International Parts

Need International Truck Parts?

At 1A Auto, we realize how difficult it is to come by parts for International trucks, especially for older light-duty pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles that were manufactured during the International Harvester Company (IHC) days. So, if you are in need of a replacement auto part for your classic International Harvester (IH) sport utility vehicle, pickup or commercial transport truck, or a part for more recent Navistar International trucks like the 4900, you've come to the right place. At 1A Auto, we get you the right auto parts for your International truck, at a great discount. You'll find a large selection of new and aftermarket International truck parts, including weatherstripping, exhaust manifolds, ball joints, brake shoes, bike racks for light vehicles, and more.

Our product development team spends over 8,000 hours a year researching the best auto parts, and they are carefully selected by our trained engineers so you can rest assured that you are getting the correct, high quality part you need for your International Harvester or Navistar International truck, at a discount price. Don't overpay for International parts and save yourself from a lot of potential headaches by shopping at 1A Auto.

You can shop for all of your International truck parts online and buy safely and securely right here on our website, or you can call our customer service toll free at 888-844-3393 if you have any questions about any of our parts, or to buy over the phone. With over 150 years combined experience, 1A Auto's customer service representatives are the most qualified to answer your questions about all of our new, aftermarket replacement International truck parts. Our representatives answer 99.9% of phone calls in less than one minute and emails are responded to within the hour because we know you depend on your vehicle and need answers quickly to get your cherished International truck or sport utility vehicle back in working order again. We also know you want your truck part fast for the same reason; 98% of in stock International auto parts ship from our warehouse within one business day so that you can get back on the road in no time, and all ground shipping in the continental US is completely free. And, in the unlikely case that you are unhappy with your International part for any reason, 1A Auto also offers the only No Hassle return policy for unused items in the industry. Simply put, our competitors can't beat the 1A Advantage. Don't just take it from us - take it from over 50,000 satisfied customers!

Look no further than 1A Auto for your aftermarket, original equipment (OE) replacement International Harvester (IH) or Navistar International truck parts and get your vehicle the new parts it needs today from truck enthusiasts just like you! If you happen to be an enthusiastic International owner, have a deep passion for International vehicles, or just want to learn more about the marque, continue reading below for a detailed look at the brand's history and some of its past and present models.

Overview

International is a brand of medium-duty, over-the-road, and severe-service commercial trucks currently manufactured by the International Truck and Engine Corporation subsidiary of the Navistar International Corporation holding company, formerly known as the International Harvester Company (IHC or IH) which was formed in 1902. Before being renamed to Navistar International Corporation in 1986 after the sale of its agricultural division upon which the company was founded, International Harvester’s motor truck division also produced a “light” line of vehicles including pickup trucks and vans until 1975, and sport utility vehicles until 1980. The International brand name has also been used to market many other products throughout the history of IHC and now Navistar, including tractors, buses and military vehicles.

Contents

1. Origin
2. The Golden Years
3. Downfall and End of an Era
4. Transition from Agricultural Roots to Today

Origin

The history of International branded vehicles dates back to 1902 with the formation of the International Harvester Company. IHC itself has roots that stretch all the way back to 1830 when Cyrus Hall McCormick finalized his design of the first truly practical horse-drawn reaper, built along with Jo Anderson, a slave on the McCormick farm, and received a patent for in 1834. McCormick, along with his brother Leander, started the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company in 1847, and it was then passed to McCormick’s son, Cyrus McCormick, Jr., in 1885 upon the elder’s death.

Throughout its history, the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company continued to produce farming implements as well as gasoline combustion engines for stationary use on farms, until 1902. It was then that IHC was created as the result of a merger, orchestrated by J.P. Morgan, of the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company, Deering Harvester Company (founded in 1894), and three other much smaller agricultural equipment firms. While the company started out originally producing tractors and other farming equipment such as balers for the agricultural machinery industry, International Harvester evolved over the next three-quarters of a century to become a diversified manufacturer of other products such as construction equipment, light vehicles and commercial trucks, military vehicles, gas turbines, commercial and household products such as lawn and garden equipment and home appliances, motorhomes, buses, and engines. While International Harvester’s agricultural division grew to become its best-known subsidiary, it would be second in terms of importance to the business to its truck division.

