The best car innovations?

1) 1955 and up Chrysler Hemi - domed combustion chamber and pistons (plug centered)
2) Volvo 4-wheel Disc brake system
3) Early Studebaker Steering and front end center-pivot and 22 grease nipples
4) Tilt and Telescopic steering wheel
5) Turn signals
6) ... N) ??????

Just to get the list going...

 

Studebaker "Wagonaire" sliding roof. Later copied by Chevrolet around 2004.

 

Yeah, That would be easy to do in a Wooden Roof... Teak or Gum-wood rails with bronze rollers on a bronze track.

 

1] Let us not forget CUPHOLDERS!
Even though none of my cars have them.
Seriously, radial tires really improved handling and safety, plus they outlast the old bias ply tires.
Electronic fuel injection allows modern cars to produce more power with less fuel and lower emissions. And its usually trouble free. Win-Win.
And Chrysler usually gets credit for switching from generators to alternators. The world is a brighter place for that.

 

You may have seen this AnyCar rendering, made from who knows how many body parts:



I'm thinking about building a traditonal real woody, here:
http://www.stationwagonforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1353

And incorporating the best of the best, yet maintain some traditional look and features. Like maybe Running Boards (run the lake pipe/exhaust along the outside of the car).

 

Stefan can probably correct me on this, but the Citroen had headlights that moved with the turn of the steering wheel (not full movement, just on major turns (45 to 90 degrees), IIRC. I think Benz had a sport model with them for a while too. (Lots of fog in Europe, peasoup fog, so that system helped keep folks out of bogs and soft muddy holes.) Don't know if I'd do that. My guess is its a vacuum-switched system that kicks in based on the steering column's turning circle.

The other feature I liked about the Citroen was the Air-Jack system. You raised up the wheel by air to change a tire.

 

Idiot lights in the trailing edge of the hood were in one late sixties AMC (Matador, Javelin or Pacer) and that made room for real guages in the dash, but there was one GM that had them in a recess at the windshield in the dash. The thing is that give do give a visual warning, and the guage shows by what measure. That eye-level design struck me as an intelligent use of an idiot lite.

Now that we have solar film battery chargers, there's no need for mechanical exterior door handles or locks. Heck if the rat-rod guys can use coax cables to open their cars from under the fender, this could be a better way to slowdown a guy wanting to carjack your ride!

 

Was Citroen the first with the headlights that turned with the vehicle? or was it The Tucker? Which also had it with a center light and also he has a helicopter engine in the rear,also pop out windshield in case of a accident too bad the Big 3 was able to shut him down.

 

Oh that just opens the door for lots of good lines.

Did you see the movie about Tucker? I did but never recalled if that feature was in it. You're probably right though. I think Citroen really didn't get the DS to market until 1955.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citroën

And Tucker even built the first Hemi:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1948_Tucker_Sedan

 

I'm sure Porsche didn't invent the Roller Bearing Cam and Crank, but it sure made a gorgeous-sounding, responsive engine that could redline at 6,500 and run up to 10,000 RPM. My '55 356B had decent aerodynamics but you'd never get it to full throttle speed past the 3rd gear. In fourth, it would cruise at 110-115 mph. But it got there PDQ!

Today, there's a few aftermarket kits for V6's and some V8's for the cams, but I haven't seen much for the mains and pistons.

The thing is the durability of the engine's inners. Think 200,000 Mile Warranty, in a sportscar.

 

As "King of the Curb-Check's", I have to say that Cornering Lamps are a great innovation. Helps me keep my tires in better shape longer.

Helps with some of the issues that the turning headlights tried to address, but cornering lamps don't help when you're just on a winding road.


"Curb-Check...........still there"

 

I'm going to collect all this info, and then put a 'shopping list' together for when I go junkyard hopping. Then I'll start the planning process.

I was looking at some of the older woodies (real wood) and noticed that the sides don't curve inward to the rocker panels, except for the 1950 Ford wagon. They all have straight sides at the bottom. That means the frame's outriggers or maybe an extra rail could run along the space below the doors. You could attach olde style running boards, exhaust pipes (stainless of course) and do some interesting design stuff. I'll keep an open mind on that Running Board thought. I was impressed with Bonnie and Clyde's rides.

 

Windows.

My father had a 1949 Jeepster and it had side curtains. Very very bad in the rain and freezing weather.

Roofs.

The phaetons where the poor driver didn't even have a roof.

Electric starters thanks to Delco Remy.

Saved many an arm.

Turn signals.

Ever try to indicate anything with your arm in a right hand drive car? Difficult in the modern world where we drive on the correct side of the road.

Automatic spark advance.

Never could master the lever on the steering wheel....

The Day/Nite rear view mirror.

Obvious.

Remote mirror adjust.

Even the right side mirror in the Cougar is a pain. I have to lean all the over to adjust it with the lever. I'm talking about the remote mirror adjusts from a reasonable posture. Electric are best!

Hydraulic valve lifters.

Eliminates the 3-6 thousand mile valve adjustment.

Detergent oil.

No need to drop the oil pan to scrape out the sludge or to shove a wire hangar in the oil drain holes to restore oil flow.

Antifreeze.

Quite obvious. And freeze plugs are not freeze plugs.

Rear window wipers

Strange this took so long.

 

Oh the temptation, when you do these double-spaced.

Anti-freeze. Sends a chill up my spine.

I'm with you one the rear wipers.

I've seen the 'freeze plugs' pop out on overheated engines, never on frozen ones with antifreeze in them, but without... yes!

The RH mirror was offered with a cable-adjuster knob for the FZ models, but I think the Full-size LTD's and the Mercuries had them too, so you could adapt one. They had the same Sail mirrors on some models.

Remember the British Anglias, with the little turn-signal arms that popped out at the B-pillar? The mechanism itself would be ingenious, and probably useful for other uses (driver's back-scratcher or wake-up tickler, whipping the kids in the backseat, depending on which side was acting up. )