Why did the American president’s car change from Lincoln to Cadillac？
I believe that everyone’s circle of friends was screened by this picture a few days ago. Yes, for this position, two groups of people represented by Trump and Hillary Clinton have been blackmailing each other for nearly 10 months. In several public debates, two prominent high-level people ridiculed and attacked each other, and many scandals were exposed in succession, and this is the position they are vying for-the back seat of Cadillac No.1, which only the President of the United States can sit on.
Yes, now, the American president’s car is a special Cadillac, but in fact, the American president’s love for Cadillac is only in recent decades. If you turn to history, you will find that earlier, brands such as Lincoln were the favorite of the American president, and they all dominated each other for decades. So, what made the change happen? Next, let’s follow Rut Jun and enter the evolution history of the American president’s car to find out.
The President’s First Car-—1909 White Steamer
Of course, when Karl Ben Ci and gottlieb Daimler won the patent right of the world’s first automobile in 1886, the first 20-odd American presidents had no access to automobiles, and they only went out by carriage, and they never drove a car. Until the 25th President William McGinley test-drove Stanley in July, 1901 (it was formally established in 1902, but the first car was built in 1887, an American manufacturer that only produced steam cars. By the early 1920s, cheaper gasoline cars reappeared and gradually occupied the steam car market, and Stanley went bankrupt in 1924).
William McGinley test drive Stanley.
According to the regulations of the Secret Service, the president’s carriage needs bodyguards to follow at all times. After the gradual popularization of cars, the Secret Service specially bought White Motor’s steam car as a escort in 1907. However, Theodore Roosevelt, then president, would rather take a carriage than a car because he wanted to maintain his "rough knight image."
After Theodore Roosevelt refused to run for re-election, William Howard Taft, the 27th president who was hand-picked by him, turned a new page in the White Motor. The original stable was turned into a garage. In 1909, he spent $12,000 (equivalent to $310,000 now) to buy four cars, including two luxury cars, Pierce-Arrow (an American luxury brand, the car of many celebrities), and bought a representative to enter the upper class, and at the same time produced trucks and fire engines.
The first official presidential car-White Steamer
White Motor is a shady American automobile manufacturer, whose products cover trucks, tractors, bicycles, roller skates and sewing machines. Thomas•White, the founder, originally bought a steam car company in Locomobile, but found that the steam engine is extremely dangerous, because the water in nature is soft, and it is easy to form scale on the boiler wall when heated, which will lead to uneven heating and boiler explosion. However, his son Rollin•White made a great improvement, which greatly reduced the probability of explosion. White’s steam car gained good sales, but when the gasoline car gradually counterattacked, White’s center of gravity began to shift, instead of stubbornly hanging himself from a tree. It turns out that they did the right thing.
Although Pierce was originally the president’s official car, when the "engine" of the steam car was running, the thick steam just helped to block the reporter’s camera and questioning. This seven 40-horsepower White Motor became his favorite. Did it have its own destiny with the White House? In fact, this large convertible laid the tone for more than 60 presidents to drive later.
Taft and his family are sitting in White Steamer.
The White House’s First Bulletproof Car-—Packard Twelve Rollson Phaeton
Franklin Roosevelt, one of the most outstanding presidents in American history and the only one who held the presidency for four consecutive years, took over Hoover’s mess during the Great Depression in 1929, and then quickly introduced a series of practical measures to save the country. Therefore, when he ran for the 38th president in 1936, he won 523 of the 531 voter votes, and assumed the post with a super high proportion. But at this time, his car was still a large convertible. At that time, most leaders liked to stand in the convertible and wave to the masses. As the saying goes, there was no shelf to narrow the distance with the masses and improve their support rate. Even Hitler still stood in the Mercedes-Benz convertible after the outbreak of World War II.
