The Hudson Motor Car Company made Hudson and other branded automobiles in Detroit , Michigan, U.S., from 1909 until 1954. In 1954, Hudson merged with Nash-Kelvinator to form American Motors Corporation (AMC). The Hudson name was continued through the 1957 model year , after which it was discontinued.
139-585: The Terraplane was a car brand and model built by the Hudson Motor Car Company of Detroit, Michigan , between 1932 and 1938. In its maiden year, the car was branded as the Essex-Terraplane; in 1934 the car became simply the Terraplane. They were inexpensive, yet powerful vehicles that were used in both town and country. The Terraplane name was used for both cars and trucks. Hudson had manufactured
278-537: A Marsh rack system and was the first successful rack railway in the US. The railway travels up the west side of the mountain. The Mount Washington Auto Road —originally the Mount Washington Carriage Road—is a 7.6-mile (12.2 km) private toll road on the east side of the mountain, rising 4,618 feet (1,408 m) from an altitude of 1,527 feet (465 m) at the bottom to 6,145 feet (1,873 m) at
417-538: A TV tower and transmitter and began operations from the mountain, including local forecasts by (now retired) WMTW transmitter engineer Marty Engstrom. In its first decades, WMTW served as the ABC Network affiliate for the Portland , Burlington , Montreal and Sherbrooke television markets , thanks to its wide coverage area. This station relocated its transmitter away from the mountain in 2002, due to concerns that
556-673: A coach road (1861)—now the Mount Washington Auto Road —and the Mount Washington Cog Railway (1869), both of which are still in operation. For forty years, until 1917, an intermittent daily newspaper, called Among the Clouds , was published by Henry M. Burt at the summit each summer. In 2011 and 2012, Orlando, Florida –based CNL Financial Group , which at the time operated the Mount Washington Hotel at
695-561: A subarctic climate (Köppen Dfc ) which eventually transitions to a humid continental climate (Köppen Dfb ) near the mountain's base and the surrounding lower elevations. The weather of Mount Washington is notoriously erratic. This is partly due to the convergence of several storm tracks, mainly from the Atlantic to the south, the Gulf region and the Pacific Northwest . The vertical rise of
834-546: A 24-hour period, 49.3 in (125.2 cm), occurred in February 1969, which is also the snowiest month on record with 172.8 in (4.39 m). See or edit raw graph data . Although the western slope that the Cog Railway ascends is straightforward from base to summit, the mountain's other sides are more complex. On the north side, Great Gulf —the mountain's largest glacial cirque —forms an amphitheater surrounded by
973-525: A 64-foot-long (20 m) stone hotel anchored by four heavy chains over its roof. In 1853, the Tip-Top House was erected to compete. Rebuilt of wood with 91 rooms in 1872–1873, the Summit House burned in 1908, then was replaced in granite in 1915. The Tip-Top House alone survived the fire; today it is a state historic site, recently renovated for exhibits. Other Victorian era tourist attractions include
1112-548: A Terraplane in 1938 was about US$ 900 ($ 19,481 in 2023 dollars ). Hudson vehicles were assembled in other countries under license. The British sounding names of "Hudson" and "Essex" had made them popular in countries of the Commonwealth, and thus Terraplanes also were built outside the U.S. in Canada, England, Australia , New Zealand, and South Africa in low volume. Australian law in the early 20th Century made it impractical to import
1251-551: A V8 engine starting for the 1955 model year. It was the Packard -designed and -built 320 cu in (5.2 L) engine rated at 208 hp (155 kW). All cars with the Packard V8 also came with Packard's Ultramatic automatic transmission as an option for $ 494 with the Nash 3-speed manual was also available at $ 295. Hudson dealers also sold Rambler and Metropolitan models under
1390-460: A climate record since. Temperature and humidity readings have been collected using a sling psychrometer , a simple device containing two mercury thermometers . Where most unstaffed weather stations have undergone technology upgrades, consistent use of the sling psychrometer has helped provide scientific precision to the Mount Washington climate record. The observatory makes prominent use of
1529-466: A communications facility, housing equipment for numerous tenants including cellular telephone providers and public safety agencies. The old sign from the destroyed Old Yankee Power House building was placed above the doorway to the new generator room. WHOM subsequently built a new transmitter building on the site of the old power building, and also installed a new standby antenna on the Armstrong tower. (For
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#17328587543991668-580: A factory had been built in 1925 in Brentford in London . Hudson was the third largest U.S. car maker that year, after Ford Motor Company and Chevrolet . Hudson had many firsts for the auto industry; these included dual brakes , the use of dashboard oil-pressure and generator warning lights, and the first balanced crankshaft , which allowed the Hudson straight-six engine , dubbed the " Super Six " (1916), to work at
1807-431: A female perspective on automotive design, hired Elizabeth Ann Thatcher in 1939, one of America's first female automotive designers. Her contributions to the 1941 Hudson included exterior trim with side lighting, interior instrument panel, interiors and interior trim fabrics. She designed for Hudson from 1939 into 1941, leaving the company when she married Joe Oros , then a designer for Cadillac. He later became head of
1946-685: A fully assembled car and thus main bodies were built by local vehicle body builders over an imported chassis. In a few cases these bodies included styles not available in the U.S. market such as tourers (U.S. equivalent phaeton) and coupe utilities (the Australian car-based pickup truck ). In 1915 the Sydney branch of Dalgety & Co. Ltd became the distributor of Hudson and Essex vehicles as well as other marques for New South Wales . From 1922, Sydney company Smith & Waddington built vehicle bodies for Dalgety and other companies. Smith & Waddington built
2085-470: A good semi-automatic transmission. When coupled with an automatic overdrive, Drive-Master became known as Super-Matic. Re-engineering of the frame rear end to use lower springs reduced car height by 1.5 in (38 mm). Sheet metal "spats" on the lower body now covered the running boards and new wider front and rear fenders accommodated this. As the role of women increased in car-purchase decisions, automakers began to hire female designers. Hudson, wanting
2224-580: A group from Harvard who skied the headwall from the summit of Mount Washington for the first time. The ravine soon became an important site for extreme skiing in New England. The mountain hosted the first giant slalom race in the United States in 1937, the Franklin Edson Memorial Race. Due to its status as the highest elevation in the northeast United States, the top of the mountain
2363-437: A group that included several Harvard students on the first recorded ascent of the path on September 10, 1819. Among them were Samuel Joseph May , George B. Emerson , Samuel E. Sewall , Caleb Cushing , Joseph Coolidge , William Ware and Joseph G. Moody. On August 31, 1821, Eliza, Harriet, and Abigail Austin, three sisters from Jefferson, New Hampshire , became the first White women to set foot atop Mount Washington. This
2502-411: A higher rotational speed while remaining smooth, developing more power for its size than lower-speed engines. The Super Six was the first engine built by Hudson, previously Hudson had developed engine designs and then had them manufactured by Continental Motors Company . Most Hudsons until 1957 had straight-6 engines. The dual brake system used a secondary mechanical emergency brake system, which activated
