An unpublished photo was found in The Los Angeles Times archives recently of the Arrowhead Teardrop car, designed by W. Everett Miller and constructed by the Advance Body Company in Los Angeles. Dan Strohl reported about the find at the LA times last week and has previously covered the Arrowhead Teardrop car in a post on the Hemmings Blog a couple of years ago.

A story, by Richard Kelley (above), that appeared in SIA #107, October 1988 issue courtesy of Hemmings Motor News.

You can also find an interesting post on the Hemmings Blog about a feature article Terry Shea wrote for Hemmings Motor News. In it Shea tells about the promotional car and it’s history. The first part of Shea’s description of the car in his post sums up the how and why of it:

“In 1936, The Arrowhead Water Company of San Bernardino, California, commissioned noted car designer W. E. Miller, formerly of the Walter M. Murphy Company, to create a rolling advertisement for their spring water. Miller designed a teardrop shape, calling to mind a drop of water, that was round and wide in the front and that tapered to a point in the rear, making a very strong visual connection to Arrowhead’s product.”

Read the rest of Shea’s post at Hemmings and see photos of the interior, dash, framework and construction features. Photo (below) showing W. Everett Miller from another post by Dan Strohl covering the car at HMN.

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We thought we’d feature another home made wrecker for our mystery car this morning. Clearly, a big touring car was cut down to make this service car and a Weaver Auto Crane was added to do the heavy lifting. It appears that the disc wheels from another car were added by whoever built it at Wood’s Garage. We will wait 24 hours to let or readers identify this one and will reveal the correct answer Tuesday morning. Photo by Ralph W. Holsinger of Charlottesville, Va. courtesy of the University of Virginia.

Detailed enlargements of the mystery car (above) and an illustration (below) from a 1923 Weaver manufacturing ad showing the complete details of the Auto – Crane. Look  for a special post on early towing soon here on The Old Motor.

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We were taken by the graphics that the Walter M. Murphy Motors Company chose to use in order to promote Hudson’s new-for-1929 model, the Essex “Challenger”. They’re posed here in front of the Pasadena, California City Hall with three models in uniforms that were apparently color co-ordinated to each car. Perhaps Murphy hoped that buyers would associate the image of a tough banty rooster with the lower priced car and assume that it was equally feisty.

Evidently, the Hart Players (below) thought enough of the Challenger to use this spiffy roadster for their official car. Notice the acting company’s name on the sidemount cover in the picture seen below. They were parked in front of Warner’s Egyptian Theater, at 2316 E. Colorado Boulevard also in Pasadena, when this photo was taken in 1929. The Harold A. Parker Studio was originally responsible for all of these shots, and they came to us courtesy of the The Huntington Library.

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Ernest O. Thompson was a pioneer north Texas agent for Overland and this photo was taken in front of his Amarillo garage. We believe that the handsome little touring cars seen in our top photo today are 1910 models, of which four different models were produced. We invite our readers to venture their opinions on the year of manufacture.

It had been just seven years since the Terre Haute, Indiana based Standard Wheel Company financed Claude E. Cox to design and build the first primitive Overland in 1903. The Model 13 was a 4-5 horsepower single cylinder, tiller steered runabout on a 66 inch wheelbase. The product had obviously come a long way in the short time that had passed between 1903 and the year of our featured photo.

A plan view of the Model 38 chassis from The Automobile Magazine.

It was John North Willys who saved the fledgling company from financial difficulties in 1907 and lent his expertise to building a successful car company. He would stay at the helm for the next 22 years and lay the groundwork that enabled the company that bore his name and that of Overland to continue producing a wide variety of motor vehicles for decades to come.

You can find much more information about Overland cars and the company here on The Old Motor (scroll down). You can also visit the Willys Overland Knight Registry for full company history and more information. Top photo courtesy of The University of North Texas Libraries. 

L to R (below); An ad with specifications for the Model 38, 40, 41 and the 42

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Much has been written about Ab Jenkins and his exploits on the salt at Bonneville with his Mormon Meteor racing cars. In this post, we’ve decided to explore some aspects of his earlier career on four wheels.

