Aside from ornamentation, cars today have similar basic shapes. That wasn't always so between, say, 1934 and 1999. For that reason, it's worth seeing what stylists and sales staffs provided for brands essential to the health of their host businesses.
All cars in the images below were offered for sale via the Internet.
First, some front-quarter views. Fords received a strongly V-shaped grille and hood plan-view. Headlights were faired into the fender catwalks, an advanced feature at the time. The general appearance echoed that of the new Lincoln Zephyr line.
General Motors was usually the style leader in those days thanks to its sales dominance and Harley Earl's styling leadership. "All-steel" cars in the mid-late 1930s tended to have large-radius rounding of their sheet metal. A major factor was the state of metal stamping art, the other was the fashion of "streamlining." Despite GM's reputation, the Chevy's frontal styling is less advanced than Ford's. This is exemplified by the detached, bullet-shaped headlight housings.
Plymouth shared bodies with he rest of the Chrysler Corporation's brands. The new 1937s looked more rounded than the Ford and Chevy shown above. Unlike the others, the Plymouth had a slightly outdated one-piece windshield. Headlights are mounted even farther off the ground than Chevrolet's.
Seen from the side, the new Ford seems stubby. A major reason for that is the shape of the aft end with the small bump where the roofline transitions to the bulge of the trunk. This was corrected for 1938 when the cars were given a smooth, downward curve from roof to bumper along with longer side windows abaft of the C-pillar.
Chevrolets also had distinct trunks, but the car looks less stubby. That was due in part to the longer passenger compartment and also to the long trim strip by the belt line that pulls the viewer's eye horizontally. Note the speed line extending from the catwalk across the front door ... a nice, distinctive touch that disappeared for 1939.
Plymouth's belt trim piece is similar to Fords, and so is the rear profile. What helps make the design seem less stubby is the longer hood. (All three cars have the same wheelbase length.)
Rear-end styling was generally an ignored area before the 1940s. Ford has a fairly large rear window (backlight) comprised of two flat panes.
Chevy's backlight is also fairly large, but has a single pane of glass. The belt line brightwork extends around the rear, creating a horizontal emphasis lacking on the Ford and Plymouth whose trim bends downwards, suggesting verticality.
The backlight is smaller and two-piece. The wide swath of sheet metal between the rear side window and backlight adds to the puffy, rounded look.
The Ford's not so much stubby as the only car here and probably the last US car for a long time, that wasn't bloated. And, from the front particularly, it's by far the best looking.
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