This film promotes the aerodynamic Lincoln Zephyr, first launched in 1936. The car was conceived by Edsel Ford and designed by Eugene Turenne Gregorie ,said to be inspired by the Pioneer Zephyr Streamliner train. At the beginning of the film we see other streamline designs in action, including the record-breaking SS Normandie.
Introduced on November 2, 1935,[3] as a 1936 model, the Lincoln-Zephyr was extremely modern with a low raked windscreen, integrated fenders, and streamlined aerodynamic design, which influenced the name “zephyr”, derived from the Greek word zephyrus, or the god of the west wind. It was one of the first successful streamlined cars after the Chrysler Airflow‘s market resistance, and the concept car Pierce Silver Arrow, which never went into production. In fact, the Lincoln-Zephyr actually had a lower coefficient of drag than the Airflow, due in part to the prow-like front grille on the Zephyr, reflecting the popularity of leisure speedboats like Chris-Craft. The Lincoln-Zephyr succeeded in reigniting sales at Lincoln dealerships in the late 1930s, and from 1941 model year, all Lincolns were Zephyr-based[4] and the Lincoln-Zephyr marque was phased out. Annual production for any year model was not large, but accounted for a large portion of the Lincoln brand’s sales. In its first year, 15,000 were sold, accounting for 80% of Lincoln’s total sales.
Production of all American cars was halted by the Government in 1942 as the country entered World War II, with Lincoln producing the last Lincoln Zephyr on February 10.[5] After the war, most makers restarted production of their prewar lines, and Lincoln was no exception. The Zephyr name, however, was no longer used after 1942, with the cars simply called Lincolns.
The idea of a smaller and more modern luxury car to fill the gap in Lincoln’s traditional lineup was revisited in the 1950 Lincoln Lido (The Lido was the same size as other two-door Lincolns, though[6]), 1977 Lincoln Versailles, 1982 Continental, and 2000 Lincoln LS. The Zephyr name was resurrected in 2006 for the car’s spiritual successor, the Zephyr, which was quickly renamed the MKZ for 2007.
AN AMATEUR RESTORER LEARNS AS HE GOES IN COMPLETING THIS 1938 BUICK 80-C SPORT PHAETON—PART II
Body and paintwork is not rocket science, but it’s hardly learned in a day, with great results almost always requiring extensive experience. Having worked in the automotive business for more than a decade and a half, first with a NASCAR team and now as part of a multi-state dealer group, Brian DePouli has spent plenty of time around cars, just not a whole lot of time in a paint booth. Still, that didn’t deter him from tackling much of the body and finish work during the restoration of his 1938 Buick Roadmaster 80-C Convertible, a process that we initially covered last month.
A BUICK LOVER BREATHES NEW LIFE INTO THIS 1938 ROADMASTER 80-C SPORT PHAETON—PART I
Claiming membership in the Buick Club of America since he was three years old as his father was a fan, too, Brian DePouli has spent his life around the cars bearing the tri-shield emblem. In fact, it was Brian’s father, Ed, already an owner of a 1938 Buick Roadmaster sedan, who bought the car on these pages, when Brian was just four years old (in 1984).
Roadmaster Reborn – 1938 Roadmaster Sport Phaeton
It’s a bit of a mouthful, but Buick called it the Roadmaster 80-C Convertible Streamline Sport Phaeton, or simply Sport Phaeton, or 80-C, for short. Technically, it’s not so much a phaeton as it is a convertible sedan, but Buick was selling a near-luxury product and surely the phaeton name fit.
Sad news that John Haynes of Haynes Manual fame has passed away at the age of 80
Here is his obituary from the Haynes International Motor Museum (a must visit) website.
It is with great sadness that we announce the death of John H Haynes OBE, the creator of the famous Haynes Manual, founder of the Haynes Publishing Group PLC and the Haynes International Motor Museum. John passed away peacefully surrounded by his family on the evening of Friday 8th February, aged 80, after a short illness. John was a kind, generous, loving and devoted husband, brother, father and grandfather, who will be missed enormously. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Annette, his brother David and sister Mary, his sons J and Chris and their families.
John Haynes, the entrepreneur and creator of the Haynes Manual, founder of the Haynes Publishing Group PLC and the Haynes International Motor Museum passed away peacefully, surrounded by family, on the evening of Friday 8th February, aged 80, after a short illness. John was a kind, generous, loving and devoted husband, brother, father and grandfather, who will be missed enormously.
John Harold Haynes was born on 25th March 1938 to Harold and Violette Haynes in Ceylon, where his father was the manager of a tea plantation. From an early age John had a passion for cars, and as a child he loved nothing more than riding around the plantation with his father in their Morris 8 saloon.
At the age of 12 he moved to the UK with his brother David, to attend boarding school at Sutton Valence School in Kent. It was at school that John’s flair for art and his entrepreneurial spirit developed and flourished. He persuaded his House Master to allow him to miss rugby and instead spend his time converting an Austin 7 into a lightweight sporty Austin 7 ‘Special’. He eventually sold the car, making a reasonable profit, and owing to the immense interest it received (over 150 replies to the advert) he decided to produce a booklet showing other enthusiasts how he’d made it. He published a booklet entitled “Building A ‘750’ Special’; the first print run of 250 copies sold out in 10 days.
After leaving school John joined the Royal Air Force (RAF) to do his National Service, where he made many lifelong friends. During his time in the RAF his role in logistics taught him business management skills, while enabling him to pursue his passion for motor racing and publishing in his spare time. He successfully developed and competitively raced several race cars, including his Elva Courier, which is on display in the Haynes International Motor Museum.
