The local chapter of the Veteran Motor Car Club of America, the Valley Roadrunners, put on quite a nice little shindig today, in spite of blustery wind, with probably 80-100 cars showing, and around 60-75% of which had direct connections to The AMC Heritage. I’ll put out a sampling of the Non AMC-related Orphan Makes, then put together a gallery for the Main Event, with Nashes, Hudsons, and Kaisers, oh my!
This was the oldest car I saw there, a 1916 Franklin. This car has an air-cooled six-cylinder, and the hood at the front is narrow and sloping, like a Renault of the time period. The wind got to blowing pretty good, and a lot of nice cars had dust on them, something that kind of goes with Phoenix car shows in the autumn. The old Franklin got kind of hungry, and the wind got it conveniently started rolling, downhill across the aisle, heading straight for a fat fish dinner, a ‘71 Plymouth ‘Cuda! A huge crowd of picnickers mobbed over, and like the man of steel on a locomotive, collectively willed the behemoth to a stop, with at least a whole 10 feet left to spare. Nothing like a runaway Brass Age monster to spice up the day’s events… The owner fired it right up, and pocketa pocketa, it reversed back the way it came, to the huge sigh of relief from the ‘Cuda guy.
1956 DeSoto FireFlight Indy Pacesetter convertible. This car was equipped with the 330 CID Firedome Hemi. One of the original cars used in the ceremonies at the track.
1956 Packard Clipper:
1962 King Midget, 12.5 horsepower:
1965 Sunbeam Tiger. This car has the original engine in Ford’s Windsor series of V8 blocks, the 260 CID 4V. Essentially the same thing as a Cobra. Very rare, and very fast.
It was nice of Jed Clampett to make the scene, in his 1931 Ford Model A One-Ton Truck. Not an orphan exactly, but unique nonetheless. This rolling carnival was referred to as The Antique Store.
A Crosley Super Sports, not sure of the year, it would be something like 1952 or ‘53.
1942 Crosley:
1958 Edsel Pacer convertible. Edsels had about 8 examples present, all pre-60:
This would be the newest legitimate orphan car I saw at the show. A 1982 Oldsmobile 98 Regency. Not to be outdone by The Antique Store, this conglomeration of accessory heaven is known as The Hardware Store. This car is in a constant upgrade process, as the owner hunts down every antique J. C. Whitney-type geegaw he can find room for. He also liberally sprinkles in those newer items which he feels are of the same high standards. In addition, he fabricates his own gadgets, and mounts them all over the car, to keep you on your toes.
How do you like this custom finish? This 40’s International truck spent decades working in an open-pit copper mine, where the copper sulfate-impregnated mud eventually copper-plated the truck. My dirt bike used to get like this when I was a kid, from riding in the sulfur pits out of the Jerome copper mines. Danimal used to have the same problem on his bike…
Studebaker Hot Rod. Studeys were well-represented at this gathering, but this one was probably my favorite.
Another nice Studebaker:
Here’s a cool late-model Studebaker wagon:
There was a lot of good stuff at this show, and especially a lot of nice AMC Heritage iron. I saw one Eagle wagon, an SX/4, and a Javelin AMX with a Pierre Cardin interior. Molly Blue was the only Gremlin there. More pics after I get some rest. A great day, and a lot of great cars, with some great people.
-mike
This entry was posted on Sunday, October 21st, 2007 at 10:55 pm and is filed under Nashin' on My Rambler. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
I
m the show chairwoman for the Ford Mercury Restorers Club Of America Car show. This year we are offering an orphan car trophy. We except all makes and models at our car show. It will be July 20, 2008 In Belleville, MI at the WAyne County youth Fairgrounds, on Quirk Rd. I94 and Belleville exit on the south side of I94.
The entry fee for your car is free with a paid $5 admission per person to the swapmeet.
My question is what is the list of orphan cars. There is a desrepancy on which cars willl qualify. Could you please send me a list?
The simplest definition for an “Orphan” make, is simply that the brand of car is no longer manufactured. Examples would be Hupmobile, Packard, Studebaker, Rambler, etc.
The term is generally applied to cars and companies that were not part of the Big 3 umbrella, but this is not hard and fast, especially since so many companies are now part of the collective heritage of the few remaining automakers, through mergers. Companies in this category would include Plymouth(Orphaned by Chrysler), Oldsmobile(General Motors), or Merkur as a late-model entry from Ford. DeSoto was a Chrysler favorite that is no longer made, and there’s always Ford’s Edsel brand.
The easier list would be what is NOT an Orphan Car. If the maker of the car is still in current production, theoretically the car is at least somewhat supported by the maker, and is not an orphan. Chevy Camaro. Not made anymore, but Chevy’s still around.
So these are NOT Orphan Makes:
Ford
Mercury
Lincoln
Chrysler
Dodge
Jeep
Chevrolet
Pontiac
Buick
Cadillac
GMC
Hummer
Saturn
While these ARE:
This list is VERY far from conclusive…
Oldsmobile
Plymouth
Eagle
AMC
Rambler
Jeffery
Nash
Hudson
Willys
Kaiser
Metropolitan
Ajax
Essex
Terraplane
Studebaker
International Harvester(sort of survives as a heavy truck builder)
Packard
Franklin
Duesenburg
Stutz
Thomas
Mitchell
Tucker
Auburn
Cord
LaFayette
LaSalle(actually a Cadillac brand)
Frazer
Crosley
Hupmobile
Locomobile
Doble
Columbia
Pope
etc. Pretty much, odds are, if it’s a genuine antique that’s not big 3, Olds, Plymouth or Eagle, it’s an Orphan. Ditto if it’s some brand you’ve never heard of, yet is built and drives the same as a Big 3 car from the same period. Orphan.
I hope this helps with your organizing somewhat. Look up the AACA, Antique Automobile Club of America, and the VMCCA, Veteran Motor Car Club of America. In this case the word, “Veteran” refers to the cars themselves, this is a driving club.
Good luck, and I’ll be sure to post your event on the list at The AMC Heritage Forum,
Forum.Route66Rambler.com
-mike