Van Zandt Motor Co

1946
Van Zandt Surveyor

Van Zandt’s entry “ranch wagon”, the first-generation Surveyor sold from 1946 to 1955

Fully committed to its all-steel construction, the Surveyor was presented as a rugged do-it-all vehicle. The ranch wagon felt at place in the field, but in seating five and with an AM radio standard, it would bring the family into town as well.

Surveyor sat on a shorter wheelbase than its siblings and the IES110 engine at the heart of the Van Zandt Surveyor was a notoriously noisy system, but this didn’t entirely dis-suit the vehicle’s marketability as a workhorse.





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1946
Partner Popular

Sold under the Partner marque, the Popular was the smaller and cheaper cousin to the Keystone sedan. The car sat on a smaller 90.6" wheelbase and with only two doors, still sat five. The Popular however was also still committed to traversing paved and unpaved surfaces and rolled out of the factory with 14.1" of clearance.

The Popular used the IES110 - and with only a single muffler system, the car was uncomfortably loud. Nevertheless, the 102hp engine meant the Popular had a top speed of 103mph and a respectable 17.3 average miles per gallon.

The first generation Popular had no trim upgrades, limited safety investments, and was rarely spared any paint but surplus olive. For an endeavor in recycling military production, the Popular did well.







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I’ve been working to upgrade the designs and language of Van Zandt, so here is an updated look for 1946:

I’m probably not finished, but I like where things are going.

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It’s always hard in the beginning, you’re improving all the time and suddenly you’re almost ashamed of your old designs and wants to redo them again, and again… I know how it is.

(psst…some constructive criticism though, where are the wipers?)

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Thanks! :stuck_out_tongue: Windshield wipers have been added, as well as a fair bit of interior work.

In the meantime:

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CAMPAIGN YEARBOOK:
model/mark/years/sold
FIRST GEN KEYSTONE
Mk1.Standard (1946-1951): 1,000,000+
Mk1.Touring Lux (1946-1951): 389,000
Mk2.Standard (1951-1955): 825,000
Mk2.Grand (1951-1955): 748,000
Mk2.Touring Lux (1951-1955): 468,000
SECOND GEN KEYSTONE
Mk1.Standard (1955-1961): 3,000,000+
Mk1.Grand (1955-1960): 2,000,000+
Mk1.Wagon (1955-1960): 2,000,000+
THIRD GEN KEYSTONE
Mk1.Standard (1961-1966): 2,000,000+
Mk1.Grand (1961-1966): 3,000,000+
Mk2.Standard (1966-1971): 3,000,000+
Mk2.Grand (1966-1971): 338,000
FOURTH GEN KEYSTONE
Mk1.Standard (1971-1973): 375,000
Mk1.Grand (1971-1973): 47,000
Mk2.Standard (1973->>>>): 53,000 sold so far
Mk2.Grand (1973->>>>): 14,000 sold so far

FIRST GEN BRAZOS
Mk1.Standard (1946-1953): 565,000
Mk1.Grand Ranch (1946-1953): 1,000,000+
SECOND GEN BRAZOS
Mk1.Standard (1953-1962): 5,000,000+
Mk2.Standard (1962->>>>): 7,000,000+ sold so far
THIRD GEN BRAZOS
releasing fall 1974

FIRST GEN MESA
Mk1.Van (1962->>>>): 24,000 sold so far

FIRST GEN CAPSTONE
Mk1.Premium (1973->>>>): 2,750 sold so far

FIRST GEN PARTNERS POPULAR
Mk1.Standard (1946-1951): 308,000
M2.Standard (1951-1954): 324,000
SECOND GEN PARTNERS POPULAR
Mk1.Standard (1954-1961): 1,000,000+
Mk1.Wagon (1954-1961) 949,000

FIRST GEN PARTNERS PROFILE
Mk1.Standard (1961->>>>): 3,000,000+ sold so far

FIRST GEN PARTNERS FREESTYLE
Mk1.Standard (1972->>>>) 164,000 sold so far

FIRST GEN MAYFLOWER EMISSAR
Mk1.Sport (1966-1972): 393,000
SECOND GEN MAYFLOWER EMMISSAR
releasing summer 1974

FIRST GEN MAYFLOWER DELMARINO
Mk1.Executive (1962->>>>): 903,000 sold so far

1948-1955 “Van Zandt Veritas” Sports Coupe
Mk1.Touring Sport (1948-1951) 558,000
Mk2.Touring Sport (1951-1955) 262,000

1959 “Van Zandt Valerian/Cavalier” Premium Touring
Mk1.Touring Lux (1952-1961): 372,000
Mk2.Touring Lux (1961-1964): 347,000

1959 “Van Zandt Corsair/Corvair” Trim 3
Mk1.Sport : 1,000,000+

1962 “Van Zandt Grand Surveyor”
Mk1.Wagon : 320,000

1965 “Van Zandt Z-Phyr”
Mk1.Sport : 260,000

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1952 Van Zandt Cavlier Two-Door Coupe

Van Zandt introduced the Cavalier in 1952, which sold until 1964. About 730,000 were made in that time.

Our first full-size coupe, it was introduced as a “Touring Lux” vehicle, but emphasized a sportier attitude compared to Touring trim of the Keystone. The Cavalier could achieve a 125mph top speed, stock. Cavalier was popular from the start and sales remained well enough that the car came out with a 1961 facelift before finally being retired three years later.

