thompsonkirk Posted April 24, 2010 Share #1 Posted April 24, 2010 Advertisement (gone after registration) Yesterday afternoon I came upon this beautifully-maintained Mercedes coupe with Texas plates on Columbus Avenue in San Francisco. Then at noontime today – as I went out to lunch after printing the Mercedes – the Buick was parked across from my workspace/studio. The Buick is the harder for me to identify, & I found nobody to talk with about it. I used to know all these old cars but my memory of them Is fading, & haven't cheated by googling. It's an 8-cylinder coupe – the kind called a 'business coupe' with no back seat at all. The overall body shape looks 1933-34 to me, but the skirts & some details look 1935-6. I was surprised it's such a small car, perhaps an economical model for the (previous) Depression. My mother's 1942 coupe was at least a foot longer. I'm going to settle my guess on 1935. It was so perfectly restored – & bore paper plates from an auto museum – that I would assume the skirts were original. I was surprised to see it parked in front of a business without a trailer. A nice detail: one of the two panels of the rear windows showed an opaque separation but hadn't been replaced, because it displayed a vintage roadside service sticker from the Iowa State Automobile Association. This was perhaps a 'barn car,' sheltered until it was restored. Kirk PS, the Buick is jet black but is reflecting today's blue California sky. The Mercedes was that glowing tan color, hard to reproduce because of warm-toned reflections from late in the day. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted April 24, 2010 Posted April 24, 2010 Hi thompsonkirk, Take a look here Two in a day. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
Guest suilvenman Posted April 25, 2010 Share #2 Posted April 25, 2010 Very nice photos, Kirk. The Buick appears to be a 1936 Series 40 Special and I would guess that, in that condition, it's probably done about 29,000 miles (well, according to the Volo Auto Museum ). Cheers, Ken. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
biglouis Posted April 25, 2010 Share #3 Posted April 25, 2010 Kirk, both nice captures but I think you have created a better portrait with #2. What an attractive car. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveleo Posted April 25, 2010 Share #4 Posted April 25, 2010 Kirk, both nice captures but I think you have created a better portrait with #2. What an attractive car. yes . . definitely Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuny Posted April 25, 2010 Share #5 Posted April 25, 2010 Kirk - Beautiful subject, beautiful treatment of both. I too think the skirts are factory correct. the M-B is probably a 280 SE coupe. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
thompsonkirk Posted April 25, 2010 Author Share #6 Posted April 25, 2010 Thanks for comments! Ken, i wonder how you tracked it down? I couldn't find it on the Volo site but found a cross-listing at Hemmings, where the asking price was only $28K – about the price of a new Buick Special? Turns out to be one of Harvey Earl's very first streamlined models for GM. K Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest suilvenman Posted April 25, 2010 Share #7 Posted April 25, 2010 Advertisement (gone after registration) Kirk - I must admit that I can't resist a challenge when it comes to researching cars. Ken. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
elansprint72 Posted April 27, 2010 Share #8 Posted April 27, 2010 I think I prefer the setting of the first one. What are "skirts"? Not a term we use in the UK. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
thompsonkirk Posted April 27, 2010 Author Share #9 Posted April 27, 2010 The rear wheel covers K Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
likalar Posted April 27, 2010 Share #10 Posted April 27, 2010 I'm a sucker for car shots; these are both very good! I love the setting of the first, but that buick is amazing! What lines! And that clean reflection in the door is hard to come by. Larry Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
elansprint72 Posted April 27, 2010 Share #11 Posted April 27, 2010 The rear wheel covers K Spats, in UK English. Fender = bumper OR wing. Trunk = boot. Hood = bonnet. ??? = hood (canvas soft-top). Windshield = windscreen. Tire = tyre. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
thompsonkirk Posted April 28, 2010 Author Share #12 Posted April 28, 2010 Thank you, Pete. I'm always glad to learn better English. :-) kirk Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.