21 of the greatest tailfinned classic cars

Fin-tastic

Fins ain’t what they used to be. In fact, the appendage that became such an automotive trademark from the 1950s was consigned to the design scrapheap many years ago.

Which is a shame, because nothing epitomised a car stylist’s free thinking more than the fin.

Franklin Quick Hershey, working in General Motors’ ‘Art and Colour Section’ under the legendary designer Harley Earl, created the first finned car for Cadillac in 1948.

But it was Earl himself who developed the look, and Chrysler’s Virgil Exner who took it to its nadir. 

And as you’ll see, British and European manufacturers weren’t immune to fins, either…

So here, in all their indulgent glory, are 21 of the very best fin-tipped classic cars, in chronological order.

1. 1951 Buick Le Sabre concept

Influenced by the aviation industry’s move to jet power, the Le Sabre’s high-tipped fins were a taste of what was to come later in the decade.

A Harley Earl creation, the concept was powered by a 3.5-litre supercharged V8 engine, with drive transmitted through an unconventionally rear-mounted automatic gearbox.

Concealed behind its ‘jet intake’ front bumper were electrically revealed headlights, while inside there were heated seats.

Integral electric jacks lifted the car in the event of a puncture, and the convertible hood automatically re-deployed if it rained, thanks to a water sensor.

2. 1956 Chrysler Dart

Chrysler’s Virgil Exner was keen to ‘out-fin’ GM and by doing so created what was then claimed to be the most aerodynamic car in existence.

The Dart blended European styling and aerodynamic flair with US engineering, its body designed and wind-tunnel tested by Ghia in Italy.

The Dart’s outrageous rear fins were said to make it immensely stable in crosswinds.

While only a concept, the Dart inspired Chrysler’s fully finned 300C the following year.

3. 1956 Hillman Minx

From Rootes Group’s ‘Audax’ platform, the ’56 Hillman Minx’s design came from Raymond Loewy Studios in the US, which had been responsible for the finned Studebakers from earlier in the decade.

So no surprise that the new Minx appeared with a scaled-down version of the Studebaker’s fins, which were more like raised wings, but still bestowed the mid-size Hillman with a hint of transatlantic flair.

4. 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air

GM called it the ‘Hot One’ in its sales literature, and with its first-time addition of rear fins, a Ferrari-inspired ‘chip-cutter’ front grille and chrome spears on its front wings, the second-generation Chevrolet Bel Air was a radical departure from its predecessor.

Now with the option of a 4.3- or 4.6-litre small-block V8 engine, the Bel Air had the extra power to back up its more flamboyant looks.

5. 1957 Vauxhall Velox/Cresta PA

Few cars would have burst through the cloud of post-war austerity in Britain like Vauxhall’s PA Velox and its more upmarket Cresta sibling.

Inspired by design cues from parent GM’s Buick brand, the PA proudly sported prominent chrome-topped fins incorporating the car’s indicator lights, along with a wrapround windscreen, bench seats, a chrome-laden front end and a range of pastel shades for its paintwork.

Powered by a choice of straight-six engines, the PA was a slice of Americana scaled down for British buyers.

6. 1957 Buick Roadmaster

In its seventh-generation guise, Buick’s Roadmaster grew by 10in (254mm) in length, and while there had been subtle fins on the previous model, the ’57 car’s were more obvious and accentuated by a chromed panel along the rear wing.

‘Dagmar’ bumpers continued to adorn the front of the car, and with a lower roofline and reverse-slanted windscreen pillars, the ’57 Roadmaster took on an altogether more rakish appearance.

Power came from GM’s 6-litre Fireball V8 mated to a two-speed Dynaflow automatic gearbox.

7. 1958 Chrysler 300D

Chrysler’s first letter-series model, the ‘B’, was near fin-less, but by the time the 300D appeared, design chief Virgil Exner was clearly on a roll.

The last of Chrysler’s 300 letter-series models to use the FirePower V8 engine, its capacity remained the same as its predecessor at 6.4 litres, yet power rose to 375bhp.

Optional fuel injection was also offered, though this proved unreliable, and most vehicles were retrofitted with dual four-barrel carburettors.

Blisteringly fast, one 300D was driven to 156.387mph on the Bonneville Salt Flats.

8. 1959 Wolseley 15/60

BMC commissioned Pinin Farina to transform the somewhat dowdy design of its 1950s mid-size offerings from Austin, Riley, MG and Morris into a common body, separated by unique trims, grilles, lights, equipment levels and engine outputs.

The Wolseley, like its Farina-bodied siblings, was amply endowed on the fin front, comparing well with rivals like the Singer Gazelle, and Vauxhall Victor and PA.

Perhaps not quite so exotic was the 15/60’s humble, 1489cc, B-series four-cylinder engine.

9. 1959 Buick Electra

By the time the ’59 Electra had launched, fin design in the US had almost reached its zenith – and by the 1961 model year, Buick had pared them right back.

But while it lasted, the range-topping 1959 model-year Buick Electra was a gloriously brash and luxurious near-final hurrah to fin design.

Powered by a 6.6-litre V8 sending its power to its rear wheels via a two-speed automatic gearbox, buyers could choose between saloon, coupé or convertible bodies.

10. 1959 Ford Anglia

Ford’s Anglia succumbed to a muted fin treatment for the fourth-generation 105E model, launched in 1959.

Designed by Elwood Engel in Ford’s US design centre, it was said to be a scaled-down, four-seat version of the Ford Thunderbird.

But with its wind-tunnel honed sloping front end and backward-sloping rear window, you’d have to squint quite hard to see the connection.

Never a performance model in standard guise – even by late 1950s standards – the Ford Anglia was powered by an all-new, 997cc, overhead-valve, four-cylinder engine.

