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Our Two Cents: Peak Fin
As styling elements go, it’s hard to argue against the tailfin. The first fin on a production automobile appeared on the 1934 Tatra 77, a striking central element emerging like a dorsal fin from the roof’s trailing edge as a prominent feature of the sloping rear engine cover.
It wasn’t until the 1948 Cadillac, however, that we’d see a pair of small, subtle fins deployed aft of the fenders, the product of Harley Earl and designer Franklin Hershey, both of whom had been floored by the appearance of the Lockheed P-38 fighter plane they had seen just before the war. The design was a hit, and the prominence of Cadillac’s tailfins soared, with ever-larger, ever-sharper fins the perfect accompaniment to the rise of the jet age. Other manufacturers quickly followed suit, each with its own take on this distinctive, entirely superfluous feature.
For this week’s installment of Our Two Cents, we asked Hagerty Media staffers to give us their idealized version of the fin. After some confusion, we made it clear that Kimi Raikkonen and Valtteri Bottas were off the table—cars only please—and here’s where we landed.
NASCAR Champagne
I was always a fan of the 1956 Chrysler 300B, especially the ones raced by Carl Kiekhaefer to a couple of NASCAR championships. These fins say, “Hey, I have fins, but I’m surprisingly cultured.”—Steven Cole Smith
The Double Nickel
I’m gonna go with the 1955 Chevy. I think I might be in the minority when it comes to my favorite Tri-Five fin, but I like the subtle fin over the larger ’56 fin and the bombastic ’57 flipper.—Cameron Neveu
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BATman
Gotta be the Alfa Romeo BAT cars for me. Three cars—BAT 5, BAT 7, BAT 9—all designed by Franco Scaglione at Bertone. They’re all wild and they all have fins for days, but I think the middle child, BAT 7, is the prettiest, and certainly the finniest, with massive blue appendages that from the back look like a stingray or large fish ready to power through the water.—Andrew Newton
Form AND Function!
I’m going with the 1989 Cadillac DeVille, for two reasons: 1) The floor-to-ceiling taillights made their way onto any customized GMT-400 truck worth a damn; and 2) They were sleek and streamlined as if tuned by a wind tunnel, but they were also long and flowing, as they should be for a Caddy. Bonus: They were tailfins that withstood a 5-mph impact! What more could you possibly ask for?—Sajeev Mehta
Form. Just Form.
For me, it’s the ’59 Cadillac. When it comes to fins, it’s all about the ’50s, and these are the biggest, most bodacious fins of them all. They’re tall, they’re lined in chrome, and smack in the middle of EACH fin is a pair of enormous torpedo taillights. (Or lipstick tubes.) Are they functional, you might ask? To which I’d reply, have you SEEN them? Who the hell cares?!—Eric Weiner
Stjärtfenan
America may have invented, inflated, and even perfected the tailfin, but I’ve always liked the far more subtle approach taken by the Europeans (Alfa BAT cars notwithstanding). Sunbeam Tigers and W111 Mercedes sedans did them well, but the real standout for me is the Volvo P1800, whose rounded, chrome-capped fins began just after the door and led into the small, separate taillights. I also appreciate that Volvo slyly incorporated the fins’ outline, if not the entire appendage, into the back end of 1800ES wagon.—Stefan Lombard
Thundercougarfalconbird
The first-gen Thunderbird is a beautiful car, with elegant lines that aren’t cluttered with overwrought design elements that would come with the four-seater model that followed innediately after. The 1957 model got a nice, subtle fin that was angled and sharper than its predecessors, and it’s one of my favorites. However, I think the best evolution of that theme came with the third-generation “Bullet Birds”. The fins look great on the production cars next to the afterburner taillights and sculpted bumper, but they shine on the Thunderbird Italien concept paired with the swoopy hardtop.—Brandan Gillogly
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’62 Thunderbird (Bullet bird) for me. My wife agrees and wants one, in Black with a Red interior.
’60 Cadillac was cleaner design than ’59 IMHO. Taillights not an afterthought. Also liked the treatment of ’67-’69 Eldorado teamed with coffin deck for same reason.
The Plymouth Superbird has to be #1!
Foe me the subtleness of the fins on my 65 mustang coup, from the hood to the trunk
The 1960 Dodge Polara fins were truly elegant.
The 1957 Desoto, designed by Virgil Exner, is right up there with the classiest fins, and they had Hemi’s.
Don’t forget the SunBeam Tiger
For tail fins.
Maxwell Smarts car
’59 Plymouth & DeSoto are tops in my book !
The 57 DeSoto had very graceful fins, which were the nicest of the era, and the 59 Chevy had sculpted horizontal fins that made it look like a spacecraft from the rear view of it’s teardrop tail lights. All of the finned cars were so much more daring than the styling of today’s slabside transportation appliances.
Check out the detail on the 59 Caddy taillights! The fins aren’t too shabby either. Harley Earl at his best.
The 57 Chevy fins were beautiful . My bro in-law had a black & silver one , It was drop dead goregus
I like my ’67 Datsun 1600 fins… no chrome, just 2 lights topped off with a small reflector, like a cherry.
What? Where are the 1957 Chevy tail fins? I have a 1955 Chevy 210 2 Door Sedan, but never viewed the tail light area as fins!? You learn something everyday! I can hardly wait until the next car show when I tell them 55 Chevy owners I love the tail fins on your car!
’59 Cadillac for me! Always has been my favorite!
it”s ok. Studes never get credit for greatness, but i love’em!