2641-619: A larger cylinder bore than the Essex-Terraplane Eight. The Terraplane Eight engines featured more efficient downdraft carburetion. Both engines had the same crankshaft and stroke. The 1933 Essex-Terraplane 8-cylinder cars were believed to have the highest horsepower-to-weight ratio of any production automobiles in the world, and were favored by several gangsters of the day, particularly John Dillinger , Baby Face Nelson , and John Paul Chase , for their lightness, acceleration, handling, and discreet appearance. The Essex-Terraplane Eight
2780-563: A larger factory. A new facility was built on a 22-acre (8.9 ha) parcel at Jefferson Avenue and Conner Avenue in Detroit's Fairview section that was diagonally across from the Chalmers Automobile plant. The land was the former farm of D.J. Campau. It was designed by the firm of renowned industrial architect Albert Kahn with 223,500 square feet and opened on October 29, 1910. Production in 1911 increased to 6,486. For 1914, Hudsons for
2919-515: A lightweight open four-seater body and mildly modified engine. It achieved 0-60 mph in 8.8 seconds, a sensational time pre-war, and a top speed of 107 mph on the 3.3:1 rear axle. The engine was so flexible that it could be driven in circles on full lock in top gear without snatching. Numerous coach builders constructed Railton bodies for the Terraplane and later Hudson chassis. Railton cars continued to be built on 1934 Hudson 8, and later Hudson 6- and 8-cylinder chassis through 1939. The company
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#17328587543993058-448: A mandated switch from analog to digital transmissions would result in insufficient coverage if the transmitter remained at the mountaintop. There are currently two FM stations located at the mountain. 1958 saw the construction of WMTW-FM 94.9 MHz (now WHOM ). A second station, WMOU (now WPKQ ), moved to the summit in 1987, installing transmitters in the Yankee building and constructing
3197-464: A merger with Nash. Mason already had the vision of merging the four independent automakers (Nash, Hudson, Packard, and Studebaker) into one company to compete with the Big Three, having floated the idea as early as 1946 with Packard to no avail. Mason had previously discussed the idea with Barit in 1952. On 14 January 1954 an agreement was reached and Nash and Hudson executives took the first steps to bring
3336-471: A new US record low windchill temperature of −108 °F (−77.8 °C), breaking the previous figure of −103 °F (−75.0 °C). Temperatures remained at or below -45 °F for 13 straight hours on February 3–4, 2023, and a -47 °F reading from the morning of February 4, 2023 was the coldest reading in 89 years, tying a previous record low observed in January 1934. The primary summit building
3475-407: A new broadcast tower behind the building, which is the tallest structure on the summit. WHOM and WMTW-TV shared a transmitter building, which also housed the generators used to supply electrical power to the various facilities atop the mountain. However, on February 9, 2003, a major fire broke out in the generator room of the transmitter building, which had become the property of the state only
3614-586: A number of races including the Monte Carlo Rally . Some of the cars entered were driven by personnel from the Great West Road factory. The Team Award was won by two Terraplane tourers and a Terraplane saloon in the 1933 Scottish Rally. The Terraplane 8-cylinder chassis and engine was also used in the British Railton automobiles for their initial production year 1933. The 1934 Light Sports Tourer used
3753-468: A power-operated top. Big Boy trucks now used the 128-inch wheelbase. In 1942, as a response to General Motors' Hydramatic automatic transmission, Hudson introduced its "Drive-Master" system. Drive-Master was a more sophisticated combination of the concepts used in the Electric Hand and the automatic clutch. It contained a vacuum-powered module on the transmission to switch between second and third gear and
3892-531: A scenic hiking route. South of the summit lies a second and larger alpine plateau, Bigelow Lawn, at 5,000 feet (1,500 m) to 5,500 feet (1,700 m) elevation. Satellite summit Boott Spur and then the Montalban Ridge including Mount Isolation and Mount Davis extend south from it, while the higher Southern Presidentials—Mounts Monroe , Franklin , Eisenhower , Pierce , Jackson and Webster —extend southwest to Crawford Notch. Oakes Gulf separates
4031-449: A short period of time: in October 1996, a record 11.07 in (281.2 mm) of precipitation fell during a single 24-hour period. A substantial amount of this falls as snow, with a seasonal average of around 280 inches (7.1 m) of snow; seasonal accumulation has ranged from 75.8 in (1.93 m) in 1947–48 to 566.4 in (14.39 m) in 1968–69. The record amount of snowfall in
4170-425: A vacuum-powered module to pull the clutch in and out. At the touch of a button, Drive-Master offered the driver a choice of three modes of operation: ordinary, manual shifting and clutching; manual shifting with automatic clutching; and automatic shifting with automatic clutching. All this was accomplished by a large and complicated mechanism located under the hood. They worked well, and in fully automatic mode served as
4309-652: A well pump near the Hermit Lake Shelters, which offers snacks, toilets and shelter. At the summit is a center with a museum, gift shop, observation area, cafeteria, and the Mount Washington Observatory . Other routes up the eastern slopes of the mountain include the Lion Head, Boott Spur, Huntington Ravine and Nelson Crag trails, as well as the Great Gulf Trail ascending from the northeast. Routes from
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4448-420: A year earlier when WMTW left the summit. The fire destroyed the building, including WHOM's transmitters as well as the summit's main generators, and also spread to the adjacent Old Yankee Power House building, which housed the emergency generator, destroying that building also and disrupting all power to the summit. Temporary generators had to be transported up the mountain to restore power to the observatory and to
4587-411: Is a popular site for stations that require transmission ranges over a broad territory, but which operate on frequencies that are generally limited to line-of-sight coverage. In 2003, it was reported that the summit was the site used "for three commercial radio stations and dozens of state, federal and private agencies, including the state police". Use of the mountain summit as a transmitter site dates to
4726-693: Is located in the Presidential Range of the White Mountains , in Coös County, New Hampshire . The mountain is in several unincorporated townships, with the summit in the township of Sargent's Purchase . While nearly the whole mountain is in the White Mountain National Forest , an area of 60.3 acres (24.4 ha) surrounding and including the summit is designated as Mount Washington State Park . The Mount Washington Cog Railway ascends
4865-491: Is notable for plant species either endemic to alpine meadows in the White Mountains or outliers of larger populations in arctic regions far to the north. Alpine Gardens drops off precipitously into two prominent glacial cirques. Craggy Huntington Ravine offers rock and ice climbing in an alpine setting. More rounded Tuckerman Ravine is New England's best-known site for spring back-country skiing as late as June and then
