Bought a new Hudson book from a bookstore who DOES know how to advertise and satisfy customers.
The book is by Richard Langworth, the best of the non-insider auto history writers. Other good books were by John Conde, Don Butler and Pat Foster. Each worked for Nash or Hudson at some point, so they had inside knowledge and perhaps inside bias as well.
Langworth answers one question I’ve been wondering about. The compact Jet was supposed to be more attractive. Dealers were enticed with a sketch of the intended styling, then crestfallen by the clumsy reality. None of the other books showed the original.
Per Langworth, stylists were inspired by a Fiat:
It’s easy to see why. The Fiat looked like a small Stepdown, with the same excellent proportions. Here’s a sketch of the original design, done later by one of the people involved in the process:
Again it echoes the big Hudson. But CEO Barit wanted more height and more boxiness. He was the boss, so he got what he wanted.
Of course the styling didn’t matter much. The Jet, like the Edsel and the AMC Matador Coupe, would have failed even with nicer looks. All three were simply bad bets, trying to fill a niche that was already filled, and departing from the company’s own best skills.
Langworth also includes the last real Hudson as a memorial:
Polistra's Mill 