Hitler and his Mercedes 770K
In the 1930s, there was a "cylinder number war", and all luxury brands in the United States were gearing up for the top spot. Eight cylinders just came out here, and 12 cylinders were immediately launched there. Cadillac with 16 cylinders finally won the war without smoke, but Packard is still an important part of the American luxury car puzzle. You know, behind Cadillac is GM, behind Lincoln is Ford, and Packard is just an independent luxury car manufacturer.
In 1932, the sales of luxury cars reached 22,000 units, of which 35.6% were Packard and only 16.9% were Cadillac. On the one hand, the price was 500-1,000 dollars lower than that of competitors, and at the same time, it provided luxury as other brands. On the other hand, many versions are derived from a single product line, which greatly reduces the expenses of updating or launching new models from time to time.
Twin Six with graceful atmosphere
As an independent brand, it will not be influenced by other brands under the group, and it does not need to share the losses. In addition, its working method is very flexible, and even it has been transferred to others as a beer production line.
Two years after the end of the Great Depression in 1933, Packard introduced the entry model 120 with a price of less than $1,000, and the sales volume doubled continuously. The reason is also simple. The advanced degree of 120 configuration not only exceeds its own high-end series, but also uses large-scale modern production technology. Under the same labor force as high-end models, the output can be 10 times higher, and high efficiency is not equal to money. However, this move has somewhat affected the brand image.
Packard 120 Coupe
By 1939, Roosevelt customized Twenty Rolls on Phaeton, claiming that the reason for choosing this brand was its reliability and strong power. At this time, many luxury brands founded at the same time had closed down before 1938, and Roosevelt invisibly made a wave of strong advertisements for Packard.
Packard Twelve
Twelve series can be said to represent the highest technological level of Packard. In the 1930s, it was equipped with controllable hydraulic suspension control system and hydraulic brakes, and the natural price was not cheap. The initial price was from $3,650 for a Coupe to $4,395 for a Sedan (now $150,000-$170,000), and then with some customization, the price could rise to the level of Rolls Royce.
The biggest highlight of Rollson is that it is the first American presidential car with bullet-proof body and glass. In 1939, it happened to be the time when World War II broke out. After the Pearl Harbor incident in 1941, the United States announced its participation in the war, and Roosevelt’s other cars were also equipped with bullet-proof armor and glass, which only slightly improved the safety awareness. The problem is that these cars are still convertible models.
Roosevelt’s packard twenty rolls on phaeton
Lessons of Blood-Lincoln Continental SS-100-X
Therefore, a lot of progressive reforms need bloodshed. On November 22nd, 1963, at about 12: 30 noon, the 35th President of the United States, John Kennedy, accompanied by his wife Jacqueline Kennedy and Texas Governor John Connery, was assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald in a Lincoln convertible as he drove past Dallas’ Dilly Square. So far, there is no accurate and convincing statement about this incident, and the related witnesses have died strangely, adding a lot of confusing atmosphere to this case.
Before Kennedy took office in 1961, the Secret Service rented the fourth-generation Lincoln Continental convertible from Ford at a price of $500 a year. The biggest reason for choosing the convertible was to let the enthusiastic people see the leaders they supported with their own eyes. In a sense, it was the same as a star meeting, and then fans were more willing to canvass for their idols. At this time, the American car design style is no longer the grandiose aviation style in the 1940s and 1950s, but the "design obeys the function", and the mainland has also changed into a wedge-shaped design (many people think that the aura and feeling of luxury cars are not as good as those in the past, and it is not unreasonable. After so many years of development, car design is now focused on fuel economy or performance, and the previous unrestrained style can only be said that manufacturers all over the world have tried and tried with Americans).
At that time, the car was priced at $7,347 (now $58,000), equipped with a 350-horsepower 7.0L V8 engine (this is only the minimum engine), which was 104 centimeters longer than the original length of 5.4 meters, and then handed over to Hess & Eisenhardt (a refitting factory that provided driving safety for world leaders and served every American president from 1948 to 2001). Including many government agencies in the United States, code-named SS-100-X, but the modification cost of $200,000 (now $1.587 million) only upgraded the comfort configuration, and the safety measures were only handrails for bodyguards to grasp in the trunk, while the so-called double-glazing could be installed in dealers.