IHC entered the motor truck manufacturing business in 1907, beginning with the production of light-duty trucks, and evolving into a producer of transport trucks beginning in 1915. The first light vehicle to be released by IHC was their “IHC Auto Wagon,” also commonly known as the “IHC Auto Buggy.” The company was already well known for making the lives of farmers easier with its agricultural machinery, and now it was giving them a vehicle that could navigate the tough roads between their farm and their nearest market while transporting produce more easily. The vehicle received a new designation of “motor truck” in 1910, helping to pave the way for what would become the modern pickup truck. In 1914, the “IHC” designation was eliminated and the “International” brand name was applied for the first time. In 1915, the first commercial International branded transport truck was released. Its first heavy-duty truck, with a capacity of five tons, was released a few years later. Numerous other transport truck models of varying specifications would be produced during the 1920’s.

The Golden Years

International Harvester quickly developed into a leader of providing trucks that were “built to the job,” and the company soared over the next few decades. In the 1930s, they released their C and D lines of pickup trucks as well as other models of transport trucks and, in 1939, production of truck engines began. In 1938, the first International trucks with a Metro bodies was produced, a multi-stop retail delivery truck known as the IHC Metro Van. At the time, this step van was a brand new concept in motor truck design and the Metro series was produced and updated as IH's truck lines were in the years to come. Several variations of the vehicle were also produced over the course of the next few decades, including the compact Metro-Lite in 1958.

Prior to the onset of World War II, the company introduced its K-Series line of light-duty trucks. However, beginning in December of 1941, at the request of the U.S. government, International Harvester began designing and manufacturing vehicles and other components for the military. From that point forward, the company concentrated solely on production for the U.S. Military until 1943, when civilian truck production resumed on a limited basis. In 1944, International Harvester Company formed its motor truck division to handle the growing volume of International truck engineering, production, sales and other related activities.

The first line of light-duty pickup trucks to be released by IH following the war was its KB-Series, in 1947. This series was followed by the introduction of numerous other truck lines that featured different combinations of light, medium and heavy-duty truck models during the 1950’s. These included the L-Series, R-Series, S-Series, A-Series and B-Series. Another light-duty vehicle, the Travelall, was also introduced during this period, initially with the introduction of the R-Series in 1953. This full-size, truck-based people carrier was similar in concept to the Chevy Suburban and was a precursor to the modern SUV. The company was flying high and in 1960, a new record was set for International Harvester’s motor truck division as sales of International trucks, parts and service reached $766 million, which was 45.5% of IH’s total sales for that year across all of its divisions.

The early 1960s were ushered in by the introduction of the all-purpose Scout and the C-Series truck line from IHC. The Scout 80, the first in the line of Scout vehicles to be released over the next two decades, was a small two-door sport utility vehicle which was very similar to a Jeep. The Scout 80 filled a void in the utility vehicle market at the time for a vehicle possessing the characteristics of both a passenger car and a truck. Also, in 1962, International Harvester introduced the Loadstar which became the premier medium-duty truck in the industry until it was discontinued in 1979. Additional new models and updates of existing light-duty truck, sport utility vehicle and transport truck models were released throughout the 1960s and 1970s as well, including the new severe-service Paystar truck.

Downfall and End of an Era

IH continued to turn in good sales numbers throughout the 1960s and 1970s, but profit margins were slim and the addition of unrelated business lines over the course of its life made it difficult for the company to focus on a primary area of business. With agricultural equipment, construction equipment, truck production, etc., all under the International Harvester Company umbrella, the organization had grown unsteady. Numerous other problems plagued the company including the lack of technical innovation, out-dated products, increased production costs due to labor and governmental regulations, and increasing competition in many of its main corporate business sectors.

In 1975, the company discontinued production of all pickup trucks (including the Travelall) as well as vans, signaling the end of 68 years of light-duty truck production. The Scout sport utility vehicle continued to be produced during this time, however, as the Scout Terra and Scout Traveler were both released in 1976 to go along with the Scout II which had been released in 1971. However, International Harvester decided to discontinue production of its remaining light vehicles in 1980 in order to concentrate on its commercial truck and growing bus business. This marked the end of IH’s manufacturing of light vehicles altogether.

