Restored Futurliner Bus Comes To Eyes On Design

Bus Part Of GM's Original "Parade Of Progress" Fleet A Half-Century Ago

WARREN, Mich. - A cultural artifact of the famed General Motors "Parade of Progress" tours will make a grand re-appearance when a newly restored Futurliner makes its first public showing at the 16th Annual Eyes on Design Auto Exhibition at the GM Technical Center.

The Futurliner, one of 12 purpose-built buses used in GM's nationwide "Parade of Progress" tours in the 1940s and 50s, was an integral component of the traveling exhibit. The vehicles doubled as an exhibit transport and convertible stage as GM sought to bring the story of science and technology directly to cities and small towns throughout the United States. The Futurliners first began touring in 1941.

The red-and-white motor coach - one of only nine remaining Futurliners known to exist - was restored by a group of some 30 volunteers with support from GM divisions and about two dozen other businesses that donated parts and services. It is owned by the National Automotive And Truck Museum in Auburn, Ind., and Don Mayton, a retired GM plant manager and an experienced restorer of vintage automobiles, directed the five-year restoration project.

The massive vehicle - 33-feet long, 11-feet-7-inches tall, and weighing 27,000 pounds - contains a mixture of refurbished original equipment and new parts. A local shop recast all of the letters, including the block "GM" on the front and the "General Motors Parade of Progress" insignia on the side.

The grille is original equipment, along with the upper trim, which was straightened, sanded and buffed by a local craftsman, Mayton said.

"The mirrors are original," Mayton said. "Of course, we had to remove some 50 years of oxidation."

Duplicate original parts came from existing Futurliners that were scrapped long ago.

"The bus arrived without any bumpers," Mayton said. "We found bumpers on an old Futurliner in California. We scoured the country for parts."

Mayton, a Zeeland, Mich., resident whose personal collection of six vintage Buicks include a 1936 Roadmaster and 1953 Buick Skylark, also drew upon his auto-restorer network for various parts and components for the Futurliner project.

An Ohio mechanic fixed the 145-horsepower engine, while the carburetor was rebuilt in North Carolina. The Futurliner's Autronic-Eye controls, which dims the headlights automatically when another vehicle approaches and raises them when oncoming traffic has passed, were repaired by a technician in Galena, Ill., who found out about the project after seeing the website - www.futurliner.com. GM Powertrain restored the transmission while GM Pre-Production Operations (PPO) supplied a new roof designed by GM Design.

The old motor coach arrived without any specifications or drawings, and the project has been a real exercise in "learning as you go," Mayton said. The Futurliners all were hand-built, and included one-of-a-kind components. For example, the vehicle has dual front wheels that rotate independently.

"We have not found another vehicle in the world that has this kind of front end," Mayton said.

The old Parade of Progress coaches excited Mayton when he caught a glimpse of a restored Futurliner while on a 1998 business trip in Palm Springs, Calif.

"A guy out there had converted a Futurliner into a motor home," Mayton said. "My wife and I were having lunch when I spotted it. So I quickly snapped off three pictures of the vehicle before it drove it away."

Mayton began researching Futurliners when he returned to Michigan and eventually found one at the National Automotive and Truck Museum in Auburn, Ind.

"It was just a piece of nothing but rusted metal," he said. "Any other vehicle this badly deteriorated would have been just scrapped."

The museum did not want to part with the Futurliner, but lacked the resources to restore it, Mayton said. So Mayton took on the project at his Zeeland home, even building a heated pole barn in 1999 to house the huge vehicle. The Maytons' home became a gathering spot where volunteers showed up each week to work on the Futurliner.

Meanwhile, the museum maintains ownership of the vehicle and has helped raise about $200,000 to complete the job.

The Futurliner will be available for public viewing June 22 at the Eyes on Design Automotive Exhibit on the Tech Center campus. The event will feature more than 300 of the world's finest automobiles and the largest collection of concept vehicles ever assembled in one place.

Some of the original Parade of Progress crew, called "Paraders," also will be present to discuss their connection with the tour. About 70 of the 300 original Paraders are still alive, and many of them call the Detroit area home.

There were two-dozen exhibits in the Parade of Progress, which covered the research and engineering achievements of the day and offered a glance at some of tomorrow's possibilities. Among the major exhibits included:

"Our American Crossroads" - An animated diorama showing the transformation of a rural crossroads community 50 years earlier into a thriving suburban community of today, and the automobile's role in bringing the country and city together. "Pioneer of Progress" - One of the tour's most popular exhibits, showing how the application of scientific and engineering advancements improved our comfort, convenience and welfare. "Power for the Air Age" - The fundamentals of jet propulsion were demonstrated, using a cutaway of a jet engine. "Miracles of Heat and Cold" - A two-part lecture demonstrating how heat and cold serve us in our homes and daily lives. "The World of Science" - Two 10-minute talks dealing with the phenomena of friction and the atmospheric ocean. Between 1936 and the outbreak of World War II in 1941, the Parade visited 251 cities and was seen by 12.5 million people.

Tickets are $15 at the gate, or $12 in advance. Children 12 and under are admitted free. Auto exhibit attendees also may purchase rides in notable GM concept cars. Proceeds benefit the Detroit Institute of Ophthalmology. Tickets may be obtained by calling Eyes on Design at (313) 824-EYES (3937), or purchase tickets online at: www.acteva.com/go/eyeson.