Automotive American – Classic Vintage & Modern
Category: Early Ford
Excellent content from the guys at Strong’s Garage as always
Spring has Sprung in Sunny Alberta so we go for a spin in the Beautiful 1932 Ford Roadster that we just finished at the shop! Come along for a walk around tour of the car and then a Driving Tour of Elk Island National Park.
If the matte black Cadillac hearse hadn’t been parked outside the row of beige concrete and brick buildings, it would have been easy to miss Brothers Custom Automotive, a mecca of hot rods, customs, and Ford flathead V-8s in an industrial park in suburban Detroit.
Rosie the shop cat, who presides over the front office, demanded belly rubs from us before we continued into the 8000-square-foot shop. A sweeping glance took in a shark-mouthed land speed racer, a slammed two-tone Lincoln Premiere, modified Fords from the ’20s through the ’50s in various states of repair, a royal blue Mercedes 190SL, a flared Alfa Romeo GTV, and a primer-coated 1965 Bentley S3.
The cars and parts were interspersed with machining equipment, some as old as the cars being serviced, like a Bridgeport mill and a Sun engine tester straight out of the Truman era. The shop’s playlist was as eclectic as the cars, ranging from Sinatra’s “My Way” to the Wu-Tang Clan’s “C.R.E.A.M.”
Over by the trio of two-post lifts, owner Bill Jagenow was under the dashboard of a cream-colored 1952 Ford Vicky sedan, attempting to diagnose faulty turn-signal wiring using an original factory service manual. Middle-aged, with short, blond hair styled somewhere between rockabilly and military, he was wearing a button-up shirt emblazoned with the Brothers logo. Eventually, he found the electrical short in the Ford, and the Vicky was back to blinking.
Across the garage, Autumn Riggle, Jagenow’s partner and the shop’s manager, meticulously wet-sanded Alfa body panels fresh from the paint booth. Her jet-black Bettie Page bangs complemented her Dickies work shirt. Two other full-timers were hard at work, one welding up a set of seat rails for the Alfa and the other adjusting the carburetors on a ’35 Ford.
Riggle met Jagenow in Detroit through the local car and music scene. She was working in the fashion industry, but as their relationship progressed, she became more involved in the shop’s operation. “I went from selling shoes and coats at Gucci to ordering spare parts on my lunch break,” she recalled. She eventually joined full time to run the business side of the operation
Jagenow and Riggle are fixtures on the Detroit car scene, from concours to cars and coffee. Due to its community presence and reputation for winning shows, Brothers doesn’t have to advertise for business. Patrons include C-suite execs from the Detroit automakers, professional sports figures, celebrities like Eminem, and average Joes. The reach of Jagenow’s reputation is not limited to Motown, though. At one point during our visit, he had to excuse himself to take a call from a German collector regarding a potential job.
Jagenow had a circuitous journey from being a kid on the east side of Detroit to his current role as an automotive magician for the Motor City elite. He discovered his natural mechanical skills while keeping his first car, a 1972 Cadillac, running in high school. Then he joined the Navy and was stationed in San Diego, where he got caught up in the hot-rod scene. “I was drawn to the way the people in Southern California changed how the car sits,” Jagenow said.
He made friends with hot-rod legend Gene Winfield and other devotees to the discipline. After the Navy and a stint at the California outpost of Mercedes tuner Brabus, he drove his 1949 Ford back to Detroit to work for an automotive supplier.
Featured on AutoHunter, the online auction platform driven by ClassicCars.com, is this five-window 1934 Ford De Luxe Coupe with rumble seat. Though with the current seller for 28 years, it was restored under previous ownership. Of course, this Ford is powered by a flathead V8 backed by a three-speed manual transmission. Features include simulated woodgrain dashboard, tilt-out windshield and four-piece hood. Finished in black over a tan cloth interior, this Ford coupe comes with a clear Texas title.