The company tried to improve profit margins by dumping unprofitable product lines and cutting costs by curtailing factory production, but this resulted in only a short-term profit gain and a continuing lack of cash reserves. Members of the United Auto Workers (UAW) union became infuriated over the production cutbacks and the cost-cutting measures, which eventually reached the point where IH sought overtime, work rule, and other changes from the UAW. This led to a strike which was launched in 1979 by the UAW against the company and lasted for six months, eventually costing the company close to $600 million by the time it ended. In addition to that, the U.S. as well as the global economy was severely affected by a recession that hit in the early 1980s. Internal corporate problems only added to the financial crisis that the company was in and by 1981 IH’s finances were at their lowest point in the history of the company. Things only got worse for the company, forcing it to make decisions that would change the nature of the company forever.

In an effort to survive, International Harvester began exiting many of its historical business sectors during this period, including those that were profitable and those that were not at the immediate time, in order to try and raise much needed cash and reduce its losses. The company shed its construction equipment division, its solar division, and its lawn and garden equipment division.  The process culminated with the sale of IH’s most well-known business, its agricultural products division. IH agreed to sell off its agricultural products division to Tenneco, Inc. in late 1984. Tenneco owned a tractor-manufacture subsidiary at the time called J.I. Case which it had purchased in 1967 (formally known as Case Corporation from that point until 1999), but it lacked many of the additional farming-related products that International Harvester manufactured. Thus, it saw the purchase of IH as a way to offer a full line of agricultural equipment. After the sale, Tenneco then merged the agricultural division it had purchased from International Harvester with their J.I. Case subsidiary. Following the merger, production at IH’s facilities ceased in 1985 and production of new equipment was moved to the Case Corporation’s facilities. All agricultural products released after the merger were first labeled Case International, but then changed to Case IH afterwards.

Tenneco would eventually get out of the agricultural business, selling off a stake of the Case Corporation, which consisted of the Case and International Harvester brands, in 1994 and spinning the company off completely by 1996. In 1999, the company was acquired by Fiat S.p.A. which then merged it with another agricultural machinery company it had acquired in 1991 called New Holland. This resulted in the formation of a new division within Fiat called CNH Global. In 2011, Fiat S.p.A. demerged most of its businesses not directly related to automobiles into a new company called Fiat Industrial S.p.A., which now owns CNH Global. The International Harvester name and logo still live on in the Case IH brand name, which currently makes up half of CNH Global’s agricultural brand family along with New Holland.

Transition from Agricultural Roots to Today

After 155 years in the agricultural machinery business, all that remained after the sale of that division in the mid 1980s of what had been International Harvester Company was its truck and engine divisions. Since the International Harvester name and IH logo were assets of the agricultural division, they too had been sold off as part of the sale to Tenneco. In 1986, what was left of the company was renamed to Navistar International Corporation and the company refocused solely on commercial trucks and engines.  After the transition was complete, the truck product line dropped the "Harvester" portion of the brand name, adopting simply “International” from that point forward. The International brand name had also been used to market other IHC products across its many corporate businesses, including tractors, over the course of its history prior to 1986, but from this point forward, the “International” brand name applied only to products manufactured by Navistar, consisting primarily of trucks, but also used in its future bus, engine and military vehicle endeavors as well. In addition, the Scout and light truck part of its truck business, which had been dormant for years, was sold to Scout / Light Line Distributors, Inc. in 1991.

In the 1990s and 2000s, Navistar once again began to diversify itself by leveraging its commercial truck and engine expertise into other business arenas. The company had a long history in the school bus industry as a chassis provider so, in the 1990s, it acquired AmTran, an Arkansas-based manufacturer of school bus bodies, in order to manufacture both. AmTran was rebranded in 2002 by Navistar as IC (Integrated Coach) Bus after a few months as International Truck and Bus and now produces school / activity buses as well as commercial buses. In 2000, to reflect the re-diversification of the company, Navistar International Corporation changed the name of its operating company to International Truck and Engine Corporation. From that point on, Navistar International Corporation function was as a holding company, of which International Truck and Engine Corporation became a subsidiary of. The subsidiary is the current manufacturer of all International branded trucks and MaxxForce branded diesel engines, first released in 2006, which now power all International branded trucks. Navistar also returned to the production of military vehicles through its subsidiary Navistar Defense and in 2009, the company got into the RV manufacturing business as well.

Today, the International brand name continues on in Navistar International's International Truck and Engine Corporation subsidiary and in the medium and heavy-duty trucks and engines it manufactures. In addition, Navistar also offers a full portfolio of transit bus chassis and advanced military vehicles under the International brand name. International Truck, as it is now officially known, continues to be Navistar’s flagship vehicle brand and additional models, including the LoneStar and PayStar, have been released in the past few years.