General Information

Serial #

N/A

Part Number

5

Total Parts

5

AKA

N/A

Patents

N/A

General Description

Metal

Dimensions

Note: These reflect the general size for storage and are not necessarily representative of the object's true dimensions.

Length

N/A

Width

7.0 cm

Height

4.2 cm

Thickness

N/A

Weight

N/A

Diameter

N/A

Volume

N/A

Lexicon

Group

Motorized Ground Transportation

Category

Automotive parts

Sub-Category

N/A

Manufacturer

AKA

Unknown

Country

Unknown

State/Province

Unknown

City

Unknown

Context

Country

Unknown

State/Province

Unknown

Period

Unknown

Canada

Hub caps are collectors' items.

Function

Cover put on automobile wheels to enhance its aesthetic appearance or aerodynamism and to protect the wheel bolts from mud and dust.

Technical

In the 1900s, John and Horace Dodge established the Dodge Brothers machine shop and soon after they started manufacturing engines for Olds Motor Works. By 1903, the Dodge Brothers were the principal supplier of vehicle parts and components for the Ford Motor Company. From 1914, the brothers decided to manufacture their own automobiles until their deaths in 1920. Their widows sold the Dodge Brothers in 1925 to Dillion, Reed and Company, a New York investment banking firm (Hyde, "Introduction"). In 1928, Dodge became a division of the Chrysler Corporation. In 1998, Chrysler merged with Daimler-Benz to form DaimlerChrysler AG (Grant: 100-107). In 2009, Chrysler was owned 35% by Fiat. Chrysler is still an important car manufacturer today (2011). Originally, hub caps date back to the horse-drawn era and afterwards to the first automobiles when wheels were made of wooden spokes connected to the center hub. The hub contained the wheel bearing, which was packed with grease. The hub cap was a small device used to cover the center hub to keep the dust out and the grease in. Eventually, car manufacturers replaced the wooden spokes with steel wire spokes in the 1920s and 1930s. As a result the hub cap evolved into a wheel cover, which is a large disc that covers most of the wheel. Wheel covers continue to serve a functional purpose but they have also become a decorative design feature of the wheel.

Area Notes

Unknown

Details

Markings

Raised and interlocking initials 'DB'

Missing

N/A

Finish

Stripped background on face of cap, metal polished (possibly)/ condition: show dented & worn surface

Decoration

N/A