Hudsons in the Heartland - 1954 Hudson Hornet

We owe those stingy new-car dealership finance managers a debt of gratitude. After all, if they'd offered generous trade-in values to their new-car buying prospects, a number of the now-collectible cars that remained with the families of their original purchasers for decades would have been sent through the used car mill, long gone and forgotten to time. In a sense, the dealer who offered only $50 for the Hoyle family's 10-year-old 1954 Hudson Hornet--an insulting sum for a perfectly functioning car in fine condition--saved that car for another three generations (and counting) to enjoy, and in turn, cemented in its caretaker an enduring love of a celebrated brand.

Robert Hoyle was 7 years old in June 1954, when his father, Robert Sr., traded the family's 1949 Hudson Commodore Six sedan on a new 1954 Hudson Hornet Special Club Sedan at Dixon, Illinois', Kellen Motor Sales. Mr. Hoyle received a reasonable $852.92 toward the $3,011.86 Hornet, a car optioned with a three-speed Borg-Warner automatic transmission, heater, directional indicators, seat covers and undercoating. This Club Sedan retained the 124-inch wheelbase of its 1949 predecessor, but exhibited more rakish lines and fewer doors. Robert recalls, "The reason my folks bought a two-door Hudson was because I was a little guy, and my cousins and friends were little guys, and they didn't want us getting out of the back seat once they put us in there."

This fetching Beret Blue over Algerian Blue Hornet Special, with its matching worsted wool check-weave upholstery, enjoyed the nameplate's final, and most comprehensive update, which included a one-piece windshield, redesigned grille, raised rear fenders with proud taillamps and a matching trunklid, plus a fresh dashboard design. Under the hood, Hudson's 308.2-cu.in. L-head straight-six engine--made famous through years of stock-car racing victories--powered the car, sporting a dual-downdraft Carter carburetor and making 160hp at 3,800 RPM and 264-lbs.ft. of torque at 1,800 RPM. The engine far out-powered the contemporary low-priced Chevrolet straight-six and Ford V-8, and followed close behind the V-8s of medium-priced Oldsmobile and Buick. The Hornet offered near-100 MPH performance and quasi-thrifty 17-MPG fuel economy.

The 1954 Super Wasp Club Coupe is Robert's favorite driver, for its easy starting and modern roadability.

The Hornet Club Sedan served the family well, transporting them to their new home in Phoenix, Arizona, in 1959. "My mother got a new car in 1964, a Plymouth Valiant. Dad was going to trade the Hornet in on that car, but it was a stroke of luck for our family that the dealer offered him so little money for the trade-in," Robert says. "In 1964, nobody wanted it--it was 10 years old and not worth much, so my father decided to keep it." The Hoyles' Hudson came in handy, serving as daily transportation for young Robert, who drove back and forth to Arizona State University from 1966 through 1970.

The family moved back to Illinois in 1970, and with them came the Hudson. There, it went into Robert Sr.'s heated garage, coming out periodically for pleasure drives. "It didn't develop any rust because it was in Phoenix for 11 years. Most of the original undercoating is still on the car today; that and the desert saved it. The man who applied the undercoating at the Hudson garage in 1954 is still with us; he was our mechanic, right up until he retired a couple of years ago."

The Hornet was Robert Jr.'s hobby in 1973 when he was married. "My wife never knew what a Hudson was until she married me," he laughs, and he would inherit this car in 1993. Long before that, he bought his own Hudson: "In 1979, I bought a 1951 Commodore Custom Six Hollywood hardtop. We were raising a family and I didn't have a lot of money, but I got a good deal on it. It was driveable, but it needed paint and some bodywork. It's been a very dependable car." This pretty hardtop's "Skyliner styling" cloaked a 262-cu.in. straight-six engine, whose 6.7-compression and Carter WGD 776S 11/4-inch dual-barrel carburetor allowed it to make 123hp at 4,000 RPM and 200-lbs.ft. at 1,600 RPM, here funneled through a Hydra-Matic.

The family's pole barn is also home to their low-mile original 1949 Commodore Six sedan and 1951 Commodore Custom Six Hollywood hardtop, the first collectible Hudson Robert purchased in 1979.

