Gordon Buehrig
Encyclopedia
Mason City, Illinois
Mason City is a city in Mason County, Illinois, United States. The population was 2,558 at the 2000 census, and 2,324 at a 2009 estimate.-Geography:Mason City is located at ....
, he had early design experience with Packard
Packard
Packard was an American luxury-type automobile marque built by the Packard Motor Car Company of Detroit, Michigan, and later by the Studebaker-Packard Corporation of South Bend, Indiana...
, General Motors and Stutz
Stutz
Stutz may refer to:*Harry C. Stutz , American automobile pioneer and manufacturer of luxury cars and fire engines*Josef Stutz , Swiss Conservative politician*Stutz Motor Company, American luxury cars producer...
. In 1929, he was responsible for designing the bodies (built by Weymann
Weymann Fabric Bodies
Weymann Fabric Bodies is a patented design system for fuselages for aircraft and superlight coachwork for motor vehicles. The system used a patent-jointed wood frame covered in fabric...
) of the Stutz Black Hawks entered at Le Mans
Le Mans
Le Mans is a city in France, located on the Sarthe River. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le Mans. Le Mans is a part of the Pays de la Loire region.Its inhabitants are called Manceaux...
. At age 25 he became chief body designer for Duesenberg
Duesenberg
Duesenberg was an Auburn, Indiana based American luxury automobile company active in various forms from 1913 to 1937, most famous for its high-quality passenger cars and record-breaking racing cars.-History:...
, where he designed the Model J. He joined the Auburn Automobile
Auburn Automobile
Auburn was a brand name of American automobiles produced from 1900 through 1936.-Corporate history:The Auburn Automobile Company grew out of the Eckhart Carriage Company, founded in Auburn, Indiana, in 1875 by Charles Eckhart...
Company of Auburn, Indiana
Auburn, Indiana
Auburn is a city in DeKalb County, Indiana, United States. The population was 13,086 at the 2010 census. Founded in 1836 by Wesley Park , the city is the county seat of DeKalb County. Auburn is also known as Home of the Classics.-Geography:...
in 1934, producing the famous 1935 851 Boattail Speedster, based on the work of Alan Leamy . (A kit
Kit car
A kit car, also known as a "component car", is an automobile that is available as a set of parts that a manufacturer sells and the buyer then either assembles into a car themselves, or retains a third party to do part or all of the work on their behalf...
copy of this car was driven by the title faceman on NBC's "Remington Steele
Remington Steele
Remington Steele is an American television series, co-created by Robert Butler and Michael Gleason. The series, starring Stephanie Zimbalist and Pierce Brosnan, was produced by MTM Enterprises and first broadcast on the NBC network from 1982 to 1987. The series blended the genres of romantic...
".) He also designed the distinctive Cord
Cord Automobile
Cord was the brand name of a United States automobile, manufactured by the Auburn Automobile Company from 1929 through 1932 and again in 1936 and 1937....
810/812, the latter recognized for its originality by the Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
in 1951.
In 1949, Buehrig joined Ford
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
, where his projects included the 1951 Victoria Coupe and the 1956 Continental Mark II
Continental Mark II
The Continental Mark II was a personal luxury car produced by the Continental Division of the Ford Motor Company in 1956 through 1957. Many aficionados of the automobile consider the Continental Mark II one of the classics of the postwar period.-History:...
. He invented the removable T-top
T-top
An automotive T-top is an automobile roof with removable panels on either side of a rigid bar running from the center of one structural bar between pillars to the center of the next structural bar, the panels of a traditional T-top are usually made of auto grade safety glass.The T-top was patented...
, patented 5 June 1951, which was used in the aborted TASCO sports car.
Retiring from Ford in 1965, Buehrig taught for five years at the Art Center College of Design
Art Center College of Design
Art Center College of Design is a private college located in Pasadena, California, and was cited by BusinessWeek as one of the 60 best design schools in the world. The college’s industrial design program is consistently ranked number one by both DesignIntelligence and U.S...
in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. In 1979, he produced the design for the Buehrig Motor Car, a limited-production carriage roof coupe.
Buehrig died in Grosse Pointe Woods, Michigan
Grosse Pointe Woods, Michigan
Grosse Pointe Woods is a suburban city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan, comprising a large portion of the Grosse Pointe communities. The population was 16,135 at the 2010 census...
on January 22, 1990 at the age of 85. His cremated remains are buried in Roselawn Cemetery in Auburn, Indiana.
Buehrig was one of 25 candidates for Car Designer of the Century
Car Designer of the Century
The Car Designer of the Century was an international award given to the most influential car designer of the 20th century. The election process was overseen by the Global Automotive Elections Foundation....
, an international award given in 1999 to honor the most influential automobile designer of the 20th century.