5004-434: Is said that Hudson management was not fond of that fact and that was partly why they chose to eliminate the car as a make. One unique feature was "Duo-Automatic" brakes. Terraplanes had two brake systems—hydraulic and mechanical. Should the hydraulic brakes fail (i.e. the brake line had a leak in it), the mechanical brakes would be used to stop the car. The most memorable sales slogan of the Terraplane years came from 1933: "On
5143-667: Is the Lion Head Winter Route, which begins on the Tuckerman Ravine Trail but then turns north to ascend up to Lion Head at elevation 5,033 feet (1,534 m). The winter route variation is recommended to help climbers avoid avalanche danger. Exactly where the route turns from the Tuckerman Ravine Trail depends on the snow conditions. If the amount of snowfall has not been significant, the Lion Head Summer Route may be open. After hiking 2.3 miles (3.7 km) from
5282-512: The Great Depression and the costs to transport vehicles from Massachusetts to Detroit becoming too expensive, the contract with Biddle and Smart was terminated in 1930, and Biddle and Smart went out of business shortly thereafter. At their peak in 1929, Hudson and Essex produced a combined 300,000 cars in one year, including contributions from Hudson's other factories in Belgium and England ;
5421-464: The Mississippi River . The mountain is notorious for its erratic weather. On the afternoon of April 12, 1934, the Mount Washington Observatory recorded a windspeed of 231 miles per hour (372 km/h) at the summit, the world record from 1934 until 1996. Mount Washington still holds the record for highest measured wind speed not associated with a tornado or tropical cyclone . The mountain
5560-456: The Pinkham Notch camp area and gains 4,280 feet (1,300 m), leading straight up the bowl of Tuckerman Ravine via a series of steep rock steps that afford views of the ravine and across the notch to Wildcat Mountain . Fatalities have occurred on the trail, both from ski accidents and hypothermia . Water bottles may be refilled at the base of the bowl 2.1 miles (3.4 km) up the trail at
5699-433: The 1925 Essex touring and coach were priced the same. The Essex found great success by offering one of the first affordable sedans , and combined Hudson and Essex sales moved from seventh in the U.S. to third by 1925. In 1932, Hudson began phasing out its Essex nameplate for the modern Terraplane brand name. The new line was launched on July 21, 1932, with a promotional christening by Amelia Earhart . For 1932 and 1933,
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5838-431: The 1930s. At this time investigations were begun into establishing radio stations broadcasting on "Very High Frequency" (VHF) assignments above 30 MHz. Reception of stations operating on these frequencies tended to be limited to line-of-sight distances, so operating from the top of Mount Washington was ideal for providing maximum coverage. As of 1938 it was reported that at least five experimental stations were located on
5977-444: The 1940 models, Hudson introduced coil spring independent front suspension, aircraft-style shock absorbers mounted within the front springs, and true center-point steering on all its models, a major advance in performance among cars in this price range. The Super Six model was reintroduced as well. Despite all these changes, Hudson's sales for 1940 were lower than in 1939 and the company lost money again. The advent of military contracts
6116-446: The 1952 AAA Stock Car Championship and Frank Mundy in 1953. Often Hudsons finished in most of the top positions in races. Later, these cars met with some success in drag racing , where their high power-to-weight ratio worked to their advantage. Hudsons enjoyed success both in NHRA trials and local dirt track events. As the post-war marketplace shifted from a seller's to a buyer's market
6255-765: The 1955 Nash Ambassador and Hudson Hornet models. In July 1954, Packard acquired Studebaker to form Studebaker-Packard Corporation . However further talks of a merger between AMC and Studebaker-Packard were cut short when Mason died on October 8, 1954. A week after his death, Mason's successor, George W. Romney , announced "There are no mergers under way either directly or indirectly". Nevertheless, Romney continued with Mason's commitment to buy components from Studebaker-Packard Corporation. Although Mason and Nance had previously agreed that Studebaker-Packard would purchase parts from AMC, it did not do so. Moreover, Packard's engines and transmissions were comparatively expensive, so AMC began development of its own V8 engine , and replaced
6394-480: The 1955 Hudson used the inner body shell of the Nash, the car incorporated a front cowl originally designed by Spring and the Hudson team to be put on the 1954 Step-Down platform. The 1955 models also used the Hudson dashboard, "triple safe brakes" and the Nash Weather Eye heater with Harrison Radiator Corporation -supplied lower cost Freon /compressor type air conditioning . For the first time, Hudson offered
6533-469: The 6-cylinder engine received a new block with thicker walls and other improvements to boost horsepower by almost 18% and torque by 28.5% making Hudson a hot performer again. The GM -supplied 4-speed Hydramatic automatic transmission was now optional in Hornets and Commodore Custom 6s and 8s. Hudson's strong, light-weight bodies, combined with its high- torque inline six-cylinder engine technology, made
6672-460: The American market were now left-hand drive. Coachbuilder Fisher Body Co. built bodies for Hudson cars (as well as many other automotive marques) until they were bought out by General Motors in 1919. From 1923, Hudson bodies were built exclusively by Massachusetts company Biddle and Smart . The lucrative contract with Hudson would see Biddle and Smart buy up many smaller local coachbuilders to meet
6811-524: The East Side of Detroit, occupying the old Aerocar factory. The new Hudson "Twenty" was one of the first low-priced cars on the American market and became successful with 4,508 sold the first year. This was the best first year's production in the history of the automobile industry and put the newly formed company in 17th place industry-wide, "a remarkable achievement at a time" when there were hundreds of makes being marketed. Successful sales volume required
6950-459: The Electric Hand should ever fail. Hudson was also noted for offering an optional vacuum-powered automatic clutch, starting in the early 1930s. For the 1930 model year, Hudson debuted a new flathead inline eight cylinder engine with block and crankcase cast as a unit and fitted with two cylinder heads. A 2.75-inch bore and 4.5-inch stroke displaced 218.8 cu in (3.6 L) developing 80 hp (60 kW; 81 PS) at 3,600 rpm with
7089-523: The Essex models. At the 1931 Indianapolis 500 , Buddy Marr's #27 Hudson Special (using a Winfield carburetor) finished the 200 laps in tenth place. In 1936, Hudson revamped its cars, introducing a new "radial safety control" / "rhythmic ride" suspension which suspended the live front axle from two steel bars, as well as from leaf springs. Doing this allowed the use of longer, softer leaf springs ("rhythmic ride"), and prevented bumps and braking from moving
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#17328587543997228-480: The Fisher brothers to begin devoting time to Hudson and their plant in anticipation of a deal. When news of these events reached Wall Street , the price of Hudson stock skyrocketed with the consensus by investors that a Fisher takeover would be the best thing for Hudson. However, the Fisher brothers tender offer fell short of Hudson's sudden increased market value and the deal did not go through. Production resumed after
7367-559: The Hudson and Essex franchise. From 1935, Hudson and Terraplane vehicles (along with Nash, Studebaker, and Standard ) were assembled by Christchurch company Motor Assemblies Limited . Production of all other marques ended when the company was acquired by Standard-Triumph International in 1954. Following the First World War, Hudsons and Essex vehicles were sold through ten concessionaires. In 1922 Hudson-Essex Motors of Great Britain Limited
