give thanks goodness for the 1937 International C-1 Pickup . Like near the eternal rest of American industriousness , International Harvester Company was in dire pass during the Great Depression of the early 1930s . look at that in 1929 the company produced more than 50,000 hand truck , but by 1932 , that total was down to about 17,400 .
One strategy IH take on to increase sales in those dark days was to put down the sluttish - obligation market – a strategy that would in the end produce the successful 1937 International C-1 Pickup .
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The pressure of time and tight money go against create a new design from mark . The answer came from Willys - Overland . In very precarious fiscal condition and eager to increase sales of its lite motortruck , Willys manufactured a qualify version of its 1/2 - ton C-113 pickup and board motortruck that International marketed as the D-1 . Though built in Willys ' Toledo , Ohio , plant life , the D-1 sported its own radiator and hood styling and used a large - displacement version of the C-113 ’s six - piston chamber engine .
The D-1 dish its think purpose well . Thanks to its 12,200 units , calendar - year 1933 production of outside trucks topped 30,100 . But with Willys - Overland
now in receivership and its ability to meet International ’s needs uncertain , IH turned to a successor of its own plan .
On the surface , the outside C-1 Pickup was a whole new truck . taxicab styling was more rounded at the corners , and the sometime - fashioned windshield visor of the D-1 was done by with . A vee’d aluminum grill with a body - coloring material racing shell and more - enveloping fender with chick at their drag edges were up - to - the - bit .
The 113 - in wheelbase , 213 - cid six , and stock 4.18:1 axle proportion of the D-1 were retained for the fresh truck , but there were significant mechanically skillful change to distinguish the C-1 from its predecessor .
A prospicient 125 - column inch - wheelbase version of the flesh was added . The propellor shaft gain roller - gestate stick , guidance and brake components were enhance , and there were stronger spring with redesign shackles . The inning rails were made a half - inch recondite than those used on the D-1 .
Though displacement of the undersquare railway locomotive ( 3.31 - inch eager by 4.13 - column inch apoplexy ) was unaltered , output was increased to 78 horsepower at 3,600 revolutions per minute , compare to 70 at 3,400 as developed in the D-1 . The densification proportion of the C-1 engine stood at 6.3:1 .
apart from the horsepower rise , the locomotive engine benefited from improved inflammation wiring . An 50 - head aim with four independent carriage , it used a cast - branding iron block and solid valve lifters and catch one’s breath through a individual - throat downdraft carburetor . The railway locomotive worked through a three - upper manual transmission activated by a storey - mounted lever .
C-1s were produced by IH at its plants in Springfield , Ohio , and Chatham , Ontario , Canada ( though the engines were manufactured by the Wilson Foundry & Machine Company , of Pontiac , Michigan ) . apart from short - and retentive - bed pickup , factory - supplied bodies included panel , open - side , and filmdom - side deliveries . figure / cowl unit were available , too , and International cataloged a " woody " station police van with bodies supplied by external firms .
IH considered its factory - authorize body fluctuation to be option , so most stated prices are for the canonical chassis / hood . But the Standard Catalog of American Light Duty Trucks cites a 1934 price of $ 545 for a forgetful - wheelbase pickup , which would have been $ 100 more than the chassis alone . The 125 - in chassis cost $ 25 more than its shorter counterpart .
aside from the comer of hydraulic pasture brake in February 1936 , the C-1 was produced with little alteration until April 1937 , when it was superseded by the D-2 serial . In its three - yr run , C-1 yield derive to 76,820 vehicles .
The light - duty hand truck line leaven to be a substantive part of IH ’s job ; in 1936 , when yield edged past 100,000 – quite a leap from dingy 1932 – nearly a third of that total consisted of C-1s . All the while , International was able to apply third place among American truck producers .
The prospicient - wheelbase pickup render here is one of the 6,639 C-1s built in 1937 ( 274 of which came from the Canadian flora ) . It features 18 - inch steel - speak wheel ( though wire wheels were also available ) and an supererogatory - price right - side taillight .
