History We ALL Love a DARE! PIX of TRULY Extinct Makes?

Centaur?
How about this one?



The Centaur was built by Concept Cars Ltd. in Northampton from 1973 on. Sold: 1974-1977. The design was heavily based on a styling exercise of the Adams brothers: the Probe. In fact, they passed their project on to Peter Timpson of Concept Cars, who marketed their idea made more practical.

 

Or by Centaur, could it be the Centaur Pirahna CRV II that evolved into the Corvair based Pirahna? Dates would be about right.
http://www.conceptcarz.com/vehicle/z17822/Centaur-Piranha-CRV-II.aspx

 

Also there was a Centaur 126, built by Centaur Motor Corp, listed on the Forgotten Fiberglass website, but I found no pictures.........yet!

 

SWI, you obviously have good research sense and some great resources, man! We may never catch up to Tad Davies' 'vette-powered gullwing, BUT I think you're the man for the job! THANKS for your time and effort.

 

FYI, from what I've been able to find, Tad Davies was in that era a Seattle Chevrolet dealer who was known for setting up at least some cars for racing -- among them 'vettes that ran in technically stock class. They would have been raced in Washington state and in British Columbia.

That seems to open up plenty of room for speculation about what the Davies Centaur was about. BUT, of course, it also leaves plenty of mystery, too!

One obvious possiblity would, of course, be that the Centaur was just a Corvette with doors modified to gullwing, a la Mercedes, hm? (My mid's eye could surely love a '63 split-window with gullwing doors!!! LOL)

 

Er, uh, as I was saying, it would be killer with gullwings, wouldn't it? I know with a bit over 10,000 of these coupes made, it's a stretch to include it on this thread. BUT, they're beautiful (even Pres. Kennedy lauded the new design!) . .

. . . and have you tried to find one lately without paying an arm and a leg? Not extinct, thank goodness, just untouchable!

 

On the OTHER hand, this one's ULTRA-rare.
A '61 Mako Shark (aka Mako Shark I) prototype.
It was so well received on the show circuit, it
served as the springboard for the production
Gen-2 'vette Sting Ray. NOTE the six tail lights!

I'll have to look for a bigger pic, though. Too
small to do it justice here!

 

And here's the '65 Mako Shark II show car. Both Shark
pix are factory promo pix and are in the public domain.
BUT, I THANK Wikipedia which displayed both photos!

 

The EX-122 show car. Only two were built
-- one for U.S. shows, one for appearances
in Canada. It bowed for the first time in J
anuary 1953 at the Waldorf Astoria. Built
later in 1952, the EX-122 was not the first
'vette built, but earlier experiments were
not in smooth 'glas but in metal. And those
were not for public display nor for production.
Relatively few changes were made to the
EX-122 body lines as the production version
progressed. After numerous shows, this
'vette was returned to the Chevy experimental
department and was used to help develop
the small-block 265 V-8 that would debut in '55.




Sincere THANKS to CorvetteFever for this nice color quarter-view!

 

Hello,

I Want to identify this car



Thanks

 

That's the William Muller-built 1929 Ruxton roadster prototype, according to the card that was with the car at Amelia Island this past March.

dan

 

Yo, Dan! Good to see you back here, man. THANKS for ID-ing the Ruxton for Ghazi. Until you said Ruxton, I hadn't notice the Woodlites! Should have been a good hint, darn it!

Now, those wheels don't look right for some reason. Should they be plated like that?

Oh! And since you live in Bennington, would it be out of your way too much to get a few cell-phone pix over at the museum of the Martin Wasp that's their pride & joy there???

 

1908 National (1900-1924, Indianapolis). Honestly, where does one start in discussing this make? Pretty rae, not extinct. Frequent competitor iat Indy. Fab engines (even the famous Weidley V-12).

But, anyone know which would be the scarcest National models?

 

Sorry folks! I must CORRECT myself ASAP. National's V-132 was of their OWN design and didn't even look like a Weidely. Awesome engine, though, and I'll try & find some pix, etc. (Note, they maily used sixes over the years -- an occasional Rutenber or Buda, mainly their OWN sixes.)

 

Yeah, I'm paying attention.

I'm working with a Martin family member to get some materials related to the Wasp. Until then, I did track down the actual factory used to build the Wasps:

http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/2009/12/21/in-search-of-the-birthplace-of-the-martin-wasp/

dan

 

Way to go, bro. "Wasp's Nest." That's clever!

 

NATIONAL'S OWN 12 (370-CID???) 70-hp, 60-degree,
magneto ignition. Cook tech in 1916, eh? Heck, this
would even make Hemi and Zephyr guy's eyes light up
with interest!!! From a 1916 National sales brochure.
(THANKS goes to Chuck's Toyland!!!)

