20 of Harley Earl’s greatest hits

20 designs that transformed GM’s fortunes

Harley Earl was one of a small handful of car designers that defined the look of the American mid-century automobile.

Moving to a small village called Hollywood in the early 1900s, he grew up with the film industry and found his niche building stylish car bodies for a growing band of rich and famous actors.

By the mid-1920s, General Motors had come knocking on Earl’s door, and over the next 30-plus years his Art and Colour Section (‘Colour’ spelt thus to imbue it with a hint of European sophistication) transformed the appearance of GM’s cars from upright and austere, to rakish, fin-laden and hugely desirable.

His designs captured the USA’s post-war zeitgeist perfectly, and led to him being appointed Vice President of ‘The General’ – the only designer to have held that position.

And here, in chronological order, are 20 vehicles that illustrate Earl’s rise to prominence as perhaps the most influential car designer of his time.

1. 1920 Cadillac Type 59 Touring

Harley Earl’s reputation for creating custom bodywork was established at his family’s Earl Automobile Works in Los Angeles.

The business was bought by Cadillac distributor Don Lee, and this paved an early path to his future employment with GM.

This Cadillac Type 59C – sent to Don Lee Coach and Body as a rolling chassis – was transformed by Earl into a stunning coachbuilt sedan. 

Powered by a 314cu in (5145cc) V8 engine, the Type 59 cost $9800.

2. 1927 LaSalle

Cadillac’s 1927 LaSalle represented the genesis of Harley Earl’s career at GM, and arguably one of the first production cars to be consciously ‘styled’, as opposed to merely designed around fixed engineering principles.

LaSalle was a Cadillac sub-brand, selling at a lower price to its more luxurious sibling, and with a more modest specification.

Earl’s 1927 LaSalle design was influenced by the Hispano-Suiza H6, and cleverly incorporated its marque’s trademark ‘LaS’ logo in the horizontal tie bar between its headlights.

Powered by a 303cu in (5-litre) L-head V8, a standard LaSalle covered 952 miles at an average 95.2mph at GM’s Milford Proving Ground in 1927.

3. 1930 Cadillac Series 452 V-16 Roadster

By the late 1920s, Cadillac’s customers were demanding more power for their cars, and while its engineers started to develop a larger engine for the task, Harley Earl looked to European coachbuilders for design inspiration.

With Earl on board, GM was keen to keep coachbuilding in-house, and had purchased the Fleetwood Metal Body and Fisher Body businesses to make that possible.

Earl’s spectacular bodywork for the V-16 ended up measuring 5.65m (18.5ft) from end to end.

The model’s advanced 452cu in (7.4-litre) overhead-valve engine was no less dramatic, its 16 cylinders laid out in a narrow 45-degree vee, delivering drive to the rear wheels through a three-speed all-synchromesh gearbox.

4. 1931 Buick Series 80 Sedan

Buick was a latecomer in the mid-priced, eight-cylinder market, and until 1931 retained a tried-and-tested straight-six unit to power its models.

The 1931 Series 80 was the first to use its new 345cu in (5.7-litre) overhead-valve straight-eight engine, boosting power to 105bhp and giving the car an 80mph top speed.

Harley Earl’s well-resolved design for the Sedan was lifted further with a generous colour palette, including two-tone hues that accentuated the car’s lines, especially those with coupé or convertible bodywork.

5. 1934 LaSalle Two-Door Convertible Coupe

By 1933, LaSalle was suffering badly from the effects of the Great Depression, and GM was on the brink of closing down the brand completely.

But after spotting an aircraft-inspired design on the drawing board of one his team’s stylists, Earl was keen to develop it further.

What resulted was an Art Deco masterpiece, with a narrow grille, bi-plane bumpers, portholes and plenty of chrome, all powered by a 345cu in (5.8-litre) straight-eight engine.

Presenting it to GM’s board, Earl said: “Gentlemen, if you decide to discontinue the LaSalle, this is the car you are not going to build.”

Earl won the day, and the ’34 model – advertised as the ‘Newest car in the world’ – kept the brand alive for a further six years.

6. 1936 Buick Roadmaster Series 80 Sedan

This was the first time that Buick used the Roadmaster nameplate, starting a lineage that would continue for a further 60 years. 

The Roadmaster moniker reinforced the substantial improvements that had been made to Buick’s car lines, with the company’s advertising stating that ‘It literally named itself the first time a test model levelled out on the open highway’.

Powered by a revised version of Buick’s 320cu in (5.2-litre) Fireball engine, the Series 80 model was restyled by Earl with streamlined headlight shells, squared-off wings and a lower overall height, lending it a more sporting appearance.

