Bought a '34 Terraplane convertible

Very cool car. Please do not chop it!

 

LOL, no problem! It doesn't need it. From '32-47 all Hudson product convertibles have a "factory chop" already built into them. In '34-35, as I recall, this is nearly 2 inches when compared to a standard coupe or sedan. It was easily accomplished as the windshield chrome frames were two pieces; a top half and a bottom half, so on the vertical sides they just made them shorter and made the steel pillar shorter and created the top frame to match. Voila! Factory chop.

Attaching pic from the internet of a stock height '34 T coupe for comparison. Too tall! Would look better chopped!

 

That'll look *****in' once you rip off those fenders and lose the hood as well. Maybe some fake patina or rattle can flat black...

Just kidding, but I bet I made someone spill their coffee on the keyboard!

Nice car.

 

A good reason to keep it close to stock: a 1934 Hudson convertible sold at the RM Auction at Meadowbrook ten days ago for $104,500!!

 

That is one really fine Car. Wish it were mine, but it isn't........so, Well Done!

firstnomad

 

Didn't spill my coffee (I've read enough HAMB posts to appreciate the sense of humor around here!!!). I do intend some VERY MINOR modifications. Going to have to do a major wire harness replacement (its on my bench now) and am adding a 12V PowerGen alternator (the kind built in a generator case so it looks original) so I'll have turn signals, halogen headlamps, charge ability for cell phone etc, and fog lamps. Also the guys in England with the Hud and Terra based Railton sports cars had some 3.50 ring and pinion sets made to enable higher speed touring in place of the stock 4.11 gear. I bought their "crown wheel and pinion" and it too is on the shelf as a project and should make this a better car on the interstates of Texas. And I'll use a later WA-1 Carter carb in place of the W-1 original for availability of metering rod options.

 

Additional note on that '34 Hud 8 convertible sale. I go wayyyyyy back with that car. A guy who was an early mentor of mine in appreciating Hudson products was named Norris Smith (RIP) in Darien, IL. Norris pulled that very car out of a garage in Chicago about 40 years ago and did a home restoration on it. It was a super solid complete original when he found it. Its been through a couple of owner's since his p***ing and minor additional work but you can see in comparing my Terraplane 6 and his Hudson 8 that they are very similar cars. While I appreciate the value incentive over the decades, like Norris, I am really interested in getting the car on the road and driving it which is what it was built for. Mine is not now a show car, nor will I bring it up to that trailer queen status.

 

StillOutThere I like your take on the 'built for driving' - my sentiments entirely and I'm getting the urge to do something with my stock 1936 Hupmobile 3W coupe to make it drivable in today's traffic....

 

That is a beautiful car. the updates you have planned will make it a lot more enjoyable.

I gotta admit though if it were mine I would be having a hard time not dropping it down like the one in the B&W photo you posted. that one looks coooool.

 

real nice---you done good.

 

My Terraplane is home in Texas now and ***embled enough to drive around the ranch. Took a friend and our pretty ladies out today for a spin. This was the first time in both of their sixth decades that either has ever ridden in a rumble seat and you can see for yourselves the smiles on their faces. This car has a great deal of "patina" since its street restoration probably back some 35 or 40 years ago and is only going to receive what it needs to be serviceable and fun, such as what we did today. Had the fender skirts off while transporting it to home but they will go back on; this was the first year the factory offered them and I think them way cool. "Hot diggity dog, that's Terraplaning" the advertising said.

 

When I picked up the car in Illinois, I swung by an old friend; you know him as OldBobSign on the HAMB, I know him as Lar Hansen whom I made scale model cars with in our parent's ba*****ts and attics back in high school. Lar laid some proper long lines back on the car and a custom design on the tire cover. What an honor to have my HS buddy put down some 1 Shot.

 

I love your car, man! What a amazing and ***y machine! I wish it were mine! I did design a shift knob for one.

 

oh ya

 

This is just awesome! Beautiful car!!!

 

Sweet! I like the v8 pickups too. Marc

 

This has the original flathead 6 of 212". Carb and air cleaner were off at time of photo.

 

Wow, when I read the post I thought it might have been the car I saw in Mobile AL back in 1972. I had a project 36 Terraplace 2door sedan at the time.
Nice nice car.

 

Yup! I had this very knob in my '37 Model 71 Terraplane...but since I traded the car two years ago, it's basically the only thing I have from it, other than a few small bits! This is what you guys want for your cars! They are top quality and always get great comments.

Sorry for the post hijack...!

 

Bein' sort of a Hudson nut, I own 7 Es*** cars and one Hudson, a '34 Hudson convertible, (a**** a lot of other cars), and I'm here to tell ya, yer luckier than a fox ownin' his own personal hen house!!

 

What a great car, nice score!