Cord History: E.L. Cord started Auburn Automobile Company in 1929 to build the Cord L-29, the first American front-wheel drive car. The Cord featured revolutionary designs such as retractable headlights and competed with the Lincoln, Packard, Franklin and Stutz automobiles. The 1936 Cord was a big hit in the showroom but technical problems curbed sales, dealers gradually went broke and production stopped the next year. The American Heritage magazine proclaimed the vintage 1936 Cord 810 sedan 'The Single Most Beautiful American Car' in 1996.