7. 1938 Cadillac Sixty Special 60 S Touring

Earl’s design of Cadillac’s first Sixty model was nothing short of transformative versus anything that had been seen before in the industry.

The Sixty heralded what we now know as the ‘three-box’ saloon, with an integrated boot, no running boards, brightwork around the window frames, four front-hinged doors and a markedly raked windscreen.

The car also sat lower, giving it a sleek appearance, despite its size, yet could comfortably hold six passengers.

Powered by a 346cu in (5.67-litre) V8, the Sixty was a resounding success from the off, with 3703 cars sold in the first year.

8. 1938 Buick Roadmaster Model 81 Sedan

Earl applied only a light touch when it came to the revised styling of the second-series Roadmaster.

There was a longer bonnet, a more vertical front grille, and cosmetic tweaks made to the bumpers and front body trim.

But that belied more significant improvements under the skin, such as coils replacing the previous model’s leaf springs, which were now controlled with double-acting shock absorbers, and steel replacing any wooden structural members, making the chassis immensely stiff.

Changes were also made to the model’s 320cu in (5.2-litre) V8, raising its compression ratio for better performance.

9. 1940 Buick Roadmaster Series 70 Sedan

Like the Cadillac Sixty, Buick’s third-series Roadmaster was transformative in terms of its design and packaging.

Adopting GM’s new ‘Torpedo’ C-body, also used by Cadillac, Oldsmobile and Pontiac, its lower stance and lack of running boards meant a sleeker profile and more capacious cabin, with up to 5in (127mm) more shoulder/hip room, and the ability to accommodate six passengers.

Despite this, the Series 70 was more compact and weighed less than its predecessor, while also being cheaper to buy.

10. 1942 Buick Roadmaster Convertible Coupe

In its fourth iteration, Buick’s Roadmaster became yet longer, wider and roomier inside, mainly thanks to Earl increasing the length of the model’s wheelbase.

Other interesting design cues included a double-hinged bonnet, allowing the 320cu in (5.2-litre) V8 to be accessed from either side, and ‘Airfoil’ wings that swept down from front to rear, a distinctive feature that appeared on many future Buick models, and was inspired by Earl’s Y-Job concept car.

Alas, the USA’s entry into WW2 meant that initial production was limited only to buyers for whom a new car was essential.

Even so, 8400 of these Buick Roadmasters were sold before production ended completely the same year.

11. 1947 Cadillac 62 Series Convertible

Cadillac’s second-series 62 model evolved gradually between 1942 and ’47, due to production breaks caused by WW2.

First launched in 1942 with Earl’s new trademark ‘egg-crate’ front grille – a feature that was to become popular across many brands during the 1950s – its distinctive bullet-shaped front wing-tops and bumper overriders set it apart from other rivals, as did its overall ‘Airfoil’ wing design, already seen on Buick’s earlier Roadmaster.

The 1947 62 Convertible was the first Cadillac to be equipped with ‘Hydro-Lectric’ window lifts.

12. 1949 Buick Roadmaster Riviera Convertible

Buick’s fifth Roadmaster also benefited from the first major post-war restyle of the model range.

Visually identifiable by its curved, two-piece windscreen (like sitting in an ‘observation car’, claimed Buick’s advertising), this series introduced VentiPorts to the Roadmaster, four of which were let into each front wing.

And for the up-spec Riviera derivative (pictured) there were power window winders as standard, as well as ‘Sweepspear’ chrome side mouldings.

GM’s Dynaflow two-speed automatic gearbox was now standard, mated to a mildly uprated 322cu in (5.3-litre) V8, producing 150bhp and gifting the Roadmaster a 110mph top speed.

13. 1953 Chevrolet Corvette

Now widely known as ‘America’s Sports Car’, the Chevrolet Corvette was a class act when it was first shown at GM’s Motorama as a Harley Earl-designed concept in 1953.

While still using traditional body-on-frame construction, the Corvette – its name taken from a small, manoeuvrable warship – was revolutionary in the US for its use of a glassfibre body, which was cheaper to produce, quicker to develop and lighter than steel.

For the first three years (1953-’55) the Corvette was powered by a 235cu in (3.9-litre) straight-six, with more powerful V8s joining the range thereafter.

Today, the Corvette remains the only US mass-produced, two-seat sports car to have enjoyed continuous production to date.

14. 1953 GM Futurliner

GM’s ‘Parade of Progress’ was a travelling showcase of the company’s future cars and technology that criss-crossed the States during the 1940s and ’50s, and the Futurliner – designed by Harley Earl – was integral to the programme’s success.