On August 9, 1923, David Abbot “Ab” Jenkins, Jr. picked up the high speed endurance gauntlet thrown down by Erwin G.”Cannonball” Baker by driving the 194 miles from Salt Lake City to Fish Lake, Utah in 4 hours and 24 minutes at an average speed just over 44 miles per hour. It would be the first of a long string of record runs over the next 33 years, on both public roads and closed courses. Just two years later, in a contest with a Union Pacific steam locomotive, he raced from Salt Lake City to Wendover, Utah, a distance of approximately 120 miles and beat the coal burner by five minutes.

L to R (above):, an article from the September 1, 1926 Motor Age that describes the 1926 cross country run, a foursome of Studebaker roadsters and sedans that took part in the 1928 24-hour record run at the Atlantic City Speedway, Ab Jenkins and his team at the Amatol, New Jersey board track after the run in a photo from the January, 1929 issue of the Auto Trade Journal.

In 1926, he and co-driver Ray Peck drove a 1926 Studebaker Sheriff  from New York City to San Francisco in 86 hours and 20 minutes, beating the time of the fastest transcontinental train of the day by 14 hours and thus established himself as a worthy heir to Baker’s crown. Awaiting him at the finish in California was a contract to work for Studebaker doing exactly what he had been doing all along just for excitement. This run made Ab Jenkins a household name all across America.

His exploits would continue with Studebaker and later with Pierce-Arrow after the South Bend company acquired a controlling interest in Pierce in 1928. Jenkins and his co-drivers, L.L. Corum, Zeke Meyer, Ralph Hepburn and Billy Winn set the then remarkable 24 hour average speed record of more than 72 miles per hour on the board track at Atlantic City in a brace of Studebaker Presidents that same year (see thumbnails, above).

Jenkins posing (above) with the 1932 Pierce-Arrow roadster he used for his first 24 hour record attempt on the Bonneville Salt Flats .

In September of 1932, Jenkins’ turned his attentions to the salt flats in his native state of Utah. He chose the V-12 powered roadster seen above as his mount, having been on Pierce’s payroll as a development engineer since 1931. This became the first timed run made at Bonneville since Teddy Tetzlaff set a blistering unofficial straight line pace of 141.73 miles per hour in 1914 in the legendary Blitzen Benz. Jenkins made his run on a huge circular course and at the end of the day, his numbers stacked up like this : 112.91 miles per hour for 24 hours for a total distance of 2,710 miles. Although he made numerous pit stops for fuel, food and drink, he never left the seat of the big Pierce for the duration of the run and the engine never skipped a beat. But while he and Pierce management were quite pleased with the results, that formidable record would never be recognized by the AAA Contest Board, the official sanctioning body for endurance attempts at the time. They had suspended and fined him for a number of alleged infractions at Muroc Dry Lake the previous year and thus refused to certify this epic run.

Jenkins is seen (above) at Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello,Virginia home with the 24-hour car back in road trim after the 1932 endurance run at Bonneville. This appears to be a promotional photo with an unknown man sitting in Jefferson’s gig seat (buggy seat).  University of Virginia Library photo.

For a brief look at Ab Jenkins’ long career, take a look at the Society of Automotive Engineers post,  Ab Jenkins – Our Father, Who Art of the Salt. Here on The Old Motor you can also read more about his later records. Be sure to watch the Boys of Bonneville movie trailer there, too.

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An airplane and a 1933 Ford V-8 advertise Woco Pep Motor Fuel and Tiolene Motor Oil.

With the dramatic uptick in fuel prices during recent years, large amounts of time and money have been expended to try to find something to run our engines on other than gasoline. But this isn’t a new idea, as shown in our feature photo today. The Sloss-Sheffield Company of Birmingham, Alabama was looking for a new revenue stream in the early years of the Great Depression and hit upon the idea of refining coke by-products from it’s blast furnace operations into a motor fuel. They tasked the Wofford Oil Company with the project in 1931.

The Woco Pep brand was born with claims of  ”More miles, Less Carbon” and “Gets You There With Power to Spare.” We assume that the “V-8 Fact Finding Run” advertised on the cars flanks refers to some type of involvement in the test program by the Ford company. Woco Pep would be sold throughout the southeastern U.S. and it and the Tiolene brand of motor oil prominently displayed on the plane’s fuselage, were eventually absorbed by the Pure Oil Company. Photos courtesy of the Knox County Public Library.