7506-487: The Hudson brand. A total of 4,357 Metropolitans were sold as "Hudson." When sold by Hudson dealers, both cars were identified as Hudson vehicles via hood/grille emblems and horn buttons. Hudson Ramblers also received "H" symbols on fuel filler caps (and, in 1956, also on hubcaps ). In 1956, ex-Hudson president A.E Barit resigned from the Board in protest over the likelihood that Hudson would be phased out of production. For 1956,
7645-447: The Hudson demand. Peak shipments came in 1926, when the company delivered 41,000 bodies to Hudson. An inability to stamp steel meant that their products were made using aluminum. On 1 July 1926, Hudson's new US$ 10 million ($ 172,105,263 in 2023 dollars ) body plant was completed where the automaker could now build the all-steel closed bodies for both the Hudson and Essex models. Biddle and Smart continued to build aluminum body versions of
7784-459: The Hudson line and were marketed by Hudson as "custom-built" although they were the same as the steel-body vehicles. With Hudson now building in-house, Biddle and Smart saw their work for Hudson drop by 60%. From 1927 Hudson gradually began to utilize local coachbuilders Briggs Manufacturing Company and Murray Corporation of America to supplement Hudson's production which was expanding domestically and internationally. With car prices falling due to
7923-528: The Massachusetts colony to identify arable coastal areas. The earliest known map to display the name, Mount Washington, was published in 1796. A 1784 geology party, headed by Manasseh Cutler , may have first named the mountain. In 1819, the Crawford Path was established from Crawford Notch to the summit. It is the oldest continuously maintained hiking path in the United States. Abel Crawford led
8062-511: The Nash Rambler and Metropolitan compacts to sell as Hudson products. One of the first things Mason did as CEO of the new company was to initiate talks with James J. Nance , president of Packard, for parts-sharing arrangements between AMC and Packard. At this time AMC did not have its own V8 engine and an agreement was made for the new 320 cu in (5.2 L) Packard V8 engine and Packard's Ultramatic automatic transmission to be used in
8201-537: The Nash plant in Kenosha, Wisconsin building rebadged Nash cars with the Hudson brand name. Nash would focus most of its marketing resources on its smaller Rambler models, and Hudson would focus its marketing efforts on its full-sized cars. The first Hudson model to terminate production was the Jet . The new company could then focus on the more successful Nash Rambler. Henceforth, Hudson dealers would have badge-engineered versions of
8340-603: The Northern Presidentials: Mounts Clay , Jefferson , Adams and Madison . These connected peaks reach well into the treeless alpine zone . Massive Chandler Ridge extends northeast from the summit of Washington to form the amphitheater's southern wall and the incline is ascended by the Mount Washington Auto Road . East of the summit, a plateau known as the Alpine Gardens extends south from Chandler Ridge at about 5,200 feet (1,600 m) elevation. It
8479-599: The Presidential Range, combined with its north–south orientation, makes it a significant barrier to westerly winds. Low-pressure areas are more favorable to develop along the coastline in the winter due to the relative temperature differences between the northeastern United States and the Atlantic Ocean. With these factors combined, hurricane-force wind gusts are observed from the summit of the mountain on average of 110 days per year. These extreme winds also contribute to
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#17328587543998618-459: The Presidential range, since record-keeping began in 1849. Author Nicholas Howe has detailed many of the fatalities on this mountain in his book Not Without Peril published in 2000 and updated in 2009. The foreword to the 2009 edition states that many of the deaths over the past 150 years can be attributed to poor planning and lack of understanding of "the difference in weather between Boston and
8757-525: The Terraplane, Hudson management chose to phase out the Terraplane name similarly to how it had been introduced, and the 1938 cars were named Hudson-Terraplanes. Concurrently for the 1938 model year, Hudson offered a Model 112 which was virtually indistinguishable in equipment from the Hudson Terraplane, but on a shorter 112 in (2,845 mm) wheelbase and with a smaller engine. The Terraplane did not have an ammeter or an oil pressure gauge. Price for
8896-580: The Twin H would disappear at the end of the 1956 model year. The Wasp used the 202 cu in (3.3 L) L-head Jet Six engine (up to 130 hp [97 kW]) and this model (in sedan version) was Hudson's top seller. For 1957, Hudson dropped the shorter-wheelbase Wasp line, selling only the Hornet Custom and Super, which featured a lowered profile and slightly updated styling. George W. Romney felt that Hudson and Nash were no longer relevant players in
9035-564: The Yankee building, which houses important public safety communications equipment. A makeshift generator room was constructed underneath the canopy of the Sherman Adams building across from the public entrance to replace the destroyed buildings. The makeshift generator room was later made permanent when power cables were installed in 2009, delivering grid power to the summit for the first time. The original Armstrong tower still stands today. The Yankee Building also remains and continues to serve as
9174-596: The automotive market and retired both names at the end of the 1957 model year production. Both Rambler and Metropolitan became makes in their own right, and no longer were identified as Hudson or Nash. The last Hudson rolled off the Kenosha assembly line on June 25, 1957, although at that time there were proposals of continuing the Hudson and Nash names into the 1958 model year on the Rambler chassis as deluxe, longer-wheelbase senior models. The combined Nash and Hudson production volume
9313-449: The bodies came over from the United States in sections to be assembled at the Great West Road factory. After the Essex marque was retired in 1932 the British company was renamed Hudson Motors Ltd. Hudson's new Terraplane model was equally as popular in the U.K as it was in the United States. English-designed and built bodies were built on the Terraplane frames and the cars were even entered in
9452-444: The call sign W39B. Effective November 1, 1943 the station call sign was changed to WMTW, and in late 1946 the call letters were changed again, to WMNE. WMNE ceased operations in late 1948, due to excessive maintenance costs, and concern that a mandatory frequency change to the new FM "high band" would cause an unacceptable decrease in transmission range. In 1954 WMTW , channel 8, licensed to Poland Spring, Maine , constructed
9591-435: The car off course. The 1936 Hudsons were also considerably larger inside than competitive cars — Hudson claimed a 145 cu ft (4.1 m ) interior, comparing it to the 121 cu ft (3.4 m ) in the "largest of other popular cars" of the time. With an optional bulging trunk lid, Hudson claimed the trunk could accommodate 21 cu ft (0.59 m ) of luggage. The 1936 engines were powerful for
9730-429: The company added other marques from the United States and Britain. Vehicles, including Terraplanes, were assembled in-house from knock-down kits. For South Island , Hudson and Essex vehicles were imported by W.G. Vining Limited of Nelson, beginning in 1912. Other U.S. and European brands were added and after the business was sold on 30 September 1927 Vining's son formed a new business, P. Vining & Scott, and continued
