In response to a post regarding the role Imperial played in introducing
technical innovations, I forgot to mention cruise control, which, under the
name AutoPilot, was introduced in 1958, as a cost extra option. Several 58
owners on the list have it, though I'm not sure if any of the systems still
work. It would be nice to know if any still do.
Another MOPAR innovation for 58, offered across the range, for $400 extra,
was the "Electrojector," which was the world's first electronic
fuel-injection system. There is a neat little piece in the Feb. 2003 of the
IEEE Spectrum about the history of electronics in cars. IEEE standing for
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, of course. You knew
that.
The piece goes, somewhat, as follows:
"Then there was the odd, wonderful case of the Bendix Electrojector, the
world's first electronic fuel injection system. Implemented entirely with
vacuum tubes, it was offered in 1958 as a $400 option on various Chryslers,
Dodges, DeSotos and Plymouths. (My comment: So one may presume Imperial as
well.) Yes, using only tubes and other discrete, analog electronic devices,
Bendix's Robert Sutton and two other engineers managed the astounding feat
of designing and building complex, compact circuits that monitored air
temperature, the pressure in the engine's air-intake manifold, throttle
position and acceleration, and status of the engine-combustion cycle.
Sutton's circuitry translated them all into specific air-fuel mixtures and
cylinder-injection sequences.
"It was an amazing box," says Jerome G. Rivard, an IEEE Fellow and former
Bendix vice president. Unfortunately, it wasn't reliable. Although tubes
performed well in car radios, they did not last long in the harsher
environment of the engine compartment.
Several hundred Electrojectors were sold, but almost all were eventually
replaced with ordinary carburetors. Rumor has it that only one car, a 1958
Chrysler 300D, survives with the Electrojector still in place and working.
Nevertheless, the Electrojector did pave the way for rugged, reliable fuel
injectors. In the mid-1960s, while it was working on its pioneering solid
state electronic fuel-injection system, Robert Bosch GmbH (Gerlingen,
Germany) licensed several of Bendix's Electrojector patents."
Ahh, those were the days for Chrysler. Innovative but unreliable. The
AutoPilot and the Electrojector. How much more space age can you get?
Hugh
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