The first 1946 Model Chevrolet cars

[David_Hayward (RIP)]

The 1946 US Chevrolets began production on October 3rd, 1945. The GM strike began in November and was over by March. However Oshawa had to re-tool which took them until as we know, October 30th.

The 1219 Stylemaster was the first off the line. You may like to know that Canadian CKD production for 1946 Model Year started April 22nd 1946, after the strike. The last CKD (for Australia possibly NZ as well) 1945 Models were sent out in September '45.

The # 1 car, which would have been 6121900001, was driven off the line on October 30th by Private Vern Bowen?, a GM employee who had lost an arm whilst serving with the Canadian Army in Italy. The car was presented to the Shaughnessy Hospital in Vancouver and was to be equipped with driving aids (for ampuation and paralytic cases) so that it could be used to train injured servicemen to drive again. I have now purchased the magazine page from THE GARAGE OPERATOR December 1945 issue with its photo.

We know from a plate that the first cars were indeed model 1219 sport sedans:

MODEL 1219
SERIAL 6121900024
ENGINE 100015
BODY SERIAL 70
TRIM 391
PAINT 643

So, the 15th engine, in the 70th body, and 24th off the line.

These are the officially available models with dates:

FLEETLINE 10-00 1007 AERO SEDAN MARCH 1946>

FLEETMASTER
1027 COUPE
1011 TOWN SEDAN
1019 SPORT SEDAN
1016 SEDAN CHASSIS OCTOBER 30TH 1945>

STYLEMASTER
1227B BUSINESS COUPE
1227 COUPE
1211 TOWN SEDAN
1216 SEDAN CHASSIS
1219 SPORT SEDAN
1271 SEDAN DELIVERY OCTOBER 30TH 1945>

E.g. 61211111718 ENGINE 131,584 BODY 1683
E.g. MODEL: 12-19 SERIAL: 6121901978 ENGINE: 105058 TRIM: 391 BODY SERIAL: 1957 PAINT: 641

[David_Hayward (RIP)]

Excuse me for digging-up an old thread but this one deserves to be, as a result of re-assessment of information. As I am writing about the Slough CMD (see VINTAGE ROADSCENE magazine issue 120, and forthcoming issue 122), and GM Ltd in Bamber Bridge (will be in VRS123/124) and Cleckheaton (VRS125?) I have been re-considering the evidence as to the closure of the GM operations. I have written on another thread:

Consolidation by movement of all Canadian vehicle cases was completed by 31st October (1945) into the Slough and Manchester dumps plus Pearson’s. The last Canadian-order vehicles assembled by Citroen’s was on 25th September and Pearson’s on 8th October 1945, whilst a further 5,971Canadian vehicles were in the three dumps. Pearson’s presumably incorporated British-order vehicles as well. A few “passenger cars” which probably meant Chevrolet C8A eight-cwt HUP CMPs, were still to be received and all of these had not been received by December 1945 [the last Canadian contract being CDLV 3619], and so the M of S arranged for uncrating and assembly in one of their plants that they were keeping going for some time: Lep Transport in Chiswick had ceased assembly in 1944, and in Goole sometime in 1945. ...

So, where did these final vehicles go to for assembly? GM Ltd's wartime reconditioning facility was wound-down in 1945 and vacated by early June n1946. However, the other vehicle reconditioning facility that had been an assembly operation up to December 1941, Bamber Bridge, near Preston, was used until spring 1947. It is possible that they took on the MofS assembly work. However the identity is not recorded in the DND papers. I have often been puzzled as to why Bamber Bridge carried-on so long. Long enough in fact to send men down to Southampton in mid-1947 to set-up a parts disposal and demobbed (and contract) vehicle refurbishment operation. Perhaps that's the answer? In the absence of any indication as to when Leps ceased all war work, that's the best that I can come up with at the moment.