VOA慢速英语2011--How the Edsel Became 'an Edsel'

Technology Report - How the Edsel Became 'an Edsel'

 

This is the VOA Special English Technology Report.

ANNOUNCER: “They’ll know you’ve arrived, when you drive up in the nineteen fifty-eight Edsel -- the car that’s truly new, from nameplate to taillight.”

The Ford¹ Motor Company built several versions of the Edsel from nineteen fifty-eight to nineteen sixty. Ford ended production of the car after just three model years because of weak sales.

The Edsel has been described as both a "colossal² failure" and "a car ahead of its time."

John Heitmann is a history professor at the University of Dayton in Ohio and vice³ president of the Society for Automotive Historians.

JOHN HEITMANN: “It was a car that was controversial in styling. Its horseshoe-shaped grill⁴ is still remembered today. The Edsel is kind of the example of the car that never caught on. It’s known as the 'disaster from Dearborn.'”

Dearborn, Michigan is Ford's headquarters.

A 1959 Edsel Ranger5

Professor Heitmann says the biggest problem was that the Edsel arrived around the same time as a recession. He says Americans were beginning to question their values.

JOHN HEITMANN: "It’s a really curious kind of economic episode. It was actually quite severe but also rather short. But it was at a time when many Americans were reacting to the dinosaur⁶ in the driveway. These very heavy, chrome-laden Buicks and other cars -- the fifty-eight Buick had fifty-eight pounds of chrome on it. The Edsel was also a very heavy, very fuel-inefficient vehicle."

Even so, some people say the Edsel's technology more than made up for what it lacked in looks and fuel efficiency.

"Shamrock" Shelly Cleaver⁷ is the public relations director for the Edsel Owners Club in the United States. Mr. Cleaver has been a member of the club since it formed in nineteen sixty-nine. He says the Edsel was the most modern car of its time.

SHELLY CLEAVER: “It was the first Ford product to have self-adjusting brakes on it. And then on the back and rear bumper⁸ it had little bumper tips, had a guard with rubber mounted in them so when you could push your car or something, you wouldn’t skin up your bumper. And it had power lubrication where you could lubricate your ball joints⁹ and everything inside the car where you mashed¹⁰ a button.”

Mr. Cleaver liked one feature especially.

SHELLY CLEAVER: “The fifty-eight Edsel had five buttons in the center of the steering¹¹ wheel to shift the gears, see. And that way you could shift the gears with your left hand and keep your arm around your girlfriend, or your wife, whatever and keep on driving. That was unique. It was Teletouch Drive."

“Shamrock” Shelly Cleaver made good use of that feature when he got married in nineteen fifty-eight. He went on his honeymoon¹² in an Edsel, with one arm on the wheel and the other around his new wife.

The Edsel was named for Edsel Ford, the only child of company founder¹³ Henry Ford. Edsel was president of Ford Motor Company until he died in nineteen forty-three.

Today the cars are considered collector’s items. They can cost anywhere from hundreds of dollars to tens of thousands of dollars.

And that's the VOA Special English Technology Report, written by June Simms. I'm Steve Ember.

1 Ford   

n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过

参考例句：

• They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
• If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。

2 colossal   

adj.异常的，庞大的

参考例句：

• There has been a colossal waste of public money.一直存在巨大的公款浪费。
• Some of the tall buildings in that city are colossal.那座城市里的一些高层建筑很庞大。

3 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

4 grill   

n.烤架，铁格子，烤肉；v.烧，烤，严加盘问

参考例句：

• Put it under the grill for a minute to brown the top.放在烤架下烤一分钟把上面烤成金黄色。
• I'll grill you some mutton.我来给你烤一些羊肉吃。

5 ranger   

n.国家公园管理员，护林员；骑兵巡逻队员

参考例句：

• He was the head ranger of the national park.他曾是国家公园的首席看守员。
• He loved working as a ranger.他喜欢做护林人。

6 dinosaur   

n.恐龙

参考例句：

• Are you trying to tell me that David was attacked by a dinosaur?你是想要告诉我大卫被一支恐龙所攻击？
• He stared at the faithful miniature of the dinosaur.他凝视著精确的恐龙缩小模型。

7 cleaver   

n.切肉刀

参考例句：

• In fact,a cleaver is a class of ax.实际上，切肉刀也是斧子的一种。
• The cleaver is ground to a very sharp edge.刀磨得飞快。

8 bumper   

n.(汽车上的)保险杠；adj.特大的，丰盛的

参考例句：

• The painting represents the scene of a bumper harvest.这幅画描绘了丰收的景象。
• This year we have a bumper harvest in grain.今年我们谷物丰收。

9 joints   

接头( joint的名词复数 )； 关节； 公共场所（尤指价格低廉的饮食和娱乐场所） （非正式）； 一块烤肉 （英式英语）

参考例句：

• Expansion joints of various kinds are fitted on gas mains. 各种各样的伸缩接头被安装在煤气的总管道上了。
• Expansion joints of various kinds are fitted on steam pipes. 各种各样的伸缩接头被安装在蒸气管道上了。

10 mashed   

a.捣烂的

参考例句：

• two scoops of mashed potato 两勺土豆泥
• Just one scoop of mashed potato for me, please. 请给我盛一勺土豆泥。

11 steering   

n.操舵装置

参考例句：

• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration. 他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。
• Steering according to the wind, he also framed his words more amicably. 他真会看风使舵，口吻也马上变得温和了。

12 honeymoon   

n.蜜月（假期）；vi.度蜜月

参考例句：

• While on honeymoon in Bali,she learned to scuba dive.她在巴厘岛度蜜月时学会了带水肺潜水。
• The happy pair are leaving for their honeymoon.这幸福的一对就要去度蜜月了。

13 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。