1912Staver

It's probably worth $300.00/ $400.00 to the right person. There are a lot of salvageable parts on it. But by the time you buy it and move it there is little room for profit. Maybe someone in your area is restoring one? Definitely worth saving but don't expect to double your money unless you buy it for say scrap price + 25 %. Greg in Canada

I may well be off base , but it looks like a Locomobile roadster. A very well preserved original at that. Chain drive , big T head with large oval water plates on the top of the head. Not too early as it has spark plugs rather than igniters. ... Just a guess in response to your "teaser" Greg in Canada

Hi Larry, I am sorry but I don't have any extra bolts like the ones you are looking for. When you are describing them to a potential supplier you need to specify they will be used on wood fellow wheels. You will probably be able to find something that is close but without the serrations you need for the wood fellow application. Smooth shank bolts for steel fellow wheels can be found with a little hunting, but the serrated style are quite a bit harder to source. I have a pretty good pile of Buick wood fellow wheels, but unfortunately most if not all of the rim bolts are at least as bad as yours. When I get to the final stages of my E 6-45 McLaughlin restoration I anticipate having to have the bolts custom made. If you find a vendor that can supply them from stock please let me know. Greg in Canada

Congratulations, the cage valve Buick 6's are great cars. The brakes are a little { OK a lot} on the feeble side for modern traffic, but otherwise they are very well engineered. The roadsters were made in reasonable numbers but are far outnumbered today by the Model 45 sport tourings. Seats for a roadster will be a fairly hard item to source. Even the touring seats can be quite dificult to find. They are fairly flimsy in construction, and don't survive well. On the plus side they are reasonably easy to remake provided you have a sample to work from. In addition to the BCA there is a first class owners group for these cars. Dean Tryon works tirelessly to publish a newsletter and information clearinghouse. It is called the 1916/17 Buick owners group but it caters to all of the cage valve 6's. {1916- 1923} Hope this helps Greg in Canada 1918 McLaughlin 6-45 special {a somewhat fancied up 1918 Buick}

Hi Kent, please remember to add Staver to your list of Teetor customers. Not only did they use 4 and 6 cyl. Teetors , Dan Teetor was for a time at least the Staver Design Engineer. There was lots of engineering "cross pollination" between American , Teetor Hartley and Staver Chicago. The subframe on my 1912 Staver is Identical to that used on an American Underslung; the crossmember is used upsidedown on the Staver to place the engine and transmission below the main frame, on the American it locates the engine and trans. above the main frame. Makes sense if the two makes are using the same engine , same frame supplier, and "friendly" engineering depts. There are 3 known Teetor engined Staver survivors if you count my incomplete project car. All the best Greg

The only reason I can think of why GM Canada retained the X frame is cost. The Canadian market had very few performance optioned cars in the early 60's. {409's etc.} So the somewhat more flexable X frame was serviceable. 6 cyl. and 283 2bbl. cars don't generaly get pushed too hard, so GM could get a few more years out of an obsolete design. The typical Canadian new car buyer was more often a middle age famialy man. The "youth market" that was a substantial part of the U.S. new car market was probably driving a 7 or 8 year old used Austin or Morris in Canada. All the best ,Greg in Canada

I would be very interested if it wasn't located so far away. I am near Seattle Wa. so the distance is impossible. I realy like this era of Marmon, and they rarely apear for sale. The car obviously needs everything, but what a project. The Pacific NW. is a nice place to live but are early project cars ever hard to come by. All the best Greg

Posibly a 1903 Autocar. type VII Greg in Canada

Sorry Helfen , I diden't mean to say a 455 is suitable for scrap, however the value of a base 455 core engine is not very high. They can be at times dificult to come by, but with patience they appear at quite a reasonable cost. When I have needed a big GM core engine I look for a good running full size car. I then harvest the engine and sell off what little I can of the rest of the car. Unfortunately there is little demand for parts from these cars so I have little choice than to scrap them. The up side is with scrap price as high as it is the core engine ends up being almost free. This works well for Mopar 440's, Ford 429's/460's GM 400, 454, 455. etc. Most of these engines went into full sized cars, pickups and motorhomes. Now that they have outlived their first life it is good they can go on to a new life in a muscle car. Most people around here just take these vehicles complete to the crusher. I think this is a crime when good core engines are involved. Greg in Canada

The value of 455,s is very dependant on which version the particular engine is. There are several diferent head castings used along with other parts. The value can range from not a lot more than scrap for the base model engine, to very valuble indeed for the top hi performance version. You need to dig deeper and find out exactly what you have before anyone can sugest a value. All the best Greg