 

Sharp 1917 National Highway Six (303-CID), owned by Cornelius
Hauck, Cincinnato, OH. THANKS again to Chuck's Toyland!

 

Here`s a good link to some oddball cars....http://www.earlyamericanautomobiles.com/1914.htm

 

You're surely right about THAT, LowFat! That's Royal Feltner's site, and he's probably got thousands of hours in the HUGE selection of pix, going up to about 1930 only. He's a super guy and fun to chat with if you email him, too!

 

Last hit on the Woods Mobilette for me. I felt
this was well worth posting because it points
out that the Woods was not only one of the
few FOUR-cylinder cyclecars, but they claimed
to be "the first" U.S. cyclecar. This '15 model
has 69-CID. Photos were taken April '06 at
the Indy Motor Speedway Museum by Sam
Test and are featured on Chuck Test's site,
Chuck's Toyland. Thanks again, Sam and Chuck!

Now, these are VERY scarce, not extinct. I
think SunRoof & I dug up pix of about three
still extant today.

 

American Motors designers to introduce new Marlin concept car

<!--END Page Title --> <!--BEGIN Content Body //--> July 28, 2010



The new Marlin concept car will be introduced at the AMO Nationals. Provided here is just a sneak peek.

An all-new 2011 American Motors Marlin concept car is scheduled to be unveiled at the upcoming AMO Nationals Aug. 12-14. The show, hosted by the Great Lakes Classic AMC chapter of the American Motors Owners Association, is being held at the Greenmead Historical Park in Livonia, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. &#8232;&#8232;

The 2011 Marlin is an all-new design by Vince Geraci, former head of AMC Styling. A clay model of the new design has been created by former AMC stylist/clay modelers including Keith Goodnough, Frank Pascoe and Bob Bristow. &#8232;&#8232;

The 2011 Marlin is a modern interpretation of the classic 1965-1967 American Motors Marlin, updating its stylish looks to present an idea of what a modern Marlin would look like in 2011. The design is both classic and contemporary, and because it has been created by professional designers, is completely practical and could be put into production as it stands.&#8232;&#8232;A peak look of the new Marlin is shown here; the styling model will be unveiled at the AMO Meet itself.

For more information on the AMO Meet visit their website at www.amonational.com or contact the host club at 2010registration@greatlakesamc.org.&#8232;&#8232;

Special guests at this year’s AMO meet include designers Vince Geraci, Keith Goodnough, Bob Bristow, Jim Pappas, Bob Nixon, Frank Pascoe, and Chuck Jones, along with noted AMC author and OCW writer Patrick Foster. The show is expected to draw a record attendance.

 

Sunday, July 18, 2010

Rickenbacker Stuns at Iola



Iola is a huge event each year in the heart of the Midwest with thousands of cars, tens of thousands of visitors and enthusiasts, and its signature massive swap meet. The car that really caught my eye this year was the 1926 Rickenbacker roadster owned by Ron and Donna Jones of Greeneville, TN. It is a real stunner with beautiful brasswork highlighting the front end. Unfortunately our pictures do not do the car justice (click on The Car Blog’s Facebook Fan Page link to the right and then go to the photo section for lots of Iola photos).

One very interesting detail are the streamlined brass headlights with vertical light slits. I am not aware of any other Rickenbacker with these lights, and they appear to be exactly the same as those on some 1930 Cord L-29’s. How is it that these lights are on this single 1926 Rickenbacker and then do not appear again until four years later on the Cord L-29?

 

1952 Henry J convertible on eBay right now
with 3 days to go. Is it a "Never-WUZ"? A
clone? Or is it a genuine factory prototype
that didn't go to production?

 

Gorgeous car! But, yes, seems that
the Woodlights came years after '26.
I hope I'm wrong, as they look great!

 

Wow! We FINALLY have an artist's old rendering of what a production Cutting automobile actually LOOKED like!!! Yow, what a wait! This make got discussed a ton about six months ago, remember?

Royal Feltner came up with this and posted it on his GREAT site, earlyamericancars.com. WHAT a guy!

Now, 37Kid believes a REAL one still exists on Long Island, but THIS at least shows us the appearance, which we never had before, except for Bob Burnam's racers.

CAN ANYBODY HELP ME HERE? From this drawing, this appears to be a chain-drive. That might say cyclecar. Or, am I seeing something ELSE under there? (Burnam wouldn't have raced a cyclecar, I wouldn't think.)

Hooray! What a day!


1912 Cutting Roadster
Clarke-Carter Automobile Jackson, MI

 

Here is the auction link and description:


Rare 1952 Henry J Convertible Kaiser Frazer. #1 of 1. Believed to be a factory prototype.

