About This Quiz
It’s hard to imagine these days, but at the beginning of 1942, the United States ended all consumer automobile production. The factories that had just weeks earlier been cranking out sedans and convertibles were quickly converted to wartime makers of bombs and guns. Once the Allies won World War II, car companies immediately retooled again, reinventing their vehicles to satisfy Americans’ new tastes and booming wealth. This quiz is where the rubber meets the road – do you really know anything about the cars of the 1950s?
It’s been the better part of a century since the Fifties, and back then, cars were very different creatures. They were mostly big, heavy, gas-guzzling contraptions loaded with chrome and wild fixtures like broad tails, big lights and aggressive lines that still seem futuristic in many ways. Do you remember the flashiest and most expensive cars of this decade?
Hot rodders modified many ‘50s cars to make them faster and louder than anything Detroit mass produced. Do recall some of the era’s most powerful beasts?
Ford and Chevy competed to become America’s top manufacturer. Cadillac fussed over high-end details. The New Yorker and Super were fantastic cars. And forgotten companies like Edsel and Studebaker were still on the road, fates uncertain.
Try not to crash and burn as you beer towards the on-ramp of this ‘50s car quiz now!
The Buick Roadmaster Skylark was no ordinary Buick -- it was a decked-out convertible. It had a Nailhead V8 engine and came fully loaded … a fact reflected by the very high price.
It's still one of the mid-20th century's best-known cars -- the Oldsmobile 98. It was the brand's most important model, a top-of-the-line car with all the trimmings.
1959 was the first year of Cadillac's famed DeVille. These big luxury cars were made until 2005.
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Introduced in 1955, the Chevrolet Nomad was a station wagon produced intermittently from '55 to '72. The big car had just two doors.
The Buick Electra was first made starting in 1959. It had funky tail wings at a 45-degree angle -- and paired with its recessed tail lights, it looked a lot like a very angry metal giant from the rear.
In '52, GM created many of its cars with the Autronic Eye. It had a light-sensing phototube that automatically dimmed high beams in response to oncoming traffic.
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From 1928 to 1961, Chrysler made its popular DeSoto cars, including the Firedome, Firelite and Firesweep models. DeSoto cars were eventually ended when Chrysler faced financial troubles in the '60s.
Named for Henry Ford's son, Ford began making Edsel-branded cars in 1958. The cars' strange styling immediately turned off reviews and wound up costing the company heaps of money.
The Mustang sparked the muscle car revolution of the 1960s. The first generation didn't roll off of production lines until 1964.
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In the 1950s, Chevy was tops in sales with more than 13 million cars sold. Ford was nearly neck-and-neck with Chevy, with nearly 13 million sold.
In 1950, GM began equipping many of its cars with the Powerglide, a two-speed automatic transmission. The Powerglide was the industry's affordable automatic transmission for ordinary consumer cars.
In 1957, Chrysler began equipping some of its cars -- like the big New Yorker -- with the TorqueFlite three-speed automatic transmission. The car also had a massive 325 hp engine.
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At a time when cars seemed to get bigger and bigger each year, the Nash Metropolitan was a contrarian. It was a compact car made from '53 to '61.
The Series III featured an elegant chrome woman as its hood ornament. It was easily one of the flashiest hood ornaments of the decade.
In the 1950s, Hudson made a car called the Hornet. This model was known for its low center of gravity, which made it very good for racing.
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Ford scored a hit with its big Thunderbird. Chevy responded with its Corvette -- a car that reviewers initially didn't like.
In the 1950s, Chevy began offering its now-legendary small-block V8 engine. The high-performance version of this V8 was the Super Turbo Fire V8, a favorite of hot rodders.
The 1959 Cadillac Coupe de Ville had crazy-huge tail wings. The wings had big, protruding tail lights for a racy effect.
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In the mid-'50s, the Chevrolet 150 was an economy variant meant for fleets. As such, GM didn't spend much time advertising it to regular mass consumer markets.
The first generation of the Buick LeSabre was introduced in 1959 and lasted for just a year. The second-gen version of this full-size car was rolled out in 1961.
Made from '50 to '81, Bel Airs were equipped with all of the extras, loaded to meet the demands of people who wanted a fancy Chevy.
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The Chrysler Saratoga got its start in 1939, and it was made intermittently until 1960. It was the compnay's top-end model, even pricier than the already-costly New Yorker.
From 1940 to 1958, the Buick Super was popular on America's highways. Unlike the angular designs that many cars of the day had, the Super was curvier, sometimes with a slanted backside that made it look faster.
Based in Ohio, Crosley started making subcompact cars back in the '30s, and maintained production until the early '50s. Some of the cars were so small they almost looked like golf carts.
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In 1957, Chevy unleashed what became its most iconic model -- the '57 Chevy. It is easily one of the most recognizable cars of the 20th century, featured in movies, commercials, and a whole lot more.
In 1958, Chrysler began cranking out its B and RB big-block engines. These big engines range from 5.7 L versions to 7.2 L monsters.
The BMW 507, made from '56 to '59, was a snappy roadster. Originally intended for mass production in the U.S., it became an exorbinantly expensive project, one that BMW ended after making fewer than 300 cars.
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Cadillac made its luxurious Series 62 from 1940 until 1964. Late '50s versions got noticeably sleeker and lower, and they had prominent window reveal molding that made the cars look like they had protruding foreheads.
Chevy's Blue Flame Six was essentially an interim engine, one meant to hold the line while Chevy made a new small-block masterpiece. The Blue Flames wound up in many Corvettes, and the very first ones topped out at 150 hp.
Edsel sold its Pacer in 1958 … and only 1958. All of the Edsels were total flops, and the Pacer was no exception, even when equipped with a big V8 engine that generated more than 300 hp.
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