Essentially a concept vehicle, the Futurliner measured 33ft (10m) long, 8ft (2.4m) wide and weighed more than 15 tonnes.

It was powered by a 302cu in (4.9-litre) straight-six, mated to a two-speed automatic, or four-speed Hydramatic transmission.

The Futurliner was near-unique in being equipped with dual rear and front wheels.

Its driver sat in the middle of the raised cockpit, 10ft (3m) above road level. The cab could accommodate a further two passengers.

15. 1954 Buick Roadmaster Riveira Coupe

After a pre-war period of shrinkage for the Roadmaster, the 1954 sixth-series range grew by 9in (229mm) in length versus its predecessor, along with having a 5in (127mm) longer wheelbase.

Adopting the revised, ‘Ponton’-look C-body, also shared with its sibling brands, the new Roadmaster’s design showed the emergence of fins – still quite subtle and rounded – for the first time, along with ‘Dagmar’ bumpers and dual ‘bullet’ tail-lights.

Power from the 322cu in (5.3-litre) V8 was increased to 200bhp, and there was now the option of Frigidaire air conditioning for the closed Riviera and Sedan models.

16. 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air Convertible

Perhaps one of Harley Earl’s most recognisable cars from the fin era of the 1950s was Chevrolet’s second-series Bel Air model.

Marketed by GM as the ‘Hot One’, the 1955 Bel Air’s rear fins were larger and sharper-edged, and supplemented by more brightwork around the window frames, chrome ‘spears’ on the front wings and a new Ferrari-like front grille.

Available as a two- and four-door hardtop, Convertible and Station Wagon, this generation of Bel Air received a wide range of engines, from the 216cu in (3.5-litre) Thriftmaster ‘six’, to the 283cu in (4.6-litre) Super Turbo Fire V8, with a choice of three-speed manual and two- or three-speed automatic transmissions.

17. 1957 Buick Roadmaster Series 70

With Earl’s lower and sleeker look for the 1957 model year, the seventh-series Roadmaster epitomised the pinnacle of US fin-era cars.

Now with a large panoramic windscreen, with swept-back A-pillars and more chrome body addenda than ever before, the ’57 Roadmaster was a sight to behold.

Inside, there was a padded dashboard, nylon or leather seat trim, and standard power seats and windows on the Model 75 derivative.

To help shift the 5.5m (18ft) Roadmaster – which weighed between 4500-4900lb (2041-2222kg) – at a respectable pace was the model’s largest engine yet: a new 364cu in (6-litre) V8, producing 300bhp.

18. 1957 Pontiac Star Chief Custom Bonneville Convertible

Pontiac’s first Bonneville model was part of its Star Chief range, and was a fully loaded Convertible derivative, with power brakes, power windows, powered front seats and a power hood as standard.

From 1958, Bonneville became a standalone model, available as a two-door hardtop or Convertible.

For the ’57 model year, though, the Bonneville Convertible was available with a mechanical fuel-injection system for its 347cu in (5.7-litre) Strato Streak V8 engine, which, Pontiac claimed, produced more than 300bhp.

Priced at $5782, the Bonneville Convertible was more than twice the cost of the Chieftain model on which it was based.

19. 1957 Cadillac Fleetwood Sixty Special Sedan

Launched in 1957, and then revised again for ’58, in its first year of production the Fleetwood sold 24,000 cars, more than any other future Fleetwood model.

Weighing 4761lb (2160kg), the Fleetwood Sixty Special’s opulent styling included full fender skirts that almost covered the rear wheels

Fitted as standard with a foot-operated parking brake that disengaged when Drive was selected in the Hydra-Matic transmission, the Fleetwood was also available with power door locks as an option.

Output from its 365cu in (5.98-litre) V8 rose to 308bhp for the ’58 model year.

20. 1959 Pontiac Bonneville Vista Hardtop

Harley Earl retired from GM in 1958, aged 65.

The last projects he oversaw combined the most extreme interpretation of a rear tail-fin on a GM car (for the 1959 Cadillac) and, as here, in counterpoint, the more subtle rear-end styling of the ’59 Bonneville, which marked the start of a trend away from the excesses of The General’s 1950s models.

There was also more focus from Pontiac on the Bonneville’s handling and drivability.

The second-series model was promoted as the ‘Wide Track’ car, its front and rear tracks measuring 63.7in (1618mm) and 64in (1626mm) respectively, around 3in (76m) wider than before. This made it one of the best-handling cars in its class.

Pontiac also offered a Safe-T-Track limited-slip differential on the Bonneville for the first time.