Set of 12 automotive illustrations by the artist James B. Deneen
Special folio issue of the 12 prints that were also pictured in the Thompson Ramo Wooldridge, Inc. calendar for 1980. This year's calendar pictures 12 cars from the collections of six of the best known automobile museums in the world:
- Harrah's, Reno, Nevada;
- The Henry Ford Museum, Dearborn, Michigan;
- The National Motor Museum, Beaulieu, UK;
- Daimler-Benz, Stuttgart, Germany;
- Merle Norman Museum, San Sylmar, California;
- The Crawford Museum, Cleveland, Ohio.
1.
1930 Bentley
This 1930 Bentley 4½ litre Supercharged, generally known as a 'Blower Bentley', is a prime example of vintage British sports cars.
It is a replica of the short chassis supercharged Birkin Paget team cars which took second place in the 1930 French Grand Prix. Only 662 4½'s were built and only 50 were supercharged in order to qualify for the LeMans race. This car was capable of going 125 mph and could reach 60 mph in first gear. Ironically, a large part of the blame for the financial failure of the Bentley Company was attributed to the expensive production runs for the supercharged models.
2.
1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR
The success of the 300 SLR racers in 1955 confirmed the absolute superiority of the Mercedes Benz designs. The 300 SLR went to start six times on the Grand Prix circuit and brought home five victories. It was leading the sixth race - at LeMans - when withdrawn. Only 10 SLRs were made, of which two crashed. Those cars accounted for 10 first and second places, and three third and fourth place finishes. The 8 cylinder, fuel injected engine could reach a top speed of 175 mph. At the end of 1955, Mercedes Benz withdrew from competition to produce the designs proven by racing.
3.
1907 Thomas
This 1907 Thomas won the famous New York to Paris Around the World race in 1908. Only slight body and fender modifications were made on the runabout to accommodate extra equipment. The Thomas traveled some 22,000 miles in 170 days (about 8,500 miles by ship) to win the race. It was one of few participants that followed the official route. When acquired by Harrah's Automobile Collection in 1964, the car was carefully restored with the help of George Schuster, driver of the Thomas and the only crew member to go the entire distance. The Thomas New York to Paris racer is displayed as it appeared upon arrival in Paris, July 30, 1908.
4.
1933 Pierce Arrow
Many families purchase automobiles of only one manufacturer. In the 1930s, the Adamsons were such a family, and their loyalty was to Pierce Arrow. This 7 passenger touring car was ordered by the Adamson family in 1933. It has a factory body with front windows that roll up and down. All other enclosure is by side curtain. This car remained on the books of the family business, Adohr Milk Farms until 1943. The Nethercutts purchased this Pierce in 1957 from a Los Angeles wrecking yard and restored it to mint condition. It is one of the original cars in the collection.
5.
1933 Duesenberg 'SJ' Speedster
This boat tail speedster, built by Weymann to a design of Gordon Buehrig, was one of only 36 SJ models produced by Duesenberg. It was owned by George Whittell of Woodside, California, along with five J model Duesenbergs. An honorary fire marshall, Mr. Whittell had a siren and red light specially installed, although he rarely drove the SJ because its striking appearance attracted so much attention. When the car was acquired by Harrah's Automobile Collection, the odometer registered only 1,432 miles and the car still had its original tires, paint and upholstery.
6.
1926 Chandler
Although its cars were handsome, popular and moderately priced, the Chandler Motor Car Company remained in business only 17 years. This 1926 Chandler 'Comrade Roadster' had a six-cylinder, 55 hp Pike's Peak motor, with a three-louvered radiator, spare tire and wheel combination, and a special golf club door. It is the first model with synchromesh transmission. When restored by the Crawford Auto-Aviation Museum, a complete set of tools was discovered in the car's kick panels. To make the restoration complete, Mrs. Fred Chandler, Jr., donated her husband's golf clubs, which now rest comfortably beneath the rumble seat.
7.
1896 Quadricycle
Henry Ford's first gasoline-powered auto, took two years of experimentation in his garage. Finished in 1896, Quadricycle ran on 4 bicycle tires.
8.
1901 Packard
The Packard brothers of Warren, Ohio, bought a Winton in 1898 and decided they could build a better one. The result was a one cylinder 12 hp vehicle that was indeed a better car. Under the slogan, 'Ask the man who owns one', the excellent reputation enjoyed by Packard automobiles remained until the company went out of business in 1958. This model was the first American production automobile with a steering wheel and the first in the world with automatic spark advance. This vehicle is believed to be the fourth oldest Packard in existence.
9.
1902 '999' Racer
In 1902 Henry Ford built his '999' racer, naming it after a locomotive that set a long-standing speed record at the turn of the century. Famous early driver Barney Oldfield won his first race in the '999', and lowered the one mile speed record on five different occasions with it. The '999' contained one of the largest 4-cylinder engines ever built; however, it had no transmission and the clutch was simply wooden blocks which expanded against the inside rim of the flywheel. In 1904, Henry Ford set out to beat Barneys record He drove the '999' on the ice of Lake St. Clair near Detroit at a top speed of 91.4 mph completing the mile in 39 2/5 seconds for a new record.
10.
1909 Rolls Royce
Ross Royce has long had the reputation for producing some of the best cars in the world. One of those contributing to that reputation was the 1909 'Silver Ghost', so called because of its smooth and quiet ride. This automobile is an earlier version of the Ghost with a four-speed gearbox including an overdrive to permit a cruising speed of over 60 mph. However, the overdrive created an unpleasant whine, and the company abandoned it in favor of an ordinary three speed gearbox in 1910. The 'Ghost' was so well received that the company embarked on a one model policy which it did not reverse until 1922.
11.
1911 Blitzen Benz
From 1909 to 1912, Barney Oldfield and Bob Burman set 23 US and world records in the famous Blitzen Benz racers. The first Blitzen Benz, driven by Barney Oldfield, broke a four year old record for the mile in 1910, making the car the premier attraction of a worldwide tour. Oldfield sold the car in 1910 and Bob Burman became its driver. He had another Blitzen Benz made in 1911 with an additional 100 hp in the engine. This car pushed the worlds record to 141.73 mph for the mile, and set kilometer and two mile records at Daytona Beach, Florida in 1911. That mile record was not broken until 1924.
12.
1940 Cadillac
By 1940, the era of the V-16 engine was virtually over. Cadillac still produced the V-16 with a custom body upon order. The last Cadillac V-16 and also the last custom body, which was built by Derham, was purchased by Mr. H. G. Haskell, a vice president of the duPont Company in Wilmington, Delaware. His automobile was a one-of-a-kind, five-passenger fastback coupe with a leather top. At the time it cost about $10,000. The car was acquired and completely restored by the Nethercutt shops during 1970 and 1971.