Information AboutTailfin |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT TAILFIN | |
| automotive styling features | |
For the tail fin of an aircraft, see Vertical Stabilizer . The tailfin era of Automobile styling encompassed the 1950s and 1960s , peaking between 1958 and 1960 . It was a style developed in the United States but spread its influence worldwide, as cars designed in all parts of the world picked up styling trends from the American automobile industry. General Motors design chief Harley Earl is generally credited for the automobile tailfin, introducing small fins on the 1948 Cadillac . Harley credited the look of World War II Fighter Aircraft for his inspiration, particularly the twin-tailed P-38 Lightning . Some sub-models of the 1937 Cadillac Fleetwood, which predates the P-38, also contained hints of tailfins via projecting tail-light "paddles", although it is unclear if this influenced later fin designs. {Link without Title} The 1941 Cadillac Series 63 4-Door Sedan also had a form of jutting tail-lights, although milder than the 1937 Fleetwood. Even though the 1948 model was the first conscious effort at fins, the earlier partial occurrences may have made the concept more acceptable to consumers and designers. (The war produced a gap of Cadillac model production between the early 40s and late 40s as factories turned to military goods production, interrupting the development of the nascent fin concept.) The Cadillac 1948 fin styling proved popular and its use spread to other models in the General Motors family of brands. Soon it was adopted by other manufacturers; Chrysler 's Virgil Exner in particular took the tailfin idea on board. As confidence grew in the styling trend, the fins grew larger and bolder as manufacturers competed to have the best-looking, most striking vehicle. The most extreme tailfins appeared in the late 1950s . Many consider the fins on the 1959 Cadillac Eldorado to be the largest and most outrageous ever fitted. Those fins were too much for many customers, however, and the tailfins shrank after that point. Within a couple of years, tailfins had become much less prominent, and by the mid 1960s, they were gone on many models. However, vestigial tailfins remained on American cars into the 1980's, with the sides of the quarter panels often being raised above the trunk lid and the corner sharp-edged, or at least raised. Cadillac was one of the last makers to phase raised edges out. Tail Spoilers and spoiler-like protrusions, a fairly recent trend, could perhaps be seen as fulfilling a similar styling role today, providing a similar vehicle visual profile as fins. Mercedes used something similar to fintails (nicknamed "heckflosse" in German), but they claimed that these were not fintails but "sight lines" to make it easier to determine the corners of the vehicle. Examples of Tailfin Styling:
|
|
|