DLynskey

I'm afraid I won't be of much help, but as "28 Chrysler" said there is plenty of help on this forum; these folks are eager to help. The first advice you will get is to find a repair manual on Ebay. Then for specific problems search this forum -- the entire forum, not just the Chrysler section. Most questions are generic and apply to other makes as well and have been asked and answered in the past. I was a teenager when I had the Chrysler and my dad worked in maintenance at a foundry and had plenty of mechanic friends who enjoyed working on it with me as a "fetchit". Mine was in running condition when I got it and we never had to get into the engine. The only mechanical work was with the clutch, a broken axle (which is the only reason I was able to get the car from the original owner) and generator. Another friend of my dad was a skilled woodworker and redid the wood where it was needed. Then life intervened. I went away to college and graduate school leaving it in my parents' garage. Eventually I married and started a family. I sold the Chrysler to help raise the down payment on a house. Don

Very few, if any parts a interchangeable. With the wood body construction you could buy a restored one for less than it would cost to restore this Chevy. But if you want the experience it looks basically complete and would be a good candidate to start with. I expect there would be far more than $200 worth of parts if you wanted to part it out. Heck, I'll bet the radiator shell alone would bring $200, and all the sheet metal looks straight and not rusted. Plus you wouldn't need a title. Don

The auctioneer should invest in a better camera. $10 should buy one better than the one he used here. Or maybe he thought fewer people would bid if they could actually see what they're bidding on. Don

If you repost this under "General Discussion" it will get a lot more views and responses. Don

Packard 1940 Custom Club Limousine. Don

A matching pair of 36's seen at a show in Iowa 26 years ago. Look closely at the coupe and you'll see a very interesting antenna on the roof. It is almost the entire length of the roof with two circles and several horizontal bars. Don

I'm enjoying this Topic. I'll add a few from my archives, particularly some rear views since those are seldom shown. 1940 Buick Station Wagon 1940 Cadillac 75 Custom Town Car 1940 Chevrolet 1940 Ford DeLuxe 1940 Graham Sharknose 1940 Nash Ambassador 1940 Packard Darrin Convertible 1940 Packard Darrin 4-door Sedan (Sorry about the reflection) Not a rear view, but seldom seen 940 Plymouth Pickup Not sure if this Packard is a 1939 or 1940 but I can't figure out how to delete it! It's pretty, though.

It would be quite a project but nothing too complicated and parts are available. The Chrysler 52 was a strong seller so many parts cars are around, plus many parts are interchangeable with a mid-20s Maxwell or a 1929 Plymouth. The hardest part is the wood and yours looks to be pretty good. I believe I see front brake drums which means you have 4-wheel hydraulic brakes -- a big advantage over the 2-wheel mechanical brakes on many of them, including the one I had. Finished it would be a reliable vehicle for leisurely driving and a curiosity at the local shows and cruise-ins. The engine was bullet proof but unhappy above 45 mph. I bought mine in 1959 from the original owner. It was his only car and he used it for 30 years as a salesman covering a 100 mile radius or so. No telling how many times the odometer had turned over, but it would still start with a quarter turn of the crank, and I took it as is on a few AACA tours, up to 100 miles, in the condition you see in the photos. Thanks for the photo and post another for us when you finish the restoration! Don

1948 Chevy is correct. Don

My first new car in 1966 was one of those stripped base models -- a Pontiac Catalina 2-door post sedan with no accessories. No power steering, no power brakes, no AC. It had the base 389 cubic inch low compression engine with a 2-barrel carburetor, 3-speed on the column. blackwall tires and dog dish hubcaps. I did add an AM radio. As Wes said, these price leaders were highly advertised but practically none to be found. I was shopping in Dallas Texas. I insisted on that particular model, but the dealer was "unable" to find one. He said he searched all the Texas regions as well as Little Rock and Memphis and there were none to be found. I left empty handed, went across town to another Pontiac dealer and they had three on the lot to choose from; a white car with a red interior, another white with a blue interior and a silver one with the blue interior. I don't recall the sticker price, but I drove home in the silver one for $2500 total out the door. I considered it a good deal for a nice looking full-sized mid-level car with plenty of torque and a durable drivetrain (If the 389 could handle the high performance tri-power setup this detuned version should last forever.) Don

And you read the owners "Manual" with your eyes. Unless it's in Braille in which case it could be considered a manual manual. Don

This video link has been posted in the forum quite a while ago, but it's good enough to post again. "The Oil Field Dodge" overcomes some incredible driving conditions. Don

1941 Cadillac it is. Don

Walt, I'm enjoying this thread immensely. A bookstore in my home town also had an accumulation of Literary Digest magazines with beautiful color ads for classic cars. I still have the ads I cut out and use a dozen or so on my office walls. including the famous "He Drives a Duesenberg" ad. Don

I would say you got an unexpected bonus -- a blackout model made the last couple of months before production stopped entirely for the war effort. As chrome and other metals became scarce the government limited what was available, and manufacturers had to substitute plastic and other materials (I've even seen reports of wood bumpers on some of the last few 1942 cars). People have been known to paint over the chrome on earlier 1942 autos to make them look like blackout models. It looks yours is genuine. A search on this AACA forum will turn up a number of threads on 1942 blackout cars. Don

Bingo !!

