47-54 Development/Concept Photos

[hewittca]

Introduction

The 47-54 GM trucks are the last ones I plan to document through development and production photography available through GM. Most of these photos are simply production ready versions of each model year before any changes were implemented on the production line, but you will notice a few interesting design proposals throughout. I assume that GM did not have much time to devote to prototyping since GM was eager to introduce this line as the first new American automobile released after WWII. The Advanced Design history and general automotive climate at the time is summarized nicely at DevesTechNet and Hemmings, so I won't try to rephrase this work that has already been done. Instead, for the most part I will let these photos do the talking in sharing a behind the scenes view of these trucks that hasn't been seen in quite a while. I hope you enjoy these!

Disclaimer

Of course, I must state that these are property of GM and I have been given permission to share these with you in a public forum format. PLEASE don't do anything with these photos that would result in requested removal by GM. This essentially means that these photos are for "reference" only and may not be used in any profitable way.

Contents

Part 1: Chevrolet Development
Part 2: GMC Development
Part 3: Promotional Photography

Part 1: Chevrolet Development

-Mid 1946
By mid '46, approximately one year after the end of WWII, GM had finalized the design for their all new post-WWII trucks called the Advanced Design Pickups. Although at first glance, it appears similar to the previous generation GM trucks, dimensionally it was very different. It also borrowed design cues from the Chevrolet Fleetline which was already in production for several years at this point. Shown here is a pre-production prototype.








-Early 1947
Shown here are the finalized drawings and production ready version of the new for '47 Chevrolet 3100. The main difference from the prototype is that they dropped most of the chrome trim.








-Mid 1948
There were no significant design changes to the Advanced Design trucks for the first few years of production. Shown here is a production ready '49 3/4 Ton. The keen eye will notice the only distinguishable difference here is in the hood emblem, which now says Chevrolet and the series designation, compared to saying Thriftmaster on earlier years.




-Mid 1949
This is a production ready '50 3600.



-Early 1950
This is a prototype truck that was used to propose design variations. In these photos, you will notice the vent windows that would be introduced on the '51 model for the first time. I found the "1942" plate interesting, as this is clearly not a photo from 1942.




-Mid 1950
These are photos of production 1950 Chevrolets.












-Late 1950
These photos are the most interesting to me from this series. These show several design proposals GM was experimenting with. Most notable is the grill proposal which would not make it to production, as GM opted to keep the same 5 bar grill it was using through '53. I also liked the bowtie tailgate which reminds me of custom tailgates you used to see on 80s-90s custom builds. The last photo shows what appears to be a proposed repositioning of the bed.







-Early 1951
These photos show the production '51 Chevrolets. Note the introduction of the vent windows for this model year which was proposed in early 1950.





-Mid 1951
Again, GM proposed another grill update for the Chevrolets. This time around, the update would be used but not until the '54 model year. They would continue to use the same 5 bar grill until then.



-Late 1951
The production ready '52 is shown here. The notable differences here are the push button door handles, no rear bumper, and no model designation on the side emblem.



-Early 1953
There were very little differences to the '53 model trucks, and GM was already focused on the updates they would introduce for the '54 model year. Shown here are the early pre-production versions of the '54 model year trucks. I found the last photo interesting with the bed floor cutouts for the frame.








-Late 1953
This is a production ready '54. Note the new grill, side emblems that only show model designation (no Chevrolet), bowtie hubcaps, flat bedrails, notched bumper, round taillights, and one piece windshield all retained from the design proposal from earlier in '53.











Also new for '54 and available for the first time on a Chevrolet pickup was a two-tone cab paint option.



After 1953, GM turned their attention to the next generation of trucks, the Task Force Pickups. Their development can be followed here. The Advanced Design would continue on through mid 1955, at which point production shifted to the 55-59 series trucks. Of course, alongside the Chevrolets were the GMCs, and I plan on updating this thread soon with a look at the development of the 47-54 GMCs.