1917 Chevrolet Series 490

The Chevrolet Series 490 was produced from 1915 to 1922, with its name derived from its $490 base price. It was a suitable competitor to Ford's Model T and equipped with an overhead valve 171 cubic-inch four-cylinder engine with three main bearings and solid valve lifters. This would be Chevrolet's main engine until the 'Stovebolt' straight-six replaced it in 1929. The engine was backed by a three-speed selective sliding transmission with a cone-type clutch and floor-mounted gearshift controls. Although the Chevy 490 was slightly more expensive than the Ford, it offered more amenities and features, including the vertical windshield, a top, and a top hood. Comparatively, the 176.7 CID L-head four of the Ford developed 20 horsepower and is backed by a two-speed Planetary transmission.

The 1917 Chevrolet Series 490 gained a left front door, an All-Season Touring car body style, and electric lamps, and a self-starter became standard equipment. The new Touring body style had a cloth interior, a dome light, and a permanently fixed hardtop with flexible sliding windows moved into the roof when not in use and worked in tandem with removable side sections.

The touring car body style, priced at $550, had a tilted windshield, foot and robe rails, a one-man top with curtains, protective flaps on the door tops and storage pockets in the doors, demountable rims, and a kickpad at the rear (bottom) of the front seat.

The roadster body style was priced at $535, and the All-Season Tourer was priced at $625. Along with the Series 490, the other 1917 Chevrolet model was the Series F which served as a replacement for the Series H. While the Series 490 rested on a 102-inch wheelbase, the Series F was slightly larger at 108 inches and powered by the same 171 CID inline-4.

1917 Chevrolet vehicles had artillery spoke wood wheels, three-quarter floating rear axle, and external contracting rear wheel brakes. Optional equipment included the 'Fat Man' steering wheel, front bumper, outside rearview mirror, and spare tire. The roadsters could be fitted with optional demountable rims.

Chevrolet built 57,692 examples of its Series 490 in 1917, significantly exceeding the approximately 18,000 units built the previous year. Production would continue to rise, reaching its pinnacle in 1919 with 127,231 examples built.

by Daniel Vaughan | Oct 2011