Innholdsfortegnelse for June 2018 i Hemmings Classic Car

California Dreaming MCCORMICK’S FEBRUARY AUCTION IN PALM SPRINGS TOPPED THE $6-MILLION MARK with 346 vehicles finding new homes. Sales were up more than $200,000 from the November show and an impressive sell-through rate of 65.2 percent was achieved. Cars from the ’50s and ’60s were in high demand, and one of those was this 1961 Corvette. Honduras Maroon with white coves and top, this Corvette featured a 283/270-hp engine, matching-numbers T-10 four-speed, and 4:11 posi rear, and had an impressive haul of awards won over the last two decades — it sold for $63,000. McCormick’s next auction takes place November 16-18 in Palm Springs at the city’s convention center. Visit www.classic-carauction.com/Auction-65 for more information Coming to Connecticut BARRETT-JACKSON RETURNS TO THE Northeast with its summer auction in Uncasville, Connecticut, at…

CARROLL SHELBY’S BEGINNINGS were humble, with no hint of the outsized place he would eventually occupy in the automotive scene. Born in January 1923 in Leesburg, Texas, Shelby’s introduction to racing came as a spectator to dirt-track racing near Dallas. As a youth, he also hopped up a handful of cars. By his own admission, however, he was no extraordinary talent in the garage. Not long after high school graduation, in 1941, he enlisted in the military. He was assigned to the U.S. Army Air Forces, where he learned to fly. His military career was stifled by his stubborn, independent streak, and he spent the whole war stateside and never rose above the rank of second lieutenant. After the war, Shelby attempted to do the adult thing, making a practical…

PRICE BASE PRICE $954 OPTIONS (on car profiled) Fluid Drive; heater ENGINE TYPE Straight-six flathead DISPLACEMENT 217. 8 cubic inches BORE X STROKE 3.25 x 4.38 inches COMPRESSION RATIO 6.5:1 HORSEPOWER @ RPM 91 @ 3,800 TORQUE @ RPM 170 lb-ft @ 1,200 VALVETRAIN In-cylinder design MAIN BEARINGS Four FUEL SYSTEM Single one-barrel Stromberg ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 6 volts, positive ground EXHAUST SYSTEM Single TRANSMISSION TYPE Fluid Drive, three-speed manual RATIOS 1st 2.57 2nd 1.83 3rd 1.00 Reverse 3.48 DIFFERENTIAL TYPE Hypoid GEAR RATIO 4.3:1 STEERING TYPE Worm-and-roller GEAR RATIO N/A TURNING CIRCLE 41 feet BRAKES TYPE Four-wheel hydraulic drums FRONT 11-inch drums REAR 11-inch drums CHASSIS & BODY CONSTRUCTION All steel; separate chassis BODY STYLE Four-door sedan LAYOUT Front engine/rear drive SUSPENSION FRONT Independent; coil springs, direct-acting hydraulic shocks REAR…

Welcome to our first Special Section edition. What better cars to profile to launch this new feature than those beloved Detroit icons from the Fifties! The world has always been fascinated with the automobiles that came out of Detroit during the 1950s. They were big, stylish, powerful, and oh-so colorful. And with an extensive list of options to choose from, be it a wide selection of interior fabrics, a broad palette of striking exterior colors, straight-six or V-8 powertrains, and all sorts of interesting accessories, it’s no wonder that no two cars were alike. This is what makes the cars from this era so special, so unique, so fascinating. It didn’t matter if it was a Chevrolet or a Ford, Dodge or Rambler, Studebaker or Oldsmobile, every make and model…

At the beginning of the 1950s, dowdy and conservative were giving way to adventurousness and daring. With the technical processes of chrome plating all worked out by the 1950s, and with chrome both brighter and lower maintenance than the previous nickel-plated finishes, designers could fully embrace chrome plating, and that they did! Automotive stylists seemingly couldn’t get enough of it. If a little was good, more was better, and too much was just about right. 1952 PONTIAC CHIEFTAIN The 1952 Pontiac Chieftain certainly is not the only car with a big, wraparound front bumper and grille bars that paralleled it, but the Chieftain also featured five chrome strips running along the centerline of the body from the chrome lip at the leading edge of the hood to the windshield, skipping…

