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Pontiac Firebird I, II and III Experimentals |
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In support of the GM Research experimental turbine engine program, GM Styling developed an aerodynamic vehicle powered by a turbine engine. The idea of the GM experimental Firebird originated with Harley J. Earl, GM Vice President in charge of the styling staff, who also designed its fiberglass reinforced plastic body. The aircraft motif was evident in the car's 'needle' nose, delta wings swept back along the rear half of the body, a vertical tail fin and a plastic bubble over the driver's cockpit. On a completely streamlined vehicle like the 1954 GM Firebird I (left), a tail fin (or some flat vertical surface behind the car's center of gravity) was needed to give the body directional stability or to hold it on course when it was in motion. In 1956, a more refined four-passenger GM Firebird II turbine-powered car, which featured the first regenerative gas turbine, was introduced (center). This technology allowed the GM Firebird II to efficiently power accessories such as air conditioning and power steering. The 1959 GM Firebird III (right) was a two-passenger, gas turbine-powered car. It was the first to feature a single-stick control system, which replaced the conventional steering wheel, brake pedal and accelerator. This drive-by-wire system was used in the first experiments with automated highways.
Official GM Photograph from the General Motors Media Archives.
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