This Day in History:30.July
Henry Ford is Born, Saturn Brand Debuts, Chrysler Buys Dodge
Today may feel like another summer day, but a look back in time reveals that July 30 marks the anniversary of a few significant events in automobile history, including the birth of a man who’s celebrated as one of the most iconic figures in automotive and U.S. history.
Henry Ford, founder of Ford Motor Company, was born just outside of Dearborn, Michigan on July 30. Ford grew up on a farm as a child, but moved to Detroit, where he would later revolutionize the automotive industry by making automobiles affordable for the masses. Ford accomplished this with his assembly line technique, which significantly reduced assembly time per vehicle, resulting in lower costs. The first vehicle to really enjoy the success of the new technique was the Model T, introduced on Oct. 1, 1908. It had a 20-hp, four-cylinder engine with a top speed of about 45 mph; just over 10,000 units were built in its first year. By the time the 19-year production run ended, more than 15,000,000 Model Ts had been built.
Today’s date also marks the day GM brand Saturn was introduced to American consumers. A Saturn S-Series sedan – GM’s response to the success of imports like Honda – was the very first car to roll off the GM’s Spring Hill assembly line on July 30, 1990. The S-Series was also sold as a coupe and wagon before it was replaced by the Ion compact sedan and coupe in 2002. Saturn expanded with models including the Vue crossover and Sky roadster, but GM killed the Saturn brand in 2009 after attempts to sell the brand failed.
At the end of July 1928, Chrysler bought the Dodge Brothers brand. Brothers and machinists John and Horace Dodge built all of the mechanical components for Ford’s early cars, but after 12 years, the brothers formed Dodge Brothers. By 1925, one million Dodge cars had been manufactured and sold, and not long after Chrysler bought Dodge Brothers for $170 million, and the name was shortened to just Dodge. |
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