Can you tell me the year and model/make of this car?
We found this in a box of old family photos, there is a note written on the back that says it used to belong to Clarke Gable of Hollwood and that the original purchase price was $2400. My Father and a friend bought it used. They called it Mr. Gable.
Posted by Dale Manor (Member # 4858) on :
Wow Kelly, that is a truly unique old ride.....it doesn't look familiar to me at all.....you might want to check with the folks at Hemmings Motor news....
[ March 30, 2005, 01:34 PM: Message edited by: Dale Manor ]
Posted by old paint (Member # 549) on :
without really digin into it id say its a STUTZ...1927-32.
Posted by Bill Preston (Member # 1314) on :
Joe could be right on Stutz---only thing is that the radiator badge for what Stutz I found was round.
Vintage --somewhere in the 20s--early 20s most likely.
Two tone paint probably done by an owner.
Front bumper looks different than what I can see of the rear bumper. Front looks like bent pipe--rear looks to be 2 pieces of parallel spring steel.
Top of radiator appears to have a temp gauge--not necessary for an air cooled engine, and that rules out Franklin. Headlight shape wrong for Pierce-Arrow.
Now that I have told you all what it isn't---have at it.
Bill R. and Si--where are you when we need you?
Posted by Russ McMullin (Member # 5617) on :
If the photo is clear enough you might consider scanning that little emblem area on the radiator at a high resolution, or looking at it with a magnifying glass. After blowing it up, you might be able to make out what it says, or at least get a better idea of what it looks like. I did this once when I was doing a portrait of my grandfather in his WWI uniform. I was able to pick out the patterns on the buttons and match them to photographs in a book. Just a thought.
Posted by Si Allen (Member # 420) on :
Looks like a mid '20's Chrysler to me!
1927:
1926
1924" Posted by Joey Madden (Member # 1192) on :
Its persons like Si and Joe that I get along with
[ March 30, 2005, 04:27 PM: Message edited by: Joey Madden ]
Posted by Ray Rheaume (Member # 3794) on :
I did a little digging online and found this...
The 1924 Dodge Roaster The location of the manufacturer emblem and the spokes on the wheels look very similar. It could also be a Nash Roadster, but the fenders look wrong.
I could be completely wrong, too. Rapid
Posted by bill riedel (Member # 607) on :
If it belonged to Clark Gable, it wasn't a Ford. Note the wood spokes on the wheels. That is the way it was when I was a kid. My father striped the spokes. I would put it in the early 20's. Being born in 1928, it is before my time. I have seen many as a kid, and in my uncle's auto body shop. Could it be a Hudson?
Posted by DianeBalch (Member # 1301) on :
It's a 1929 Auburn 6-80
In 1929 Lobban Cord was running the company. Cord was the top car salesman in the country. In 1924 he took over Auburn. Then went on to buy Duesenberg and later start his own car company. The first Cord car was built with Auburn parts in 1929.
I found it in my encylopedia of antique cars.
ernie
[ March 30, 2005, 05:08 PM: Message edited by: DianeBalch ]
Posted by Sheila Ferrell (Member # 3741) on :
Kelly's pic is identical to your L80 Imperial Roadster pic, Si.
Very nice car . . .love the way they 'lobbed' the back off with that downward curve and made it so 'sporty'. . .
Thanx for sharin' that Kelly...I love to look at my Dad's old car pics . . .he loved cars.
Posted by Russ McMullin (Member # 5617) on :
Here is an interesting link. This may not be the exact model, but it's very close. The bumper, the radiator emblem, and the angled side vents all match.
neat car link ? love...jill
Posted by Si Allen (Member # 420) on :
Yup! looks like the Auburn, also!
Posted by Michael Boone (Member # 308) on :
look close at the front tire... see where the dog whizzed on it.... he musta smelt somethin good maybe it was Scarlet Ohara's cat....
Posted by old paint (Member # 549) on :
stutz was also made by the same company that made auburn/cord/duesenbugh....the windshild ant right to be an auburn or chrysler..
Posted by Mark Sheflo (Member # 3608) on :
After quite a bit of digging on the net I found this picture.
Wouldn't say for sure its the right year, but I would say its your car. Check out the front bumper, the loops hanging from the front bumper, the pain style, the angled hood side vents, the double tube rear bumper ends, the shape of the grill surround.
