Hudson Classic Cars

Hudson's senior step-down series — the platform the Hornet itself was built from, offered with both six- and eight-cylinder power.

Introduced alongside the rest of Hudson's revolutionary step-down lineup in 1948, the Commodore was the brand's premium series, offered with a choice of six-cylinder or straight-eight power and positioned above the mid-range Super and Pacemaker. It shares its innovative low-slung unibody construction with the more famous Hornet, but with a broader range of engine and trim choices for buyers who wanted Hudson's handling without the Hornet's more overtly performance-oriented image.

The low-slung "step-down" sedan that dominated early NASCAR racing and inspired Pixar's Doc Hudson.

Built on Hudson's innovative "step-down" unibody chassis — where passengers sat within the frame rails rather than on top of them — the Hornet combined an exceptionally low center of gravity with a powerful, torquey inline-six to become one of the most dominant cars in early NASCAR history. Its racing success, achieved against V8-powered rivals from bigger manufacturers, remains one of the great underdog stories in American motorsport.