Entering the 1957 model year, Lincoln was riding the momentum of record sales for its popular award-winning redesigned 1956 models. Though not significant competition for Cadillac with regard to volume—GM’s prestige division was selling about three-times more automobiles—Lincoln still had sold over 50,000 cars for ’56, greatly exceeding its own 1955 production output. A host of styling updates accompanied the ’57 models. The new “Quadra-Lite” front end featured vertically stacked headlamps over road lamps and a revised grille area and front bumper. The hood ornament and side brightwork were redesigned, and the fender skirts were retired in favor of reshaped rear wheelwells. New “canted rear blades” originated at vent-like bright trim under the quarter windows and terminated at reshaped taillamps. Also incorporated were a restyled decklid emblem, “wraparound rear grille…

Longtime Hemmings Classic Car readers know that honoring cars for their undeniable affect on culture, as well as for providing us with transportation and sport, has been a tenet of this magazine from its first issue. While the influence of cars on culture has been expressed artistically for more than a century, automobiles haven’t always been recognized as “worthy” artistic subjects. It’s an honor to recognize the group that shares our love of everything related to cars, and has made the legitimization and promotion of automobiles and related motoring topics as valid subjects of master-quality fine artwork its key mission: We salute the Automotive Fine Arts Society. The seed that would grow into the AFAS, as it’s colloquially known, was planted in 1981, when three talented automotive designers-turned fine artists…

Hupmobile Hangout THE DATES HAVE BEEN ANNOUNCED FOR THIS YEAR’S HUPMOBILE CLUB NATIONAL Tour and Meet — June 3-7 at the Holiday Inn and Convention Center in Staunton, Virginia. The tour will take place in the Shenandoah Valley region and visit many sites of interest, including Luray Caverns, the Car and Carriage Museum, the Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library and birthplace, and the Natural Bridge. Special room rates are available, and all participants are encouraged to belong to the Hupmobile Club of America. For more details, contact Eric Kirk at 540-667-4483 or at ek52hudson@yahoo.com. Cadillac Grand National CADILLACS WILL DESCEND UPON CENTRAL TEXAS this June 5-9 with the host hotel, the Embassy Suites, in San Marcos, Texas. Several tours are scheduled to take place in the San Antonio and Austin areas,…

1964 Pontiac GTO 800-551-4754 • WWW.CARTECHBOOKS.COM  • $18.95/$14.95 E-BOOK Few American cars can claim to have sparked a youth-focused, marketing-driven movement in the automotive industry that inspired an entire genre of performance cars, but one that undoubtedly can is Pontiac’s 1964 GTO. This iconic muscle car is the star of the No. 8 title in CarTech’s “Muscle Cars in Detail” series (ISBN 9781613253205), which was authored by noted Pontiac Motor Division historian David Bonaskiewich. This 96-page paperback introduces readers to the Wide-Track cars Pontiac of the early 1960s, as well as the players at Pontiac who developed this model. The easy-reading text takes us through the car system by system, describing its features in detail. 1964 Pontiac GTO is filled with color photos, and includes appendices of production figures, colors, and…

Hardcore automotive enthusiasts will scoff at cars that were “designed by committee.” It’s true that focus groups and market research have led to some of the industry’s biggest flops. But the committees at General Motors behind the creation of the Cadillac subdivision of La Salle would be responsible not only for a fascinating line of quality automobiles, but for establishing the automotive world’s first in-house styling department. The 1927 La Salle is a milestone car, and in the form of the dual-cowl Sport Phaeton, one that’s richly elegant, too. As you take in the lines of this four-passenger tourer — an “entry-level luxury” car, in today’s parlance — you can’t help but be impressed by its classical proportions, sharp detailing, and keen use of color and texture. This car, intended…

