Robin (UK) Posted May 31, 2014 Report Posted May 31, 2014 It's really hard to find assembly line pictures - I've only ever found a couple online - so I thought I'd share these, from an original factory tour souvenir booklet, printed December 1947... 1 Quote
DonaldSmith Posted May 31, 2014 Report Posted May 31, 2014 See all the car bodies, stacked vertically on their tails. There must have been some fixture(s), to hold the bodies upright. See the bodies lowered onto the frames, with the "dog house" already on. See the body drop. That must have been a neat dance, to lower the body over the steering column. So that's how you remove the steering gear: Simply remove the body, sort of up and back. 1 Quote
JerseyHarold Posted May 31, 2014 Report Posted May 31, 2014 The screw-in floor panels were probably installed after the body drop so there was more wiggle room for the line workers. Quote
DonaldSmith Posted May 31, 2014 Report Posted May 31, 2014 The floors would have to be closed from the body plant to body drop. I'm guessing that the floor panels and the floor mat or carpet would go in at the body plant. There is a rectangular seal where the steering column and gearshift shaft go through the floor. it would be a small matter to plug that hole while the body is in transit. I'm guessing that the body was lowered so that the column and shaft would thread through the rectangular hole. Once the body was mated to the frame, the seal would be slid over the column and shaft and screwed to the firewall, the column and shaft would be clamped to the dashboard, and the gearshift lever and steering wheel would be installed. But maybe JerseyHarold is right. The brake and clutch panels and the accelerator rod would have to go through the floor. Cars of the 30's would also have a floor shift to be fit around. Hmm. Not too many people around who were there at the time. Quote
Ricky Luke Posted May 31, 2014 Report Posted May 31, 2014 (edited) The National Archives of Australia has a large collection of photos - here's four from the 1940's. They are of the TJ Richards factory in Adelaide, South Australia who built Mopar bodies for imported rolling chassis. If you're interested, search for "Chrysler" between 1930 and 1970. There's photos of the Australian Chrysler Royal of the mid 50's being built. Edited May 31, 2014 by Ricky Luke 1 Quote
TodFitch Posted May 31, 2014 Report Posted May 31, 2014 See all the car bodies, stacked vertically on their tails. There must have been some fixture(s), to hold the bodies upright. See the bodies lowered onto the frames, with the "dog house" already on. See the body drop. That must have been a neat dance, to lower the body over the steering column. So that's how you remove the steering gear: Simply remove the body, sort of up and back. Looks to me like those vertical car bodies are actually hanging off of a rail above. Probably uses gravity to keep the bodies vertical. They must have had the floor boards out for that body drop to have worked. Explains why the front floor boards are bolted in on my car but the rear is welded steel. Quote
Eneto-55 Posted May 31, 2014 Report Posted May 31, 2014 See the bodies lowered onto the frames, with the "dog house" already on. That is interesting, because I would have thought that the front clip would be mounted after the body was on the frame. Quote
Mark D Posted May 31, 2014 Report Posted May 31, 2014 Robin the March 1985 copy of the WPC news has several good photographs. I purchased a copy from eBay and made a scan if you're interested. PM me with your email address and I will send you a copy. Quote
Don Coatney Posted May 31, 2014 Report Posted May 31, 2014 The brake and clutch panels and the accelerator rod would have to go through the floor. On a P-15 the break, clutch, and foot feed all go through the removable floor panel. Dodge appears to be the same. Quote
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