9869-470: The company shifted its focus to the war effort. When brothers Fred and Charles retired from GM in 1944 they revived the Hudson takeover idea with the view of establishing new, independent automobile manufacturing operations. The brothers contacted Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands , Hudson's main stockholder, offering to buy. Using an intermediary, Queen Wilhelmina expressed her interest in selling, prompting
10008-477: The company solvent. On March 20, 1954, the Hudson Motor Car Company reported a loss of $ 10,411,060 in 1953 as compared with a profit of $ 8,307,847 in 1952. After the company's high-priced Jet compact car line failed to capture buyers in its second straight year, Hudson CEO A.E. Barit engaged with George W. Mason , CEO of Nash-Kelvinator (makers of Nash and Rambler ) to discuss the possibility of
10147-502: The company's 1951–54 Hornet an auto racing champion, dominating NASCAR in 1951, 1952, 1953, and 1954. Herb Thomas won the 1951 and 1954 Southern 500s and Dick Rathmann won in 1952. Some NASCAR records set by Hudson in the 1950s ( e.g. consecutive wins in one racing season) still stand even today. Hudson cars also did very well in races sanctioned by the AAA Contest Board from 1952 until 1954 with Marshall Teague winning
10286-577: The confluence of two major storm tracks, and to the north–south orientation of the Presidential Range ridgeline, which it crowns, Mount Washington receives high levels of precipitation, averaging an equivalent of 91.2 in (2,320 mm) of rain per year, with a record high for a calendar year of 130.14 in (3,305.6 mm) in 1969 and a low of 71.34 in (1,812.0 mm) in 1979. Monthly precipitation has ranged from 0.75 in (19.1 mm) in October 1947 to 28.70 in (729.0 mm) in October 2005. Large amounts of precipitation often fall in
10425-465: The conversion process turned out to be an arduous undertaking, and W1XER did not start broadcast programming on a regular schedule until December 19, 1940. This station's facilities included construction of the original broadcast tower, the Yankee Building housing the crew and transmitter equipment, and the first power house building. Commercial broadcasting commenced on April 5, 1941, initially with
10564-490: The design of the senior Hudsons was given over to designer Richard Arbib , which resulted in the "V-Line" styling motif, a combination of "V" motifs that carried Hudson's triangular corporate logo theme. Sales fell below the 1955 figures. With a wider front track than Nash used, Hudson was the better handling car and was powered by the famed 308 cu in (5.05 L) Hornet Six with the optional high-compression cylinder head and dual- carburetor manifold ("Twin-H Power");
10703-663: The design team at Ford that created the Mustang . As ordered by the Federal government, Hudson ceased auto production from 1942 until 1945 to manufacture material during World War II , including aircraft parts and naval engines as well as anti-aircraft guns. The Hudson "Invader" engine powered many of the landing craft used on the D-Day invasion of Normandy , June 6, 1944. During World War II Hudson had also an aircraft division that produced ailerons for one large eastern airplane builder. The plant
10842-438: The early 20th Century. From 1926 the business had become part of General Motors. Just before World War II, the Fisher brothers contemplated a takeover of Hudson and commissioned engineer Roscoe C. (Rod) Hoffman, from Detroit, to design and build several rear-engine prototype vehicles for possible eventual production as Hudsons. One prototype was built in secret in 1935. World War II forced the brothers to shelve their plans while
10981-403: The eventual 1958 Rambler Ambassador show both Nash- and Hudson-badged versions. The Rambler brand was selected for further development and promotion while focusing exclusively on compact cars . Eventually, however, something close to the Hudson design was chosen for the 1958 Rambler Ambassador. Hudson brand enthusiasts will note the triangular grille guard and 1957-like fender " gun sights " and
11120-614: The fast-selling 1958 Rambler Customs wore 1957 Hudson-styled front-fender trim. Hudson, Essex, and Terraplane vehicles were either exported as complete cars or locally built from knock-down kits in many countries making the Hudson marque well-known internationally as well as domestically. In its 1929 report, the banking house Garden Detroit Company reported that in 1928 Hudson shipped 50,587 vehicles overseas, or 17.9% of total production. By March 1929 Hudson had topped all previous production figures having exported 44,295 cars in March alone, bringing
11259-402: The first Essex-Terraplane. It was a small, but very powerful, car with a steel frame, built to exacting standards, which is probably why Orville Wright purchased one of the first Essex-Terraplanes for himself. The 1932 model bore a slight resemblance to its Essex predecessors. The 1932 model had just the name "Essex" on the radiator ornament, but the 1933 models had the name "Essex-Terraplane" on
11398-482: The first time since 1948, the Armstrong tower was used for broadcasts.) The National Weather Service (NWS) forecast office in Gray, Maine , operates NOAA Weather Radio station KZZ41 on 162.5 MHz from the summit of Mount Washington. The NWS coverage map indicates that it can be heard throughout most of New Hampshire, western Maine, northeast Vermont, and portions of southern Canada. During very clear conditions, KZZ41 has
11537-416: The following year brought relief. The 1941 Hudsons retained the front-end styling of the 1940 models but the bodies were new with 5.5 inches added to their length giving more legroom. A new manual 3-speed synchromesh transmission was quieter with all helical gears. Wheelbases increased by 3 inches, with offerings of 116, 121, and 128 inches, and height was decreased with flatter roofs. Convertibles now had
11676-696: The foot of the mountain, trademarked the "Mount Washington" name when used with a resort or hotel. CNL officials said they were directing their efforts only against hotels and not the numerous businesses in the area that use the name. CNL's application at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office seeks registration of the trademark "Mount Washington" for any retail service, any restaurant service, and any entertainment service. The summit station of Mount Washington has an alpine climate or tundra climate ( Köppen ET ), although it receives an extremely high amount of precipitation, atypical for most regions with such cold weather. However, elevations just beneath treeline have
11815-400: The growing economic pressure and suffering from the effects of the Great Depression forced Hudson to replace the Essex with a re-designed automobile with a lower manufacturing cost and selling price. Roy D. Chapin decided to repeat the successful strategy in 1932 by producing "a very light car in the bottom price class, a vehicle which would combine style, comfort, and reliability". Although it
11954-402: The inexpensive Essex from 1919 as a lower-priced vehicle line; the company merged Essex into itself in 1922. The Essex is generally credited with helping to make the fully enclosed automobile an affordable model for inexpensive automobiles. The low-priced closed model Essex coach "had promoted the sensational recovery of Hudson" as an automaker in 1922. Declining sales of the Essex, combined with
12093-450: The lead "car men" and an organizer of the company was Roy D. Chapin Sr., a young executive who had worked with Ransom E. Olds . (Chapin's son, Roy Jr. , would later be president of Hudson-Nash descendant American Motors Corporation in the 1960s). The company quickly started production, with the first car driven out of a small factory in Detroit on July 3, 1909, at Mack Avenue and Beaufait Street on