The Black exterior is highlighted by chrome grille, headlight buckets and horns. Additional features include dual cowl lamps, brown vinyl rumble seat, tan accent stripes, color-matched rear spare tire cover and rubber running board flooring.
The interior is upholstered in tan cloth. Features include simulated woodgrain dashboard panel, window reveal moldings, vintage AM radio and floor-mounted three-speed manual transmission shifter.
The instrument panel includes a 90-mph speedometer, and gauges for the fuel level and amps. The true mileage on this vehicle is unknown.
Between 1902 and 1909, Henry Ford and his team at the Ford Motor Company produced a number of car models, including:
These models, particularly the Model N and Model K, provided important lessons and innovations that contributed to the success of the Model T, which was introduced in 1908.
Here’s a look at some that went for good money over the years
10 Top Sales Early Fords
1903 Ford Model A Rear Entry Tonneau – Sold for $1,320,000 in 2010
1904 Ford Model B Side Entrance Tonneau – Sold for $825,000 in 2013
1905 Ford Model F Touring – Sold for $671,000 in 2016
1907 Ford Model K Roadster – Sold for $528,000 in 2019
1903 Ford Model A Rear Entry Tonneau – Sold for $489,000 in 2011
1907 Ford Model K Runabout – Sold for $407,000 in 2007
1908 Ford Model S Runabout – Sold for $385,000 in 2018
1906 Ford Model N Touring – Sold for $363,000 in 2012
1909 Ford Model T Touring – Sold for $357,500 in 2012
1907 Ford Model K Roadster – Sold for $341,000 in 2011
Took the recently purchased wire wheels over to Austen at Ozcraft
Made some good progress on repairing the centres.
From the Model T to the V-8, some of Ford’s best-recognized products rolled on spokes
Ford had an image problem in the twilight years of the Model T. The Tin Lizzie had gone from revolutionary newcomer to has-been in the 17 years since it was introduced. Henry Ford’s militant disregard for styling meant the T was almost a joke. As upstart makes like Chevrolet and Star started to eat up Ford’s market share, the company cast about for a way to make its cars more relevant.
One of the obvious choices was to give the buyer a bit of what was available in those other makes—luxury and looks. The basic quality of the Model T was as strong as it ever was, maybe better, but buyers were proving that they didn’t care if their car lasted forever, so long as it looked good when new.
When the 1926 cars appeared, they had plenty in the looks department. They sat lower, their bodywork looked more streamlined, and, starting in January 1926, some of them even offered those sporty elements of nickel plating and wire-spoke wheels. For the first time since the Model T was introduced, the Ford buyer had a choice of something other than wood-spoke artillery wheels.
Wire wheels had long been a popular accessory for a number of cars, and Chevrolet made disc wheels available on its Superior line from 1923. Wires had the advantage of offering a better ride than discs, and they were different from what Chevrolet offered. For 1927, Ford ramped up production of wire wheels, and late in the year they became standard equipment on closed cars.
Wire wheels, nickel plating, and even special sport models weren’t enough to save the Model T, however, and in 1928 Ford introduced its replacement, the Model A. Wire-spoke wheels were standard now and, although they still used 21-inch-diameter rims, the new spokers differed from the Model T wheels in several details, including bolt pattern: now 5 on 5½ inches instead of 5 on 5. The Model A wheel even changed part-way through 1928 production, due to a modification to the braking system. Early Model AA big trucks also received a wire-spoke wheel, although it was quickly supplanted by the more-familiar steel wheel.
When the styling of the Model A was overhauled for 1930, the wheels were not neglected. The rim was downsized to 19 inches and the hubcap was revised to a simpler domed piece. For 1932, the hubcap would grow in diameter, covering the lug nuts for the first time, and advertising the new V-8 engine, if so equipped (four-cylinder Model Bs got the familiar “Ford” script and oval). The 1932 models also received yet another adjustment in rim diameter, this time to 18 inches
