Features Coachbuilt early Fords

Attached are photos of my latest project, a replica of Gordon Buehrig’s modified 1930 Model A Ford Cabiolet 68B. He named the car Baby, and said in later years it was his favorite car he ever owned, and wrote quite a bit about it over the years, including magazine articles with good photos of the original car.

I was inspired to build my car after I restored a 1936 Cord 810 and became a fan of Buehrig, and I started in 6 years ago with a rusty disassembled 68B Cabriolet body. I put it on a boxed Model A frame (stretched 4 1/2") did all the restoration and fabrication myself on my Baby II, including paint, top and upholstery, except for the engine work that was done by H&H in Los Angeles. There have been several other replicas of his car done, and the previous post is one of the first version of Buehrig’s Baby. I wanted to build one inspired by his second version done in 1932, where he re-modified the car by painting it a deep maroon (instead of the orange-red paint), modified the front radiator shell, headlights, and added an aerodynamic piece below the radiator. He wrote he wanted it to appear more like his favorite car of the time, the Hispano Suiza. He also fitted Goodyear Airwheel disk wheels and tires, and added an aluminum engine-turned dash with custom aircraft instruments.

I took some liberties with my replica by adding heat and a/c, 12 volt system, radio, and probably more aircraft style instruments than the original had. I tried to keep my modifications in the spirit of the original car, and used era components where possible and tried to keep it from looking like a new hot rod. I could not find the Goodyear Airwheels, so I use 16” Kelsey Hayes wire wheels with aluminum wheel disks (that many classic era cars used over wire wheels). It has a Serr-Miller OHV head, vintage Mallory distributor, and Winfield carburetor. I plan to tour this car a lot and exhibit it at the Forest Grove Concours in Portland, Ore, next month.

 

Looks Great ! Lotsa work,but you only have to do it once

 

For some reason yours looks better-proportioned than the original, which always looked a bit too tall to my eye. Have you made adjustments?

 

The most visible change from the original is the frame is stretched 4 1/2" (section added in front of middle cross member). I did this for two reasons;
I wanted to use the original sheet metal rear quarters as a start on the new tub part of the body, and since the firewall was extended that amount and the body moved rearwards, the difference would have been removed between the rear fender and the rear door post. This extension also allowed me more room inside behind the front seat, and allowed me to use a f-150 4 speed tranny without shortening the torque tube. I also think it improved the proportions, thanks,
Jack

 

a Romanian V8 special pictured at the 1934 "Alpenfahrt" (Alps Drive)

to my knowledge this car way re-bodied and also campaigned in an open version at the Monte Carlo Rally

 

I'd like to see other angles of that one.

 

Here's a fellow building a Never-Wuz '36 Ford Tudor Phaeton

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=549199

 

Attached are photos of my latest project, a replica of Gordon Buehrig’s modified 1930 Model A Ford Cabiolet 68B. He named the car Baby, and said in later years it was his favorite car he ever owned, and wrote quite a bit about it over the years, including magazine articles with good photos of the original car.

I was inspired to build my car after I restored a 1936 Cord 810 and became a fan of Buehrig, and I started in 6 years ago with a rusty disassembled 68B Cabriolet body. I put it on a boxed Model A frame (stretched 4 1/2") did all the restoration and fabrication myself on my Baby II, including paint, top and upholstery, except for the engine work that was done by H&H in Los Angeles. There have been several other replicas of his car done, and the previous post is one of the first version of Buehrig’s Baby. I wanted to build one inspired by his second version done in 1932, where he re-modified the car by painting it a deep maroon (instead of the orange-red paint), modified the front radiator shell, headlights, and added an aerodynamic piece below the radiator. He wrote he wanted it to appear more like his favorite car of the time, the Hispano Suiza. He also fitted Goodyear Airwheel disk wheels and tires, and added an aluminum engine-turned dash with custom aircraft instruments.