It was whilst in the RAF that ‘Johnny’ met Annette, and he soon realised he had met the woman he wanted to spend his life with. On his way to their wedding he stopped to buy Annette a second hand IBM Proportional Space Type Writer as her wedding present. Although perhaps not the most romantic of gifts, Annette was delighted with his practical choice, setting the stage for a bright future together.
In 1965, John was posted to Aden and it was there that he created the first Haynes Manual. An RAF colleague had bought a ‘Frogeye’ Sprite, which was in poor condition and he asked John to help him rebuild it. John agreed, and quickly realised that the official factory manual was not designed to help the average car owner. He bought a camera and captured the process of dismantling and rebuilding the engine. The use of step-by-step photo sequences linked to exploded diagrams became the trusted hallmark of Haynes Manuals.The first Haynes Manual, for the Austin Healey Sprite, was published in 1966, and the first print run of 3,000 sold out in less than 3 months. To date over 200 million Haynes Manuals have been sold around the world.
The success of his publishing business, including expansion into Europe and North America, culminated in the Haynes Publishing Group PLC floating on the London Stock Exchange in 1979. In 1995 John was awarded an OBE for services to publishing, and in 2005 The Open University presented him with the honorary degree of Master of the University.
John’s publishing success meant that he was able to enjoy his passion for cars, and he became a prolific collector.
In 1985 he founded the Haynes International Motor Museum in Sparkford, Somerset as an Educational Charitable Trust, bequeathing his collection of 30 cars to the charity to be held for the benefit of the nation. John continued to support the museum charity throughout his life by donating cars and funding its growth, and thanks to his support the museum has grown and now displays more than 400 vehicles, and is enjoyed by over 125,000 people a year. At the 2014 International Historic Motoring Awards the museum was recognised as The Museum of the Year.
Until 2010 John served as Chairman of the Haynes Publishing Group and then continued to play an active role as Founder Director. In this role he supported the executive team as they created a world leading content, data and solutions business serving both drivers and professional mechanics. He combined this role with that of Chairman of Trustees of the Haynes International Motor Museum.
John was very much a family man and is survived by his wife Annette, brother David and sister Mary, his two sons; J and Chris, his daughters-in-law; Valencia and Femke and grandchildren; Augusta, Chrissie, Edward, Freya & Nicholas. His middle son Marc sadly passed away in October 2016. Annette contributed hugely to the success of the Haynes Publishing Group and she shares John’s lifelong passion for cars. She still serves as a much respected member of the Board of Trustees for the Museum.
A true gentleman, and a kind and considerate man, John will be greatly missed not only by his family, friends and colleagues but also by the many people that use his manuals, and benefit from his reassuring guiding hand as they repair and maintain their cars and motorbikes. The appreciation people felt for his contribution was most visible on an almost daily basis at the Museum’s Café 750. While enjoying lunch John was regularly approached by visitors, who would invariably be greeted with his infectious warmth and engaging, enthusiastic boyish smile. He was always happy to oblige fellow enthusiasts with photographs, engage in conversation and share his passion for cars
On February 7, 1938, automotive industry pioneer Harvey Samuel Firestone, founder of the major American tire company that bore his name, dies at the age of 69 in Miami Beach, Florida.
Firestone Tire and Rubber Company is an American tire company founded by Harvey Firestone in 1900 initially to supply solid rubber side-wire tires[1] for fire apparatus,[2] and later, pneumatic tires for wagons, buggies, and other forms of wheeled transportation common in the era. Firestone soon saw the huge potential for marketing tires for automobiles, and the company was a pioneer in the mass production of tires. Harvey Firestone had a personal friendship with Henry Ford, and used this to become the original equipment supplier of Ford Motor Company automobiles, and was also active in the replacement market.[3]
In 1988, the company was sold to the Japanese Bridgestone Corporation.
Washington, D.C., April 27. His 1921 Model T Ford polished to a mirror like finish, Ernest A. Franke, elderly Washingtonian, drove to the White House executive offices to day with intentions of showing the ancient model to Henry Ford. “Where’s Henry” shouted Franke, from the driver’s seat, “I want to show him his old car”. Police declines to allow Franke to await the arrival of Ford who was due to have lunch with President Roosevelt, 4/27/38
A recent edition of Jay Leno’s Garage featuring the Buick Y Job reminded of how lucky it was to have been up close to this ground breaking car.
The Buick Y-Job was the auto industry’s first concept car, produced by Buick in 1938. Designed by Harley J. Earl, the car had power-operated hidden headlamps, a “gunsight” hood ornament, electric windows, wraparound bumpers, flush door handles, and prefigured styling cues used by Buick until the 1950s and the vertical waterfall grille design still used by Buick today. It used a Buick Super chassis, indicated by the word “Super” located above the rear license plate. (read the full article here at Wikipedia)
The Y Job is one of the few cars that I have on display at home.
The story of Glenn Pray is very different from that of Harry Shay covered in Part 1.
Glenn Pray was a school teacher when he purchased the assets of the former Auburn Cord Deusenberg company back in 1960. Upon the winding up of E.L.Cord’s company back in 1938 the assets had been originally purchased by a Buick dealer from Flint Michigan named Dallas Winslow. Winslow has continued to offer parts and service from the original ACD building in Auburn. Upon purchase Pray moved lock stock and barrel to a former cannery in Broken Arrow Oklahoma and set up in business.
Pray gained a reputation as the foremost supplier of Auburn and Cord parts saving may valuable vehicles in the process, his cannery site becoming a must visit for all enthusiasts of the marques.
Starting in the 1960’s Glenn Pray also introduced what became the first well known replica cars, Pray preferred to call the cars “second generation” this endeavour was not a financial success. The cars however have gained a cult following and have been recognised by the ACD club fittingly as “The Second Generation Cars”
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