Why is the firewall yellow? Don

A true statement, not hype. That's why Packard attached this warning sticker to the air conditioning units in their wartime cars. Don

Rear view of a stock 1928 coupe showing the tai light and license on the spare tire rack. The car across the street in the last photo is a 1925 or 1926 Chevrolet 4-door sedan. Don

Good eye, Kiser. You just sent me on an internet search. As expected on the internet many coupes and cabriolets are misidentified, but it seems the coupes and 1927 cabriolets have door handles between the two moldings and the 28 cabriolets are below the moldings. Maybe the door handles interfere with the folding window mechanism. I don't think I've seen an actual 1928 Sport Cabriolet. Maybe someone else here knows. Looking closely at the original photo the paint and pinstripe on the front and door don't match the rear body; likely it was damaged at some point. Also there appears to be a taillight and license tag on the left rear fender. Originally these would have been in the center of the spare tire. Another owner modification or is it maybe not a Chevy at all? Fisher made very similar bodies for other makes. Don

Your father's car is a 1928 Chevrolet Sport Cabriolet (convertible). The one in the Google photo is a coupe. The cabriolet had a folding top and a rumble seat. The coupe looked very similar but the top didn't fold and a trunk, no rumble seat. A close look at the coupe shows that the doors had a solid frame around the windows. The closeup of your dad shows the lack of the solid window frame in his car. Chevrolet had always had a roadster with a folding top and side curtains and a totally different body than the coupe. By 1927 most makers were offering a "cabriolet" which had a folding top and roll-up windows instead of side curtains. To meet it's competition Chevrolet introduced the Sport Cabriolet in late 1927. It was based on the coupe body but was sportier than the coupe with a rumble seat and a fabric top two or three inches lower than the coupe. Interestingly the Chevrolet version was not a true "cabriolet" but only looked like one. The top in 1927 had exposed top bows like a convertible but retained the fixed full-frame windows and fixed top. The first true cabriolet from Chevrolet with folding top and windows was the 1928 model like your Dad's. The great majority of the Chevies in 1927 and 1928 had the 6-bolt disk wheels. Wood spoke wheels were available; I don't believe I've seen wire wheels. Bumpers were not standard and many had aftermarket bumpers. Compare Model: 1927 Chevrolet Coupe. The taller top and shorter hood look much more upright than the 1928 coupe in oldford's post. 1927 Chevrolet Sport Cabriolet. The top is 2-3 inches lower than the coupe and it has a rumble seat. The fabric top shows the supporting top bows and has a small small back window to look like a convertible but does not actually fold. Note the rigid frame around the windows. The lower top carried over to 1928. 1928 Chevrolet Roadster. The Roadster was an entirely different body from the coupe and cabriolet. I believe the closed bodies were built by Fisher, the roadster and touring were done in-house by GM. Could be wrong on that. Don

Then you're way ahead of some of the folks we get inquiries from on this forum. Many just inherited an antique car, know nothing about mechanical things but think they can just put in a battery (a 12 volt is usually handy), start it up and make a good profit. (Jay Leno would probably love to buy it). We have learned to assume that's the case with newcomers and start with all the warnings and basic steps to help them avoid destroying something right off the bat. I hope we haven't insulted you with elementary suggestions. Don

My wife's grandfather was in his late 80's when he moved from Tennessee to North Carolina to be nearer his relatives. To get his NC license he had to start from scratch with the written test, vision test and driving test, all of which he did with no trouble at all. As he was walking out of the DMV office he handed his license and keys to his son-in-law who had accompanied him and said "You take these. I'm through driving. I just had to know I'm still able." What a classy gentleman! Don

Not mentioned yet because it should be obvious is the title situation. Do you have a clear title? Without a clear title it is basically a parts car, albeit a good one. Often on a car like this the parts are more valuable than the car as a whole if someone is willing to take it apart and list them on Ebay. Don

Turn the engine to be sure it's not seized, don't try to start it without doing some cleanup of the gas lines, oil pans, etc. I wouldn't bother with brakes or tires either. It will cost a few hundred dollars and you're not likely to get it back. It's a desirable body style and, I hate to say it, but the most likely buyers will want to add disc brakes, oversized flashy wheels and a late model drive train. I'm not a Buick guy, but I don't believe it is a Roadmaster. Good luck with your sale. Don