Ray Bell

I hope Ivan is well... I no longer have his phone number, but visiting him one afternoon about 17 years ago was a real treat.

One of the things which Lee Iacocca found when investigating waste at Chrysler was that some models missed out on getting three (or was it two?) cars on a rail flatcar by a few inches, that design folk had no connection with shipping folk and nobody sent memos to try to correct things.

A few weeks ago the Darling Downs Vintage and Veteran Car Club circulated an e.mail request to members: I sent the lady a couple of suggestions, but they were really only potential contacts from afar. In the meantime, she located a De Soto in nearby Maroochydore. And a couple of weeks ago she advised me that on her mum's 89th birthday they all had a ride in the car, thanks to owner Gary Deane… Dorothy meets the De Soto. 89-year old Dorothy Andreasen once again becomes acquainted with a 1929 De Soto Tourer. Family getting ready for their jaunt. Gary Deane – with the Akubra hat – shows the family the engine as John samples the driver’s seat. Rear view. With the fold-down luggage rack and spare tyre on the back, the car is equipped as many were in the day. All smiles! Dorothy hasn't driven for ten years, but she certainly appears to be enjoying sitting in the driver's seat once again. Many thanks to Dorothy's daughter, Kerryn, for the photos and opportunity to share the pleasure Dorothy had.

Graeme is mistaken in thinking that small-engined cars ruled the roost in the Eastern states... In the Australian Grand Prix that was the way things went simply because that race was run, from 1928 to 1935, by the Light Car Club of Australia. When they relinquished the race there was a plethora of cars already there larger than their 2-litre limit. Hudsons were prominent, but various Fords, Oldsmobiles and others came in quickly because they were racing at other places like Penrith and Maroubra Speedways and competing in open road trial events. The big 5-litre Indianapolis Ballot had been in Australia since 1928 or 1929, imported to race at Maroubra. One thing in that piece I never knew about was a triangular course at Lake Perkollili, I knew there was a circle and a circle with chicanes, I must talk to Terry Walker about this.

It's hard not to agree with you on all of that... And the sign was as optimistic as the car, then? It says 160kmh, I had translated that. And who is that at, I guess, Lake Perkolilli?

An engine photo would be nice... Come to think of it, the rear end would have to have been changed. Or an overdrive fitted. The wheels on the 1938 car would surely have been of a smaller diameter than those of the 1928 Buick. Turning them quick enough to do 100mph would have been a real test of that engine.

I did some more hunting around and found a similar photo... The steering wheel doesn't look pre-war, though, and it's certainly not 1928. But as the car was in use right up into modern times it wouldn't be a surprise to learn that modifications were made through all those years.

Quite incredible, Stuart, thank you... Perhaps he bored the engine a little and perhaps did a little 'hotting up' to get some better performance to get the claimed 100mph. Where did you get the interior photo? Are there more interesting shots there?

Well, this is the very first time I've come to this forum and not got an answer... Does anybody know what engine might have been in a '28 Buick of about the 214 cubic inch size?

Paul Arzens built this car: ...in 1938. It's now in the Schlumpf museum in France and there are many mentions of it on the internet. The sign beside the car says its engine is 3.5-litres and other information from the internet says it's built on a '28 Buick chassis and has 214 cubic inches. Well, 214 cubic inches is close to 3.5-litres, so we'll ride with that. But what engine is it? Was there a six of that size in the Buick line-up at that time? I have found nowhere that anyone mentions the make of engine, but a number of places where the chassis make is mentioned. All help keenly appreciated.

A belated 'thank you' for that, yes, you've got it there I'm sure...

Here I am again... A friend found a radiator surround in the rubbish when he was building his house several years ago. So it became 'decoration' in the garden. It actually looks to me like it's going to be something someone else finds when they sell the place and are cleaning up the joint. Nevertheless, it's probably an identifiable item at this stage, can anyone help with this?

Does what appears to be an air cleaner on top of the manifolding indicate this is a very late model of this engine? I've been hunting around for photos and have seen that same shape over on the other side of the engine where the carburettor was typically fitted.

Yes, I did get the information on the 2050cc engine... But it's all seemingly difficult. Dead links etc. It just amazes me that such a thing can be so hard.

I'm pretty sure this one isn't for sale... In a bit of desert where there's seldom grass, a neat 'garden gnome' like this helps fill things out.