I think a big part of the problem is the complexity of new cars. They have great emissions profiles and get very good mileage but the trade off has been a much more sophisticated power train , higher sticker price and the umbilical to the Dealer for service/ repair. I worked as a journeyman auto mechanic for the early part of my working life {apprenticeship then licence} , returned to university and became qualified as an automotive/ technology CAD etc teacher. And finaly returned to Industry as an Engineer in Marine transportation. When I have an electronics problem with my current daily driver I can be stumped, as I don't have acess to the factory manuals/ diagnostic equiptment that is essential. The cost of such equiptment is way beyond what the indivigual owner is going to pay, so the only option is the dealer. If I am unable to cost effectevly deal with a modern car how is a young person going to do it? I love my old cars but in my situation they aren't practical. Long comute, Canada so even higher gas than US, if I am late my workplace {Ship}makes the trip without me/ off going watch member has to stay in my place. So I am forced to have a late model, fuel efficant technobox , like it or not. For many young people the overall cost is simply going to be too high. No solutions just unpleasent comprimises. All the best Greg in Canada

Hi Howard, I commend your effort to create a listing. One of the problems with such a list is the sheer size of anything approaching a complete list. There were literally thousands of makes/ models during the screw on hubcap era. The major makes could probably be identified over time but for all the others it's a close to impossible task. For most owners of anything other than a Ford, Dodge, Chev or Buick, if you need a hub puller it's a custom job. There are probably nearly 100 combinations of diameter / T.P,I, / and thread form. Some will be fairly common , and some will be unique to a particular make or model. Still it would be handy. Greg

Hi again. $2000.00 was a popular price point for the better middle class automobiles of this era. the upper class cars such as Pierce Arrow could be close to $6000.00 with an elaborate limo. body. Body building was still largely a hand made operation at this time. There were certainly cheaper cars available, and most of the truly popular makes Ford , Reo, Overland, Small Buick etc were priced at about $1000.00 or less. There was none the less a signifigant market for larger ; more powerfull cars , priced from $2000.00 - $3000.00. And there were MANY makes offering cars of this class. Moline looks like a likely I.D. to me as well. Low production could be as few as 50 or 75 cars a year to as many as a couple of thousand. Some of the very high quality cars were built more or less to order and production could be as low as 1 or 2 a week. All the best Greg in Canada

Hi, it looks like a good quality car of about 1914. Probably 4 cyl from the length of the hood. Could be one of many low production makes of the period. It looks to be fairly new, cars aged fast especialy in rural areas. Looks like at least a large series Buick equivelant, but I don't think it is a Buick. The hood latch is shown well in the photo and is somewhat out of the ordinary. It may be a clue for a more exact Id. Hope this helps Greg in Canada

Hi Marv. I would think they are universal lights intended for comercial body builders. Probably too new for an oem automotive use. They look like nice lights. Possibly fire truck. Greg in Canada

Thanks Wayne for reminding me that there are many dedicated; old car community minded, wealthy individuals out there. I am afraid I do tend to get overly stereotypical when I see evidence of the sort of wealth some have at their disposal. Probably a bit of a mix of jealousy and frustration. I realise that organizations such as the AACA benefit enormously from the assistance wealthy individuals provide. And I agree that for every ego conscious participant there are several quietly enthusiastic well healed Gentlemen and Women . Best return my attention to positive things like the start of the swap meet season, and what move to make next on my own project. Given enough time and effort the pieces of the big metal jig saw puzzle do come together. Greg in Canada

As entertaining as auction results like this are they realy have nothing to do with the old car hobby. The cars and other artifacts are stunning but one might as well be looking at a catalog of super yachts or corporate jets. I somehow doubt many of the bidders at this auction have much in common with the typical member of this forum. I prefer to concern myself with objects that are worth less than a multiple of the price of my home, and that a owner will have more involvement with than writing out a cheque. I suppose results like this are the best proof that like it or not most of us can't afford to participate in the old car hobby except at the most basic level. I hate to get political but this seems to be the sort of thing that the 99% vs 1% movement is all about. Greg in Canada

The museum is well worth the trip. I know it's in an out of the way location but if a person is a fan of early auto's , farm machinery , construction equip, traction engines etc it's a must see. There is also a very worthwhile separate aircraft collection that is on the same site. Stan was very well known in Western Canada, and by partnering with the Alberta Government has managed to assure a lasting collection. Transportation heritage is often overlooked/ underfunded in Western Canada but this collection is the exception. Greg in Canada

