Willys Aero

Willys Aero (USA)
Overview
Manufacturer	Willys-Overland Motors
Production	1952–1955
Assembly	Toledo, Ohio Maywood, California
Designer	Philip Wright
Body and chassis
Class	compact
Body style	2-door hardtop 2-door sedan 4-door sedan
Powertrain
Engine	134 in³ Hurricane I4 161 in³ Lightning I6 161 in³ Hurricane F6 226 in³ Super Hurricane I6
Transmission	3-speed manual 3-speed manual + overdrive 4-speed Hydramatic
Dimensions
Wheelbase	108 inches
Length	183 inches
Height	60 inches

Willys Aero (Brazil)
Overview
Manufacturer	Willys-Overland do Brasil S.A.
Production	1960–1971
Assembly	Sao Paulo, Brazil
Designer	facelifted by Brooks Stevens
Body and chassis
Body style	4-door sedan 4-door limousine
Powertrain
Engine	161 in³ Hurricane I6

The Willys Aero was a line of passenger cars manufactured first by Willys-Overland and later by Kaiser-Willys Corporation from 1952 through 1955. The father of the Aero was Clyde Paton, former engineer for Packard Motor Car Company. The Eagle and Lark models were built from 1952 to 1954. A Wing model was available only in 1952, a Falcon model in 1953, and a taxicab in very limited production in 1953 and 1954. The Ace was the only model built through all U. S. production. 1955 saw two new models, the two- and four-door Ace sedans (renamed Custom shortly into the production run) and two-door hardtop Bermuda. Production in the U.S.A. ended that year as Henry J. Kaiser decided to give up the Kaiser and Willys Aero lines and concentrate solely on Jeeps. A total of 91,377 Aeros were built in Toledo.

The Aero tooling went to Brazil where, from 1960 to 1971, the Aero, 2600, Itamaraty, and Executivo models were produced. (The Willys Aero was sold through Ford do Brasil dealerships until production ceased when the US Ford Maverick replaced the Aero.) 116,967 were built.

Toledo-built models were available with four engine options: the F4-134 Hurricane, the L6-161 Lightning, the F6-161 Hurricane; and, after the Kaiser firm purchased the Willys firm, the L6-226 Super Hurricane from the Kaiser car line. The four-cylinder was used only in Aero Lark and was only exported.

For 1952, the model names Eagle, Wing and Ace were used for cars that had the six-cylinder F-head Hurricane engine and the Aero-Lark had the six-cylinder flathead Lightning engine. All 1952's had a two-piece split windshield. Eagles and Aces had a three-piece wraparound rear window, while the larks and Wings had a smaller one-piece rear window.

Owners of the 1952 model tended to buy the cars for their good fuel economy. They tended to find acceleration to be 'very good', unsurprising given the cars had the best power-to-weight ratio among US production cars. The primary complaint from two-door owners was the difficulty of access to the rear seat. Many felt the cars cost too much, even if they were a bargain on performance for cost grounds. Floyd Clymer noted the car was quite capable of comfortably cruising at highway speeds of 80–90 miles per hour.

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Wikipedia