Anybody else digging this special 3-part series on History channel? Produced by Earnhardt Jr and narrated by a lot of other Nascar stars. I've just watched episode one but already learned a lot. I'm not a Chevrolet guy but who knew that Louis Chevrolet was a Swiss race car driver. Might be common knowledge but I had no clue . Anyway, automotive history buffs may enjoy it! Tune in and be entertained!

 

I just leave this here

 

It's an interesting series. I caught the 2nd half of part 1 and all of part 2. They almost make it seem like there were no other car companies other than the "Big 3". Did they give Olds the credit for coming up with the assembly line way before Ford? The History channel is not all that accurate so if you are really into the true stories you will need to do some research. I've Watched the channel contradict itself more than once and completely mutilate the American Revolution so much that it stopped playing after 2 episodes. I believe they had 3 or 4 planed.

 

The answer to that question is a resounding No!

 

I've been enjoying it. I take everything on TV with a grain of salt anyway. There is always a bias of facts no matter who portrays it as truth. I'm sure them good ol boys from the south have a greater allegiance to Ford,Mopar and Chevy then some defunct brand that doesn't sponsor or participate in a NASCAR.

 

I watched all 3 episodes. Found all very interesting. Hard not to if your a car guy. I did get a bit of a laugh on some of their props. I saw a guy tweeking a quadajet carb on a bench, IN 1905. A R15/78 series tire hanging on the Dodge Brothers wall in 1908. And a guy at the 1925 Ford factory with a set of pistons that would make John Force proud. Watch the back ground props lots modern stuff. But all and all a good show.

 

Without watching the tv series, I'd nominate the Model T Ford and the WW2 Jeep.
The Ford gave America cheap practical transport.
The Jeep kept the Allied forces mobile in nearly all theaters of conflict.
Perhaps I should add the trucks supplied to the red army?.

Roger.

 

i watched a good bit of it .never did see an olds though

 

Mike I caught the Q-Jet as well but not the tire. Watched part 1 on demand last night. They give Benz credit for the first car at 1886 then stated Ford was responsible for creating the next one "less than 10 years later". Not sure if Ford was sponsoring the show, but again, not accurate, Olds made the first Oldsmobile in 1887. Next complete inaccurate story they made up was the assembly line. Oldsmobile did it way before Ford. So they don't take the time to accurately research history which is why they can't be taken seriously.

Deadeye not much on Olds but in the begining they showed a black and white of Olds with an early Curved Dash and right after a color photo of one done in black lacquer.There was one at the Westbury car show last spring. They did give Olds some credit by saying he was one of the most successful manufacturers at the time.

I read an article on Durante years ago but I don't remember what he paid Olds for Oldsmobile. His interest was monopolizing all the car companies. His race car of choice was the Localmobile, which won the 1908 Vanderbilt cup in NY. This is, I believe, why he never made Chevrolet the race car, he already had been producing them. I'd guess his decision was to make Chevy the low budjet car that competed with the Model T. Then GM just continued on for the next 100 years like that. There is a lot more to Durante then the short version they give, but I understand, they have limited time.

Coincidently, street racing was outlawed in NY in 1911 when an unfortunate accident on a curve in what is now Cunningham park, killed 2 drivers and several spectators. One car tried to pass the other and crashed into it. It's now a bike path that runs through Queens and I wouldn't pass a bicyclist on that turn. The Vanderbilt Motor Parkway was originally supposed to go from Long Island City, Queens to the North Fork of Long Island. If I have the story correct it went from Flushing, Queens to Lake Ronkonkoma, where he built a resort. When they shut it down in the 30's they preserved some of it for a path and eventually turned it into a bike trail. He lost a p#$$ing contest to Robert Moses. That's also a big story in it's own.

 

I caught only bits and pieces of the show while I was on travel. What a disappointment. Delorean used a full size Buick that was supposed to be the GTO prototype? Seriously, for the budget that show had, how hard would it have been to find a 64 Tempest??

 

I am sure it would be quite a saga to tell the COMPLETE story of the automobile. A lot of companies came and went, Tucker, Studebaker, Nash, just to name a few. It looks like they concentrated on the Big 3 to appeal to a wider audience. I found some of the personal stories and their inter action in the early days interesting. Of course some of that I am sure, was "made for TV" as well.

 

Wow! Is HW Bands trying to actually blame the working man for the great depression. It amazes me how little some college professors know about the real world. If he is going to depict himself an historian he should at least be historically accurate. To much time spent around impressionable kids. This is actually the first time I have ever heard the theory the working class caused the great depression. I think he needs to look at the banking industry in the 20's and 30's. They almost repeated the process again in the early 2000's with the housing mortgage scam.

 

What a disappointment!

 

Didn't Ford work for Olds back in the earlier days ? In 1977 Olds made 1,000,000 cars. I have a dish on my wall with that on it.

 

Great series..these men are examples just a few who proof that the American Dream can come true with hard work, ingenuity and the government staying out of their business!
Dennis

 

I didn't get a chance to watch that.