1948 Mercury Templeton Saturn Bob Hope Special Roadster, $199,900. Clearwater, Florida.

[7th Son]

https://www.pjsautoworld.com/vehicles/277/1948-mercury-templeton-saturn

 

1948 Mercury Templeton Saturn for Sale. "ONE OFF." The only one in THE WORLD! Built for Lloyd Templeton, The Templeton Saturn A.K.A. as The Bob Hope Special Roadster. Powered by a '48, 239.4 Cubic Inch Flathead V8 with two 2 barrel Stromberg 94 Carburetors, Speedway Heads, and a manual transmission. While in Hollywood, California to appear in a movie, it was driven regularly by Bob Hope, hence it's name. People didn't know what the vehicle was and referred to it simply as The Bob Hope Special Roadster. The body is a mixture of curves and flat surfaces for a very unique ride. It has a Chrysler hood lengthened, Mercury windshield, rear fenders were formed from '46 Chevy fenders, and the rear deck lid came from a Hudson hood. The grille is a cut down from a '48 Dodge and bumpers from a '46 Pontiac. The interior is styled after the cockpit of a plane with multiple gauges most being period Stewart Warner with white-on-black faces along with various knobs and switches. Why was it named the Templeton Saturn? Simply because it was named after Lloyd "Templeton", and Lloyd felt it would "run circles" around any cars of it's time, therefore the name "Saturn." The vehicle has received multiple awards and accolades from coast to coast, from the Pan Pacific Auditorium in California, to the 1952 Speedarama Show in Minneapolis and down to a Silver Spring Gardens event in Florida. The same year the Saturn was displayed for 10 days as the Car of Tomorrow in a tent across the street from the Iowa State Fairgrounds. It appeared on the fairway by invitation at the 2012 Pebble Beach Concours d' Elegance. It also received an extensive 12 page article in Motor Trend Classic Winter 2012 Edition along with appearing in Bill Jepsen's book Iowa Customs. A true Collectible and a piece of American Automobile History!

(video at dealer's website)

 

PJAUTO@AOL.COM            727-466-9999         727-461-4900

 

 YEAR                         1948

___________________________________________________________________

MAKE                        Mercury

MODEL                     Templeton Saturn

SUB MODEL             Bob Hope Special Roadster

ENGINE SIZE            239 V8

TRANSMISSION      MANUAL

BODY COLOR          BLUE

 

 

 

 

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[JACK M]

WOW

[theconvertibleguy]

That's something you dont' see everyday.

[neil morse]

31 minutes ago, theconvertibleguy said:

That's something you dont' see everyday.

Yes, thank God!  Oh, my eyes, my eyes!

[Leif in Calif]

That is REALLY something! I think it's going tp "run circles" around other cars, they are going to be very large circles! 

[1957Birdman]

It certainly has a nice paint job and the engine compartment is well detailed. The gauges are comprehensive, although the placement of the speedometer is unusual. As for the car itself, it looks like it could have been a car the  Joker drove in one of the early Batman serials.

Lew Bachman

1957 Thunderbird

[classiclines]

Reminds me of the 1941 Chrysler Thunderbolt (5 concepts produced, 4 still exist) - I strongly prefer the simple classic lines of the Thunderbolt.

Link: https://www.conceptcarz.com/vehicle/z1900/chrysler-thunderbolt-concept.aspx

 

 

[neil morse]

2 hours ago, classiclines said:

Reminds me of the 1941 Chrysler Thunderbolt

With all due respect, I think that's a huge insult to the Thunderbolt.  The two cars shouldn't even be mentioned in the same sentence.  The Thunderbolt is a brilliant concept car.  The Mercury Templeton Saturn Bob Hope Special Roadster is a bad joke.

[Xander Wildeisen]

I have pictures of the Bob Hope car. It was in AZ at an auction I attended. Not my taste on the styling, but he must have liked it on some level.

[Reynard]

 The Templeton Saturn A.K.A. The Bob Hope Special, may have taken some "inspiration" from the Newport Phaetons, rather than the Thunderbolt. 

 

The car was to have been used in a movie with Bob hope, but the project never materialized, even though he drove it numerous times, hence it's nick name.

 

 

 

 

 

https://kustomrama.com/wiki/1950_Saturn

 

An ad about the "Car of Tomorrow" and its appearance in Algona, Iowa from Algona Upper Des Moines Thursday, July 23, 1953

[58L-Y8]

The builder should have had someone with real design talent create a design for him rather than build that gorpy hodgepodge of car.

[kingrudy]

Absolutely stunning car, I love everything about it. Color, interior, engine bay, everything looks gorgeous to me. 

[Dave Wells]

A product of the times, very well received and a popular show piece. Show and award winner and still has a following today. Not everybody's cup of tea, but an icon of the era.

 

Last sale was around $150,000. about 12 years ago.

 

 

 

Edited March 13 by Dave Wells (see edit history)

[classiclines]

4 hours ago, Reynard said:

 The Templeton Saturn A.K.A. The Bob Hope Special, may have taken some "inspiration" from the Newport Phaetons, rather than the Thunderbolt. 

 

The car was to have been used in a movie with Bob hope, but the project never materialized, even though he drove it numerous times, hence it's nick name.

 

 

 

I had not seen the Chrysler Newport Dual Cowl Phaeton [(LeBaron), 1940–41] before - another car with classic lines - thanks for the post!

[Dave Wells]

2 hours ago, classiclines said:

I had not seen the Chrysler Newport Dual Cowl Phaeton [(LeBaron), 1940–41] before - another car with classic lines - thanks for the post!

Famous cars with interesting histories...