Automobile WI: Alternate Big Three

As every good Michigander (which includes me!) knows, the REAL Big Three are Ford, GM, and Chrysler. But what other North American based car companies could become part of Detroit's Big Three?
 
As every good Michigander (which includes me!) knows, the REAL Big Three are Ford, GM, and Chrysler. But what other North American based car companies could become part of Detroit's Big Three?

It was big four until American Motors started faltering. Perhaps AMC builds its decent small cars in the early 1970s, so that when the fuel crisis hits, AMC can't keep 'em in stock and makes a killing off of it, thus allowing them to develop better vehicles in the 1970s and 1980s, making it a "Big Four", though the fourth is based in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Studebaker has a potential winner, too. They dreamt up the idea of the pony car before Ford did - legend has it that Iacocca ordered the Mustang developed to grab that share of the market for themselves. They make a pony car and bring it into the market in 1962 or 1963, and thus kick off the pony car era themselves, beating Ford to the punch, who beat out GM, Chrysler and AMC by years themselves.

Or better yet, have both happen, and make it a "Big Five".
 
Well yes, there was the "Big 4" and others, but I'm looking for just 3 that make it through to today headquartered in Detroit.
 

NothingNow

Banned
Well yes, there was the "Big 4" and others, but I'm looking for just 3 that make it through to today headquartered in Detroit.
You have too many conditions for it to work.

But yeah, More successful AMC, because the Eagle Wagon was pure prescience. Maybe an earlier price drop on the Rambler American?

also here's one that comes out of left field: Food Machinery Corporation buys Volkswagen post WWII after having experience with the LVT and decide to enter the car business(they actually buy the company for the Wolfsburg plant and the Kübelwagen.) One redesign later and the Lakeland,FL produced FMC Coupe is the best selling compact in the US.
 
Back in Indiana...

What about the great company of Cord/Auburn/Duesenberg? If they would have gotten wise and been able to ride out the depression, then made a mint on war production we might still be talking about cars being 'Dueseys'.

Packard is another one, they made millions of license built Rolls Royce Merlins during the war, I really wish that would have kept them going.
 
The question is where we have the POD for mergers.
GM contained its core brands (Cadillac, Chevrolet, Buick, Oldsmobile, Pontiac) by 1920, although Pontiac was called Oakland until the late 1920s.

Ford swallowed Lincoln in 1922, and established Mercury in 1938.

Chrysler swallowed Dodge, and established DeSoto and Plymouth, in 1928.

AMC (a "fourth member of the big three") was formed by the 1954 merger of Nash-Kelvinator with Hudson. In 1970, it swallowed Kaiser-Jeep, which had been formed by the 1953 merger of Kaiser-Frazer and Willys-Overland. Chrysler bought AMC in 1987.

Studebaker merged with Packard in 1954, and shut down in 1966- the last Packard was built in 1958.

A completely alternative Big Three would probably include AMC, Studebaker-Packard, and Cord (including Auburn and Duesenberg). Not sure how it would happen, though.

I might post an idea of what they would be making in the late 60s/early 70s later on...
 
You may have too many constraints imposed. I can certainly think of an alternate member of a Big Three (Four?) but it wouldn't be based in Detroit.

In 1938, Ford was in dire financial straits to the point that the old man approached Studebaker seeking to be bought out. Had that deal been consummated, Studebaker/Ford would have been well on the way to rivaling GM. Chances are then that Mercury would never have seen the light of day, given the existence of something of a spectrum of Studebaker product that would have covered Mercury's niche rather well.

After the war, I could see Studebaker/Ford going after Hudson and Nash in an endeavor to round out the line further: Lincoln would be at the top, followed by Hudson, Studebaker, Nash, and Ford in that order. At the same time, I could see Henry Kaiser getting together with the folks at both Packard and Willys, yielding a lineup of Packard/Frazer/Kaiser/Willys/Henry J (Allstate). Now you have a Big Four, one of which would have been based in South Bend, IN.

As to the survival of Auburn/Cord/Duesenberg, forget it: that company was locked into high-end vehicles for a relative special interest market, without real mass production. Pierce-Arrow was gone by 1937 (a few '38s were produced but barely enough to notice). Graham and Hupmobile were badly strapped financially (Graham's sharknosed "Spirit of Motion" design, although striking today, evoked a love/hate--mostly the latter--when it debuted in the late '30s) to the point that they shared the use of the erstwhile Cord Beverly/Westchester body dies for the Hollywood and Skylark respectively in the last years of production ('40 and '41).
 
When AMC was formed I believe there were plans to add Studabaker & Packard. Maybe if they also join AMC & decide to make pony car/muscle cars in the 60's & small cars in the 70's they might have done much better in the long term. Or possibly an earlier AMC & Renault merger where AMC could have had small cars in the early 1970's?
 
OK, I'll take away my Detroit restriction then, base them anywhere in the US/Canada. I was just going for a different Detroit Three, but if that's too hard, no problem.
 
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You may have too many constraints imposed. I can certainly think of an alternate member of a Big Three (Four?) but it wouldn't be based in Detroit.

In 1938, Ford was in dire financial straits to the point that the old man approached Studebaker seeking to be bought out. Had that deal been consummated, Studebaker/Ford would have been well on the way to rivaling GM. Chances are then that Mercury would never have seen the light of day, given the existence of something of a spectrum of Studebaker product that would have covered Mercury's niche rather well.

After the war, I could see Studebaker/Ford going after Hudson and Nash in an endeavor to round out the line further: Lincoln would be at the top, followed by Hudson, Studebaker, Nash, and Ford in that order. At the same time, I could see Henry Kaiser getting together with the folks at both Packard and Willys, yielding a lineup of Packard/Frazer/Kaiser/Willys/Henry J (Allstate). Now you have a Big Four, one of which would have been based in South Bend, IN.

As to the survival of Auburn/Cord/Duesenberg, forget it: that company was locked into high-end vehicles for a relative special interest market, without real mass production. Pierce-Arrow was gone by 1937 (a few '38s were produced but barely enough to notice). Graham and Hupmobile were badly strapped financially (Graham's sharknosed "Spirit of Motion" design, although striking today, evoked a love/hate--mostly the latter--when it debuted in the late '30s) to the point that they shared the use of the erstwhile Cord Beverly/Westchester body dies for the Hollywood and Skylark respectively in the last years of production ('40 and '41).
That does sound fairly good. To be honest, I think Cord could survive, but as a sort of "American BMW" not as part of the Big Three...

Also, the Henry J was a strange beast. Would Kaiser still have had the government loan in your TL? If not, would they still build the Henry J, and would it be different due to not having been so strictly engineered down to a price?
 
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