In 1931, Henry Ford began investing in soybean research; 10 years later, he unveiled a plastic-bodied car that never reached mass production

Henry Ford was known for putting America on wheels, but one of his strangest experiments began far from the factory floor. He wanted agriculture and industry to work together, and he saw a humble crop as a possible bridge between the two.

Soybeans became part of that vision. Research at Ford's laboratory in Greenfield Village explored how the crop could be turned into useful materials, including oils, plastics and fibers. Then, in 1941, Ford revealed the result of one particularly ambitious experiment: a car whose body was made from plastic panels rather than conventional steel, as per a report by The Hnery Ford Organisation and DBusiness Magazine.

The unusual white coupe was unveiled at the Dearborn Days community festival on August 13, 1941. It was lighter than a steel-bodied automobile, used agricultural materials in its plastic panels and was promoted as potentially cheaper and safer.


But the vehicle never became a mass-produced car.

Its story instead became one of the more unusual chapters in Ford's long history of experimentation, combining his interest in manufacturing with his belief that agriculture could supply materials for industry.

Why did Ford turn to soybeans?

Ford believed farmers could benefit if their crops found new uses in industry. In 1929, Ford had a research laboratory constructed in Greenfield Village to investigate the value of agricultural products.

During the 1930s, soybean research produced oils and plastics for vehicles. Researchers also created fiber for cloth and experimented with soybean-based nutritional products.

By 1935, Ford Motor Co. had opened its own soy processing plant and had more than 12,000 acres of soybeans under cultivation.

The soybean car grew out of those experiments.

Ford initially placed E.T. “Bob” Gregorie of the Styling Department in charge of the project, but he was not satisfied with the results. He then transferred the work to the Soybean Laboratory at Greenfield Village, where Lowell E. Overly took charge. Overly had trained in tool and die design, while his supervisor, chemist Robert A. Boyer, assisted him.

The project took 12 years to develop.

What was the soybean car actually made of?

The car was not made entirely from soybeans. Its structure consisted of a welded tubular steel frame with 14 molded plastic panels attached to it. Each panel was 3/8-inch thick.

The exact formula has since disappeared. No record of the original plastic recipe exists today, although one account says it included soybeans, wheat, hemp, flax and ramie.

Overly, who played a central role in developing the car, described the material differently, calling it "…soybean fiber in a phenolic resin with formaldehyde used in the impregnation" (Davis, 51).

The car also used acrylic rather than heavier glass for its side windows, windshield and rear window.

All of this helped make the vehicle remarkably light. It weighed about 2,000 pounds, roughly 1,000 pounds less than a steel car.

The vehicle was powered by Ford's 60-horsepower flathead V-8 gasoline engine, the same type of engine that was popular in other Ford models at the time.

Because hemp was reportedly included in the plastic formula, the vehicle was sometimes called the “hemp car” as well as the soybean car.

Why did Henry Ford think a plastic car made sense?

Ford had several reasons for pursuing the idea. One was his desire to connect agriculture and manufacturing. Another was the possibility of replacing traditional metals at a time when metal supplies were becoming increasingly important.

He also believed the plastic panels could make a vehicle safer. Ford claimed the body could withstand a rollover without being crushed. That claim helped produce one of the most famous images associated with the experiment, although the picture is often misunderstood.

The photograph of Ford striking a car with an axe was not actually the soybean car. It showed Ford's personal automobile, which had been fitted with a plastic rear deck lid made from the same material used for the experimental vehicle.

Ford used the demonstration to show the strength of the plastic. The sharp end of the axe had a rubber boot over it, and after striking the lid, the axe would fly about 15 feet into the air.

The soybean car itself was displayed at the Dearborn Days festival in 1941 and later transported to the Michigan State Fair Grounds for another public display.

Why was the soybean car never mass-produced?

The timing proved disastrous for the project. A second car was already being built when World War II broke out. Auto production was suspended, putting the experiment on hold. After the war, the idea of a plastic-bodied automobile had effectively disappeared as energy and resources shifted toward wartime recovery.

Both the original car and the second vehicle were eventually destroyed.

According to Overly, E.T. Gregorie destroyed the original car. The car's disappearance, along with the missing plastic formula, added to its mystery. A project that had taken years of research and experimentation was left without a surviving vehicle or a complete record of exactly how its body material had been made.

Ford's agricultural experiment never became the future of mass-produced automobiles. But the idea itself was not entirely forgotten. Twelve years after the soybean car was unveiled, Chevrolet introduced the 1953 Corvette, bringing a plastic-bodied production automobile into the spotlight.

The soybean car remains a curious reminder of how far Ford was willing to push the relationship between farming, science and automobile manufacturing.

FAQs

Was the soybean car really made from soybeans?
Its plastic panels used soybean-based material, but the exact formula is no longer known.

Why did Ford stop making the car?
World War II halted automobile production, and the project was eventually abandoned.