This is one of the rarest cars out there. I bought the Henry conv't from a car collector on the east coast. Car was in storage & collections since 1952. The car shows 5 miles on the odometer. A 1952 Henry J convertible prototype was shown by Kaiser Frazer Corp in 1952. The car was (as history goes) destroyed. Now, either it survived and was kept in storage for years or this car is a perfectly detailed copy of the formed prototype. Either way, its a piece of Automotive History that deserves to be preserved in a collection or museum.

<link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5COwner%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsoh%20%20tml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> </w:Compatibility> <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman";} </style> <![endif]--> When I purchased this Henry the car was in excellent shape and had been stored properly. A local restoration/rod shop went through the brake system, carb, wheel bearings, etc. The car is road worthy. The 6 cylinder Kaiser Supersonic motor purrs like a kitten. The convertible top is in new condition (redone) and works perfectly. The car has a new tonneau cover & a new custom parade boot. The body restoration consisted of removing all trim, top, bumpers, etc and was painted with an original burgundy metallic and 2-toned with a medium dark silver-gray metallic (very striking color scheme). It has 4 coats of clear urethane and was color sanded with 600, 1200, 1500, 2000 grit then wheeled and waxed to a show finish. The grille & bumpers look to have been re-chromed or are in new condition. The rear bumper is shiny & in very good condition. Only the taillight chrome shows fade. The interior and carpets have either been redone or are in new condition. The side mouldings are stainless and are in near perfect condition (some one has added the side stainless. Looks great son we left "em" & 2-toned the Henry). The continental kit on the back looks stunning. The back jump seat folds down and the rear compartment is carpeted and clean. The underside and frame is very solid as you would expect of a car stored since the '50's.

 

The 2 door is interesting but I hope he has a lot of history. I find myself oddly attracted to this one which is very rare itself. 1 of 113 and I've never seen one in person:

Only 113 build and only 40 listed on the national registry are very rare and seldom traded or sold.
This car is not on the registry and is out of many years storage.
The interior is complete with all stainless moldings present.
The dash showing 66000 miles has good chrome and quite complete. The engine and trans are out of the vehicle and the engine purported to have come from the Kaizer/Frazer test lab.
The top mechanism is complete and while the top material is gone, the original pads exist.
Car has power windows (See photos)
The body and floors are quite solid. The car has had new original Frazer rocker panels installed and rust outs are visible on the trunk lid and right front door. Body die-cast chrome is pitted but window surrounds are nice.Wheels and hub caps are on the car which are in good condition.
Extra parts are shown in the pictures and 2 very nice extra original bumpers are included, extra hub caps, extra muffler, etc. (See Photos)

 

The 1950 Frazer Manhattan convertible was the most luxurious model of the company founded by Joseph Washington Frazer, scion of the Virginia Washingtons and Clan Fraser of Scotland.



The 1950 Frazer Manhattan convertible was the only postwar convertible sedan until Lincoln fielded one in 1961.

Frazer was born with a silver spoon in his mouth, but spit it out early and joined the auto industry. Honing his sales skills at Packard and General Motors dealerships, he joined Walter P. Chrysler's fledgling company in 1924 and, in 1928, named the Plymouth, Chrysler's new economy model.

Later, Frazer revived Willys-Overland with the Americar and the Jeep. Then, during the war, he and some associates gained control of moribund Graham-Paige Motors, which he teamed with Henry Kaiser and then folded into the Kaiser-Frazer Corporation.

Even before the 1950 Frazer Manhattan convertible, Kaiser-Frazer hit the postwar seller's market like a mini-tornado, outproducing all the other independents. By 1948, K-F stood eighth in the industry, producing over 180,000 cars (about 50,000 of them Frazers), and looking like a sure thing to become a fourth member of the auto world's "big four."

But things went sour in 1949, when Kaiser went into debt to finance his compact Henry J and a new full-size car design. Frazer departed as an active management official that spring, and K-F discontinued the Frazer car as soon as it could decently do so.

The most opulent Frazer was the 1950 Frazer Manhattan convertible, carved out of a four-door sedan bodyshell (because it was the only shell K-F had), and heroically reinforced "all over hell" by engineers John Widman and Ralph Isbrandt.

"We had instructions to do no reinforcing of the sedan shell-no X-frame," Isbrandt said about the design of the 1950 Frazer Manhattan convertible. "Even the pillars and headers were sedan parts .... [The first prototype] was like a bowl of jelly. I finally convinced [K-F president Edgar] Kaiser that GM, Ford, Chrysler, etc. weren't putting X-member frames and special pillars on convertibles for the fun of it, and then we began to get results."

Isbrandt even went so far as to purchase a prewar Packard convertible "to use as a benchmark .... I wanted to know what they did, and apply it to ours." In production form, after extensive reengineering, the convertible proved quite solid.

 

1951 Frazer Manhattan Convertible

Frazer boasted a major redesign this year but they were only remodeled 1949/1950 Kaiser's with the Frazer badge this would be the last year for Frazer.