11. 1959 Cadillac Eldorado

As with Chrysler’s late-’50s 300 letter models, Cadillac’s fourth-generation Eldorado signalled the pinnacle of fin-mania for GM's prestige brand.

Lower, longer and sleeker than its slightly dumpy forebears, the 1959 Cadillac Eldorado became the poster car for late ’50s excess in America.

Its pronounced, sharp-edged tailfins incorporated dual-bullet tail-lights, underscored by a three-deck jewelled rear grille mimicking that at the front of the car.

Measuring more than 18ft 9in (5.7m) long and weighing up to 5291lb (2400kg), the Eldorado was powered by a 6.4-litre overhead-valve V8.

12. 1959 Daimler SP250

With two-thirds of Daimler SP250 sales aimed at the US market, the inclusion of tail-fins in the design of its all-glassfibre body was, perhaps, predictable.

Originally named ‘Dart’, until Chrysler threatened legal action, forcing a switch to ‘SP250’, the model’s project name, it was the last car produced by Daimler before it was bought by Jaguar in 1960.

Powered by a Daimler-designed 2.5-litre V8, the two-seat sports car could hit 120mph, though chassis flex on early models marred its reputation initially.

13. 1959 Sunbeam Alpine

The Rootes Group’s Alpine finally entered the fin age in 1959 with the first ‘Series’ model in 1959, replacing the outgoing MkIII.

Designed by Kenneth Howes – previously from the US-based Loewy Studios – the two-door roadster, with its sharp fin-shaped rear wings, was based on the Hillman Husky estate platform, and used plenty of parts from other Rootes products.

Highly successful, with nearly 70,000 units sold over four generations and nine years, the first model was equipped with a humble 1494cc ‘four’, which allowed it to almost nudge 100mph.

14. 1959 Mercedes-Benz W111 ‘Fintail’

Launched at the 1959 Frankfurt motor show, Mercedes’ new full-size W111 range replaced the unibody Ponton model and was soon nicknamed Heckflosse, or Fintail, on account of its svelte-looking rear-wing tops.

Designed by Friedrich Geiger, the saloon marked a breakthrough in passenger safety with its built-in front and rear crumple zones, and patented retractable safety belts.

The Mercedes-Benz W111 series ran for 10 years.

15. 1959 Triumph Herald

Designed by Giovanni Michelotti, the Triumph Herald’s sharp-lined look – including en vogue rear fins – contrasted markedly with its Standard 8 and 10 predecessors.

Built on a common separate chassis, on to which saloon, coupé, estate, convertible and van bodies could be bolted, its construction offered a hinged front section allowing superb access to the (from launch) 948cc overhead-valve ‘four’, and also the smallest turning circle of any production car on the market.

16. 1960 Chrysler 300F

Virgil Exner gave the letter-series ‘F’ model a sharper appearance, with outward-tilting rear fins that threatened to slice the limbs from nearby pedestrians, as well as a front grille that now adopted Chrysler’s corporate look, instead of being unique to the 300.

Importantly, it also introduced the company’s new lightweight unibody construction.

The F’s wedge-head V8, while still displacing 6.8 litres, now benefited from Chrysler’s new cross-ram intake system, which forced more air into the cylinders at any given speed.

An optional ‘short-ram’ engine was also available.

17. 1960 Volvo P1800

Perhaps best known as Roger Moore’s co-star in the first run of The Saint TV series in the 1960s, the Volvo P1800 was a 2+2 two-door sporting coupé which enjoyed a long production life between 1960 and ’73.

Designed by Frua’s Pelle Petterson, the striking low-slung P1800 was based on the Amazon/122 saloon platform and conceived to target the important US market, as well Europe and the UK.

Initially powered by a 1.8-litre ‘four’, a 2-litre engine was later offered, as was the option of an equally stylish three-door estate variant.

18. 1961 Triumph TR4

Triumph commissioned Michelotti to design its TR3A replacement with a more fulsome body, ditching the old car’s cut-down doors to allow for wind-up windows and better weather protection.

The Triumph TR4’s fins were toned down, without disappearing altogether – a halfway house, recognising that the market was undecided about the future of this design cue.

But it paid off, with its TR4A and TR5 successors retaining their fins until the launch of the TR6 in 1968.

19. 1961 Ford Consul Classic

The Consul Classic was one of the last European Fords to incorporate rear fins, the design cue’s appeal waning on both sides of the Atlantic.

As with the earlier Ford Anglia, the Classic adopted a reverse-sloping rear window, but this time its lower-body styling was taken from the marque’s Galaxie 500 model, in scaled-down form.

Available as a two- or four-door saloon, the Classic was powered by a choice of 1340cc or 1498cc Kent four-cylinder engines.

20. 1961 Riley Elf

With its truncated rear fins framing a short boot extension on what was otherwise a standard Mini body/platform, the Riley Elf (and its Wolseley Hornet sibling) retained all the Mini’s driving appeal with a tad more practicality and luxury.

Initially powered by an 848cc A-series engine, later increased to 998cc, the Elf wasn’t a great sales success, with only 31,000 cars sold (in addition to a little more than 28,000 Hornets) before it was phased out in 1969.

21. 1962 Ford Zephyr/Zodiac

For its third-generation Zephyr, Ford adopted a radical redesign: gone were the subtle fins and curvaceous lines of the Mk2, and in came a larger, more angular body with more prominent rear fins.

Designed by Roy Brown, who’d also penned Ford’s Edsel, the Zephyr and its more luxurious Zodiac sibling were based on the previous model’s platform, and used revised mechanicals from that car, too.

Known as either the Zephyr 4 or 6, each denoting their engine’s cylinder-count, the models were produced in saloon and estate forms until 1966.