I took some liberties with my replica by adding heat and a/c, 12 volt system, radio, and probably more aircraft style instruments than the original had. I tried to keep my modifications in the spirit of the original car, and used era components where possible and tried to keep it from looking like a new hot rod. I could not find the Goodyear Airwheels, so I use 16” Kelsey Hayes wire wheels with aluminum wheel disks (that many classic era cars used over wire wheels). It has a Serr-Miller OHV head, vintage Mallory distributor, and Winfield carburetor. I plan to tour this car a lot and exhibit it at the Forest Grove Concours in Portland, Ore, next month.[/QUOTE]

Thats very nice !! I would love to see some build pics

 

This 1939 Ford Special Roadster was built especially for William Clay Ford, grandson of Henry Ford. He received the car as a gift at the age of 15. This Roadster was hand-crafted at Ford's British factory in England; therefore, it is the only one of its type that exists in the world.

The engine is a 4-cylinder Ford engine and the transmission is a 3-forward, 1-reverse speed.

This car was displayed at the Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan, prior to its current location at the Tallahassee Automobile Museum in Tallahassee, Florida.

Looks like an MG to me.

 

It looks rather Batten Special/Jensenish to me; though those were V8-based.

 

See post#94 - Built at the British Ford Factory as a one-of. Car is 4-cylinder British Ford.

 

Constructed from mostly Ford parts "Yankee Doodle".

"THIS CAR

In an extraordinary turn of events, this roadster was ordered by 17-year old Seward Allen from the Pacific Palisades. Allen, who would later go on to be a respected officer in the U.S. Navy, brought Stoessel and his crew a custom rolling chassis for which he wanted a sporty roadster body to be coachbuilt. The chassis was robust, consisting of Essex frame rails and a narrowed 1940 Ford front frame section, lapped and welded. Allen had sourced a 59A Ford Flathead V8, a ’40 Ford side shift transmission, and a Columbia two speed rear end for the drivetrain."............................."With flathead V8 power and a stiff, lightweight platform, this roadster’s performance more than lives up to the sports car billing.
“YANKEE DOODLE”
Allen drove the car the car around L.A. for four years until he was shipped out with the Navy. He had the car shipped to him and he drove it at his various stations overseas. This is when the car got the nickname, Yankee Doodle – an ambassador of American design and ingenuity."




http://super-cars-news.blogspot.com/








http://www.1940coachcraft.com/history/

 

READ - a couple of coachbuilt Ford Coaches -
http://sandoandsando.blogspot.com/2010/07/case-of-missing-ford-super-coachsolved.html



(PS. It is true that Greyhound was operating in Australia prior to Greyhound USA. Greyhound Australia commenced services from Toowoomba Queensland in 1928 during an airline pilot strike. The name Greyhound was chosen because the first vehicle was a Whippet car.)

 

Thank YOU !
Excellent Spread, Post, Article, Pics......................

Love the Coach Built Automobiles Not Cars, Automobiles !!!!
Had the Pleasure of owning '34 Lincoln Roadster by Dietrich, could'nt believe I found it ! Or, managed to purchase it..............Then, could'nt afford to give it the restoration IT deserved. Drove it, Loved it, rubbed, and "Talked " to IT.............it went to Col-e-rado.......an, never heard frum it agin !

Again Great Post, Do it again
JOHN

 

".......... H.M. Bennett’s 1953 Victoria, also mentioned in the Ford Times article, nonetheless had some extensive work done to it.

The unusual rear effect of the 1953 Victoria, above right, owned by H.M. Bennett of Dearborn, Michigan, was achieved by cutting off the taillights and fender backs, leaving enough metal for welding, and inserting fourteen-inch lengths of ’53 fenders. The result is a rear fender length of twenty inches greater than normal, six inches of which is due to special taillights.
​

Keep in mind that these were essentially brand-new cars that Bennett and Russell were cutting up and welding back together, just to see what they’d look like with different styling. They either didn’t see the cars as hefty investments or they had big brass ones. ........"

