I saw this car at a rest stop of the “Annie & Steve Norman Classic Motorcar Rally” a few years back. It was the centerpiece of a very valuable collection, arrayed around a true “Garage Mahal” near Stanwood, Washington. It is about one-third the way through a complete nut-and-bolt restoration, but even stripped and primer-ed it was stunningly beautiful from all angles. Even in their day (surrounded by Bugattis and Duesenbergs) this car was ne plus ultra. In coming posts I’ll have some photos of the car’s mechanical bits, which are works of art.
Do you know the car?
If you have a car and any interest in TSD rallying I HIGHLY recommend the rally mentioned. They’ll take about any car (even new ones), and the roads, cars, and people are a ton of fun. My dad & I are going again this year, which will take place on Vancouver Island. Doug the Rallymaster is a total gearhead and always plans a stop or two at some amazing collections. Come joins us!
Those two “dryer hoses” make me think it’s a Cord 812, but the hood doesn’t appear to open correctly… Your description screamed Isotta-Fraschini, but I never saw one like that…
It is neither. Hint: Despite being in the same collection as the Lincoln shown here recently, it is not a domestic (that is, US-made) automobile.
Somebody just made a very close guess via a direct message on Twitter, but hey, it doesn’t count if it isn’t posted here! 😉
Hispano-Suiza??
Nope. The name IS hyphenated though. 😉
I’m thinking late-20s/early-30s Mercedes-Benz SS, but I’ve got to quit hunting and get some work done.
Hyphenated…hrrrrm.
Sizaire-Naudin?
Corvairdad is close, but we need the specific model name, as it is very …special. Here is a hint:
GOT it! Mercedes-Benz 550K! Or a 500K…
Closer… The exact model is special. Can you name what makes it special? Here’s another hint:
OK, really two things make it special now that I think about it.
1937 540K SPECIAL Roadster
Finally! yes… it is a 540K Special Roadster. (How many special hints did I drop there??) The ‘K’ stands for Kompressor, which is German for “Goes real fast auf der Autobahn mit de supercharger!”
Amazing car. I’ll post more about this collection in a few days. Stay tuned.
I owned one of those, once.
No, *really* I did…a Pocher 1/8th kit!
I got it, always wanting a Pocher kit….once I actually got a round tuit, it was no longer a real Pocher kit, mainly plastic, not much metal, even the wheels weren’t true built-up wires.
In concert with that, I was in school, getting my B.S., and just couldn’t sit and concentrate on finishing it.
Wonder if my friend, to whom I sold the kit, got it finished?
‘Owning one’ only counts when they are 1:1 scale Paul! 😉
“Owning one’ only counts when they are 1:1 scale Paul!”
Oh. Sorry. Carry on.
Pay no mind to the gittar player…
🙂