And another look, check out the shape of the badge at the top of the grill.
The windshield in your photo is definitely different than in either of these, but production run being what they were I wouldn't doubt that a few were made that way, or its a custom!
Mark
[ March 31, 2005, 03:51 AM: Message edited by: Mark Sheflo ]
Posted by Russ McMullin (Member # 5617) on :
I couple of differences I see in the auburn speedster. The speedster has a split windshield, and there is a large gap between the rear fender and the rear "trunk" area. Kelly's photo has a single-pane windshield and no gap. Also, the vents on the side of the engine compartment are tilted the other way on the speedster. This is like a detective story! Is this what's next for reality TV?
Posted by Pat Phipps (Member # 3617) on :
I believe that it definitely is an Auburn. My best guess would be a 27 Auburn 8-88 roadster. It might be a boattail speedster, but I can't make out the tail end. Gable was known to be a fan of the speedsters. Here is a pic of a 1926 Auburn 8-88 Roadster which was the first Auburn model designed after Cord acquired the badge. It was powered by a 299 cubic-inch Lycoming in-line eight cylinder engine rated at 72 horsepower. Posted by Russ McMullin (Member # 5617) on :
That is the closest one yet. Even the wheels match. It's just missing the small door above the rear fendor.
Posted by Robert Cole (Member # 477) on :
The "door" in question, is known as a "Golf Bag" door. Many of the higher end Cabriolet's and Roadsters of the day had these doors put in the passenger side panel to facilitate the carrying of ? what else {Golf Clubs}. For the avid golfer a true neccesity. Mr. Gable seemed to enjoy the game. Many of the movie stars of the late 20s early 30s spent hours and hours chasing the little white pill around the many Country Clubs outside Los Angelos.
Posted by Kimberly Zanetti (Member # 2546) on :
quote:This is like a detective story! Is this what's next for reality TV?
Russ, There is a great show on PBS called History Detectives. Usually a person writes in about something they have that they want to know the background on and the team researches it. It's very cool. I've seen shows on everything from books to cigarette lighters to whole houses. The details that they are able to find are astonishing.
Posted by old paint (Member # 549) on :
also a lot of these high end cars were stutz/auburn/cord/duesy CHASSIE's and the bodys were hand built by " coach works" shop that would get a chassie and build the body to owners specs......so a lot of these cars would be "one of a kind" but on a standard rolling chassie.
[ March 31, 2005, 01:20 PM: Message edited by: old paint ]
Posted by Joey Madden (Member # 1192) on :
well theres no doubt in my mind that it is an Auburn and that these cars were custom made, so differences in windshields and wheels aren't that much of a big deal from a manufacturer who only built cars for the discriminating buyer of that era. I've pinstriped and seen more antique cars with changes made in the same year then just an early Ford. Some years back I striped the 1932 Hispano Suiza which was a one-off dual cowl Pheaton built for the king of Spain. Back then and up til around 1964, manufacturers built vehicles as the owners described in their order form, that included Chevy, Ford and Mopar in the sixties.
Posted by Sheila Ferrell (Member # 3741) on :
BTW Kelly . . .did you mean:
'Old, car buffs'...?
or, 'Old-car' buffs??
lol Posted by Kelly Thorson (Member # 2958) on :
Thanks everyone - I'm not really sure I have a definitive answer yet, but I'm glad you have had some fun with it. I'll print this out and store it with the pic, maybe one of my sons will be interested in delving further. I suspect that maybe it could be a custom 1 of a kind. Sheila - the wording was intentional Posted by Jack Davis (Member # 1408) on :
The faint grille pattern with the voids between each section, assures me that it is the Auburn similar to the one that Pat Phillips shows . I have seen that car at an antique car museum at the Lake of the Ozarks car museum. It was there for many years, but I don't know if it still is. It is a very memorable car.
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The "door" in question, is known as a "Golf Bag" door. ![[Bash]](graemlins/bash.gif)
Many of the higher end Cabriolet's and Roadsters of the day had these doors put in the passenger side panel to facilitate the carrying of ? what else {Golf Clubs}. For the avid golfer a true neccesity. Mr. Gable seemed to enjoy the game. Many of the movie stars of the late 20s early 30s spent hours and hours chasing the little white pill around the many Country Clubs outside Los Angelos.
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