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The Model “T” Ford chassis was a very popular platform upon which to build a speedster back in the period. At the time this photo was taken, what would go on to become a very large aftermarket that supplied accessories, bodies, radiators, wire wheels and racing parts for the Ford was just beginning to be formed.

W. G. Kelly and a friend seen here in this photo dated December 23, 1915, were out in this mud – covered Ford special, on the roads in the Charlottesville, Virginia area. The early speedster they are posing in appears to have been built on a standard chassis with a v-shaped radiator, body, lamps and wire wheels, which were purchased from suppliers at the time.

Detail photos of the speedster, along with a similar accessory radiator

In the advertisements that follow we have tried to include a variety of offerings from other aftermarket firms at the time. By the late teens high compression and overhead valve cylinder heads were developed and offered along with some of the first in a long line of other performance and racing orientated parts. An amazing variety of speed and racing equipment was produced on up through the late 1920s, such as the Frontenac Speed Equipment line as can be seen here offered by the Arthur Chevrolet. Photo at the top by photographer Rufus W. Holsinger, courtesy of the University of Virginia.

You can also take a look back on an earlier post here on The Old Motor, showing some of the wide variety of Model T Ford accessories that were available later on the mid-1920s.

L to R (above); the Universal Speedster Body as offered in the Motor, April 1915, the Auto Parts Co. body offered in the Auto Trade Journal, December 1914 and the Ames and Fasco bodies shown in the Horseless Age, August, 1916

A variety of special gear ratios along with wire wheels and a four speed transmission in the November 1917, Automotive Trade Journal- Ford Accessory Section

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By Robert D. Cunningham:

Late in 1929, two American Austin prototypes were hand-crafted at Hayes Body Works in Grand Rapids, Michigan for display during the 1930 New York Auto Show. The Austins were 28 inches shorter, 16 inches narrower, and 1,200 pounds lighter than the lowest priced Ford Model A.

The $445, two-passenger American Austin Model A Cabin Coupe was similar in style to a three-quarter-scale Ford Model A Coupe, but with the rumble seat area lopped off. The 3-window Austin Special Delivery was based on the Coupe, but used blind rear-quarter body panels (without the small side windows). Only one bucket seat was installed in the Special Delivery, and the remaining space was available for parcels.

The American Austin engine and Warner Gear three-speed transmission assembly

The American Austin engine was a water-cooled, 4-cylinder, in-line arrangement. Bore and stroke was 2.2 by 3 inches, resulting in 45.6 cubic inches, producing 7.8 taxable horsepower at 3,500 rpm. It was basically the same as the English Austin Seven power plant, but mirrored to allow for left-hand controls. The prolific use of aluminum combined with a crankshaft mounted in a double row of ball bearings in the front and a special cylindrical roller bearing in the rear gave the little engine a disconcerting growl. Top speed was 47 miles per hour.

The prototypes were displayed during the New York Auto Show in a nearby hotel lobby. Response was sensational. Four-thousand dealers signed on and company representatives took orders for 184,117 cars worth $82 million – enough work to keep the 300 factory workers busy for three years.

American Austin bodies were stamped, assembled and upholstered at Hayes Body Works, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where they rolled on assembly conveyors through the paint and detailing lines intermixed with upscale Chrysler, Marmon, and Peerless shells. The completed shells were shipped via railroad and truck to the Austin plant in Butler, Pennsylvania. At Butler, the bodies were dropped through a hole in the second floor to be mated with awaiting chassis on a U-shaped assembly line. Austins were among the highest quality American cars for the money, and the most expensive by weight.

(Above) Workers in the Hayes Body works polishing paint, (below) American Austin bodies on the line along with a full-sided sedan body for another manufacturer, a worker pin striping a completed body with a striping tool

Full color, full page national advertising highlighted the Coupe, but another body style was taking shape behind the scenes. The Roadster prototype was introduced in the fall of 1930, and production began in December. The striking little car featured a rakish body with small doors without exterior handles. Behind the seat, the deck sloped down to meet the rear bumper, and the belt line followed the bottom of the deck-mounted spare tire. A Duesenberg-style cove across the door was highlighted with a two-tone paint treatment. Buyers had a choice of black body and fenders with cream sweep panel and pin striping, or black with green, or black with red.

