Chrysler B-70

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Chrysler
V Retro Auto & Moto Galicia, Chrysler B70 Six, 1926, wood rims.JPG
B-70
Production period: 1924-1925
Class : Middle class
Body versions : Touring car , roadster , coupé
Engines: Otto engine :
3.3 liters (50 kW)
Length: 4064 mm
Width:
Height:
Wheelbase : 2864 mm
Empty weight : Lim. 1388 kg
Previous model Chalmers Six Model Y
successor Chrysler G-70

The Chrysler B-70 was an American passenger car, the first car that Chrysler presented in Detroit in January 1924. The car replaced the models from Maxwell-Chalmers , the company that Walter P. Chrysler had previously renovated.

Model history

He had previously initiated the rescue of Willys-Overland . Development of the B-70 began in 1919 for Willys Corporation , a holding company owned by John North Willys and independent of the Willys-Overland Organization .

The vehicle was originally intended to be launched as Willys Six . Three former Studebaker engineers were responsible for the design , Fred Zeder , Owen Skelton and Carl Breer .

Served as the Willys Corporation went into bankruptcy in 1919, acquired William C. Durant , after a bidding war against Walter Chrysler (which only the Willys Six was interested) whose modern factory in Elizabeth (New Jersey) , together with several prototypes , including just the Willys Six . For his new company, he needed a bigger, more luxurious vehicle to compete against Buick . This is how the Flint Six was born . Zeder , Skelton and Breer did not agree at all with the new concept , especially since many of their innovative ideas had been highlighted. Chrysler brought the three to Chalmers , where they resumed development from mid-1923 at the point at which it had been interrupted by Durant. In January 1924, the finished product was ceremoniously presented to the public as the Chrysler B-70 in the Hotel Commodore on the occasion of the New York Motor Show.

Nine different bodies (from Fisher Body Co. ) were offered in the first year of production . The open cars initially had horizontally split windshields. The success was sensational: 32,000 cars had been sold by the end of 1924, a new record for the introduction of a new model. With the introduction of the B-70 , production of the Chalmer was discontinued.

The cars with the high-performance engines reached a top speed of 70 to 75 mph (112 to 120 km / h), only about 5 mph less than the Packard Single Eight with its 8-cylinder engine. Ralph DePalma won the Mt. Wilson hill climb with a car of this type.

In the following year, the Chalmers Motor Car Company became the Chrysler Corporation . The cars continued to be built almost unchanged, only the split windshield in the open models was replaced by a one-piece, top-hinged version. From mid-1925, Chrysler produced its own bodies.

In 1926 the G-70 model replaced the B-70, of which around 108,600 had been built in two years.

technology

The car had a 6-cylinder in-line engine, small for its class, with 3,294 cm³ (201.5 ci). However, at 4.7: 1, it was significantly more compressed than the competition's engines (around 4.0: 1). The engine had vertical valves, aluminum pistons , pressurized lubrication and a Ball & Ball carburetor . It delivered a maximum output of 68 bhp (50 kW) at 3000 rpm. The rear wheels were driven via a single-disc dry clutch and a three-speed gearbox with center shift. There was a choice of 30 × 5.75 or 29 × 4.5 wheels. Steel disc wheels were fitted as standard on the open models and wooden spoke wheels on the closed models. Wire spoke wheels were optionally available.

The Chrysler B-70 was one of the first production cars with hydraulically actuated brakes and the first mid-range car with a "high" compression engine.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ according to carfolio; at Kimes both 3200 and 3000 rpm are mentioned.

Web links

Commons : Chrysler B-70  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

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