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Hudson Motor Car Company
Hudson.png
Headquarters USA.png Detroit, Michigan
Founded 1909
Fate Merged
Successor American Motors Corporation
Defunct 1954 (company)
1958 (brand)
Series World Stock Car Championship

The Hudson Motor Car Company is a defunct American automaker that made Hudson and Essex automobiles in Detroit, Michigan, from 1909 to 1954.

Hudson merged with Nash-Kelvinator Corporation to form American Motors Corporation (AMC) in 1954, and the Hudson name was continued through the 1957 model year.

Hudson is best known for its "Fabulous Hudson Hornet", a popular stock car which competed in the World Stock Car Championship from 1950 until 1954, as well as being the first manufacturer to provide factory support to its teams. Hudson was the first manufacturer to win the Manufacturer's Championship, which was awarded beginning in 1951.

History[edit | edit source]

Hudson Motor Car Company was founded in 1909 by a group of Detroit businessmen, who recognized that the automobile was not just a passing fad and sought to create an affordable working-class car with a price under $1,000. The company was named after Joseph Hudson, who was the largest financier of the venture. Early Hudson models had several innovations: the company moved the steering wheel to the left-hand side of the car by 1914, and by 1916, the straight-six engine was introduced, and it was this engine - along with its revolutionary balanced crankshaft - that would power Hudson vehicles until 1957.

Hudson would introduce the Essex brand in 1919 to compete with Ford and Chevrolet; and by 1925 Hudson and Essex were the third largest automaker in the United States. Essex would be phased out in the 1930's, with its models incorporated into Hudson's product line. In 1948, the company launched their "step-down" bodies (the term referred to the placement of the passenger compartment inside the frame, which required a rider to "step down" into the car), which lasted through the 1954 model year. Step-down designs would eventually be utilized by all major automakers.

The company hired one of the first female designers in the automotive industry, Betty Thatcher, in 1939.

The Hornet, introduced in 1951, would quickly become an icon of the stock car racing scene; the "Fabulous Hudson Hornet" would dominate at local short tracks and national touring series alike, and Hudson became the first major automaker to provide factory support to race teams running its cars, a trend Studebaker would quickly follow.

Despite their dominance on the race track, Hudson was unable to capitalize in the showroom. Sales fell each year from 1951 to 1954; eventually, only military contracts kept the company afloat. On March 20, 1954, the company reported a loss of over $10 million in 1953; this was in contrast to a profit of $8.3 million in 1952. Hudson was subsequently acquired by Nash-Kelvinator (makers of Nash and Rambler) in 1954 and the Hudson factory, located in Detroit, Michigan, was converted to military contract production at the end of the model year. The remaining three years of Hudson production took place in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The last Hudson rolled off the Kenosha assembly line on June 25, 1957; while there was still hope of continuing the Hudson and Nash names into the 1958 model year, AMC completely phased out the brands at the end of 1957.

Fabulous Hudson Hornet[edit | edit source]

Hudson's strong, light-weight bodies, combined with its high-torque inline six-cylinder engine technology, made the company's 1951–54 Hornet an auto racing champion, dominating the National Stock Car Series during its earliest seasons. The Hudson company provided factory support to its race teams, the first manufacturer to do so. Factory-backed Hudsons had a characteristic livery: the cars were blue, black, or white, with the words ꜰᴀʙᴜʟᴏᴜꜱ ʜᴜᴅꜱᴏɴ ʜᴏʀɴᴇᴛ emblazoned on the side and red numbers outlined in white.

Howard Joyce[edit | edit source]

Emmett Newton[edit | edit source]

James August[edit | edit source]

Armond Cabot[edit | edit source]

WSCC Model History[edit | edit source]

Full-Time Entries
Year(s) Model Team(s) Notes
1950 - 1954 Hornet USA.png Howard Joyce Enterprises Received official factory backing from Hudson alongside Lucky Hornick's team, the first such deal struck in stock car racing.
USA.png Lucky Hornick Enterprises Received official factory backing from Hudson alongside Howard Joyce's team, the first such deal struck in stock car racing.
USA.png Warren Clark

Racing Record[edit | edit source]

Year Model(s) Poles Wins Podiums T5 T10 Pos. Points
1950 Hornet 0 1 1 2 2 N/A N/A
1951 6 6 25 34 46 1st