More fun automotive trivia coming your way. This 1949 Chrysler Windsor may not have been the first model car to have an ignition key, but it was the first to be standard. Image courtesy chryslerwindsor.se

1949 was the first year that ignition keys being used to start the engine were standard equipment. This first came from Chrysler. Image courtesy MomentCar

What Car Had the First Key-Start System as Standard Equipment?

When cars were mostly a novelty, very few of them used keys even for accessing the trunk (boot to you British-English speakers) or locking and unlocking the doors. It was a completely different time back then. Cars were cranked by hand, with an actual crank that stuck out of the front of the crankshaft. These things caused many a twisted arm or wrist as well as their fair share of broken arms. Fast forward a decade or so, and then cars were using a push button on the floor with an electric starter to start the engine.

Along comes the 1949 model year and the Chrysler Corporation decides to do something big time different. The post-war years up to 1948 mostly saw the car companies dusting off blueprints of cars that they had planned to produce during the war years but couldn’t.

It wasn’t until the 1949 model year that almost completely new, white sheet plans were used. Most Chrysler cars for the 1949 model year, including Plymouths, were produced with the new key-start system, with the ignition key switch embedded in a beautiful wood-grained dash panel. This was also the first year for a rotary light switch.

The Olds Toronado was a car of firsts, even for Oldsmobile. The 1966 model year saw GM’s 100 millionth car-an Olds Toronado. Image via the Lingenfelter Collection.

What Was the 100 Millionth Car Produced by General Motors?

The General Motors name has arguably been America’s favorite marquee almost since its inception. One of Chevrolet’s favorite ad slogans was “The heartbeat of America.” In March 16, 1966, the company rolled out of the Lansing, Michigan, factory its 100-millionth car ever produced. The car was the 1966 Oldsmobile Toronado.

This model was and still is known as one of the marquee’s most radical designs. The Toronado was also the first front-drive production car in the US since the 1937 Cord 810 and 812. Under the hood of the Toronado was a big 425ci V8 engine was longitudinally-mounted. Another innovation was the gearbox that was designed specifically for this car. It was turned 180 degrees, allowing its output end to point forward and drive the front wheels instead of the rears. Connecting the torque converter to the transmission was a specially-designed chain and the gear setup was a standard 1:1 ratio.

The Olds 442/4-4-2 has always been a head turner. Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons.

What Did the 4-4-2 Stand for?

The 4-4-2 emblems that you saw on the sides of one of Oldsmobile’s most popular muscle cars serves as more than just the model name for the car. It’s also a code for automotive aficionados and fans of the Oldsmobile name. We’ve heard many people over the years say that it designates the size of the engine-442 cubic inches. We’ve also heard other people say it tells you how much horsepower the engine generates. Both are wrong.

Pop the hood on one of these babies and you see a carburetor with four barrels. Look underneath and you see a 4-speed transmission. Look out back and you see a true dual exhaust system.