Curti Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 This little car was noticed in another post and more info requested. It is a very special little car with a ton of history. Some of which is documented and some of which is not. I'd love to fill in the blanks. It has a 1937 Ford V-8 60 engine and was designed by Thomas Hibbard. Destined for movie stardom, it missed the show and went on to do promotions for Midget racing at the Rose Bowl and advertising for the longest ever stage play in Los Angeles called The Drunkard. Saved from melting into oblivian in a Calif yard and given new life, it went on to make waves at Ameila Island one year. We have improved the wheels for a better ride and gone back to the original finned hubcaps. If anyone has photos of this car in their archives, I love to hear from them. - Curt's Wife Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hudsy Wudsy Posted February 23, 2013 Share Posted February 23, 2013 Wow, what a cute car! It's really quite well proportioned for a small car. It's got a neat little grille and shell combo and a beautiful, sporty front fender line. I'd be proud to have this one parked in my driveway. Curti, do you know if any of the sheet metal was "borrowed" from other sources? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dandy Dave Posted February 23, 2013 Share Posted February 23, 2013 Yup, For a car that went to the Dogs in it's early life, It sure is nice now. :cool: Apoliges to the good looking swim suite model. Sorry that I do not have any history to add. Dandy Dave! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curti Posted February 23, 2013 Author Share Posted February 23, 2013 Wow, what a cute car! It's really quite well proportioned for a small car. It's got a neat little grille and shell combo and a beautiful, sporty front fender line. I'd be proud to have this one parked in my driveway. Curti, do you know if any of the sheet metal was "borrowed" from other sources?The Rena is built on a modified Renault chassis, hence the name Rena. The entire drive train and gages are 37 Ford. As far as I can tell, all of the sheet metal was hand fabricated by Thomas Hibbard. It was a pace car for the midget races on California after WWII. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted February 23, 2013 Share Posted February 23, 2013 Curt, that is way cool. Do you have any pictures of the passenger compartment? Perhaps with someone sitting in it to give perspective to the size? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curti Posted February 23, 2013 Author Share Posted February 23, 2013 (edited) Meant to say the tip must be folded up - or it must be down, to drive. Here's a pic from Amelia Island. You can see the top must be up to drive the car. And one of the dash. The restorer in Calif (Inman) called it the Rose Phaeton because of the inlays.Curt's Wife Edited February 28, 2013 by Curti Top Up or down (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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