, Michigan. Whiting moved Buick to Flint that summer, to a location across the street from his factory, with the idea of adding Buick's engines to his wagons. David Buick stayed on as a manager, re-hired Walter Marr as chief engineer; the engine Buick and Marr developed for this automobile was a two-cylinder valve-in-head engine of 159 cubic inches, with each cylinder horizontal and opposed to the other by 180 degrees. Whiting built only a few automobiles in 1904, by bringing Buick engines across the street where his workers shoehorned them into his wagons, before running out of capital, causing him to bring in William C. Durant that year as controlling investor. Durant spent the next four years turning Buick into the biggest-selling automobile brand in the US. Durant was co-owner in Flint, with Josiah Dallas Dort, of the Durant-Dort Carriage Company, the largest carriage-making company in the country and one of the largest in the world.
Durant moved most production to the former Durant-Dort Imperial Wheel plant in Jackson, Michigan in 1905. Buick continued car production in Jackson through 1907; the Jackson plant continued production with Buick trucks through 1912. David Buick sold his stock upon departure in 1906, died in modest circumstances 25 years later. In 1907, Durant agreed to supply motors to R. S. McLaughlin in Canada, an auto maker, in 1908 he founded General Motors. Between 1899 and 1902, two prototype vehicles were built in Detroit, Michigan by Walter Lorenzo Marr; some documentation exists of the 1901 or 1902 prototype with tiller steering similar to the Oldsmobile Curved Dash. In mid-1904, another prototype was constructed for an endurance run, which convinced Whiting to authorize production of the first models offered to the public; the architecture of this prototype was the basis for the Model B. The first Buick made for sale, the 1904 Model B, was built in Flint, Michigan at a re-purposed factory, known as the Flint Wagon Works.
There were 37 Buicks made that none of which survive. There are, two replicas in existence: the 1904 endurance car, at the Buick Gallery & Research Center in Flint, a Model B assembled by an enthusiast in California for the division's 100th anniversary. Both of these vehicles use various parts from Buicks of that early era, as well as fabricated parts; these vehicles were each constructed with the two known surviving 1904 engines. The early success of Buick is attributed to what they called the valve-in-head engine, now known as the overhead valve, engine patented by Eugene Richard and developed by Richard and Marr; the Model F weighed 1,800 lbs. The creation of General Motors is attributed in part to the success of Buick, so it can be said Marr and Richard's designs directly led to GM; the power tr
Cadillac Series 70
The Cadillac Series 70 is a full-size V8-powered series of cars that were produced by Cadillac from the 1930s to the 1980s. It replaced the 1935 355E as the company's mainstream car just as the much less expensive Series 60 was introduced; the Series 72 and 67 were similar to the Series 75 but the 72 and 67 were produced on a shorter and longer wheelbase respectively. The Series 72 was only produced in 1940 and the Series 67 was only produced in 1941 and 1942. For much of the postwar era, it was the top-of-the-line Cadillac, was Cadillac's factory-built limousine offering. Production of the short wheelbase Series 70 ceased in 1938, but reappeared as the expensive Series 70 Eldorado Brougham 4-door hardtop from 1957 to 1958, while the long wheelbase Series 75 made a final appearance in the 1987 model year; the 1936 Series 70 and 75 both had v-shaped windshield styles by Fleetwood. A narrower radiator shell was supported by the new louver style "Convex vee" grill. Headlights were mounted on the radiator shell.
Parking lights were inside the headlights. Front fenders were new with a crease along the center line; the cowl vent was changed back to opening forward. There were built-in trunks on town cars and 4-door convertibles. Coupes and 2-door convertibles had rumble seats plus a separate door for the spare tire at the extreme rear of the deck. All bodies now utilized the Fisher Turret Top; the Series 70 and 75 were powered by the new 346 cu in Monobloc V8, This 135 hp engine was both less expensive and more powerful, the stylish body by Fleetwood should have made the Series 70 and 75 an instant hit. However, the high price limited their appeal in the Great Depression era. Only 5,248 were sold for 1936. In 1937 bodies were the same except for drip moldings running from the bottom of the front pillar up and over the doors and rear quarter window, new fenders and bumpers, headlights rigidly attached, wheel discs incorporated a hubcap, a built-in trunk was incorporated on most bodies. A die-cast eggcrate grille was used, but the hood louver treatment differed from that used in Fisher bodied cars.
