A Short History of Crosley By: John E. Aibel

Before I write about the Crosley cars that I have owned I think it is important to know something about the man who built these incredible cars.

John Aibel in his prized Crosley Le Mans Car

 Powel and Lewis Crosley were pioneers in the automobile industry in this country. Since the early 1900s they wanted to build their own cars. Before this could be accomplished they had started by building and marketing Model T Ford accessories.

A young Powel Crosley before he became a millionaire

That led to building radios. In order to keep prices low on their radios, Powel came up with the idea to broadcast a very powerful signal. With a powerful signal his radio receivers could be made with less tubes and circuitry thus sold for less money. His station was so powerful that the government required him to operate at a lower power as he was overpowering other broadcasters' signals. The sales of Crosley radios took off in a big way making Crosley a major factor in communications.

1940s Crosley Radio

During World War II the Crosley radio broadcaster was used by the United States government to provide a radio signal to all of Europe.

Not satisfied being a major radio manufacturer, Crosley also manufactured refrigerators. The innovation of having shelves in the door was a big factor in the sales success they achieved in this field.

As a manufacturer located in Cincinnati, Ohio, Crosley had the plant and finances to finally get into the automobile business. In 1939 they introduced their first mass-produced vehicle. It was a very inexpensive vehicle powered by a two cylinder, 30 cubic inch engine of about 12 horsepower. The engine was manufactured by the Waukesha Company. This company was known for high quality large truck and stationary engine production. The car itself could accommodate four passengers and was available in a variety of body styles. A convertible, covered wagon mini truck, and eventually a steel coupe were built up until 1942.

During the war years Crosley built man unusual vehicles for the government. One vehicle was a mechanical dog. This tracked vehicle was used to pull dog sleds. The need of a Jeep-type vehicle of a very light weight led to the design of the CT-3 Pup.

Crosley Pup

The limited power provided by the Waukesha engine prevented large scale use of these vehicles. The need for more power was met by a Naval engineer assigned to the Crosley Company.  This engineer did his homework and developed a very advanced engine based on his research.

This engine was of 44 cubic inch displacement and featured a single overhead camshaft mono-block non-detachable cylinder head, and incorporated a five main bearing supported crankshaft. The engine provided 26 horsepower at 4000 rpm and would run at full power for 100 hours.

This engine would go on to power electric generators for decades. It was also the engine used for the line of cars Crosley built after the war. With improvements this engine would go on to power a light airplane as well as become a marine engine both inboard and outboard well into the 1970s.

We now have the basis to look at the Crosley cars that I have owned.