Engineering:Chrysler B-70
| Chrysler B-70 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Chrysler |
| Production | 1924–1925 |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Mid-size car |
| Body style | 2-door coupe 2-door roadster |
| Chronology | |
| Successor | Chrysler G-70 |
The Chrysler B-70 is a mid-size car that was the first car produced by Chrysler from 1924 to 1925. It was the first model produced under the Chrysler brand. It replaced the cars of Maxwell, whose brand was bought by Walter Chrysler in 1921.
History
Development of the B-70 began as early as 1919 for Willys Corporation, a holding company owned by John Willys, independent of the Willys-Overland Organization.
The vehicle was originally intended to be launched as Willys Six. Three former Studebaker engineers were responsible for the design, Fred Zeder, Owen Skelton and Carl Breer.
When the Willys Corporation went bankrupt in 1919, William C. Durant acquired their modern factory in Elizabeth, New Jersey, including several prototypes, including the Willys Six, after a bidding war against Walter Chrysler (who was only interested in the Willys Six). For his new company, he needed a bigger, more luxurious vehicle with which to compete against Buick. This is how the Flint Six was born. Zeder, Skelton and Breer did not agree at all with the new concept, especially since many of their innovative ideas had been highlighted. Chrysler brought the three to Chalmers, where they resumed development from mid-1923 at the point at which it had been interrupted by Durant. In January 1924, the finished product was ceremoniously presented to the public as the Chrysler B-70 in the Hotel Commodore on the occasion of the New York Auto Show.
Nine different bodies (from Fisher Body Co.) were offered in the first year of production. The open cars initially had horizontally split windshields. The success was sensational: 32,000 cars had been sold by the end of 1924, a new record for the introduction of a new model.[1] With the introduction of the B-70, the production of the Chalmers was stopped.[2]
The cars with the high-performance engines reached a top speed of 70 to 75 mph (112 to 120 km/h), only about 5 mph less than the Packard Single Eight with its 8-cylinder engine. Ralph DePalma won the Mt. Wilson hill climb with a car of this type.
In the following year, Maxwell became the Chrysler Corporation.[3] The cars continued to be built almost unchanged, only the split windshield on the open models was replaced by a one-piece, top-hinged version. From mid-1925, Chrysler produced its own bodies.
In 1926, the G-70 model replaced the B-70, of which around 108,600 had been built in two years.
References
- ↑ "How Chalmers (& Maxwell) Became Chrysler". The Chalmers Registry 9 (1): 1–5. https://37328215-5b36-407b-94f1-cf5b1652eeb8.filesusr.com/ugd/b62e41_d32f23741ef747aab69c435a25182ea7.pdf. Retrieved February 2, 2020.
- ↑ Kimes, Beverly Rae; Clark, Henry A. Jr. (1989). Standard Catalog of American Cars 1805-1942 (second edition). Krause Publications. p. 257. ISBN 0-87341-111-0. https://books.google.com/books?id=5b-flfBgbtgC&q=%22salvage+job+at%22+%22Overland,+Walter+Percy+Chrysler%22+%22the+last+Chalmers+were+1924+models%22. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
- ↑ "A Brief Look at Walter P. Chrysler". WPC News. http://www.chryslerclub.org/walterp.html.
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