Tomorrow Is Today, Chrysler Corporation Turbine Car (1963)

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Jan 16, 2018

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Detroit Historical Society
2015.011.025 .pastperfectonline.com%2Farchive%2FAF4396C0-B610-4F0C-AD11-923000136845&v=r_YRNQoQFjM 16mm color film containing the Chrysler Corporation Turbine Car promotional movie "Tomorrow is Today." The film covers the company's experimentation and development of turbine engines, the anatomy of a turbine engine, the Turbine Car itself, and the plan to release them to select members of the public for testing. The film is narrated by prolific television and radio announcer Art Gilmore.

The film begins with the company's first gas turbine engine in 1954, which was tested in a production model Plymouth. Footage from the 1955 traffic test of this engine follows, including the car passing the Detroit Historical Museum. The film then covers the 1956 cross-country test of the engine, and the 1958 test of the second version of the engine in a drive from Detroit to New York.

The film then briefly touches on manufacturing developments which made improvements to the design possible. In 1961, a third generation of the engine, named the CR2A, was put through another cross-country drive test, in another production model car. The film then proceeds to cover the 1962 announcement by Chrysler Product Planning Vice President Robert Anderson, that 50 turbine powered cars would be issued to select members of the public for evaluation.

Elwood Engle, the company's Vice President of Styling is then shown drafting a modern design for these cars. There are several shots of the car's assembly while the role of George J. Huebner, Jr.in overseeing the turbine project is discussed. This is followed by a segment in which the basic principles of a turbine are covered, and animated diagrams are used to showing how the Chrysler engine works.

This segment includes a special focus on the design's regenerators, and the nozzle blades. The turbine car is then shown on the Chrysler Proving Grounds test oval, and on a more rugged test course. The portion includes the sounds of the engine, and a demonstration of its smooth start-up. The final portion of the film concerns the 1963 press conference by Chrysler president Lynn Townsend in Chicago, in which he announced the special evaluation programs' first participant--the family of IBM employee Richard E. Blahut of Chicago. Blahut is shown driving the car home.