The Show Stoppers

With Chevrolet already on the road, General Motors this week brought out its higher-priced cars for 1957--the new Pontiacs, Oldsmobiles, Buicks and Cadillacs. Every division had something new, but this time the show stoppers were the station wagons. For the first time in six years, Oldsmobile will make a station wagon, will produce three Fiesta models in six-and eight-passenger styles. Pontiac has its sleek Safari models, prettied up even more than last year. And Buick will bring out a brand-new design, with low, racy lines like a hardtop convertible. Said Buick General Manager Edward T. Ragsdale: "Hardtop styling has proved to be the most popular body design in auto history. This year we are combining it with station-wagon spaciousness."

With the move to the suburbs, more leisure and bigger families, so many Americans are driving station wagons that production this year will hit 471,000 cars --11% of the total auto market. So far, Ford has captured over 40% of the market with 268,712 wagons in 1956. Now G.M. is getting set to make its big push. Oldsmobile is scheduling 10% of its production in station wagons; Pontiac hopes to sell 64,000, and Buick expects to add another 65,000--about 10% of its production--to the totals.

Other changes in G.M.'s 1957 line:

P: Pontiac, which planned only a minor face-lift for 1957, rushed through a major styling change to keep pace with competitors. The familiar "silver streak" hood stripes have been dropped in favor of an uncluttered hood; both grille and tailfins are new; the body is 3 1/2 in. lower and packs a larger engine with a 43-h.p. boost to 270 h.p. in the bigger V-8 engine.

P: Oldsmobile has 17 body styles. The cars are more than 2 in. lower and 5 in. longer, have more graceful grilles, with double bumpers, 18% bigger windshields, and a new tail treatment. Horsepower: up another 37 h.p. to 277 h.p., with four-barrel carburetor and twin exhausts standard on most models.

P: Buick has a racier look, a new body lowered between the side rails of the frame to reduce its overall height by 3 in. to 57.2 in. in some models. Buick's engines will go up another 45 h.p. to 300 h.p. on all models except the low-priced Special series, which gets a 25-h.p. boost to 255 h.p. One new gadget: a "safety minder" buzzer, which can be set to remind drivers when they hit the speed limit.

P: Cadillac will look much like last year's $8,500 Eldorado special model. Grilles are lower and wider-looking; the traditional Caddy taillight fin has been replaced by a thinner, all-metal fin jutting above a cluster of taillights set down near the bumper; and the body has been dropped to reduce overall height another 3 in. to 59 in. on the 60 Special and 62 Sedan. Power: up 15 h.p. to 300 h.p. in the standard engine, up 40 h.p. to 325 h.p. in the special V-8 installed as optional equipment in 1957 Eldorado models.

Chrysler Corp., pinning its comeback hopes on a radically new 1957 line (TIME, Oct. 29), last week issued an earnings report that showed just how far it must go. In the third quarter of 1956, Chrysler lost $12.3 million on sales of $429 million, down $152 million from the same period in 1955. All told for the first nine months, Chrysler saw its sales dip 24% to $1.8 billion, and its earnings plummet 91% to $6,272,352, or 72-c- a share v. $8.11 last year, partly because of the $300 million outlay for new models. Next year, said Chrysler's President L. L. Colbert, should be a lot better: "Our production schedules for 1957 are keyed to an indicated rising demand for automobiles in general and the favorable reception already given our 1957 models in particular."

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