Chrome die. A seven-passenger Fisher-bodied Special touring sedan, without a division window was offered on the 138.0 in wheelbase. These two body styles had the eggcrate hood louvers typical of all Fisher bodied Cadillacs for 1937; the Business car line included eight-passenger versions of these Special sedans plus eight-passenger versions of Fleetwood body styles. The eighth passenger was seated with two others on auxiliary seats. A commercial chassis on a 156.0 in wheelbase was offered. Engine changes included a lighter flywheel, a generator relocated in the vee, an oil filter, a new carburetor with full automatic electric choke, an oil bath cleaner, a relocated distributor. A new transmission design featured pin-type synchronizers, shifter rails relocated to the side of the case, a cover on the bottom of the case, an extension integral with the transmission mainshaft. Sales totaled 4,332. For 1938 the Series 70 and Fisher-bodied Series 75 Specials were dropped; the Series 75 used a 141 in wheelbase and now only offered bodies by Fleetwood.
In 1938 the Cadillac Series 65 and the Series 75 shared a new front end style featuring a massive vertical cellular grille, three sets of horizontal bars on the hood sides, alligator hood, headlights on the filler space between the fenders and the hood. Optional sidemount covers were hinged to the fenders. Quarter windows were of sliding rather than hinged construction; the rear of the body had rounder corners and more smoothly blended lines. Trunks had more of an appearance of being an integral part of the body. Bodies were all steel except for wooden main sills. New chassis details included a column gear shift, horns just behind the grille, battery under the right hand side of the hood, transverse muffler just behind the fuel tank, wheels by a different manufacturer, "Synchro-Flex" flywheel, hypoid rear axle and the deletion of the oil filter. All Cadillacs shared the same 346 in³ L-head V8, although the 75 generated 140 hp instead of 135 hp like the rest of the line thanks to a higher 6.70:1 compression ratio, necessitating the use of higher octane fuel.
For 1939, all Cadillac V8s had new grille styling. The pointed center grille and the functional side grilles were die-cast, with finepitch bars. A single die-cast louver was positioned to the rear of each hood side panel. Headlights were once again attached to the radiator casing. Chassis changes included: tube and fin radiator core. In 1940 the one year only Series 72 was introduced as a less expensive companion to the Series 75. 1940 was the final year for the optional sidemounts. Sealed beam headlights were standard equipment; the engine manifold was set at five degrees to the engine to cancel the rearward tilt of the engine and give balanced distribution. The Series 72 had the same general appearance as the Series 75 but it was three inches shorter and set apart by rectangular taillights set high on the sides of the trunk. Recirculating ball steering was tried on Series 72 in 1940, to be adopted on all series in 1941. Like the Series 75 it rode on a 138 in wheelbase. For 1941, the wheelbase was reduced to 136 in, though power on the 346 cu in L-head V8 engine was up to 150 hp.
The one piece hood came down lower in the front, included the side panels and extended sideways to the fenders. A single rectangular panel of louver trim was used on each side of the hood. T
Bentley
Bentley Motors Limited is a British manufacturer and marketer of luxury cars and SUVs—and a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group since 1998. Headquartered in Crewe, the company was founded as Bentley Motors Limited by W. O. Bentley in 1919 in Cricklewood, North London—and became known for winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1924, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1930, 2003. Prominent models extend from the historic sports-racing Bentley 4 1/2 Bentley Speed Six. Today most Bentleys are assembled at the company's Crewe factory, with a small number assembled at Volkswagen's Dresden factory and with bodies for the Continental manufactured in Zwickau and for the Bentayga manufactured at the Volkswagen Bratislava Plant; the joining and eventual separation of Bentley and Rolls-Royce followed a series of mergers and acquisitions, beginning with the 1931 purchase by Rolls-Royce of Bentley in receivership. In 1971, Rolls-Royce itself was forced into receivership and the UK government nationalised the company—splitting into two companies the aerospace division and automotive divisions—the latter retaining the Bentley subdivision.