12232-565: The majority of the early Terraplane bodies with some also built by Sydney coach builder G.H Olding & Sons. In February 1934 Ruskins Body Works of West Melbourne secured the contract to build Hudson and Terraplane bodies for the whole of Australia. In June 1937 Neal's Motors celebrated assembling its 30,000th automobile: a 1937 Hudson Terraplane. Hudson and Essex vehicles were imported into New Zealand by Dominion Motors of Wellington which began operations in 1912. After Dominion Motors amalgamated with Universal Motor Company of Christchurch in 1919
12371-448: The more up-scale Hudson line competing with Oldsmobile and Studebaker. Local coachbuilder Briggs Manufacturing introduced their first-of-its-kind closed coach body in 1922 for Hudson's Essex. It was the first closed vehicle available at a price close to its open-bodied brethren. The 1922 Essex closed body was priced at only $ 300 more than the 1922 Essex touring. Within three years, its popularity enabled Hudson to reduce its price so that both
12510-458: The mountain in all seasons, due to harsh and rapidly changing conditions, inadequate equipment, and failure to plan for the wide variety of conditions that can occur above tree line . The weather at Mount Washington has made it a site for glider flying. In 2005, it was recognized as the 14th National Landmark of Soaring . The most common hiking trail approach to the summit is via the 4.1-mile (6.6 km) Tuckerman Ravine Trail. It starts at
12649-569: The mountain in June of that year to demonstrate to the Abenaki chief Passaconaway that the Europeans bargaining for tribal land were not subject to the gods believed to inhabit the summit, a primarily political move that facilitated colonists' northern expansion. Field again summited Agiocochook in October 1642 on an early surveying expedition that created maps of land as far as Maine , which allowed people from
12788-508: The mountain's very short treeline, with elevations as low as 4,400 feet (1,300 m) being too hostile to support any plant life more than a few inches (centimeters) in height. Mount Washington once held the world record, and still holds the Northern Hemisphere and Western Hemisphere record, for directly measured surface wind speed, at 231 mph (372 km/h), recorded on the afternoon of April 12, 1934. A new wind speed record
12927-477: The mountain. The most prominent of the early experimental stations was W1XER , originally an "Apex" radio station licensed to the Yankee Network , that was moved from Boston to the mountain in 1937, and initially used to relay meteorological information from the weather observatory. With the aid of Edwin H. Armstrong , the station was converted from an AM transmitter into an FM broadcasting station, although
13066-455: The only way to compete with the "Big Three" was to stake the future of AMC on a new smaller-sized car line. Neither Hudson nor Nash brand names had as much positive market recognition as the successful Rambler and their sales were lagging. Together with AMC's chief engineer Meade Moore, Romney had completely phased out the Nash and Hudson brands at the end of 1957. The decision to retire the brands came so quickly that preproduction photographs of
13205-525: The original mechanism continued in use without major change and with complete interchangeability of parts until the end of the war. Hudson also manufactured millions of other weaponry and vehicle parts for the war effort. Hudson ranked 83rd among United States corporations in the value of World War II military production contracts. The Fisher Body Company , later the Fisher Body Division of GM, manufactured bodies for many automobile marques throughout
13344-480: The outsourced unit by mid-1956. For 1955, both Hudson and Nash senior models were built on a common automobile platform using styling themes by Pinin Farina , Edmund E. Anderson , and Frank Spring. Common-body shell production for competing makes of automobiles was a manufacturing technique that had been used by the Big Three for decades. Anderson set up separate design studios for Nash, Hudson, and Rambler. Although
13483-516: The potential to reach the majority of northern Massachusetts (including some northern areas of Greater Boston and much of the North Shore ) as well as the majority of Vermont and Maine. In June 2008, the possibility of television returning to Mount Washington arose, with the filing by New Hampshire Public Television to move WLED-TV from its current location near Littleton to the old WMTW mast on top. As of 2019, more than 161 people had died in
13622-508: The radiator ornament. In 1932, only the Model K on the 106-inch (2,692 mm) wheelbase with a 193 cu in (3.2 L) 6-cylinder engine was available. The Essex-Terraplanes were available in all the common U.S. automobile body styles. For 1933 offerings were expanded. The Model K was retained. A Model KU 6-cylinder on 113 in (2,870 mm) wheelbase was added. Also a Model KT with a244 cu in (4.0 L) straight-8-cylinder
13761-468: The rear brakes when the pedal traveled beyond the normal reach of the primary system; a mechanical parking brake was also used. Hudson transmissions also used an oil bath and cork clutch mechanism that proved to be as durable as it was smooth. In 1919, Hudson introduced the Essex brand line of automobiles; the line was originally for budget-minded buyers, designed to compete with Ford and Chevrolet, as opposed to
13900-512: The region, the mountain was known by various indigenous peoples as Kodaak Wadjo ("the top is so hidden" or "summit of the highest mountain") or Agiochook or Agiocochook ("the place of the Great Spirit " or "the place of the Concealed One"). The Algonquians called the summit Waumbik , "white rocks". The Abenaki people inhabiting the region at the time of European contact believed that
14039-477: The restyled cars were named Essex-Terraplane; from 1934 as Terraplane, until 1938 when the Terraplane was renamed the Hudson 112. Hudson also began assembling cars in Canada, contracting Canada Top and Body to build the cars in their Tilbury, Ontario , plant. In England, Terraplanes built at the Brentford factory were still being advertised in 1938. An optional accessory on some 1935–1938 Hudson and Terraplane models
14178-406: The same route as the road race. The hillclimb's notable contestants include former Tour de France contender Tyler Hamilton . On August 7, 1932, Raymond E. Welch became the first one-legged man to climb Mount Washington. An official race was held and open only to one-legged people. Mr. Welch climbed the "Jacob's Ladder" route and descended via the carriage road. At the time of his climb, he
14317-470: The sea that's aquaplaning, in the air that's aeroplaning, but on the land, in the traffic, on the hills, hot diggity dog, THAT'S TERRAPLANING". The new Essex-Terraplane was launched on July 21, 1932, "with [such] sensational vigor" that "accounts of the affair appeared in newspapers throughout the United States." The special event included over 2,000 dealers who came from 40 states to Detroit . Hudson also had famous aviator Amelia Earhart helping to introduce
14456-615: The slogan "Home of the World's Worst Weather", a claim that originated with a 1940 article in Appalachia magazine by Charles Brooks, the man generally given the majority of credit for creating the Mount Washington Observatory. The article was titled "The Worst Weather in the World" even though it concluded that Mount Washington most likely did not have the world's worst weather. Due in part to its high prominence, to its situation at