Who doesn’t love a convertible? Ask the people who turned down buying these beauties in showrooms when they were new. As with our station wagons of the ’50s story, we’re seeing that the low numbers come at the extreme end of the model range: either top-end or bargain-basement models tend to be represented. (The range-toppers simply cost more, meaning a smaller pool of potential buyers, while the opposite end of the range is fraught with its own peril.) We’re also seeing that low numbers frequently came from dwindling or dying marques—Fraser didn’t last into 1952, Hudson and Packard didn’t make it out of the ’50s, and De Soto was counting the days to its demise. We grouped the Hudsons, De Sotos, and Kaiser/Frazers; they’re so rare we could write about…

The days of collectors turning their noses up at station wagons have long since past. No longer are they simply parts cars for convertibles or hot rod fodder. Wagons, as a category, have blossomed in the last few decades — and ’50s wagons have led the charge, combining high style, outstanding utility, and sheer driveability. In our search for the rarest wagons of the 1950s, three themes kept cropping up. First, production ramping up or ending tended to draw smaller production numbers. Quality control should be especially high for a new model, and interest at its nadir as production ends. Second, independent-built wagons tended to be rarer. With production figures that resemble rounding errors at Chevrolet or Ford, the numbers get even smaller when production is split up by body…

The components that contribute to a finished car—engine, axles, body, paint, and lighting—and their suppliers have always been the topics of discussion in popular automotive publications. This has not been the case for the soft side of the automobile. While fabrics may have been discussed in the Interwar Era in terms of styles, colors, and other attributes, there was very rarely a mention of the companies that actually supplied the fabrics for the interior and exterior of the coachwork. This is odd considering that, unlike the mechanicals, the upholstery is always in view of the driver and passengers. Likewise, the fabric tops — their texture and color— of the cars of this era were more visible than the often-discussed engines, and contributed much to their appearance. Selected in a complementary…

It’s no secret that, since the automobile’s inception, a relatively high percentage of owners, at one time or another, tinkered with the notion of personalizing their vehicles after taking ownership. An equally high percentage of that populace turned their ideas into a reality. Commonly known as the “day-two” treatment, the concept has closely been associated with domestic-made performance cars: from simplistic carburetor and wheel swaps to custom paint and interiors. Lest we forget, however, that giving a vehicle the day-two treatment has never been limited to traditional muscle cars. It has been bestowed upon everything from sedate club coupes to stately sedans, and even vintage pickups, such as this 1931 Ford Model A. Currently under the care of Kevin Alexander, the Ford — a closed-cab variant designated Model 82-B —…

IN JULY OF 1961, I LANDED MY FIRST job after high school. It was working at a Chevrolet dealership on Long Island, New York. I started on Wednesday, the fifth of July because they did not want me to work one day and get a paid holiday for July fourth. I started as a 1,000-mile checkup mechanic working specifically on Corvairs. This involved taking out the fast-failing radios and sending them back to the factory for repair. You had to drop the whole Corvair dash assembly just to remove the radio, which took about 30 minutes. Then, as the Corvair’s quality progressively got worse, the doors did not fit, water leaked into the cabin, and they needed more help. We were selling 15 to 20 Corvairs per week. As a…

Tri-Five Dividers CLASSIC INDUSTRIES • 855-357-2787 • WWW.CLASSICINDUSTRIES.COM Classic Industries announces new reproduction paint divider moldings to fit 1956-’57 Tri-Five Chevy models, including the 150, Utility, 210, and Delray. Each paint divider is made to factory specs and designed to replicate the originals; they mount at the paint divide between the quarter panel molding and rear quarter window molding. Available in pairs or individually, each will require an OEM-style hardware set that is sold separately. Cost: $199.99 (pair); $99.99 (individual); $15.99 (six-piece clip set). Miracle Paint BILL HIRSCH AUTO • 800-828-2061 WWW.HIRSCHAUTO.COM Bill Hirsch Auto offers a moisture-cured non-porous paint, called Miracle Paint, that bonds to rusted and corroded metal. The heavy-duty version of this paint is perfect for rusted areas that require a thicker coat or any area where heavy…