Rolls-Royce Motors was subsequently sold to engineering conglomerate, Vickers and in 1998, Vickers sold Rolls-Royce to Volkswagen AG. Intellectual property rights to both the name Rolls-Royce as well as the company's logo had been retained not by Rolls-Royce Motors, but by aerospace company, Rolls-Royce Plc, which had continued to license both to the automotive division, thus the sale of "Rolls-Royce" to VW included the Bentley name and logos, vehicle designs, model nameplates and administrative facilities, the Spirit of Ecstasy and Rolls-Royce grille shape trademarks —but not the rights to the Rolls-Royce name or logo. The aerospace company, Rolls-Royce Plc sold both to BMW AG. Before World War I, Walter Owen Bentley and his brother, Horace Millner Bentley, sold French DFP cars in Cricklewood, North London, but W. O, as Walter was known, always wanted to build his own cars. At the DFP factory, in 1913, he noticed an aluminium paperweight and thought that aluminium might be a suitable replacement for cast iron to fabricate lighter pistons.
The first Bentley aluminium pistons were fitted to Sopwith Camel aero engines during World War I. In August 1919, W. O. registered Bentley Motors Ltd. and in October he exhibited a car chassis, with dummy engine, at the London Motor Show. Ex–Royal Flying Corps officer Clive Gallop designed an innovative four valves per cylinder engine for the chassis. By December the engine was running. Delivery of the first cars was scheduled for June 1920, but development took longer than estimated so the date was extended to September 1921; the durability of the first Bentley cars earned widespread acclaim and they competed in hill climbs and raced at Brooklands. Bentley's first major event was the 1922 Indianapolis 500, a race dominated by specialized cars with Duesenberg racing chassis, they entered a modified road car driven by works driver, Douglas Hawkes, accompanied by riding mechanic, H. S. "Bertie" Browning. Hawkes completed the full 500 miles and finished 13th with an average speed of 74.95 miles per hour after starting in 19th position.
The team was rushed back to England to compete in the 1922 RAC Tourist Trophy. In an ironic reference to his heavyweight boxer's stature, Captain Woolf Barnato was nicknamed "Babe". In 1925, he acquired a 3-litre. With this car he won numerous Brooklands races. Just a year he acquired the Bentley business itself; the Bentley enterprise was always underfunded, but inspired by the 1924 Le Mans win by John Duff and Frank Clement, Barnato agreed to finance Bentley's business. Barnato had incorporated Baromans Ltd in 1922, which existed as his investment vehicle. Via Baromans, Barnato invested in excess of £100,000, saving the business and its workforce. A financial reorganisation of the original Bentley company was carried out and all existing creditors paid off for £75,000. Existing shares were devalued from £ 1 each to 5 % or their original value. Barnato held 149,500 of the new shares giving him control of the company and he became chairman. Barnato injected further cash into the business: £35,000 secured by debenture in July 1927.
With renewed financial input, W. O. Bentley was able to design another generation of cars; the Bentley Boys were a group of British motoring enthusiasts that included Barnato, Sir Henry "Tim" Birkin, steeple chaser George Duller, aviator Glen Kidston, automotive journalist S. C. H. "Sammy" Davis, Dudley Benjafield. The Bentley Boys favoured Bentley cars. Many were independently wealthy and many had a military background, they kept the marque's reputation for high performance alive. In 1929, Birkin developed the 4½-litre, lightweight Blower Bentley at Welwyn Garden City and produced five racing specials, starting with Bentley Blower No.1, optimised for the Brooklands racing circuit. Birkin overruled Bentley and put the model on the market before it was developed; as a result, it was unreliable. In March 1930, during the Blue Train Races, Barnato raised the stakes on Rover and its Rover Light Six, having raced and beaten Le Train Bleu for the first time, to better that record with his 6½-litre Bentley Speed Six on a bet o
Chrysler
Chrysler is one of the "Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The original Chrysler Corporation was founded in 1925 by Walter Chrysler from the remains of the Maxwell Motor Company. In 1998, it was acquired by Daimler-Benz, the holding company was renamed DaimlerChrysler. After Daimler divested Chrysler in 2007, the company existed as Chrysler LLC and Chrysler Group LLC before merging in 2014 with Fiat S.p. A. and becoming a subsidiary of its successor Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. In addition to the Chrysler brand, FCA sells vehicles worldwide under the Dodge and Ram nameplates. Furthermore, the subsidiary includes Mopar, its automotive parts and accessories division, SRT, its performance automobile division. After founding the company, Walter Chrysler used the General Motors brand diversification and hierarchy strategy that he had seen working for Buick, acquired Fargo Trucks and Dodge Brothers, created the Plymouth and DeSoto brands in 1928.