14595-566: The smaller U.S. automakers, such as Hudson and Nash, found it increasingly difficult to compete with the Big Three ( Ford , GM and Chrysler ) during the 1950s. A sales war between Ford and General Motors conducted during 1953 and 1954 had left little business for the much smaller "independent" automakers trying to compete against the standard models offered by the domestic Big Three. The Big Three could afford constant development and styling changes, so that their cars looked fresh every year, whereas
14734-499: The smaller manufacturers could only afford gradual changes. Hudson's once-innovative "step-down" unit-body construction, while sturdy and innovative, also made restyling difficult and expensive. Although Hudsons dominated racing during this period, their feats did little to affect showroom traffic despite incorporating their NASCAR success into a marketing campaign known as "Win on Sunday, Sell on Monday". Sales fell each year from 1951 until 1954, and only Korean War military contracts kept
14873-470: The standard 5.78:1 compression ratio . The five main bearing crankshaft had eight integral counterweights, an industry first, and also employed a Lanchester vibration damper. Four rubber blocks were used at engine mount points. A valveless oil pump improved the Hudson splash lubrication system. The new eights were the only engine offering in the Hudson line, supplanting the Super Six, which continued in
15012-455: The summit is 72 °F (22.2 °C) on June 26, 2003, and August 2, 1975, while the official record high daily minimum is 60 °F (15.6 °C), recorded on the latter date. Readings of 60 °F (15.6 °C) or higher at the summit are seen an average of 13.5 days annually. On February 3–4, 2023 , overnight wind gusts of over 100 miles per hour (160 km/h) and a temperature of −47 °F (−43.9 °C) combined to produce
15151-466: The summit weather observation registered a temperature of −43.6 °F (−42.0 °C ) and sustained winds of 87.5 mph (140.8 km/h), resulting in a wind chill value of −102.59 °F (−74.8 °C) at the mountain. During a 71-hour period from approximately 3 p.m. on January 13 to 2 p.m. on January 16, 2004, the wind chill on the summit never went above −50 °F (−45.6 °C). The official record high temperature at
15290-564: The terminology of the day, meant "built to an individual order and to a special design." In addition to assembling Hudson and Essex for Dalgety, the company also built vehicle bodies for Rolls-Royce , Wolseley, Dort, Benz, Fiat, and Turkat Méry. After a slump in the economy which caused operations to cease in November 1927, Smith & Waddington resumed production in June 1928, again building Hudson and Essex vehicles for NSW and Queensland, and further adding Dodge, Chrysler, Erskine, and Studebaker for
15429-462: The testing of new weather measurement devices. The Sherman Adams summit building, which houses the observatory, is closed to the public during the winter and hikers are not allowed inside the building except for pre-arranged guided tours. In 1932, the Mount Washington Observatory was built on the summit through a group interested in and noting the worth of a research facility at that demanding location. The observatory's weather data have accumulated
15568-408: The time, from 93 to 124 hp (69 to 92 kW; 94 to 126 PS). The 1939 models joined other American cars in the use of a column-mounted gearshift lever. This freed front-seat passenger space and remained the industry standard through the 1960s, when " bucket seats " came into vogue. Hudson became the first car manufacturer to use foam rubber in its seats. The Hudson Terraplane was dropped. For
15707-606: The top, an average gradient of 11.6%. The road was completed and opened to the public in 1861, eight years before the Cog Railway. There are several annual races on the Auto Road. Every June, the mountain is the site of the Mount Washington Road Race , an event that attracts hundreds of runners . In August the Mount Washington Auto Road Bicycle Hillclimb , a bicycle race , takes place along
15846-463: The tops of mountains were the dwelling place of the gods and did not climb them out of religious deference to their sanctity. In 1524, Giovanni da Verrazzano became the first European to mention the mountain. Viewing it from the Atlantic Ocean , he described what he saw as "high interior mountains". In 1642, Darby Field claimed to have made the first ascent of Mount Washington. Field climbed
15985-902: The total of shipments for the first quarter of 1929 to an all-time high of 108,298. Hudson vehicles were imported into Australia in 1913 by Brisbane company McGhie Motor Company. In 1915 the Sydney branch of Dalgety & Co. Ltd became the distributor of Hudson and Essex vehicles for New South Wales . The company was also the agent for Wolseley , Daimler, and Buick passenger vehicles as well as Lacre and Halley commercial vehicles. Motor bodies were produced by Messrs Henderson, Boulton, and Kirkham in Regent Street, Sydney. The company also did trimming, fitting, painting, mechanical work, and repairs. Established in 1922, Sydney company Smith & Waddington set up motor vehicle body building operations for NSW and Queensland at premises on Parramatta Road, Camperdown. The company built "custom" car bodies which, by
16124-440: The two companies together. On May 1, 1954, Hudson merged with Nash-Kelvinator to become American Motors Corporation . George W. Mason became CEO and president of AMC while Hudson's president, A.E. Barit retired to become an AMC board member. The Hudson factory, located in Detroit, Michigan, was converted to military contract production at the end of the model year, and the remaining three years of Hudson production took place at
16263-769: The two high ridges. The mountain is part of a popular hiking area, with the Appalachian Trail traversing below the summit past one of the Appalachian Mountain Club 's eight mountain huts , the Lakes of the Clouds Hut , located on one of the mountain's shoulders. Winter recreation includes Tuckerman Ravine, famous for its Memorial Day skiing and its 50-degree slopes. The ravine is notorious for its avalanches , of which about 100 are recorded every year, and which have killed six people since 1849. Scores of hikers have died on
16402-544: The visitor center in Pinkham Notch, the trail will take a right turn onto the Lion Head Summer Route. If there has been enough snow accumulation on the summer Lion Head Trail, the Forest Service will open the Lion Head Winter Route, which turns off after approximately 1.7 miles (2.7 km). Since 1869, the Mount Washington Cog Railway has provided tourists with a train journey to the summit of Mount Washington. It uses
16541-413: The war and included a 128 in (3,251 mm) wheelbase three-quarter-ton pickup truck . In 1948, the company launched its "step-down" bodies, which lasted through the 1954 model year. The term step-down referred to Hudson's placement of the passenger compartment down inside the perimeter of the frame; riders stepped down onto a floor that was surrounded by the perimeter of the car's frame. The result
16680-503: The western slope of the mountain, and the Mount Washington Auto Road climbs to the summit from the east. The mountain is visited by hikers from various approaches, including the Appalachian Trail , which traverses the summit. Other common activities include glider flying, backcountry skiing , and annual cycle and running races such as the Auto Road Bicycle Hillclimb and Road Race . Before European settlers arrived in
16819-578: The western slopes include the Ammonoosuc Ravine and Jewell trails and the Crawford Path and Gulfside Trail (coincident with the Appalachian Trail from the southwest and from the north, respectively). There are many differences between climbing Mount Washington in summer and climbing it in winter. There are no public facilities on the summit in winter. In the winter months, the most common route