Hi again. I don't mean to throw a damper on your prospective project. A car like the Stutz in question is high on any almost any collectors wish list. And any one of us would jump at it if we were lucky enough to have the chance. I approach old cars from a similar basis except I don't usually sell them at the end. I try to progress at a rate my resources will allow {generaly a snail's pace}. and as such the end value is of comparatively little interest. But please dont under estimate the cost of doing anything on a car like this. The paint, plating, and interior alone will be a very substantial sum. Truly grand cars like a Stutz tend to have truly grand restoration costs. Just re-coreing/ restoring the radiator and shell can end up costing as much as a decent model A Ford. And everything on the chassis is just the same complexity/ cost as a 1/2 million dollar DV 32 roadster. P.S. are you sure the car is a DV 32 ? , perhaps it is a SV and the engine is original...just a thought. Greg in Canada

As rare and desirable as a car like this is it probably has little money making potential. They are grand cars, but at the same time money pits. And a sedan is even worse in this respect. They are significantly more costly and complicated, and yet are worth much less than most of the other body styles. Buy it and make it your next ten year project but only if you truly love the car. If you are looking to make money buy Gold not old project cars. All the best , Greg in Canada

Hi new guy. Advertising watch fobs like yours can be fairly valuable. They appeal to both antique car guys, and watch fob collectors. If you did want to sell it, I would suggest doing a bit of research on the Internet. Marion cars have unfortunately survived in mere hand-full numbers; there are probably several times the number of the watch fobs around, so I doubt a Marion owner would pay a large sum for your fob. It would probably appeal most to a specialized collector of automotive advertising memorabilia. Greg in Canada

This is posibly a unit intended for use on a farm tractor. Most of the early tractors had very elaborate manifolds that circulated exhaust gas around the intake pasages. This enabled the machine to run on Kerosene, {starts on Gasoline} a signifigantly lower cost fuel . These manifolds were prone to damage over time, and were very expensive to replace {or N.L.A. for out of production machines}. So there sprang up a market for simpler non heated replacement manifolds . Kerosene eventualy lost it's cost advantage so straight gasoline operation became normal. I belive Swan were one of the manufactures of these replacement manifolds. Greg in Canada- Lots of those old Kero burners in western Canada.

Hi Dale, the mirror I am talking about is the one glued to the inside of the windshield. Perhaps I haven't examined it closely but I don't think it has an adjustment. The payload is fine but the box is quite small, it's a extra cab with the shorter box. No problem if your cargo is a core engine from a swap meet, but pretty small for general "truck" stuff. {or a load to the dump, we live in a rural area without weekly garbage PU.} I think the main problem for me is that the seat is a good 4 inches too high. Otherwise I have to agree that within it's design limitations its a fairly good vehicle. I have owned / driven many varied vehicles in 40 odd years of my own use plus several years as a mechanic, and the Ranger is one of the few that I haven't found a way to adapt to my body type/ preferred driving position. If someone gave me one I would either sell it, or modify the seat mount. I have a 1969 GS 400 that I would drive everywhere if it wern't for the cost of fuel. Greg in Canada

I occasionally drive my Wife's 2007 Ranger. She loves it, I find it one of the least comfortable vehicles I have driven. She is a fairly average female build , I am on the tallish side at just short of 6 ft. 1and a bit. I find my prime sight line is smack dab thru the rear view mirror. If I significantly recline the seat my forward vision improves but my side vision lines up with the expanse of door frame. The seat seems to be mounted very high in the cab and has no height adjustment, fine if you are 5 ft. 8 but absurd otherwise. I have driven everything from Bug Eye Sprites, a Lotus Europa {for about a year} , mid ,and full size U.S. cars 1/2 ton and bigger trucks... you name it and this is one machine that I simpley wouldn't thank you for. I find my Volvo 240 wagon has a better carrying capacity {measured in quantity of trash to the dump} and beats it hands down in pretty much every other category. Like I say, my wife loves it, but clearly you must be of the correct size and build to make it work. And not realy expect it to be a "truck" in the normal use of the word. Greg in Canada

Hi Restorer 32, you are not going to find too many "otter switches" on an MGA. They are more of a 1970's part, although Jag used them earlier. But not as early as your XK if I remember correctly. I love XK series cars but even when they were cheap they were out of my range. They also suffer from rust at least as much as MG's, and are a far more complex car to repair. I have worked on several as customer cars, and always heald them in high regard. E types are grand also, but not quite the same character as an XK. Been involved with MK.II's as well, but always as a mechanic rather than an owner. Greg in British Columbia