Facing postwar declines in market share and profitability, as GM and Ford were growing, Chrysler borrowed $250 million in 1954 from Prudential Insurance to pay for expansion and updated car designs. Chrysler expanded into Europe by taking control of French and Spanish auto companies in the 1960s; the company struggled to adapt to changing markets, increased U. S. import competition, safety and environmental regulation in the 1970s. It began an engineering partnership with Mitsubishi Motors, began selling Mitsubishi vehicles branded as Dodge and Plymouth in North America. On the verge of bankruptcy in the late 1970s, it was saved by $1.5 billion in loan guarantees from the U. S. government. New CEO Lee Iacocca was credited with returning the company to profitability in the 1980s. In 1985, Diamond-Star Motors was created. In 1987, Chrysler acquired American Motors Corporation, which brought the profitable Jeep brand under the Chrysler umbrella. In 1998, Chrysler merged with German automaker Daimler-Benz to form DaimlerChrysler AG.
As a result, Chrysler was sold to Cerberus Capital Management and renamed Chrysler LLC in 2007. Like the other Big Three automobile manufacturers, Chrysler was impacted by the automotive industry crisis of 2008–2010; the company remained in business through a combination of negotiations with creditors, filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization on April 30, 2009, participating in a bailout from the U. S. government through the Troubled Asset Relief Program. On June 10, 2009, Chrysler emerged from the bankruptcy proceedings with the United Auto Workers pension fund, Fiat S.p. A. and the U. S. and Canadian governments as principal owners. The bankruptcy resulted in Chrysler defaulting on over $4 billion in debts. By May 24, 2011, Chrysler finished repaying its obligations to the U. S. government five years early, although the cost to the American taxpayer was $1.3 billion. Over the next few years, Fiat acquired the other parties' shares while removing much of the weight of the loans in a short period.
On January 1, 2014, Fiat S.p. A announced a deal to purchase the rest of Chrysler from the United Auto Workers retiree health trust; the deal was completed on January 2014, making Chrysler Group a subsidiary of Fiat S.p.. A. In May 2014, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles was established by merging Fiat S.p. A. into the company. This was completed in August 2014. Chrysler Group LLC remained a subsidiary until December 15, 2014, when it was renamed FCA US LLC, to reflect the Fiat-Chrysler merger; the Chrysler company was founded by Walter Chrysler on June 6, 1925, when the Maxwell Motor Company was re-organized into the Chrysler Corporation. Chrysler had arrived at the ailing Maxwell-Chalmers company in the early 1920s, hired to overhaul the company's troubled operations. In late 1923 production of the Chalmers automobile was ended. In January 1924, Walter Chrysler launched the well-received Chrysler automobile; the 6-cylinder Chrysler was designed to provide customers with an advanced, well-engineered car, was an automobile at an affordable price.
Elements of this car are traceable to a prototype, under development at Willys during Chrysler's tenure The original 1924 Chrysler included a carburetor air filter, high compression engine, full pressure lubrication, an oil filter, features absent from most autos at the time. Among the innovations in its early years were the first practical mass-produced four-wheel hydraulic brakes, a system nearly engineered by Chrysler with patents assigned to Lockheed, rubber engine mounts to reduce vibration. Chrysler developed a wheel with a ridged rim, designed to keep a deflated tire from flying off the wheel; this wheel was adopted by the auto industry worldwide. The Maxwell brand was dropped after the 1925 model year, with the new, lower-priced four-cylinder Chryslers introduced for the 1926 year being badge-engineered Maxwells; the advanced engineering and testing that went into Chrysler Corporation cars helped to push the company to the second-place position in U. S. sales by 1936, which it held until 1949.
In 1928, the Chrysler Corporation began dividing its vehicle offerings by price function. The Plymouth brand was introduced at the low-priced end of the market. At the same time, the DeSoto brand was introduced in the medium-price field. In 1928, Chrysler bought the Dodge Brothers automobile and
Franklin (automobile)
Franklin Automobile Company was a Syracuse, New York marketer of automobiles in the United States between 1906 and 1934. Controlled by Herbert H Franklin it had few other significant shareholders. Franklin bought its vehicles from their manufacturer, H. H. Franklin Manufacturing Company, only moderately profitable and missed dividends on common stock; the two major characteristics of their automobiles were their air-cooled engines and in the early years their lightness and responsiveness when compared with other luxury cars. The Franklin companies suffered financial collapse in April 1934. Aside from his consequent retirement CEO Herbert Franklin's lifestyle was unaffected. Throughout its history, Franklin was a luxury brand and competed with other upscale automobiles of the day; as such, it fell victim to the Great Depression along with many luxury car manufacturers. The company sold about 150,000 cars over the course of more than 30 years in existence. Herbert H. Franklin founded H. H. Franklin Manufacturing Company in 1893 and, in 1901, teamed up with engineer John Wilkinson to develop an air-cooled engine.
