Beschreibung:

419ci DOHC Inline 8-cylinder Engine Single Stromberg Downdraft Carburetor 265bhp at 4,200 rpm 3-Speed Manual Transmission 4-Wheel Hydraulic Drum Brakes *Original chassis, engine, firewall, and body *A particularly handsome, one-off Rollston design, with elaborate trim details *Formerly owned by early Duesenberg enthusiasts Allen Thurn and Homer Fitterling *Part of the collection since 1996 *Classic Car Club of America (CCCA) Full Classic THE MODEL J DUESENBERG Few names in motoring are as redolent of wealth and power as Duesenberg. The ground-breaking company advertising placed in up-market periodicals for the Model J was one of the first campaigns that deliberately did not show the product. A series of soft charcoal drawings portrayed a man in evening dress, seated in front of the fire in a great hall with a minstrels' gallery dominated by a huge pipe organ, or the silver-haired skipper of an America's Cup-type yacht, above a single line of script: "He drives a Duesenberg". Women drivers were not forgotten: under the portrait of an elegant lady giving directions to her head gardener, "She drives a Duesenberg" said it all, eloquently underscoring a scene where one could perceive an additional four gardeners in the distance, tending the immaculate grounds. America took the new model to its heart and a new superlative was added to the language: to this day the phrase "It's a Doozy" is a universal term of ultimate approval, just as the Model J has become the ultimate collectors' automobile. Duesenberg unveiled its Model J – the embodiment of company owner E.L. Cord and chief engineer Fred Duesenberg's vision of "The World's Finest Motor Car" – at the New York Auto Salon in December 1928. Among its remarkable features was a twin-cam race-bred engine – a purpose-built 32-valve Lycoming 420ci straight-eight said to develop 265 bhp. With light bodywork, such as a Murphy roadster, it was possible to achieve 90 mph in second gear with a maximum speed in the region of 110 mph in high gear. Ride and handling were exceptional for the period, matched by 15 inch hydraulic brakes all around. Every chassis built was tested for 500 miles on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway before being handed over to a leading coachbuilder for the construction of custom bodywork. Though they were built during the Great Depression and cost more than a Rolls-Royce or a Hispano-Suiza, the Model J Duesenberg had no problems attracting customers in the beginning. Among the rich and famous who drove Duesenbergs were film stars Greta Garbo Al Jolson, Gary Cooper, Clark Gable and Dolores del Rio, whose husband Cedric Gibbons famed film art director and creator of the "Oscar" statuette, was also a keen Duesenberg owner. Millionaires like William Randolph Hearst, Phillip K. Wrigley and Howard Hughes, as well as royalty like King Alfonso XIII of Spain, Queen Marie of Yugoslavia, King Vittorio Emmanuel III of Italy and Prince Nicholas of Romania were all members of the exclusive Duesenberg set: in the end, fewer than 500 Model J's were built. THE MOTORCAR OFFERED The berline produced by famed New York coachbuilder Rollston on the elite Duesenberg Model J chassis was featured in Duesenberg's catalogues for 1931 and 1933, priced at a remarkable $16,000 in the latter year. Over the years several variations on the design were produced, including a pair of Ladies Berlines with storage for cosmetics and accoutrements in the rear compartment, one of which was reportedly delivered to Elizabeth Arden. Another, one-off berline variation was the car shown here, the Prince of Wales, constructed on chassis number 2575 for a customer in Los Angeles whose name has been lost; according to notes in the file from the ACD Automobile Museum, it may have been air mail pioneer and serial Duesenberg customer, Walter Varney. Fortunately, factory photographs of the car survive, showing it as it appeared when first delivered. Interestingly, like several very late Rollston Model Js, the car adopte