DLynskey

I know nothing about the car, just saw it on Craigslist and thought someone might be interested. It looks to me to be a couple of years later and would be a major restoration project. 1927 Peerless(RAREST CAR ON CRAIGSLIST) Don

1927 or 1928. Doesn't appear to have front brakes so that would make it a 1927. Don

It's a gasoline hydrometer, used for measuring the specific gravity of gasoline. The tube floats in the fuel with the weighted side down (obviously). In lighter weight fuel the hydrometer sinks further, in heavier fuel it floats further up. You read the point on the scale corresponding to the surface of the fuel. Specific gravity is related to the additives in the fuel. I'm not familiar with it, but it is used in racing fuels. Don

1928. The 1928 had a longer hood (longer wheelbase) and lower roof than the 1927. This is a 1928. Don

Very interesting thread. I thought I knew a lot about 40's cars, but never realized Buick made a carryover model in 1949 (or Chrysler for that matter -- see related thread). Topics such as this keep me coming back to this forum ... and back, and back. Don

This post is 4-1/2 years old and the owner has not made any posts since then. It's doubtful he's still on the forum. You could try to send him a private message; he might receive it. Don

If you could post photos of the body, engine, etc. someone here could probrbly help identify the parts. Don

They should have painte this one RED. Don

I vote Oldsmobile. Don

I'm not a Chevy expert, but I don't recall having seen a 1929 with wood wheels. That doesn't mean they weren't available. I don't know if the 4-cylinder engine would fit, but it certainly would look out of place on a '29. Early 6-cylinder Chevy engines are readily available and even if not the correct year it would look right and give much better performance and reliability. Check EBay if you can't find one locally. A valuable source of help is the forum sponsored by the Vintage Chevrolet Club of America: VCCA Chat - Forums powered by UBB.threads™ Don

1929 or 1930 -- there's little difference. There's a photo of one just like it in the Gallery: 1929 Chevrolet Touring Car - AACA PHOTO GALLERY Worth restoring? It's a rare body style, the first year for the 6-cylinder Chevy (1929) and would make a really nice car for tour or show. Mechanical parts are readily available, with the 6-cylinder and 4-wheel brakes it's very drivable and dependable. You're not likely to see another like it. On the other hand, like any vehicle in this condition it would surely cost more to restore than you would ever hope to get out of it. It's a prize if you're willing to take on the job. if not, I'm sure someone else here would be happy to have it. Don

My first thought was Chrysler, but all the Chrysler Landaus I've seen had a rear quarter window. Did they make one with a blind quarter like this one? Looks like a Fisher body. Back then Fisher made bodies for many makes, not just GM. Don

At least he didn't chop the top and drop a 350 in it which would likely be its fate nowadays. And he did stick with blackwalls. Don

I've been going through old photos and was reminded of the 1926 Packard owned by Jim Messer of Chattanooga. I wonder of the current owner knows the story behind the car. In 1926 twin brothers in Chattanooga named Scruggs bought a new Packard to take a trip to Florida. Just to be clear on their deal they drew an imaginary line across the top of the car and agreed one owned the front half, the other owned the back half. Since neither of them drove they hired a chauffeur. The chauffeur practiced a few days before the trip and when they were ready to go he went to the filling station to fill up with gas. The two brothers got into a huge squabble as to which one should buy the gas -- the one that owned the fuel tank or the one that owned the engine. The car was returned to the garage where it sat until about 1960. Jim Messer obtained it with less than 200 miles. still wearing its 1926 license tag, still with some of the protective paper over the door panels, presumably with the original gas in the tank from the dealer. The brothers never did get to Florida. It sounds like a tall tale, but having met the remaining twin I can assure you it's true. I was a teenager at the time and really coveted an air-conditioned 1942 180 limousine that shared the garage along with a half dozen other cars. The entire family was,, well,, eccentric and there are a number of other interesting stories I could tell about them. As was the practice at the time, Jim totally restored the car; new paint, upholstery and all -- no HPOF class in those days. He drove it 14,000 mile to shows the first year -- not many trailer queens back then, either. He usually cleaned and repainted the underside of the fenders after each trip. Don A 1962 photo of the car:

Here's a photo I took at an AACA meet in Tennessee in 1962. What body is this? Is it still with us? Don

You might post this at http://vcca.org/forum, the Vintage Chevrolet Club of America. Somebody there could probably decipher the ID tag -- I can't. Based on a 1927 Chevy I used to have we can rule out 1927 and earlier. The 1927 and earlier 2-doors had a square top, not the curved top. The dash is not 1927, I don't know what a 1928 dashboard looks like. I believe most parts came from a 1928 Chevrolet. The doors are definitely 1928, (taller windows in 1927). The cowl, quarter panels and fenders could be 1928 as could the running boards and splash panels. Bumpers back then were not standard and were usually after-market items so you can't tell anything about them. The gas tank doesn't look right to me but I could be mistaken. Don

You might post it on http://vcca.org/forum as well. They have a forum devoted exclusively to the 1917-1919 V-8's. Don

The Eldorado Brougham is the high end 4-door hardtop. Don

What about thee Mercedes 3-point star? Even though it's not an animal it does stand upright on the hood. To me it's more of a mascot than an emblem. Don

Gotta be a 1928. The longer hood and lower roof give it away. Don

The suicide front door would make it a 1935, wouldn't it? Don

Is that a padded dashboard? Don

It looks very much like a 1925 or 1926 Chevrolet but a few things bother me. I don't believe a rumble seat was available on the 1926 Chevy. The Chevrolet would have had a single spare tire mounted vertically. Of course the dual spares mounted at a slant as well as the rumble seat could have been added. The hubcaps don't look right to me. I believe this is a little more up-market brand. Fisher made bodies for other manufacturers in addition to GM and this could have been one of those. Don

My dad didn't have a car when he was in high school and neither did I. Does that count? Don

Well, now I've watched a couple of episodes and I'll have to modify my initial statement. There are a few shows I won't watch even if they feature old cars! It definitely adds to my aggravation level. I guess this one can go on the list with "My Classic Car" and "Car Crazy" which now cover mostly street rods and rice burners. The one good thing I can say about "Desert Classics" is the buyers are smart enough to recognize a piece of junk when they see it. The auction prices are in line with what the hastily "restored" cars should bring. So far the guys haven't made a profit on anything as far as I can tell. If you have your own huge parts yard and in-house staff of mechanics and still can't make any money you should try a new field. Don