In 1902, the Franklin automobile was introduced. Because he was the primary investor, Franklin assumed control of the company, named the auto manufacturing division Franklin Automobile Company; as president, he managed business administration. Wilkinson was named chief engineer and granted control of the engineering and manufacturing operation. "In many years" H. H. Franklin Manufacturing Company "earned only a modest profit and failed to pay dividends on common stock"; the Franklin motor car engine was invented by the engineer John Wilkinson and manufactured by the industrialist Herbert H. Franklin and marketed under his name. Franklin worked as a newspaper publisher, real estate agent and Columbia Bicycle shop owner in Coxsackie, New York. After he quit the publishing business in 1893, he relocated to New York. Herbert Franklin became interested in die casting when an employee of a valve company he had helped to bring to Coxsackie was experimenting with a "hydrostatic moulding process" known as die-casting.
Franklin was presented with an opportunity to buy a patent for the process of die-casting and he jumped at the chance. He predicted that "we are developing a process that will revolutionize the metal manufacturing business."By 1893 the money he earned from his many enterprises in Coxsackie supported him for a year and helped him launch the H. H. Franklin Manufacturing Company, the first machine die-casting enterprise in the world; the company was incorporated on December 12, 1895. The die-casting business was split into a subsidiary called Franklin Die-Casting Corp. In 1926 H. H. Franklin Manufacturing Company reabsorbed the die-casting subsidiary and it went under when the parent company failed. John Wilkinson was born on February 11, 1868, he was a member of one of the city's prominent families. His grandfather, John Wilkinson, Sr. was one of the original settlers in Syracuse. As a young man, Wilkinson Sr. took inspiration from a poem about an ancient city and named the new village Syracuse.
He was an early city planner and laid out and named the village streets. Wilkinson was described as "rugged, good-natured and athletic" and attended Cornell University, where he starred in baseball and football and managed to finish his coursework with honors, he earned a degree in mechanical engineering in 1889 and found a job with a local manufacturer of bicycles — a mode of transportation much in vogue. He went on to become a champion cyclist while developing a keen interest in the inner-workings of internal combustion engines and motor cars. Before he met Herbert Franklin, Wilkinson built two prototype vehicles. In the summer of 1898 he tinkered with a one-cylinder air-cooled gasoline engine and by January 1, 1900, demonstrated his first automobile. Though Wilkinson's designs caught the attention of a group of New York businessmen, they failed to put Wilkinson's car into production. One day while visiting the C. E. Lipe Machine Shop, where the H. H. Franklin Manufacturing Company die-casting business was located, a member of the group introduced Wilkinson to Herbert H. Franklin, who took a ride in Wilkinson's second prototype.
Franklin was impressed and discussed the idea with Alexander T. Brown, one of the members of the New York Automobile Club. Between them it was agreed that Wilkinson should start anew. Brown and Franklin invested $1,100 so that Wilkinson could build a third prototype, which went on to become Franklin's first production model. Wilkinson signed a formal contract with Franklin to go into business with him producing air-cooled automobiles on July 1, 1901. Alexander T. Brown and Herbert H. Franklin combined efforts and created a startup they named "Brown and Franklin" to commence building and promotion of the Franklin automobile; the initial work of the business was financed by both men. "So great was Franklin's faith in the proposition, that he borrowed every cent of the money." The original staff consisted of seven people. "In one corner, with a drafting board in front of him, sat John Wilkinson and the bookkeeper, the stenographer and others were at desks and tables. Back in the original machine shop were two mechanics.