16958-502: The whole of Australia. Additionally, Sydney coach builder G.H Olding & Sons are known to have built 6 Terraplane phaetons for Dalgety in 1934. Mount Washington (New Hampshire) Mount Washington is an ultra-prominent mountain in the state of New Hampshire . It is the highest peak in the Northeastern United States at 6,288.2 ft (1,916.6 m) and the most topographically prominent mountain east of
17097-492: The world, setting an example followed in many other countries. For many years, the record low temperature was thought to be −47 °F (−43.9 °C) occurring on January 29, 1934, but upon the first in-depth examination of the data from the 19th century at NOAA 's National Climatic Data Center in Asheville, North Carolina , a new record low was discovered. Mount Washington's official record low of −50 °F (−45.6 °C)
17236-479: Was a steering column-mounted electric gear pre-selector and electro-mechanical automatic shifting system, known as the "Electric Hand", manufactured by the Bendix Corporation . This took the place of the floor-mounted shift lever, but required conventional clutch actions. Cars equipped with the feature also carried a conventional shift lever in clips under the dash, which could be pulled out and put to use in case
17375-499: Was bought by Hudson in 1939. Hudson Motor Car Company The name "Hudson" came from Joseph L. Hudson , a Detroit department store entrepreneur and founder of Hudson's department store, who provided the necessary capital and gave permission for the company to be named after him. A total of eight Detroit businessmen formed the company on February 20, 1909, to produce an automobile which would sell for less than US$ 1,000 (equivalent to approximately $ 33,911 in 2023 funds ). One of
17514-578: Was capable of large scale production of wings and ailerons as well as other airplane parts. On May 22, 1941, Hudson was given a contract for the Oerlikon 20 mm cannon with the Jefferson Avenue Plant, on Jefferson Avenue and Connor Avenue, responsible for converting the original Swiss drawings to American production standards. The company produced 33,201 Oerlikons for the United States Navy with
17653-512: Was daring to launch a car during the Great Depression, Chapin was convinced that the Terraplane name would have "great public appeal" as it also linked with the public interest in aviation that was so prevalent at that time. The Terraplane contributed greatly to Hudson Motor's sales during the Depression in the 1930s. Sales of the Terraplane outpaced Hudson vehicles in the late mid-1930s and it
17792-490: Was designed to withstand 300 mph (480 km/h) winds; other structures are chained to the mountain. In addition to a number of broadcast towers, the mountain is the site of a non-profit scientific observatory reporting the weather as well as other aspects of the subarctic climate of the mountain. The extreme environment creates strong winds and ice at the top of Mount Washington making the use of unmanned equipment problematic. The observatory also conducts research, primarily
17931-483: Was discovered in 2009: on April 10, 1996, Tropical Cyclone Olivia had created a wind gust of 408 km/h (254 mph) at Barrow Island off the western coast of Australia. The first regular meteorological observations on Mount Washington were conducted by the U.S. Signal Service , a precursor of the National Weather Service , from 1870 to 1892. The Mount Washington station was the first of its kind in
18070-454: Was distinguished by having vent doors on the hood as opposed to all six-cylinder versions that had stamped hood louvers. A 1933 Terraplane 8 convertible coupe set a record for the race to the summit of Mount Washington that remained unbroken for over twenty years. Essex-Terraplanes participated in innumerable record events around the United States, and some others around the world setting dozens of records at many venues. Their particular strength
18209-475: Was formed, with new premises on Dordrecht Road, in Acton Vale. In 1926 a factory was built on 4½ acres of ground on the recently opened Great West Road in Brentford. The plant opened in 1927 and a year later a three-story building was built as a service department for Hudson and Essex vehicles. The factory assembled the vehicle chassis locally but the bodies were imported as complete units from Detroit. From 1932,
18348-506: Was in hillclimbs. Period road tests showed 0-60 mph in 14.4 seconds, and 10-60 mph in top gear in 18 seconds. For 1934 the word "Essex" was dropped and the car became the Terraplane. The cars were slightly heavier and rarely joined competitive events, particularly as they now lacked the eight-cylinder powerplant. The name Terraplane remained constant through the 1937 model year. By 1936, Terraplane commercial cars were produced in larger numbers. In 1938, knowing they were going to drop
18487-515: Was insufficient to justify all-new design and tooling; therefore, the Rambler's platform was expected to be adopted by the longer cars. One major trade magazine said rumors of discontinuance were false and the 1958 Hudsons and Nashes "would be big and smart". Factory styling photographs show designs for a 1958 Hudson (and Nash) line based on a longer-wheelbase 1958 Rambler. Front-end prototype photos show separate Hudson and Nash styling themes. American Motors' president, George W. Romney, concluded that
18626-448: Was likely the first significant mountain to be climbed by any Euro-American females in the United States. In 1821, Ethan Allen Crawford built a house on the summit. The house lasted until a storm in 1826. Little occurred on the summit itself until the mid-19th century, when it was developed into one of the first tourist destinations in the nation, with construction of more bridle paths and two hotels. The Summit House opened in 1852,
18765-401: Was not only a safer car, and greater passenger comfort as well, but, through a lower center of gravity, a good handling car. In time almost all U.S. automakers would embrace it as a means of building bodies. Automotive author Richard Langworth described the step-down models as the greatest autos of the era in articles for Consumer Guide and Collectible Automobile . For the 1951 model year,
18904-476: Was offered on the 113-inch wheelbase. There were "Standard" and "Deluxe" trim levels for the KU and KT. A limited selection of light commercial vehicles were offered starting in 1933. Only the 1933 Essex-Terraplanes were made with an optional eight-cylinder engine. The Hudson had the identical basic engine, but with earlier style updraft carburetor carried over, and a displacement of 254 cu in (4.2 L) due to
19043-449: Was recorded on January 22, 1885. The official record low daily maximum is −28 °F (−33.3 °C) on February 6, 1995. Highs of 0 °F (−18 °C; 255 K) or below occur on 13 days annually, while lows at or below 0 °F (−18 °C; 255 K) can be expected from November 17 through April 1; from December to March, temperatures rise above freezing (0 °C (32 °F; 273 K)) on only 15 days. On January 16, 2004,
19182-476: Was the first electric car to compete at Mt. Washington with an official time for driver Tim O'Neil of seven minutes and 28.92 seconds. Tuckerman Ravine, a glacial cirque on the mountain's southeast side, is a popular backcountry skiing destination, attracting tens of thousands of skiers to the mountain each year. Skiers have skied down the headwall since 1931, first by two Dartmouth students, John Carleton and Charles Proctor , who were quickly followed by
19321-628: Was the station agent for the Boston & Maine Railroad in Northumberland, New Hampshire . The mountain is also the host to one of the oldest car races in the country, the Mount Washington Hillclimb Auto Race , which has been held on and off since 1904. Travis Pastrana set record ascents in 2010, 2014, 2017, and 2021, driving a Subaru WRX STi to a record of five minutes and 28.67 seconds. In 2014 EVSR created by Entropy Racing
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