Have you noticed how styling trends tend to appear at about the same time in the automobile industry? Consider wraparound windshields. Only a handful of early cars had them, but virtually all cars suddenly had them in 1955… Rambler, Willys, and, oddly enough, Lincoln, excepted.

Studebaker was caught off guard and introduced its bread-and-butter 1955 "sedan" line with conventional windshields. When it was obvious the market demanded wrap-around windshields, Studebaker spared no expense in retooling those sedan models for wrap-around windshields during the model year! New factory tooling was positioned during Christmas vacation in 1954. When 1955 production resumed in January 1955, Studebaker sedans were built with wrap-around windshields.

Another example is quad headlamps — they were almost universally adopted by the domestic industry for the 1958 model year after laws outlawing them in a few states were rescinded during 1957.

It might be argued that today’s generic, computer-generated, "bar of soap left out in the rain" shapes represent the most dramatic styling shift in the history of automobile design. Might we consider an alternative? To wit: The decisive shift from essentially vertical, radiator-defined styling of the 1930s to the predominantly horizontal styling that almost universally began with 1941 models.

During the 1930s, radiator height and narrowness were emphasized in varying degrees. Exposed radiators became enclosed behind increasingly streamlined, but still vertical, grillwork. Hoods often incorporated speed lines that were defined by pinstripes, louvers and/or horizontal chrome or stainless-steel moldings flowing back from prominent, upright grilles. Hudson’s pretty 1941 "Symphonic Styling," shown here, showcased the new horizontal styling trend despite having a vestigial tall hood.

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