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1948 Hudson Commodore

The Hudson Motor Car Company was founded in 1909 by Joseph L. Hudson and continued through 1954. It merged with Nash-Kelvinator in 1954, forming American Motors Corporation (AMC), and the Hudson nameplate continued through 1957.

During the early years of production, Hudson built a low-priced car at under $1,000 dubbed the 'Twenty' and was one of the first low-price cars on the American market. It proved successful with over 4,000 examples sold in its inaugural year. The company's best year was in 1929, with nearly 301,000 examples produced (including its lower-priced companion model, the Essex), earning Hudson to finish third in sales among American nameplates.

Like many other companies, Hudson was adversely affected by the Great Depression with sales dramatically decreasing. As the 1930s continued and with the economy improving, Hudson retooled its model lines in 1938 for greater efficiency. Sales began to rebound before the onset of war in Europe halted production altogether.

When peacetime resumed, Hudson returned to civilian automobile production with a small profit they had earned building airplanes and landing-craft engines during the war. The 1946 Hudson automobiles were facelifted prewar models intended to meet the pent-up demand for new cars. Both the L-head inline six- and eight-cylinder engines were retained, with the Super Six being the company's best seller. The passenger car wheelbase sizes remained the same as before the war, measuring 121 inches, but the transmission options now included a Vacumotive Drive, Drive Master, and overdrive.

The 1947 Hudsons would receive only minor interior and exterior styling revisions as the company worked aggressively to introduce its revolutionary 'Step Down' line in 1948. Hudson boasted, 'Most Room! Best Ride! Safest!' for the step-down model.

Hudson was profitable in 1946 and 1947, with calendar-year total shipments of 93,870 and 103,310 units, respectively.

The 1948 Hudson
Hudson introduced its all-new post-war models in November of 1947, with its model lineup consisting of the Super and the Commodore. Both models rested on a 124-inch wheelbase platform with an overall length of 207.5 inches. The L-head six- and eight-cylinder engines were offered in all Commodores and in the sedan and club coupe of the Super. Bodystyles of both models included a sedan, a six-passenger club coupe, and a convertible brougham. The Super Six added a brougham and a three-passenger club coupe.

1948 Hudson Styling
The step-down Hudson automobiles of 1948 signaled a new direction for the company, as they embraced a partially unitary design with the floor pan on the bottom (as opposed to the top) of the frame, resulting in a lower center of gravity which improved handling. Hudson's ads proclaimed, 'You're face to face with tomorrow.' With sleek, modern, low roof styling and the new slab-sided design, the 1948 Hudsons were well received, with sales increasing by nearly 50 percent over 1947, moving Hudson from 13th to 11th place in the market.


1948 Hudson Engine Specification
The inline L-head six-cylinder engine displaced 262 cubic inches and had solid valve lifters, a Carter two-barrel carburetor, four main bearings, 6.5:1 compression, and delivered 121 horsepower at 4,000 RPM. The inline L-head eight-cylinder engine had a 254 cubic-inch displacement size, a Carter two-barrel carburetor, solid valve lifters, five main bearings, 6.5:1 compression, and 128 horsepower at 4,200 RPM. An optional aluminum cylinder head could be added to either engine, with the six costing $11 and $13 for the eight. An oil bath air cleaner boosted the price of the six by $6 and $8 for the eight. Most models had a 4.11:1 final drive rear axle gear ratio. A 4.55:1 or 4.30:1 gears were optional. The Vacumotive Drive was a $44 option and it automatically controlled the operation of the clutch. The Drive-Master system automatically operated both the clutch and gear shifting operations. The Drive-Master with the Vacumotive Drive was a $112 option.

1948 Hudson Standard Amenities
The Super models cam standard with striped Bedford Cord upholstery, cord robe hangers in the sedans, dark mahogany woodgrain dash, gray salt and pepper colored rubber front floor mats, and rear carpeting. They had a 17-inch steering wheel, a 30-hour wind-up clock, sun visors, latch-type ventipanes, adjustable sun visors, and a luggage compartment floor mat.

Exterior amenities included twin taillamps, hubcaps, a carryall trunk with a spare tire mounted horizontally, and front parking lamps. The sedans had rear wing-type rear quarter windows with side window reveal moldings; the club coupes had full-opening quarter windows.

1948 Hudson Commodore photo
Custom Station Wagon
Chassis #: 48480899
View info and history
Auction entries : 2
The basic styling and mechanical features of the Super and Commodore were similar, distinguished by the level of accouterments and additional exterior trim. The Commodore came with Broadcloth upholstery finished in either tan with green stripes or gray with blue stripes. They had air foam seat cushions, a cloth covered robe hangers in sedans, cigarette lighter, instrument panel dial dimmers, dark walnut and blonde-grained instrument panel in a two-tone finish, plastic rimmed 18-inch Deluxe steering wheel with horn ring, twin adjustable swiveling sun visors, an electric clock, crank-type front door ventilation wings, and walnut grain window garnish moldings. The front compartment was covered with taupe-colored carpet-like rubber mats, while the rear area had carpeting. The trunk also had rubber mats.

The sedans had wing-type rear quarter window ventilation, while the club coupe had full-opening rear quarter windows. Additional exterior amenities included front parking lamps and twin taillamps.

1948 Hudson Bodystyle Pricing and Production
The Hudson Super Six club coupe (3 passengers) was priced at $2,070, the brougham at $2,170, the club coupe (6 passengers) at $2,220, the sedan at $2,220, and the convertible brougham at $2,840. The Super Eight sedan was priced at $2,345, and the 6-passenger club coupe at $2,340.

1948 Hudson Commodore photo
Custom Station Wagon
Chassis #: 48480899
View info and history
Auction entries : 2
The Hudson Commodore sedan with six-cylinder power was priced at $2,400, the club coupe at $2,375, and the brougham convertible at $3,060. With eight-cylinder power, the sedan was priced at $2,520, the club coupe at $2,490, and the brougham convertible at $3,140.

Hudson produced 49,388 examples of the Super Six and 5,338 of the Super Eight. A total of 27,159 examples were Commodore Sixes, and 35,315 were Commodore Eights.


by Daniel Vaughan | Mar 2023

Related Reading : Hudson Commodore History

Introduced in 1941, the Hudson Commodore was produced by the Hudson Motor Car Company until 1952. The Hudson Motor Company was established in Detroit and had a long and lucrative history. The Commodore model was the lushest and exquisitely luxurious Hudson model ever produced, and the first generation introduced the 2-door coupe, 4-door sedan, and the 2-door convertible. The largest Hudson model also,....
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Performance and Specification Comparison

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1948 Commodore
$3,140-$20,000
1948 Hudson Commodore Price Range: $2,375 - $3,140

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Commodore

Specification Comparison by Year

Year
Production
Wheelbase
Engine
Prices
26,018
121.00 in.
6 cyl., 212.00 CID., 103.00hp
$1,690 - $2,050
62,474
124.00 in.
6 cyl., 262.00 CID., 121.00hp
$2,375 - $3,140
61,402
124.00 in.
6 cyl., 262.00 CID., 121.00hp
$2,350 - $3,045
41,336
124.00 in.
6 cyl., 232.00 CID., 123.00hp
8 cyl., 254.00 CID., 128.00hp
$2,260 - $2,895

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