The History of International

Navistar International is an American bus and truck manufacturer. Navistar - the successor of International Harvester, founded in 1902, which produced trucks under the International brand, went bankrupt and sold off for parts in 1984. The history of the company goes back to 1831, when Cyrus Hall McCormick invented his sickle - a crude agricultural tool. At the time, the company was in the business of automating manual farm work, and the founders of International attempted to automate the sickle. From this unsightly implement came the beginning of International Harvester, founded much later in 1902 by the merger of the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company and the Deering Harvester Company. This led to the formation of the International Harvester Corporation (IHC) in Chicago, Illinois.

By 1912 International Harvester had become a well-developed company producing air- and water-cooled trucks. Five new models with capacities from 0.75 to 3.5 tons, designated H, F, K, G and L, were built in 1915. All models equipped with four-cylinder engines were produced until 1923. Of the standard products, the cars were fitted with wheels from artillery guns with solid rubber gimbals. Upon request, all models were equipped with inflatable wheel chutes, except for 3.5-ton model, which was designed with tube tires. In 1928, International Harvester produced trucks with two-speed rear axles and the first semblance of a diesel engine. In 1934, the angular shape was replaced by a more streamlined design. 1936 is considered the time of production of Cornbinders six-wheelers. And in the period from 1938 to 1940, the D series trucks were presented. These trucks were widely used during the Second World War and remained popular in the postwar years. From 1953 to 1955, many changes occurred in the production plans of International in connection with the release of L and R series machines.

In the late '50s another truck with a cab over the engine was created, the Emeryville, also known as the Highbinder. The Emeryville of the late 50s had a center bulkhead windshield and a sleeper cab version. This peculiar truck was used successfully in the U.S. and was removed from production in 1965. In 1968, the heavier model CO-4070A with a powerful and efficient diesel engine has been produced. By 1974, the CO-4070B model was created - the first vehicle with the TranStar inscription on the badge. In the first half of 1980s, the U.S. agriculture was experiencing serious economic difficulties, and hard times had come for IH. The long strike of 1979-1980 damaged production, and the agricultural crisis of 1980 made things more difficult, leading to a sharp decline in sales of agricultural equipment. Finally making matters worse was the federal government's decision to limit toxicity and improve engine specs. On February 20, 1986, the company changed its name to Navistar International Corporation. Do not forget to use International VIN decoder in order to avoid potential problems when buying a used car.