These two men were building the first car. For two months they had worked shaping up this part and shaping up that, until the day came when they had a complete car." Brown and Franklin was absorbed by the H. H. Franklin Manufacturing Company; the company's first home was a four-story building at the northeast corner of West Fayette and South Geddes streets, leased from the Brown Lipe Gear Company
Preservation and restoration of automobiles
The preservation and restoration of automobiles is the mechanical or cosmetic repair of cars. For example, the guidelines of the Antique Automobile Club of America are to "evaluate an antique vehicle, restored to the same state as the dealer could have prepared the vehicle for delivery to the customer."Restoration means removing, replacing, or repairing the parts of a vehicle, while preservation means keeping the original components. Though automotive restoration is defined as the reconditioning of a vehicle "from original condition in an effort to return it to like-new or better condition," There are many styles of which a vehicle can be restored, any of which can be performed at the discretion, desire, or taste of a vehicle owner or restorer. Traditional restoration is characterized as returning a vehicle back to its original condition or better "in an effort to return it to like-new or better condition... can be refurbished using either original or reproduction parts and techniques." Traditional restorations can be performed with a focus to restore or to preserve as many original components as possible throughout the course of the restoration.
Steve Segal and restorer of a 1972 Pontiac Trans Am 455 H. O. explains the differences between the two methods when describing his project in a High Performance Pontiac magazine article: "'This was not a restoration in the traditional sense of diagnose and disassemble and tag all part so you know where they go, if possible take a posture before you remove the part and put it in the part bag, strip them, sanitize them, fix them, repaint them, put them all back together,' he says.'It was a restoration with a preservation focus. It was done from an archaeological perspective; the ultimate goal was to put forth the maximum effort toward uncovering, referencing and preserving any and all existing components and finishes.'"Muscle Car Restorations of Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin took a similar approach when performing the restoration of a 1969 Ford Mustang Boss 429 described in an article series published in Car Craft Magazine. So much so that the decision was made to preserve as much of it as possible rather than to just tear it down, strip it, start from scratch."
These levels of preservation of originality within antique vehicle restorations has proven to accrue more value than some restored vehicles at auction in recent years. The process of restoring some rare antique vehicles back to their overall original showroom floor condition has become difficult over time due to the diminishing of resources and tools; some parts may not be available to replace or to imitate via fabrication for some rare and antique vehicle unless proper research is performed. This is one reason why preservation has become such a primary objective in many restorations of rare antique vehicles, in order to preserve the historical aspects of the vehicle, its components, the processes of its original assembly. Resto-modification known as resto-modding, is when "you take an old car and modernize it with an updated engine, brakes and electronics, and if you resto-mod the right way, you can revert back to stock at any time." Stock is "A vehicle that has not been modified and is in the same configuration as it came from the factory."
Various reasons for performing resto-modifications on vintage cars may include the owner's desire to have either modern conveniences, improvements in vehicle safety or reliability, and/or improvements in street or track-driving performance. Resto-modifications for modern convenience and safety may include adding features such as air conditioning, power windows, power steering, power brakes, seatbelts, or radio/stereo systems that may have not come installed on a vehicle at the time it was produced. An example of resto-modding is a 1970 Ford Torino Brougham 429 Cobra Jet owned and resto-modded by Kevin Young, published by Car Craft magazine. "…Young noticed some unusual valvetrain noise. While it turns out a set of lifters would've cured the problem, in the best hot rodder tradition, Young saw it as an opportunity to tear down the motor and build something better; the goal was a reliable, street-friendly, pump-gas engine, capable of easy 12s on street tires, all the while retaining a factory restored appearance—including iron intake and exhaust manifolds."
Young accomplished this by doing a performance rebuild of the original engine and modifying the original differential, while preserving and/or restoring much of the car's other original components. According to Young, many enthusiasts were displeased with him and felt that his modifications compromised the originality of the rare car, being one of three built like it. Though many enthusiasts within the auto restoration and preservation community feel this way about resto-modding, many others endorse it, such as TV personality and car collector Jay Leno: "Some purists object to changing or modifying these old cars. I look at it this way: If it makes the car better, more reliable and faster—and you can change it back to stock whenever you want—why not do it." A replica, re-creation, or tribute, is "A vehicle, modified to appear like another car or truck or like a more desirable version of that same vehicle." Replica restorations are performed by enthusiasts who want to imitate specific rare or famous vehicles, such as one from a particular movie or TV show.
