1911 Hudson Model 33

The Hudson Motor Car Company of Detroit, Michigan, began producing vehicles in 1910 and would remain in production until 1954. The early vehicles used a 20-horsepower, four-cylinder Buda side-valve engine that promised speeds of 50 MPH. During their first year, around 4,000 examples were sold. The four-cylinder engine would remain in the Hudson line-up until 1916, when it was dropped in favor of a one-model policy.

The company was started by Roy Chapin, Howard Coffin, and Frederick Bezner, who had previously worked for Oldsmobile. Financial backing was from Joseph L. Hudson, head of Detroit's famous department store that bore the same name. Initially, the company was allied with Chalmers-Detroit, but soon Hugh Chalmers' interest in Hudson was acquired for $80,000, and the team's holdings in Chalmers-Detroit were sold to Mr. Chalmers for $788,000. Hudson became independent, introducing its first car in 1909, later merging with Nash-Kelvinator in 1954 to form American Motors - the Hudson name was gone by 1957.

Hudson completed its first vehicle in July of 1909, a month after the first illustrated ad appeared in The Saturday Evening Post. Over 1,000 examples of the twenty horsepower Hudson were produced that year, each wearing the triangular badge on its radiator which signified 'Performance, Service and Value' according to Hudson's advertising. During the first full year of production - in 1910 - the company produced 4,556 vehicles which allowed them to grow in financial stability. A new quarter million square foot factory designed by architect Albert Kahn was built as production increased.

Hudson introduced the Model 33 in October of 1910, with its name referencing its actual horsepower measured on a brake (rather than the ALAM calculated horsepower which was 25.6 horsepower). The inline-four had its block and cylinder head cast together and its 4-inch bore and 4.5-inch stroke resulted in a 226 cubic inch displacement size. While the previous engine had been built by the Buda Company, this 226 CID unit was supplied by Continental Motor Manufacturing Company of Muskegon, Michigan. The L-head valves were positioned on the left side with passages through the block from the carburetor on the right side. The three-speed transmission was mounted in unit with the engine and clutch, the latter being cork-faced and running in oil - of as Chapin's marketers described it 'fluid cushioned.' The redundant braking operated via a contracting band and expanding shoes on rear wheel drums. The 114.25-inch wheelbase chassis was suspended by semi-elliptical leaf springs at the front and 3/4-elliptical leaf springs at the rear. A total of five body styles were offered, including the Mile-a-Minute Roadster. They continued to wear the distinctive radiator-shell design, triangular Hudson emblem, and high-crowned fenders.

The Hudson 'Mile-a-Minute' Roadster was faster than its '60-mph' name implied. It was a very advanced vehicle, though minimalist in design. It had a 100-mph Warner Auto-meter, Demountable rims with an extra rim in the back, lamps, Prest-O-Lite tank, and luggage carriers. It had a thirty-gallon fuel tank and an additional tank for 10 gallons of oil. It was very well balanced and could travel the roads and raceways in better form than most other vehicles.

It was a dual-purpose vehicle with both road and racing in mind. It had quick-fill oil and gas filler caps. For intense racing situations, the fenders could be removed to reduce weight even further.

Sales of the 1911 Hudson vehicles increased by 50 percent over the previous year, and by the close of the year, Hudson's year-old factory was being expanded, also by 50 percent. Hudson produced approximately 7,900 vehicles for the 1911 model year and 6,486 examples shipped to dealers during the calendar year. The business expanded beyond the U.S. shores, with Hudson opening a sales agency in Puerto Rico in 1911.

by Daniel Vaughan | Dec 2008