Hello Friends and Family,

Link to this year's index by clicking here.


Barrett-Jackson Auto Auction, Part 4

Continuing our tour of the auction cars, we next find a 1937 Dodge Custom 2-Door Sedan. It is listed as a "complete custom restoration of a very rare rust-free and solid" vehicle and "all sheet metal is original". The engine, however, is what caught my eye — a 354 CID Hemi which was completely rebuilt in 2009 with a few upgrades.



As you may recall, the Dodge Brothers Company was purchased by Chrysler Corporation in 1928. Thus I was a bit surprised to see a Dodge Brothers medallion on this 1937 vehicle.


Here is a shot of the trunk but for some reason I feel like one should use the term "boot" which is the British equivalent. Classy, IMHO.


One of the design details of these older cars is the taillights. They just have so much more class than the plastic sheets molded into the body of current autos.

Also note the blue crystal in the middle of the lens. I recall being told that this was introduced during WWII to made vehicles less visible at night from the air — in case of an enemy attack. However, a brief Google search suggests it was primarily for styling — people just liked the look.


The Lincoln Motor Company was founded in 1915 by Henry M. Leland. The company's original business was manufacturing aircraft engines using cylinders supplied by Ford. After the war ended, Lincoln retooled their factories to make luxury automobiles.

Unfortunately, the company faced severe financial troubles during the transition and was forced into bankruptcy. Ford Motor Company purchased the assets and continued to operate it as a separate company until 1940 when it became a division of Ford.


It is easy to speculate that the company's initial business was reflected in the hood ornament on this 1938 Lincoln Zephyr.

 

 


The Zephyr line was introduced for the 1936 model year and was slightly smaller than the other Lincolns of the day. It introduced a 287 CID 12-cylinder engine which helping increase Lincoln sales ninefold.


Lincoln-Zephyr was extremely modern with a low raked windshield, integrated fenders, and streamlined aerodynamic design. It is noted for being one of the first successful streamlined cars after the Chrysler Airflows market failure. In fact, the Lincoln-Zephyr actually had a lower coefficient of drag than the Airflow, due in part to the prow-like front-end on the Zephyr.


And don't you just love the taillights with the teardrop shape mirroring the teardrop medallion shown above?


The vehicle below is a 1939 Plymouth P8 Business Coupe that was completely restored from the ground up 12 years ago. The Plymouth brand of automobiles was introduced on July 7, 1928. It was Chrysler Corporation's first entry in the low-priced field, which at the time was already dominated by Chevrolet and Ford. Plymouths were actually priced slightly higher than their competition, but offered standard features such as internal expanding hydraulic brakes that the competition did not provide.

I happened to find the copy from a 1939 Plymouth sales brochure —

"You will marvel that a Low-Priced Car can give you the Extra Size and Room, the Sumptuous Luxury of this new DeLuxe Plymouth ..."

"Extra inches of seat room, of head room, of leg room in the big, beautiful 1939 DeLuxe Plymouth mean restful relaxation in place of being cramped and crowded."

"And in the roomy new Plymouth interior, you find lavish provision for pleasing your sense of beauty and luxury."

Marketing hasn't change a bit in all these years, has it? To be continued...


Life is good.

Aloha,
B. David

P. S., All photos and text © B. David Cathell Photography, Inc. — www.bdavidcathell.com