One such example is Trey Gee and his 1970 Pontiac LeMans published in High-Performance Pontiac magazine, restored to replicate a much rarer Pontiac GTO Judge of the same year, a car which has recorded "auction sale prices at well over $300,000." Tr
Delahaye
Delahaye automobile was an automotive manufacturing company founded by Émile Delahaye in 1894, in Tours, his home town. His first cars were belt-driven, with single- or twin-cylinder engines mounted at the rear, his Type One was an instant success, he urgently needed investment capital and a larger manufacturing facility. Both were provided by a new Delahaye owner and fellow racer, George Morane, his brother-in-law Leon Desmarais, who partnered with Émile in the incorporation of the new automotive company, "Societe Des Automobiles Delahaye", in 1898. All three worked with the foundry workers to assemble the new machines, but middle-aged Émile was not in good health. In January 1901, he found himself unable to capably continue, resigned, selling his shares to his two equal partners. Émile Delahaye died soon after, in 1905. Delahaye had hired two instrumental men, Charles Weiffenbach and Amédée Varlet in 1898, to assist the three partners. Both were graduate mechanical engineers, they remained with Delahaye their entire working careers.
Weiffenbach was appointed Manager of Operations, with the blessing of both George Morane and Leon Desmarais, assumed control over all of Delahaye's operations and much of its decision-making, in 1906. Amédée Varlet was the company's design-engineer, with a number of innovative inventions to his credit, generated between 1905 and 1914, which Delahaye patented; these included the twin-cam multi-valve engine, the V6 configuration. Varlet continued in this role until he took over the Drawing Office, at 76 years of age, when much younger Jean François was hired in 1932 as chief design-engineer. In 1932, Varlet was instructed by Weiffenbach, under direction from majority shareholder Madame Desmarais, Leon Desmarais' widow, to set up the company's Racing Department, assisted by Jean François; those who knew him well at the factory affectionately referred to Charles Weiffenbach as "Monsieur Charles". Delahaye began experimenting with belt-driven cars while manager of the Brethon Foundry and Machine-works in Tours, in 1894.
These experiments encouraged an entry in the 1896 Paris–Marseille–Paris race, held between 24 September-3 October 1896, fielding one car for himself and one for sportsman Ernest Archdeacon. The winning Panhard averaged 15.7 mph. For the 1897 Paris-Dieppe, the 6 hp four-cylinder Delahayes ran in four- and six-seater classes, with a full complement of passengers. Archdeacon was third in the four-seaters behind a De Dion-Bouton and a Panhard, Courtois winning the six-seater class, ahead of the only other car in the class. In March 1898, 6 hp the Delahayes of Georges Morane and Courtois came sixteenth and twenty-eighth at the Marseilles-Nice rally, while at the Course de Perigeux in May, De Solages finished sixth in a field of ten; the July Paris-Amsterdam-Paris earned. Soon after the new company was formed in 1898, the firm moved its manufacturing from Tours to Paris, into its new factory. Charles Weiffenbach was named Operations Manager. Delahaye would produce three models there, until the close of the 19th century: two twins, the 2.2-litre 4.5 hp Type 1 and 6 hp Type 2, the lighter Type 0, with a 1.4-liter single rated between 5 and 7 hp.
All three had bicycle-style steering, water-cooled engines mounted in the rear, automatic valves, surface carburetors, trembler coil ignition. In 1899, Archdeacon piloted an 8 hp racer in the Nice-Castellane-Nice rally, coming eighth, while teammate Buissot's 8 hp was twelfth. Founder Émile Delahaye retired in 1901, leaving Morane in control. Delahaye's racing days were over with Émile Delahaye's death. Charles Weiffenbach had no interest in racing, focused his production on responsible motorized automotive chassis, heavy commercial vehicles, early firetrucks for the French government. Race-cars had become a thing of the past for Delahaye, until 1933, when Madame Desmarais caused her company to change direction 180 degrees, return to racing; the new 10B debuted in 1902. It had a 2,199 cc vertical twin rated 12/14 hp by RAC, mounted in front, with removable cylinder head, steering wheel, chain drive. Delahaye entered the Paris-Vienna rally with a 16 hp four. At the same year's Ardennes event, Perrin's 16 hp four came tenth.
In 1902, the singles and twins ceased to be offered except as light vans. Delahaye's first production four, the Type 13B, with 24/27 hp 4.4-litre, appeared in 1903. The model range expanded in 1904, including the 4.9-litre 28 hp four-cylinder Type 21, the mid-priced Type 16, the two-cylinder Type 15B. These were joined in 1905 by a chain-driven 8-litre luxury model, one of, purchased by King Alfonso XIII of Spain. All 1907 models featured half-elliptic springs at the rear as well as transverse leaf springs, while shaft drive appeared that year, chain drive was retained on luxury models until 1911. In 1908, the Type 32 was the company's first to offer an L-head monoblock engine. Protos began licence production of Delahayes in G
