Trippe Headlight

[NHcarnut]

Another Headlight, this one is clearly a Trippe, and has a Trippe bulb. It is painted black. Is this original? (Most that I have seen are chrome...) What is the difference between a "Junior" and a "Senior"? Lens diameter measures 8", housing depth is about 6".

[Layden B]

Believe they were offered both ways, your choice. Seniors have the level on top.

[West Peterson]

I've seen them with the body painted before. It was probably an owner preference. Actually, they look kind of neat painted. Gives it an understated elegance.

It is not a headlight, though. It's a driving light.

[Restorer32]

Trippe lights of this type are very neat but apparently they were never a factory option on any American car during the Classic era. I could be wrong but I've never seen a factory photo of a car with these bumper bracket mounted style Trippes nor have I ever seen a factory accessory catalog showing these. The '32 Packard Accessory catalog shows a "Trippe Light" but it is mounted above the bumper on a cross shaft in similar fashion to the Lorraine Light. i would be happy to be proven wrong!

[NHcarnut]

Thanks for the information! It wouldn't surprise me that driving lights represented a 'profit source' for car dealers. Certainly the 'classic era was before my time, not that my parents could afford to do more than admire them from a distance... I do remember my dad's story about their first post-war new car, a 46-48 Dodge sedan: They told the small town dealer that 'they would take it'. When they returned with their checkbook to pick it up, the dealer had added fog lights and other 'extra cost items'... The had that car into the 50's, and I still remember those big amber lights on the front bumper.

[West Peterson]

Dealers were not allowed to mark up cars during the first "while" after the war. New cars were extremely hard to come by, and you were put on a waiting list. There was a lot of under the table dealings going on that put your name on the top of the list. In addition, because they couldn't mark the cars up, they loaded them up with accessories instead.