This Lincoln has also become the last convertible in the history of the American president’s car. Since then, there has never been such a situation in the United States where the president is sitting in a convertible. After the assassination, Vice President Lyndon Johnson was on the verge of death on Air Force One, and this car continued to serve Johnson until 1967, but it was tempered with a bulletproof roof and thicker armor. The original car was painted black from dark blue, and the "high power" mode could be started in an emergency. The engine will generate more than 17% of the power, and it was not until 1978 (later as a security vehicle) that it retired to hometown and was housed in the Ford Museum in dearborn, Michigan, and quietly accepted the attention of everyone.
SS-100-X from Ford Museum
Learn from one’s mistakes-Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham
In 1981, Ronald Reagan, the 40th president, just took office for 69 days. Just after giving a speech and eating, John hinkley suddenly rushed out to attack Reagan. Although he was shot in the abdomen and lungs, fortunately, he did not pose a threat to his life and recovered quickly, but it is estimated that he has formed a huge psychological shadow on Lincoln.
Lincoln, as the standard of the president, can be traced back to Franklin’s time. As for the reason, it must have something to do with the name "Lincoln". Every president hopes that his achievements in office can reach the height of Abraham Lincoln (however, Lincoln himself was assassinated).
Lincoln’s fifth generation continent at the time of Reagan’s assassination
Although Lincoln mainland had a bulletproof body and roof at this time, after the assassination, he directly replaced it with Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham (the "Fuehrer’s open-top carriage", but Cadillac’s rear roof was changed to leather), and Ice cancelled the roof skylight to ensure all-round safety protection.
This car is equipped with a 135-horsepower 4.1L V8 engine, which is 430 mm longer and 76 mm higher than the original car. It is equipped with armor and bulletproof glass with a thickness of 60 mm. The huge glass area is like a mobile greenhouse. In order to withstand such a large weight, the tires and wheels have of course been upgraded.
At that time, many people thought that the presidential car in a 1993 movie "Sniper by Firewire" (also the story of the assassination of the president) was the original car, because the model made in the movie was so elaborate, but when you think about it, it is impossible. As a state secret, every presidential car is either taken back to the museum or completely destroyed after retirement, and it is impossible to borrow it as a movie prop.
Reagan’s Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham
Trembling-Cadillac One
In the next 30 years, only George H.W. Bush chose Lincoln, and all others were Cadillac. Obama’s Cadillac One-"The Beast" was also brought to China during the G20 Summit in Hangzhou some time ago. Later, the media basically interpreted everything that civilians could know, such as the modeling based on DTS, the grille of CTS and the headlights of Escalade. In terms of power, there is no specific data on the weight of 8.1L V8 gasoline engine or 6.6L turbocharged V8 diesel engine, but it is definitely not light from the Goodyear RHS tire, because this type of tire is usually used for medium and heavy trucks. The safety measures are undoubtedly the best in the past. The 55mm bullet-proof glass (only the main driver can lift it to pay the toll), the steel plate of the car body is 127mm thick, and there is no keyhole in the whole car. Even how to open the door is a secret.
In addition, it is equipped with tear gas throwing equipment, shotguns and other weapons. When attacked by howitzers or anti-tank missiles, the car can also launch multi-spectral infrared smoke bombs to interfere. Even if the president is attacked, the oxygen supply system, fire extinguishing system and the president’s exclusive blood reserve are all available.
The above interpretation seems to have narrowed the distance between the American president’s car and the Chinese people, but this situation is not expected to happen in the future, because Trump’s new car will be unveiled at the inauguration ceremony on January 20 next year, and the "beast" will become history.
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(Article source: Rutting Yu Jianliang)
