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Vintage Car Identification Help!

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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    I'm going to post it at AACA...they'll have an answer within a day I have no doubt.

    The painted radiator shell is the clue, I think.

    Those elaborate wheels are interesting, too.
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    I've posted it at the other forum.

    I now notice it has no hood louvers at all, so it's not a Buick or Olds, yeah. Weird.
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    I got a positive ID less than an hour after I posted it:

    1913 Hudson Model 54 - Hudson's first 6 - 421 cubes but only 54 hp
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    Now there is a conflicting claim that it is a 1912-13 Stoddard-Dayton. I sought some pics of that car, and it looks very much like the one posted here. I believe it very well may be a Stoddard-Dayton, a name that went under in 1913.
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    Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Well at least I got the year about right. I'm with you, I'm gonna go with Stoddard-Dayton.
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    divebomberdivebomber Member Posts: 4
    You've probably seen this linked in numerous blogs and boards; here's the site with the original posting of the 1940 limousine with the water faucet on the fender. Only thing it tells about it is that it is "Foreign."

    Can you name the make? We're dying to know.

    http://blog.modernmechanix.com/2009/06/01/where-do-they-keep-the-towels/
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    Now that's a weirdo. I have no idea what it is...it's very Italian or German to my eyes. The side windows are much like a period Wanderer or Adler, but the windshield and aero nose is a new one to me. Maybe it's a one-off? I know Adler liked to experiment with weird designs.
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    divebomberdivebomber Member Posts: 4
    http://www.retromobile.lt/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=157&Itemid=4- 5&lang=8859-13

    Looks like a match in a picture on this site with the one from the article for a 1939 Horch 930 S. This will be part of Auto Union.
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    That's it no doubt. Couldn't have been more than a few made.
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    Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    When I first saw it, the first thing I looked at was the woman, and said 'German'. Then I looked at the headlights, and said "definitely German". Then I started thinking of German makes that were "obscure and capable of making a large car". Then I thought of Adler, searched that, and by that time someone else had an answer.
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    I know Wanderer and Horch were in the Auto Union conglomerate, and I am pretty sure Adler joined it too...so we were on the right track :shades:
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    Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Yeah I was but you young 'uns are way faster on the draw. By the time I adjust my bifocals, get my walker and totter over to the reference books, the answer is out already around the globe in 12 languages.

    Actually I'm kidding. I outsmarted myself and went for Adler before Horch because in my mind I said "no, couldn't be a Horch".

    I wish car research was more like bird-watching, where we would all list the characteristics of what we are looking at, and none of us allowed to go to Google until we had come to a number of conclusions. :P

    Maybe we should try that in a topic, where we just discuss what we are looking at and use no reference tools whatsoever but our own experience.
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    It would be tough to do that without cheating. I try not to cheat on the mystery cars thread...but it is nice to confirm a suspicion before I post.

    On that Horch, I knew the greenhouse reminded me of a period Wanderer, which probably had the same design team. But that's about where I stopped.

    The linked photos of that car as one survives today are really something...it is a mixed bag of bizarre on the outside...not vomit-inducing, but not pretty, and a pretty cool period style interior. Parking it next to a Tatra T87 like in one of the pics was very appropriate.
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    andys120andys120 Member Posts: 23,392
    I don't think Adler was ever part of Auto Union, the four rings stand for Audi, Horch, Wanderer and DKW. Wikipedia says that Adler was taken over by Grundig after the war.

    I did find this picture of an Adler that looks a bit like the mystery limo.

    I'm thinking it might be French.

    2001 BMW 330ci/E46, 2008 BMW 335i conv/E93

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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    I always thought there was some kind of collaboration there near the end. Oh well.

    The mystery car is seen here, apparently it still exists
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    Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Yep that's the Adler that put me on the wrong trail all right!
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    sunesonsuneson Member Posts: 2
    The picture below and the link to a bigger picture shows 3 of my relatives in a turn of the century car. I would like to know more about the car and any help would be appreciated. The Mass. plate on the car with the style and number 023 indicates that the car was registered in 1903.

    Also, does anyone know of a site that can do reverse look ups on this old plate?

    Thanks
    Glenn

    link to bigger picture

    image
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    Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Hmmm....not immediately recognizable as a major make. It might be a regional type of car, like a Vermont or a Pope Hartford or even a Pullman. Back in those days, there were hundreds of little automakers that never sold but a few cars, and all of them within a few hundred miles of their factories.

    No you can't trace license plates back that far to owners, but you can date them.

    The car itself looks to be about 1902-04.
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    It really is a primitive looking car, that hood is almost homemade-looking. It must be from some kind of small scale operation. I also don't spot any badges or insignia anywhere. The date is certainly correct.

    The car should be posted at the AACA identification forum...I can post it if suneson can't.
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    Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Yes it's possible it's a modified car, but there were so many backyard operations back then, that "home-made" was literally true for many of these early makes.

