End Of The Line! Trivia Quiz

Answer: El Camino

Production of the El Camino began in 1959, although it only lasted for one year. Classified as a truck in the United States, the vehicle was reintroduced in 1964, and ended production in 1987. There are rumors that the El Camino may be brought back into production; the Holden Ute (Australia) and Chevrolet Lumina Ute (South Africa and the Middle East) are modern-day versions.

Answer: Pierce-Arrow

The Pierce-Arrow Motor Car Company produced automobiles from 1901-1938. Their car that was produced for the luxury market, the Great Arrow, won the Glidden Trophy in 1905 after winning an 1100 mile endurance race. President Taft ordered two Pierce-Arrows in 1909; they were the "White Model M Tourers" models, which were to be used for state occasions.

Answer: De Soto

The DeSoto Division was part of the Chrysler Corporation beginning in 1928. Not only did sales of the car break the record for first-year sales with 81,065, but this record was not outmatched until 1960 when Ford introduced its Falcon. An economic recession in 1958, as well as other factors, hurt demand and sales of the car, and the car was discontinued in 1961.

Answer: Edsel

The "E" originally stood for "experimental", however, the Ford company eventually decided to honor Henry Ford's son, Edsel, and name the vehicle after him. Introduced on "E Day", September 4, 1957, 68,045 cars were sold in the United States and Canada its first year; by 1960, however, only about 84,000 total had been sold. In 2013 dollar values, the company lost about $2,756,449,772.

Answer: Studebaker

Records show that three men with the last name Studebecker came to America from Holland in 1736. Peter, one of the original immigrants, had a son named John, who had five sons. They were the ones who went into the wagon business, and eventually manufactured all types of carriages. By 1875 it is said that their factory was the largest vehicle house in the world. One of the brothers' son-in-laws, Fred Fish, suggested that the company begin the manufacture of horseless carriages.

The company continued to make automotive vehicles until the closing of the plant in Canada in 1966.

Answer: Barracuda

Originally Plymouth planned to call this car the "Panda"! Three generations of the Barracuda were produced from 1964-1974. Even if a new version is introduced in the future, and there are rumors which say it will be, it will not be a Plymouth, as that brand was phased out in 2001.

Answer: Willys

Founded in 1908, the Willys-Overland Motor Company was second in production to Ford from 1912-18. The World War II Jeep that was produced by Willys was known as the Willys MB. Although there is uncertainty about the origin of the name "Jeep", Willys was able to successfully trademark the name for his product.

It is a bit confusing because in 1953 the Willys Company was sold to Kaiser Motors, which became Kaiser-Jeep Corporation in 1963. Kaiser Jeep was sold to AMC in 1970, and Chrysler purchased AMC in 1987. That is why DaimlerChryler is still able to market the Jeep today.

The last Willys-named car was produced in 1963 in Brazil.

Answer: Corvair

Unfortunately the Corvair's handling was highlighted in Ralph Nader's book, "Unsafe at Any Speed", in 1965; in Congressional hearings he called it "the leading candidate for the un-safest-car title". Sales dropped dramatically, 50%, in1966 from the previous year. Even though later studies disproved Nader's thesis, and stated that the Corvair handled as well as the other comparable cars that were tested, it was not enough.

The company ended production in 1969, and made the way for its successor: the Camaro!

Answer: GTO

Designed by a team that included John DeLorean, GTO is an abbreviation that means "Gran Turismo Omologato", which in Italian means Grand Accredited Touring. Probably the most sought GTO is "The Judge", which was manufactured in 1969. Originally made in one color, "Carousel Red", the plan was to lower the price so that the GTO would be more competitive with other cars. Even so, both the Chevrolet Chevelle and the Plymouth Roadrunner surpassed the GTO in sales that year.

Answer: Packard

Many saw the Packard Motor Car Company as one that could compete with names such as Pierce-Arrow and Peerless in terms of automobile luxury through the 1930s. During World War II, the company manufactured engines for airplanes, and remained financially solid until 1945-46 when all they did was update their 1942 models.

The cars were no longer seen as luxury models. Merging with the Studebaker Company only delayed the inevitable as other car manufacturers took the lead in production and styling.