The Space Age Hits the Road: Visionary Car Designs in America

1956 Plymouth Belvedere

Manufacturers in the mid-1950s trumped one another with progressively larger rear tailfins. A division of Chrysler, Plymouth benefited from the radical overhaul its parent company instituted the previous year under chief designer Virgil Exner, who called the new look “airfoil” styling. The rear fenders of the Belvedere trailed off into space, as the promotional brochure suggested, “leaving no question that the car is racing forward.” Every aspect of the Belvedere created an aerodynamic look, from the jet-plane medallion on the hood to the broad sweep of the rear fenders.

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