    We can tell that the engine is really under the hood (by the crank) but we can't tell if it's air cooled or not. The crude side-cuts suggest that it might be. I see no radiator, so that's my guess. I wonder if it's an old Franklin? It bears some resemblance but not exactly by any means.
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    The large mesh grille suggests air cooled to me, but it's a bit different from a Franklin. The little windows in the hood must be some kind of clue, that's an odd feature, and the upkicks at the ends of the fenders might mean something too. It also appears to be LHD, which at that period wasn't common...maybe another clue.
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    sunesonsuneson Member Posts: 2
    I think I got the answer - The Massachusetts tag on the front of the car, 023, is a non transferable dealer tag issued to Eugene H. Brownell in 1903. Eugene was the son of Daniel L. Brownell one of the founders of Brownell and Burt of Taunton, Mass. A check of the 1900 and 1910 US census place the family 20 miles away in Providence RI.
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    prolyproly Member Posts: 2
    I saw this car on the street, but I have no idea what it is. I would really appreciate if you can help.

    image image
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    Looks like a 1947 Chevrolet Fleetline Aerosedan
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    prolyproly Member Posts: 2
    I think you're right.
    Thanks. :D
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    texasbronco6texasbronco6 Member Posts: 2
    Would appreciate your help finding out what year and make this vehicle is. This was my great grandfather's first and only automobile.
    Thanks for your help.
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/40436913@N00/3968997423/
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    Pretty sure that's a 1929-30 Chevy
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    Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    I'm gonna say 27-29 Chevy, because of the wheels. Prior to that artillery wheels were standard and by 1930 wires were standard. Otherwise, the hood, roofline, etc, all suggest that fintail is quite correct. There are other ways to tell but they don't show up in this photo so I don't know if anyone can get closer.
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    I was originally going to guess 1927 - just by the wheels and the radiator shell - but those hood louvers seemed odd to me, so I did a google image search to see if I could match them. Looks like the louvers were a 1929-30 item, unless the pics I saw were mislabeled, which is always possible.
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    Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Based on the position of the louvers, I'm going to say 1928. The 29-30 louvers are further forward from what I can tell.
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    texasbronco6texasbronco6 Member Posts: 2
    Thankyou Mr shiftright and fintail. My father told me that he thought it was either a '25 or '26 Chevy. Thanks for your help.
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    Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Looks just a little new for '25 or '26, but could be I guess. The photo isn't the best for this sort of thing.
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    What caught my eye was how the louvers are not centered/symmetrical on the side of the hood, but are all placed towards the rear side. From the titles on google images, that seems to be unique to 1929 and 1930 models - although retrofitting a hood flap on another car couldn't have been hard.
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    pete1709pete1709 Member Posts: 1
    Can anyone id these cars? I photographed them in Chitina, Alaska this Fall.

    My album is at: http://www.carspace.com/pete1709/Albums/pete1709%27s%20Album/

    Thanks

    Pete
    Cheyenne
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    From left to right, first car looks like a 1948-50 or so Ford pickup, second is a Model A pickup probably 1928-30, third is unknown and tough, from the mid-late teens, not a Ford. Some of the experts at the AACA forum might know that one.
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    I want to say it is a senior Dodge or something, 1928-30, but I don't know. Chevy used wheels like that at the same time, but it doesn't seem to be a Chevy. The hubcaps have an emblem, but I don't know what it signifies.

    The insanely knowledgeable people at the AACA forum will be able to give a year and model no doubt
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    Karen_SKaren_S Member Posts: 5,092
    I'm sorry, but your photo is too large and is causing problems with the page display. Upload the photo to your CarSpace album and then post it here. If you need help, email me, karen@edmunds.com.
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    omarmanomarman Member Posts: 2,702
    That grill looks like the new-for-1951 Ford pickup
    image
    A time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing.
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    samwgsamwg Member Posts: 5
    Thanks so much - it seems it may be a 1927 Packard! I appreciate you taking time out to help though.

    regards
    Sam
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    texasestexases Member Posts: 10,708
    Packard? The wheel emblems were not the normal Packard red hexagon.
    image
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    Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    possibly but I'd need to see more of the front or back of the car. These half-cut side shots make it almost impossible to be certain. Once you can see the grille, or even the headlights, you know so much more.

    So many late 20s cars look alike from those angles.
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    Interesting. It didn't seem very Packard-y to me. At the least, someone must have swiped the hubcaps!
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    samwgsamwg Member Posts: 5
    I am no car buff so I bow to everyone's highly superior opinions - but it's pretty confusing...everyone I have asked claims something different lol! Based on the hood ornament (zoomed in on) an Auburn was suggested - someone sent an image of wheels they said were from a 27 Packard and they do have 7 nuts (is that the technical term?) like the one's in this image.

    The challenge of identifying the car was set by my Photoshop lecturer as part of an assignment - so for all I know the car may not even be real or possibly a composite of 100 different images!

    I will follow up on all and any ideas as best I can though, so thanks for the info.

    regards
    Sam
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    I could post it at the AACA forum if you are unable. Someone there will know for sure.

    I suspect the car is real - the image looked good to me. There were just too many cars made then that are long gone now.
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    samwgsamwg Member Posts: 5
    If you wouldn't mind posting it that would be great! I am kind of intrigued now as to what it actually is!
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    fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,169
    If you can post the pic at your carspace page, or better yet give the URL to the image, I can do it without a problem.
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    Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    I think the year is about right don't think it's an Auburn:

    image

    It's not a Star, Durant, Elcar, Marquette, Velie, Hubmobile, Whippet, Cole,Hudson, Grant, Dayton-Stoddard, Moon, Kisselcar, Gray Biddle or Dorris.

    The hubcap does sorta kinda resemble a Buick "B" that was used for a while. The Dodge Brothers used a superimposed DB
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    Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    This is from a 1927 Graham-Paige. Whaddya all think?

    image
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    Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    A Roosevelt:

    image
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    samwgsamwg Member Posts: 5
    Thanks so much

    URL is [URL=http://img42.imageshack.us/i/carq.png/][IMG]http://img42.imageshack.us/img4- 2/6898/carq.th.png[/IMG][/URL]...

    I will wait and hope!
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