In spite of the Austin’s stylistic appeal, few Americans could justify buying what most considered a high priced toy as the economy continued to unravel. By year-end Austin sold only 8,558 cars. The company ended the sales year in 30th position behind Pierce-Arrow, and lost more than $1 million along the way.

L to R (above): A Cabriolet Coupe, two views of the Special Delivery model with a Mifflinburg Commercial Body

In an attempt to attract more customers, American Austin president Arthur J. Brandt authorized development of additional body styles. Customer feedback requested a commercial vehicle with more capacity, so in July, 1931, Austin introduced a panel delivery truck, bodied by Mifflinberg Body Company, of Mifflinberg, Pennsylvania. A few months later, a handsome Cabriolet Coupe joined the line-up. The Cabriolet was a gussied-up deluxe Special Delivery that had been modified with a bench seat, padded top and blind quarters, and graceful landau irons that swept down below the belt line.

Illustration of an American Austin Roadster alongside a Buick touring car

During the dark Depression days, America needed an economy car more than ever. But sales continued to falter. Only 1,279 Austins left the factory in 1931 and the balance sheet showed a staggering deficit of $2,748,600. The factory closed down in the spring of 1932, and 1,500 unfinished cars were locked up to be sold off with the company’s assets.

Fortunately, the world’s largest used-car dealer was about to pay a visit with checkbook in hand.

To see the first part of this series follow is link, The Austin Comes to America – Part I. You can also see many other interesting American Austin photos here on The Old Motor.

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*Update* As we mentioned previously this mystery was not going to be easy, but Ariejan Bos was up to the task and has correctly identified the tow truck as a 1917 Chandler. The 1915 – 17 models all shared this appearance and had slanted hood louvers. He also believes that the touring car is also a Chandler and it does in fact have the look of one of the earlier four cylinder models. Perhaps there might have been have been a Chandler dealer in Knoxville?

We are back at it again with another Tuesday morning mystery which might be a bit tougher this time. This photo was taken at Red Seal Auto & Sales in Knoxville, Tennessee on March 13, 1923 and shows the shop wrecker and a touring car posed for a photo out in front of the shop. Take note of the very interesting signage covering both.

The wrecker appears to have been made from a good sized circa 1915 – 1920 six cylinder car of some sort, with both the frame and wheelbase extended. It may have had smaller diameter rear wheels fitted which were then fitted with thin sectioned hard rubber tires. The wrecker boom is a real Rube Goldberg like contraption. Both the uprights and boom appear to have been constructed of wood.

The heart of the mechanism is some form of a gear driven winch which was mounted on the frame. Between the hinged boom and the uprights is a set of chain falls of the type normally used in a shop for lifting engines, which presumably were operated by the winch. A cable and hook hanging from the boom were attached to the car to be lifted.

The mystery touring car seems to be of  the same general vintage as the wrecker and may be a four cylinder model. We will wait 24 hours before posting any reader’s answers and as this is a tough one. Please send in any observations you may have about this pair. The photo was by the Thompson Brothers and is courtesy of the Knox County Public Library  of Knoxville, Tennessee.

Not to be missed and added just for a little fun (below) , is the neatest contemporary video of a “Rube Goldberg” type machine that we were able to find. In it you will see many quite interesting ways to take photos completely automatically.

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“The Crossroads of the World” looked very different in this photo from November 18, 1941 than it does today.  The round building in the median, seen more clearly in the right thumbnail (below), is the National Defense Recruiting Bureau and with the attack on Pearl Harbor just a few scant weeks away, we have to wonder what kind of traffic the recruiter was getting through there. Comings and goings on the street were much more predictable. The junction where Broadway and 7th Avenue met often resulted in some chaotic cross traffic.

Of course the area is best known for it’s spectacular signage, and it was in it’s heyday when this photo was taken. Movie marquees and brilliant neon signs for food, drink and Chevrolets lit up the night on “The Great White Way.” One of the more unusual vehicles in this shot is the 1939-41 Checker Model “A” , whose distinctive front end styling make it instantly recognizable. These rugged cabs from Kalamazoo would remain mainstays of the urban American taxi fleet for decades to come, as would Chrysler Corporation cars like the one seen in the right thumbnail (below). Photo courtesy of Duke University Libraries

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