Book Description

JAY LENO says "The Dashboard Book" is a "Good read" and "I really liked it". It is the definitive full color illustrated history of the American automobile dashboard. More than 400 color photographs and more than 160 different cars are included. The first chapters include the elegant Curved Dash Oldsmobile of 1901/07, Sears mail order Motor Buggy, Ford's Model T, air cooled Franklins, early Cadillacs, Buick's 1914 Torpedo Touring, Auburn, Duesenburg, Pierce Arrow, Essex, Hudson, Lincoln, LaSalle, Chevrolet, 1936 Cord, and my visit to Jay Leno's garage and his 1934 Airflow. The early chapters also include the evolution of dashboards from simple wooden boards of the carriage and buggy styles to development of the firewall, cowl, and instrument panels of the early 1900's to the conflicting cockpit and living room styles of the 1920's and to the Art Deco and Streamline Moderne styles of the 1930's. Later chapters include cars from the 40's 50's and 60's including models from Studebaker and the Avanti, Ford, Mercury, Lincoln,Plymouth, Dodge, Desoto, Chrysler, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Corvette, Mustang, Pontiac GTO, the Tucker, Oldsmobile, Jay Leno's Nash, Rambler, and more. An exterior photo of every car accompanies each dashboard photo and description. Throughout, the styling of dashboards is related to the styling trends of auto exteriors. Early instrumentation is also discussed as is the influence of the first affordable closed car. Brief histories and descriptions of dashboard accessories and controls like the cigar lighter, ashtrays, glove boxes, radios, a cigarette dispenser, tissue dispensers, and a glove box mini bar, and windshield wipers are also included as well as a full Works Cited and list of auto museums visited.