Hudson fever had taken hold. "The next one I bought was the 1946 Carrier Pick-Up truck, in 1992. It ran well, but it needed paint and a new bed." This 128-inch wheelbase, three-quarter-ton long-bed truck predated Hudson's "Monobilt" Step-Down unit body design and, as such, had separate body-on-frame design, although its car-based cab and independent coil-sprung front suspension gave it Hudson's typically good ride and handling. The Carrier Pick-Up, as literature called it, used the passenger cars' 212-cu.in. L-head Super-Six engine, which was outfitted with a compression ratio of 6.5:1 and dual-barrel Carter 501S carburetor, that made 102hp at 4,000 RPM and 168-lbs.ft. of torque at 1,200 RPM. One of fewer than 3,500 built, it was Hudson's lowest-production 1946 model. "Not everyone likes the looks of the Step-Downs, but everybody likes the truck," Robert laughs. "It's kind of unique, and it drives really nice.

Robert Hoyle: ''Through all of these years being involved in Hudsons and the Hudson clubs, I've made a lot of really good friends.''

"In 1994, we got the 1949 Commodore Six sedan, which today has only 35,000 miles on it--it's almost new. I was glad to find one like Dad had," Robert says. This factory-original top-of-the-line four-door sedan is powered by the smaller of two available engines, and its Carter two-barrel-carbureted 262-cu.in. straight-six makes 121hp at 4,000 RPM and 200-lbs.ft. of torque at 1,600 RPM, all of which is corralled by the standard column-shift three-speed manual gearbox.

Robert's next Hudson was a real find--one of roughly 225 soft-tops the company built in 1954. "My wife and I wanted a convertible, so we bought our 1954 Super Wasp. Mechanically, it was good, but it needed a top, upholstery, paint and re-chroming. I found that car here in Illinois; it's manual with overdrive, and it's really nice to drive. Overdrive really spoils you; get up to 35 MPH in high gear and lift your foot off of the gas, and you're automatically in overdrive. That gives you good gas mileage, and it effortlessly cruises down the road at 70 MPH. Then, as you slow down and get below 35, it will kick out automatically. You can get overdrive in second gear, too, if you want to drive in second," he explains.

The Convertible Brougham shares its 7.0-compression, Carter 2115S-carbureted 262-cu.in. straight-six--making 140hp at 4,000 RPM and 214-lbs.ft. of torque at 1,600 RPM--with the 1954 Super Wasp Club Coupe that Robert purchased a few years later. The Club Coupe, which was a mechanically sound Tennessee car that needed paint, differs by its Hydra-Matic transmission. It shares the convertible's new instrument panel and redesigned grille, although both Super Wasps' 119-inch wheelbase and 202 15/32-inch overall length are smaller than the 124-inch wheelbase and 208 7/8-inch length of the Robert's 1954 Hornet.

Three of Robert's six Hudsons are from the automaker's final year as an independent entity, a year when just 50,660 cars were built. All of them are ready to roll at a moment's notice. "In good weather, I take them out every couple of weeks. I drive the Super Wasp Club Coupe most of all--I'd guess a couple thousand miles a year--and the others, I drive about 500 miles a year. That black coupe is so easy--it starts instantly, like a modern car, and it runs like new," Robert says. "I'm an original-car guy... all of my cars are six-volt. They worked fine from the factory that way, so that's the way they remain. My cars are all nice, but I'm not a show-car guy. I want them good, mechanically, but they're not trailer babies."

The Hudson-Essex-Terraplane Club has played a big role in Robert's enjoyment of Hudsons for 45 years. "Our family has enjoyed attending the national and regional meets, and our local Chicago-Milwaukee chapter has activities about once a month for nine months of the year," he explains. "Through all of these years being involved in Hudsons and the Hudson clubs, I've made a lot of really good friends. Hudson people are great--the cars are important, but for us, the people come first."

Maintaining a fleet of six classics isn't for the faint of heart, but these cars aren't demanding. "They haven't needed any major work, just normal things like water and fuel pumps, starters and generators. Hudson made good engines!" Robert has a low-key maintenance routine. "I store the cars in a pole barn with a gravel floor, which I've covered with used carpeting; it seems to keep the cars dry. I change their oil once a year with 10W-40. If I won't be starting a car over the winter, I'll pour a pint of Marvel Mystery Oil through the carburetor as that engine is running--this keeps the valves from sticking. It will really smoke in the spring, though," Robert laughs. He keeps the cars washed and vacuumed--and his favorite detailing trick? "I've found that S.O.S [steel wool soap] pads keep the wide whites clean better than anything else."

Robert enjoys all of his Hudsons--"I love their quality, the way they were engineered and built, with good roadability, good handling and good power"--but he's most attached to his father's Hornet. "Dad started driving Hudsons in 1940, and it's become a family tradition. We can get into generations with that car--my dad, then me, my two boys and now my grandkids are riding in it. I will never sell the 1954 Hornet. I've told my children, 'Keep that one.' The other ones, when I'm gone, will probably be sold quickly. But I don't want to sell my parents' car, and I don't think that they will either."