The IES 210 engine introduced with the Cavalier was more powerful than the 110. A one-third liter greater displacement gave the 210 about 60hp more, though the engine was otherwise only a slight advancement for the company. A four-speed manual transmission was another minor upgrade in the Van Zandt lineup to that date.




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1952 “Van Zandt Valerian/Cavalier” Premium Touring
Mk1.Touring Lux (1952-1961): 372,000
Mk2.Touring Lux (1961-1964): 347,000

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Still working on cleaning up my canon thread here and getting all my work up to standard. But I have finished the branding for the two main companies of the VanZandt-Breda group and wanted to use a post to outline what each company and marque is and some conceptial lore.

Van Zandt Motor Company is American, making cars postwar and is a generalizer whose goal is to succeed as much as possible across the market. As a marque, it is mostly for midlevel consumer cars and trucks to premium sedans while usually shrugging away from outright sport models. Mayflower is a luxury and sport-premium marque and basically shares design approaches with Van Zandt. Partner is another marque for Van Zandt vehicles that are sold lower market, utility, sport, or otherwise mixed-bag or one-off products. Ferranti branding is used in hybrid and electric vehicle applications. For export markets, all these marques may swap and generally the preference is to lump everything as the Van Zandt identity.

Breda Fabbrica Automobili roughly maps to Italy - or Friunia more broadly, but actually suits another fictional country from another entirely separate personal project; Part of this also involves a period as a communist country. It sums up as a being a company with a different history of design and with a reach in different kinds of markets. Van Zandt and Breda join (? the late 1990s?/mid 2000s?) in parity and ambition to survive larger seas. Breda does not use any ancillary marques aside from Ferranti branding in hybrid electric applications.

Ferranti is another member of the corporate family - British - which engineers electrical equipment, electronics, and formerly defense products and microprocessors, as well as battery-electric and hybrid vehicle technologies applied in both Van Zandt and Breda marques.

edit - misspelled ‘fabbrica’

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The introductory Van Zandt Cruzero. An economical and eco-friendly mascot of the 70s, the car is a response to smaller, lighter, and cheaper competitors. While the family-size Keystone and other marques got larger and more comfort-oriented in their time, the market need for a more personal car grew needier.

The Cruzero remains committed to the driver experience, boasting a healthy 130 horspower, equivalent top speed, and 0-60 time in 10.4 seconds. This while sipping just a gallon every 24 miles. Matched with an affordable price, the Cruzero is a top quality choice for the self-respecting driver in today’s challenging world.


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(Once more from the top)

At the apex of ancient wonders and the heart of modern advances - the essential part that brings together great things.

From your friends at Van Zandt;

The 1947 Keystone. Our debut automobile is the next great piece of your household or homestead. The modern marvel is now an essential appliance - and now right in the middle of everywhere you’ll go.

Keystone prioritizes practicality, drivability, and safety. Not to mention, the car is a comfort driving on any paved and unpaved surface. For the first-time driver and the wary rider alike, there is no better offer than the Keystone.

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Also featuring the 1951 facelifts, when the Keystone Grand first came with an automatic transmission.

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From your friends at Van Zandt, the 1955 Keystone features all new styling! Updated interiors! Perfected engineering!The successor to the essential family sedan prioritizing reliable performance for the demanding driver, practicality for the entire household and their travels, and the confidence to take on any surface - from the sleek modern free-way to the rutted market road.

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From the inside out, the 1962 Keystone is bursting with innovation. New engineering and updated styling surpasses the old standards. Take up any course with the guaranteed, delightful, essential - the Keystone.

Slideshow: 1962, 1955, 1947 model years - 15 years of innovation!

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The 1956 Kestrel, inspired by the simple desire to bring jet age technology into the every-man’s garage. The destination almost doesn’t even matter.

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Your use of the '56 Swinger body set for the '52 Kestrel makes sense, especially since its flowing lines are very futuristic for the era.

I had worried it felt too early. Let’s call it at 1956, which puts it a year after the new Keystone.

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The 1952 Brazos delivers the power of 100 horses to any remote field, timberland, or oilfield in any corner of America. With 1050 gallons of carrying space, 1.1 ton of load capacity, and a 3-seat bench, one truck can deliver an entire job site. Van Zandt’s introductory pickup kicks off a proud lineage of utility vehicles.

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1952 was a productive year for the Van Zandt brand with the introduction of new models. Rounding out the year, the 1952 Cavalier represents the company’s first dedicated touring coupe.

(This is another car that has been featured before, but now I’m able to give it a better designed engine and slightly updated styling.)

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From your friends at Van Zandt, - for the made man, the family head on top of it all, the far flinging luxuriate, and one day not too long from now - it’s yours. It’s the 1951 Capstone. It’s an all new perfomance car with a refined yet suggestive build. A home to come home inside paired with the 150 HP “Kraken” engine, you can go anywhere in pampered luxury. You’ll never notice the hurry!



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Breda F.A.'s 240 marque was first introduced in 1946. Seen here is the state of the Tur 240 model in 1950. While a larger car for Breda’s market, it was practical and reliable and nevertheless was a nimble machine. The four-seat four-speed both transports and sports without entirely compromising in either.

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