Ray Russell's car on the site:
http://www.car-ups.com/tag/coachbuilt-cars

 

http://www.examiner.com/classic-autos-in-philadelphia/ford-was-pioneer-building-stainless-steel-cars



"<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=1 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD width="100%">History of the Stainless Steel Car

In 1935, officials at Allegheny Ludlum Steel Division and the Ford Motor Company collaborated on an experiment that would become a legacy and a tribute to one of the most dynamic metals ever developed.
Allegheny Ludlum, a pioneer producer of stainless steel, proposed the idea of creating a stainless steel car to Ford. The idea took shape in the form of a 1936 Deluxe Sedan. That car became the centerpiece of a campaign to expose the public to the new metal and its many uses.
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

................................... "


http://www.alleghenytechnologies.com/ludlum/pages/companyinfo/stainlesscars.asp

 

"E83W nearside front
A close look at these photographs reveals a very unusual van. Did it start out as a pickup or chassis/cab in an earlier life perhaps? Note the design of the rear coachwork, and the separate rear wings, unlike the flared-in wings of the standard Ford body. .............."

http://www.e83w.co.uk/coachbuilt_van.htm

 

Plasswilm bodied Taunus van wearing an Eau de Cologne advert

 

"Depot Hack" - this one with a body from York Body Co. of York, Pa.

http://www.wheelsofitaly.com/wiki/index.php/Station_wagon

Ford Model T Depot Hack

A decade before the Chevrolet Suburban Carryall appeared, the Ford Model T Depot Hack (produced by various coach builders all through the 1920s) defined the genre

Read more: Ford Model T Depot Hack - 10 Cars That Were Ahead of Their Time - Popular Mechanics ​

 

"During World War I, before the arrival of United States Army, some charitable organizations offered ambulances to the Allied forces. The standard Ford Model T was provided - but without bodywork beyond the cowl. The legend says that the first ten ambulances were created with the wood of the transport cases! Later bodies were produced by the grand carrossier Kellner of Boulogne, near Paris. In 1918 this ambulance became the standard of US Army in France until the end of the war. These vehicles were originally painted grey."


http://sporttruckmodif.blogspot.com/2008/12/american-woodie-automobiles.html


http://www.oldwoodies.com/gallery-military1.htm

 

Read - it is coach built: http://www.prewarcar.com/index.php?option=com_content&catid=34&id=2920&view=article&Itemid=100

 

Fisher body.


http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/118802/159122.html?1290987839

 

http://www.charlieosborn.com/walker-cars/index.shtml

 

1915 MODEL T WITH 1916 TELESCOPE APARTMENT -- RV Collection 3
(David Woodworth Collection)

A unique unit built in California on the back of a Model T Ford roadster. A novel feature is multiple slide-outs on this vintage model.

http://www.rvmhhalloffame.org/museuminv.cfm

 

http://www.gtamarketing.com/1937FordHousecar.html

 

Further to post #122 - this is an earlier model Estate with body by Abbotts of Farnham.



http://www.redbubble.com/people/tomg/art/7010546-ford-consul-mk1-estate

 

A Ford V8 Pilot Estate with body by Hawes & Son Ltd:



http://www.uniquecarsandparts.com.au/car_spotters_guide_europe_1950.htm

 

http://www.mapleleafup.net/forums/showthread.php?p=147869





http://www.uniquecarsandparts.com.au/car_spotters_guide_usa_1941.htm

 

The Monart wagon conversions were created by noted industrial designer Brooks Stevens to fill the need for higher capacity automobiles. By spring 1942, U.S. automobile manufacturing ceased as factories converted to production for the war effort. Stevens showed that existing 1941-42 Mercury and Ford sedans could be rebodied for use by the military and civil defense.

Monart photos: Collection of David Miller

http://www.oldwoodies.com/gallery-military3.htm
​

 

http://mailer.fsu.edu/~akirk/tanks/can/Canada.htm