Gordon Miller Buehrig: Duesenberg Designer

WHO IS GORDON BUEHRIG???  

Gordon Miller Buehrig (B-yur-rig) (June 18, 1904 – January 22, 1990) was a noted automobile designer. Gordon Miller Buehrig was born in 1904 in Mason City, Illinois.   His claim to fame was as an automobile designer, and was the chief design engineer for the Cord.

At age 25 he became chief body designer for Duesenberg, where he designed the Model J. He joined the Auburn Automobile Company of Auburn, Indiana in 1934, producing the famous 1935 851 Boattail Speedster, based on the work of Alan Leamy .

GORDON BUEHRIG HISTORY
 

Gordon Miller Buehrig was born in 1904 in Mason City, Illinois. At 20, he got his first job in the automobile industry as chief engineer of the Gotfredson Body Company. In the next five years, he gained experience at Dietrich Incorporated. Packard, General Motors and Stutz. When he was only 25, Gordon Buehrig became the chief body designer for the most prestigious automobile in the United States, Duesenberg.

Buehrig became very close to the Duesenberg brothers and in fact was invited to live in the home of Fred's family and did so for over three years. His fabulous Duesenberg designs include the Shreve Archer Judkins Coupe, the Judkins Victoria Coupe, the Beverly Berline, the Derham Tourster, the Torpedo Phaeton, the Brunn Town Car, the Roliston Convertible Torpedo Victoria, the Whittell Speedster, the Derham Four-Door Convertible, the La Grande Phaeton and the Arlington, better known as The Twenty Grand. He also designed the famous "Duesenbird" radiator ornament.

In 1930, Buehrig took delivery on a new Ford and proceeded to give it something a little different, a body by Buehrig. Augie Duesenberg's racecar shop went to work and the car was cut in half and the back half discarded. Changes included the windshield and door hinge pillar being cut down three inches and a special engine hood four and one-half inches longer than the original. The back half was rebuilt. Then it was taken to the plant and given the same quality paint and trim used on the Duesenberg. Experimental balloon tires were added later as well as a redesigned radiator and other changes. MoToR Magazine wrote about the car and Buehrig drove it 89,000 miles before selling it in 1934.

In 1934, Auburn Automobile Company's line wasn't being received well by the public. Harold Ames, the company's vice president, brought Buehrig to the project to redesign the 1934 line. The result was the classic 1935 line introduced in mid-year. Later in 1935, Buehrig also produced the Auburn Speedster, which was so popular that it remained unchanged in 1936 except for the number on the grill.

In 1933, Buehrig had designed a "Baby Duesenberg" for the company that was to be a fast car and sell at a lesser cost. It had two outrigger radiators on either side of the car between the front fenders and the body. But, the twin radiator system proved inadequate under high ambient temperatures and he was taken off this project to design the 1935 Auburn. When asked to design a new Cord, he brought back to life some of his concepts for the Baby Duesenberg. According to Buehrig, "the opportunity to work out the design of the new Cord and to have it a front wheel drive vehicle gave me an assignment as ideal as an automotive designer could imagine." He also remembered the engineering department excitement was so great, many worked extra several nights a week while listening to Fred Allen, Amos and Andy and other popular radio programs. Everyone considered working on the Cord fun.

Though it was fun, the Cord project had many problems within the company and was killed while Buehrig was on his honeymoon in December of 1934. After his return, it was resurrected, but by this time the company had less than four months to complete 100 cars for the 1935 New York Auto Show. They made the deadline because the cars did not have transmissions, which were still being fully developed, and the phaetons were all shown with the tops down because these particular cars didn't have any tops.

None of this mattered. The Cord stopped the show. People were having to stand on surrounding cars just to get a glimpse of the beautiful Cord with its exciting new design.

Buehrig left Auburn Automobile and went to the Budd Company where he designed an economy car called the Wowser. It was never produced. His next position was at White Truck and the King Seeley Company. He eventually went to Studebaker, and while there, a private opportunity presented itself.

A group of men wanted Buehrig to design a car to be used for European-style grand prix racing in New York State. The result was the Tasco, an acronym for The American Sports Car Company. Buehrig was never satisfied with the design, which was done by a committee of investors rather than one designer. He considered the Tasco his personal Edsel. But, from this car came the design for a top, which became the removable T-top for Thunderbird and eventually Corvette. The only Tasco made is now on display at the Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg Museum.

Buehrig finally worked for the Ford Motor Company from 1949 until his retirement in 1965. While there, his projects included the 1951 Ford Victoria Coupe, a 1952 Ford all-metal station wagon and the Continental Mark 11.

Upon his retirement from Ford, Buehrig was asked to teach a course in plastics at the Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles. He taught there five years.

Not only has Buehrig received accolades from nearly every automotive publication in the country, but also he has the distinction of having his 810 Cord recognized by the Museum of Modem Art. In 1951, the museum printed in its catalogue "the originality of the conception and the skill with which its several parts have been realized makes it one of the most powerful designs in the exhibition...."

His designs will remain some of the most powerful in automotive history.

7his article is a brief synopsis of the book, Rolling Sculpture, written by Gordon Buehrig in conjunction with William S. Jackson.  The book is available for review (not checkout) at the Mason City Library.

Source: http://mason-city.com/gordonbuehrig.html