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Chevrolet Series 490

Field	Value
image	1922 Chevrolet 490 Touring.jpg
caption	1922 Chevrolet 490 touring car
assembly	Oakland Assembly, Oakland, California
North Tarrytown Assembly, Tarrytown, New York
Flint Assembly, Flint, Michigan
Norwood Assembly, Norwood, Ohio
St. Louis Assembly, St. Louis, Missouri
Oshawa Assembly, Oshawa, Ontario, Canada
wheelbase	102 in
name	Chevrolet Series 490
aka	Chevrolet Four-Ninety
manufacturer	Chevrolet Motor Company (pre-GM)
production	1915–1922
predecessor	Chevrolet Series H
successor	Chevrolet Superior
class	mid-size
body_style	4-door touring
2-door roadster
2-door coupe (added 1918)
3-door sedan (added 1918)
chassis "cowl" truck (added 1918)
engine	171 in3, 24 hp Chevrolet Straight-4 engine
transmission	Selective-sliding 3-speed cone clutch
layout	FR layout
related	Chevrolet Series D

North Tarrytown Assembly, Tarrytown, New York Flint Assembly, Flint, Michigan Norwood Assembly, Norwood, Ohio St. Louis Assembly, St. Louis, Missouri Oshawa Assembly, Oshawa, Ontario, Canada 2-door roadster 2-door coupe (added 1918) 3-door sedan (added 1918) chassis "cowl" truck (added 1918)

The Chevrolet Series 490 (or Four-Ninety) is an early American automobile, made from 1915 to 1922 by Chevrolet. Introduced in June 1915, the Chevrolet 490 was sold for $490 ($ in dollars ). It was an immediate success and established the brand as a big player. The name would not denote the price for long (in 1921, the average price was $820), but it would stay low enough to take a chunk out of the Model T market. The Model T started at $495 at the time. Chevrolet was soon so profitable that Chevrolet owner Billy Durant began buying shares of GM stock with his Chevrolet stock, enough that he was able to take control of GM and merge Chevrolet with it. Electric horns were standard. And by 1921, standard equipment included a speedometer, and ammeter, dome lights (closed-body cars only), and headlight dimmers.

Models

All 490s were only offered with the Overhead Valve 171-cubic-inch (2.8 L) four cylinder, producing 24 hp. This would be Chevrolet's main engine until the "Stovebolt" straight six replaced it for 1929.

Chevrolet owner Billy Durant was a firm believer in the OHV engine, as that had been the reason for the success of his earlier automobile company, Buick, which he had taken over in 1904, and used to found GM in 1908. He lost control of GM in 1910 due to stockholder and banker issues, and Buick still had the patent for the OHV engine, but GM did not dare to sue Durant. Durant would use Chevrolet to regain control of GM in 1917, which he merged with Chevrolet that year.

The first Chevrolet and GMC trucks

The same year Chevrolet merged with GM, Durant wanted a pickup to compete with the new Ford Model TT. The answer was two models, the first 1918 Chevrolet Series 490 Light Delivery chassis cowl rated at half a ton and based on the passenger car. The second, not based on the 490, was a one-ton 1918 Chevrolet Model T (oddly enough) "Ton Truck" shared with GMC. It had a payload capacity rating of 2,000 lbs and sold for $1245 retail. Much like the chassis cab of today, they gave consumers a cheap, flexible platform to build on. Its steering wheel and gear shift lever, along with the instrument panel and gauge cluster, were also lifted from the passenger car. A chassis cowl included the chassis with engine, transmission and the front sheet metal which comprised the hood, front fenders, headlights and grille.

Production notes

Year	Production	Price	Weight	Notes
1915		$490
1916	70,701	$550–$750	1,820-2,500 lbs
1917				100,000th Chevrolet, Durant takes over GM
1918	95,660	$660–$1,060	1,890-2,160 lbs	coupe, sedan, chassis/"cowl" truck added
1919	149,833 (approx.)	$715–$1,185	1,820-2,160 lbs
1920	150,226 (approx.)	$795–$1,285	1,820-2,160 lbs
1921	76,370 (approx.)	$795–$1,375	1,820-2,160 lbs
1922	243,479 (approx.)	$510–$875	1,435-2,150 lbs

References

Klamath County Museum

References

Kimes, Beverly. (1996). "standard catalog of American Cars 1805-1942". Krause publications.
"Directory Index: Chevrolet/1916_Chevrolet/1916_Chevrolet_490_Brochure". Oldcarbrochures.com.
"Directory Index: Chevrolet/1916_Chevrolet/1916_Chevrolet_490_Brochure". Oldcarbrochures.com.
"Directory Index: Chevrolet/1921_Chevrolet/1921_Chevrolet_Data_Sheets". Oldcarbrochures.com.
"Directory Index: Chevrolet/1921_Chevrolet/1921_Chevrolet_Data_Sheets". Oldcarbrochures.com.
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Info: Wikipedia Source

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