Gazing at this plain-Jane Dodge through my camera lens at sunset one day last October, I became absolutely smitten by its no-nonsense appeal. While waiting for the sun to drop below the Western Pennsylvania horizon, the more I looked at this black beauty, the more enamored I became. It’s basic. It’s austere. It’s what most family cars looked like back in the day. I simply adored it. Whatever preconceived notions you have about prewar Dodge sedans such as this Luxury Liner Deluxe D19, put them aside for a moment and take a long, hard look at this automobile. Look at it for what it is, not what the nameplate says it is, and don’t even think about its low value. Admire its beautifully shaped front end and finely crafted grille,…

On a Sunday drive in the New England countryside, Bob Bujak of Somers, Connecticut, was alerted by his wife, Elaine when she spotted a Metropolitan for sale parked alongside the road. Upon hearing what he’d missed, Bob quickly returned. He liked what he saw: An all-original Metropolitan with a serviceable, though far from show-quality, repaint. A test drive revealed a fair-running engine that puffed a bit of smoke, a good transmission, and a rear end making “a lot of noises.” The mechanical sounds did not daunt Bob a bit, and he saw some opportunities to turn the little Hudson into an even better driver. The Bujaks brought the Metropolitan home and set about getting things shipshape. A can of STP and some driving got rid of the smoke and, remarkably,…

For the 1949 model year, Cadillac and Oldsmobile gained an advantage over competitors by introducing the first modern overhead-valve V-8s of the postwar era. Not long after, other automakers and GM divisions began releasing their own OHV V-8s. As these new engines debuted, the horsepower race escalated with Chrysler, GM, and Ford leading the way by methodically increasing displacement and output. By 1955, the various divisions of the Big Three, and some of the Independents, offered an OHV V-8 as either standard or optional equipment. Improvements in intake and exhaust flow, component design, cooling, durability, electrical systems, and more, increased in frequency as the decade progressed. By its closing year, most divisions of GM, Ford, and Chrysler had engineered V-8s that produced in excess of 300 horsepower. One was even…

As the go-go ’50s marched on, cars got progressively bigger, faster, wilder. The suburbs and freeways increased our commuting time. As more cars sold, there was more room for personalization. Engineers were trying out new concepts left and right, and no idea was too wild. Was it? Well... not everything the engineers tried went down smoothly with the public. Here are a handful of options that time quickly forgot about — although we haven’t. NASH RECLINING SEAT BEDS In the days before reliable motel chains standardized the industry, weary travelers from distant places could easily walk into a Norman Bates Special. Nash believed that those who spent their lives on the road, like traveling salesmen, might want to save a few bucks and feel safer, to boot. Their answer? Fully…

Even though I sought a lot of advice from fellow Model A club members, and studied a lot before digging into the project, nothing really went as planned. There was always something that popped up, or was affected by a well-thought-out recommendation, such as making sure the wire wheels were completely true. You must be prepared for anything and take your time; don’t rush into a rash decision. Specific to the Model A, it helped that I am mechanically inclined; I could easily see how things came apart and went back together. If you have some of those skills and are willing to take on several projects associated with a restoration, a Model A is a simplistic vehicle to restore compared to more modern collectible vehicles. It was a really…

HUDSON IS BACK with its “Greater Eight” on a 119- or 126-inch wheelbase. The modern body lines hang low over the wheels, while the fenders cover the tires, making for a continuous curving line with the running boards. The comfortable interiors provide ample legroom along with assist cords and armrests. Mechanically, the high-compression straight-eight delivers 87 horsepower and, with Hudson’s patented oil-cooling system, you can expect more durability out of your power plant. See your local dealer; prices start as low as $875. CHEVROLET RETURNS with a longer wheelbase, larger body size, and more impressive appearance. The roomier Fisher bodies give you more comfort and include form-fitting cushions and a glare-resistant windshield. The more dependable six-cylinder engine is made with an improved harmonic balancer, strengthened flywheel, and more durable crankcase…