1923 Maxwell touring, not mine.

[Xander Wildeisen]

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1835557613601729/?ref=browse_tab

[John Bloom]

That should be gone quickly. 

[Bloo]

Looks like hydraulic front brakes? What's up with the wheels?

 

 

[Xander Wildeisen]

The bright spots look like reflections from taking a picture of a picture.

[Leif in Calif]

22 minutes ago, Xander Wildeisen said:

The bright spots look like reflections from taking a picture of a picture.

Which makes you wonder what it really looks like...(or if its' real) 

[Twisted Shifter]

Jack Benny was the star of his own weekly radio shows before the advent of television, and became a national figure with The Jack Benny Program from 1932 to 1948 on NBC, then on CBS Radio from 1949 to 1955. Through the 1930s and ‘40s, Benny often spoke of his 1923 Maxwell car, complete with fluttering, spouting, and other hilarious sound effects by the famous voice and sound master, Mel Blanc (who later gained worldwide fame as the voice of Bugs Bunny and an entire cast of animated cartoon characters).

Built by the Maxwell Motor Corporation in Detroit from about 1904 to 1925 (when it ceased operations), the original price for a 1923 model was $885. Powered by a 185.8 cubic inch, L-Head four-cylinder engine, it was capable of achieving a whopping 27 horsepower. In October 1942, Benny surrendered his ride to a junkyard to support the efforts of World War II, receiving $7.50 in war stamps for the steel body and parts.

 

 

Edited August 16 by Twisted Shifter (see edit history)

[Billety]

I don't like the yellow wheels.🤔

[Bloo]

Jack Benny's Maxwell is a rabbit hole. If he surrendered the Maxwell for scrap it must have been part of the show. He still had it (on the show) after the war, even in the days of television. The truth is there was no Maxwell, or there were several depending on how you look at it. The description of the car was not consistent over the years. If there was any way to nail down the year of the Maxwell, it is news to me. In 1937 when they first did the gag, there was no car. It was all Mel Blanc. It was never intended to be a recurring gag, but it was a hit with audiences so they kept on doing it. It fit right in with how Jack cast himself as a cheapskate for comic effect. I like to think of the Maxwell as the "Good Maxwell" he was pictured with in a scene with Eve Arden. That would have been one of the last Maxwells. If I remember correctly, it was dark blue, and this car could be a good stand in for it, except this one is nicer. It has no parts falling off. I don't know what is up with the wheels. They just look wrong, but I can't put my finger on why.

 

[wayne sheldon]

Wheels look about two inches too small for 1923. 23 inch rims were common still in 1923. The new "balloon" style were just coming out with the slightly larger tire profile and rim sizes began shrinking at that time. 21 inch rims started becoming common on many cars in 1924. 20 inch rim size was showing up by 1925. I would be curious what size wheels and tires are on that Maxwell? But I doubt it would be what it had in 1923. 

If the ad is legitimate, at that price? The cost for proper size wheels and tires would probably be worthwhile.

 

Of course I could be wrong. Maybe those are 21 inch rim wheels and they might have been available by late 1923?

 

 

Edited August 16 by wayne sheldon
I hate leaving typos! (see edit history)

[Bloo]

Anyone else notice the hydraulic brakes and hoses on the front? Or is that an illusion? A long time ago i put some effort into figuring out if any "Good Maxwells" ever got out the door with 4 wheel brakes before they started calling them Chryslers instead of Maxwells. I still don't know for sure but I suspect the answer is no. If any did it would have to have been the in the very last part of the last year of production.

[58L-Y8]

"Built by the Maxwell Motor Corporation in Detroit from about 1904 to 1925 (when it ceased operations), ..."

 

By the time Jack Benny's infamous Maxwell was built, Walter P. Chrysler was already in control of the Maxwell-Chalmers shambles brought in by bankers to right the ship.  "The Good Maxwell" promotion was to communicate the cars had had a number of deficiences corrected that had tarnished the make's reputation.  WPC, on the cusp of introducing his own nameplate, ended Chalmers after the 1923 model as it would have directly competed with his new car.  But he had further purposes for the "Good Maxwell". 

The 1925 Maxwell Four becomes the 1926 Chrysler Series 58, 1927 Series 50, 1928 Series 52 with engine and chassis upgrades and improvements along the way.  July 7, 1928, it morphs into 1928 Chrysler Plymouth Model Q, nominally considered as a 1929 by the Corporation until the slightly changed 1929 Plymouth Model U was introduced.  WPC finally had his entry to challenge Chevrolet and Ford in the low-priced field. 
 

[zdillinger]

5 hours ago, Bloo said:

Jack Benny's Maxwell is a rabbit hole. If he surrendered the Maxwell for scrap it must have been part of the show. He still had it (on the show) after the war, even in the days of television. The truth is there was no Maxwell, or there were several depending on how you look at it. The description of the car was not consistent over the years. If there was any way to nail down the year of the Maxwell, it is news to me. In 1937 when they first did the gag, there was no car. It was all Mel Blanc. It was never intended to be a recurring gag, but it was a hit with audiences so they kept on doing it. It fit right in with how Jack cast himself as a cheapskate for comic effect. I like to think of the Maxwell as the "Good Maxwell" he was pictured with in a scene with Eve Arden. That would have been one of the last Maxwells. If I remember correctly, it was dark blue, and this car could be a good stand in for it, except this one is nicer. It has no parts falling off. I don't know what is up with the wheels. They just look wrong, but I can't put my finger on why.

 

The Benny Maxwell that was used on the show is currently owned by the president of the International Jack Benny Fan Club, Laura Leibowitz. I haven't seen it in person, sadly, but it is apparently in somewhat decent condition but doesn't run.

[Leif in Calif]

Back in the days of the wonderful Harrah Auto collection, the first car you came to was a Maxwell and there was information saying it was the first car Bill Harrah bought, and that it was inspired by Jack Benny's. Regarding the Maxwell engine, Chrysler's engineering team called it "borderline of the horseless carriage era". They revised it after they discovered that under full load the intake valve seats would warp and it would misfire.

...All this from one of my favorite books: The Birth of the Chrysler Corporation, by Carl Breer.