I couldn't help myself.....I brought this home today (actually, to Ratso's shop). It was just sitting there begging me I know it's a late 30's GM (at least I think I know that), but I'm not sure of anything past that. Someone chopped the top back at the dawn of man, and actually didn't do too bad a job. I'm thinking of cutting it in half in a couple places, and making a short two-door out of it. It needs a firewall and a trunk lid, as well as the driver's side garnish moldings. The only real identifying mark I see is the small spear on the rear fenders and the divider in the rear window. One of the people who drove by while it was on the trailer said it's a '38 Buick Special. How about it, anyone know what this thing is?
http://carnut.com/cgi-bin/02/_image.pl?/show/02/spf/nat1125.jpg I did the body work on a 37 poncho 2dr a few years ago...I thought that line in the fender looked familiar...
Thanks for the info, guys. It seems to be a 37-38 Pontiac. Any help as to a model? Or were they all pretty much the same?
Great find.... please do not cut it up into a shortened two door. If this is an old chopped body it would look best with full skirts in the back and dressed up as an early custom car with wide whites flippers etc... it will look very cool as a family custom.
I would agree, shortened bodies of this era are very hard to get proportionally looking good. Not impossible, but it would make a great looking cruiser as it is.
I dunno, if you cut it to the rear fenders, make one window out of the two left behind the door and lay back the "hump" trunk, you might have a really nice slantback. It might be worth taking a good profile pic and letting the "photoshoppers" have-at-it.
If you shorten that body with the hump back yer just askin to build a pile of *** that will be so far out of proportion even you will hate it, Let alone every other person you ever meet. Now with the chop it has, It will lend itself PERFECT to a '40s WESTERGARD style Sedan. Real low in the rear with mild drop in front, Single bar flippers, '40 Buick skirts, Black or Marroon paint, White interior, Early Pontiac Flathead 6 with dual pipes...ETC... ETC.. Thats my take...... But I'll bet Dollars to Dougnuts it will be just another SBC/Auto powered Flat Black & Air Ride Rock~A~Billy Wannabe like 90% of whats being built these days
Sorry, should have put this in the last post- was playing in "Paint" with the shot of it on the trailer (I'm at school with a lousy computer). Tried what I was talking about in my last post- looks almost like a Cord Beverly Sedan body.
You obviously don't know a ****ing thing about me ... I don't use air ride, don't much care for flat black, and wouldn't put a sbc in anything ..Rockabilly?...that's just stupid (something you would know if you knew anything about me) Wannabe? You definitely got it wrong there, Susie. I'm no great know-it-all, like you, but I've been around the block a couple times. If you were to read some of my past posts, you would have known all this, and saved making yourself look like an ***. But I'll bet you do that a lot, considering your manners. I just wanted to know what it is, and what I do (or don't do) to it isn't any business of yours. No need to get your ******* in a wad. One thing for sure......if I keep it, it won't ever have skirts and wide whites. Just not my thing. I'd make a planter out of it first.
Got a version you can share? I'd be interested in what you did. I did something similar, have been tweaking it to decide how long to make the doors, etc.
Animal, Mrs. Yankee, the little Yanks and I are about to sit down to dinner, but will try to redo it tonight- it won't be pretty though
Pontiacs came in two flavors in '37-'38 - a six and an eight. The only real difference in appearance is the Eight is longer - it has a 122" wheelbase to the Six's 117" wheelbase. Presumably this was ahead of the firewall, since the motor was longer as well. Now that's ***uming someone didn't hang Pontiac fenders on an Olds or Buick, but the Buick would have had coil spring suspension stock (and a torque tube rear), and the Olds would have some holes in the quarter by the beltline for the taillights those used. If the frame is all original, the Pontiac serial number would be located on the top of the frame, ahead of the steering gear, so that it would be visible with the hood open and the fenders all on. Serial numbers from Krause Standard Catalog of Pontiac: 37 Six - 6CA-1001 though 6CA-154827 37 Eight - 8CA-1001 through 8CA-49442 38 Six - 6DA-1616 though 6DA-60416 or C-60A-1001 through C-6DA-1615; cars built in California C6DA-2001 to C6DA-8155. I think there are some typos in my book and the C-60A should be C6DA also. 38 Eight - 8DA-1001 through 8DA-15729. Linden NJ built have L prefix - Southgate CA built cars have C prefix, except some 1937 Sixes as above. Odds are it's a six; Pontiac used more or less the same Six and Eight through 1954. Personally, I'd try and round up a take out 55-60 V8 and run that, but hey it's your car, do what makes you happy. Proportion-wise, it would probably look better just moving the B-post back and converting it to a two-door sedan rather than shortening the whole body.
Now, that's the kind of info I was looking for! The tag is right where you said, so I suspect it's a Pontiac. I'll check the #'s tonight to see what they say. Thanks a lot for the info, I really appreciate it.
Man I was digging the Westerguard idea, man it screams out for it, p*** it on to someone who will do that if you dont want the style. finding it hard to picture any other way now. Damn short memory TV generation chemical fried brain!!
animal , I have had a zillion people stop by the shop to try and figure out w.t.f. we drug in on sun. If you don`t know animal , do not doubt that he will make something cool out of this find , he will make it look fricken killer ! and I can guarentee it won`t look anything , like someone elses !! I still say we should put the all aluminum slant 6ix chrysler and 4 speed out of the 62` valiant project we have in it ...... the 331 hemi I found in that guys shed ? how about the 401 nail head out of that flat back 54` chevy ? the only thing I know for sure it WON`T have any thing to do with a small chevy , no offence guyes , they are not allowed in any of my projects , I like unusual powerplants !
Thanks to rustynewyorker, I now know that it is a 1937 Pontiac six. Thanks, bud! Now to either figure out what to do with it, or find someone who needs it more than I do.
Ratso, I wish I actually had that hemi! My aluminum slant six and four-speed would be fun, but might be a little anemic for that four-door. Let me know what you find out on the 401.
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