Family Owned Since New: 1933 Essex Terraplane
Having spent it’s entire life with the same family, this 1933 Essex Terraplane is looking for a new home. Garaged since 1947, it looks like this Terraplane has lived a fairly pampered life. Although this Essex hasn’t been regularly driven since 1968, the seller did get the car running as recent as 2013. Appearing like a rock solid project, the seller is accepting offers on this fine machine. Be sure to check it out here on craigslist out of Sutter Creek, California. Thanks to Nevadahalfrack for sharing this beautiful family heirloom!
Certainly appearing original and mostly untouched, the inline 8 appears to be complete minus the air cleaner. There are a few extra wires dangling around the engine bay, but nothing else looks out of place. I cannot tell if there is light over spray along the edge of the engine compartment, or if it just happens to be the way that the dust and dirt collected in the engine compartment. After being parked in 1968, this inline 8 was revived in 2013. So hopefully after just a few more years the engine still has some pep to offer.
Although the interior is not perfect, it is hard to complain considering the age of this Terraplane. It is abundantly clear that this Essex has been well cared for, and out of sunlight. While there is some warping to the door panels, there may still be some hope to sort them out. The upholstery is still in place with some obvious wear, but overall is in good enough shape for a survivor grade machine. The headliner on the other hand is tattered and hanging to which it will need to be removed, or replaced.
Dusty but not so rusty, the exterior looks very solid on this Essex. There is no evidence of rot, and there is a lot of paint still covering the body work. There is a headlight that looks to have been misplaced, as well as some hardware for the driver side spare tire mount. From what I can see the glass looks to be in good shape, and is still equipped with weather stripping. I would assume, and hope, that any missing parts are still nearby since this car has spent its entire life with the same family. Would you make an offer on this Family Heirloom?
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Comments
Won’t find many with this provenance for sure…..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nlcv-tfwnho
I think they are going to have it for a while . They think it is worth a million dollars because it is “One Family Owned ‘ . Why not just set a price and go from there, There are price guides It is a nice original car though..
Mustang next to it?? Hmmm…looks like a great garage to explore.
Neat car. From what I read online about the Terraplanes, the 8-cylinder engine was only available in 1933…and it was one of the fastest cars of the era. John Dillinger drove one.
Hope this one gets restored.
My granddad drove one of these for many
years. He bought one brand new in 1935
when he started work at Wattlington radiator works in Bloomington, Illinois. From the pictures I’ve seen, it looked to be a DeLuxe model that had all the bells and whistles on it. Mom told me that he drove it ’till 1949, when he traded it in for a brand new Commadore sedan. My earliest momories of him centered around a ’52 Hornet 4-door he used to take me for rides in when my grandparents came to visit us. It must’ve
broke Grandpa’s heart when he learned
that Hudson had gone belly up in ’57.
After that, he drove a ’58 Ford eagon and
switched to GM products in 1960 when he bought a new Impala wagon, and died
in 1973 owning a gorgeous ’65 Buick Wildcat 4-door HT. Don’t know what happened to that car, but it sure looked
nice. Great find! Hadn’t seen one in mamy years.
The $1 starting price screams for a lowball, but the I’ll keep it another 40years ‘threat’ ruins any reasonable negotiation efforts. These folks are going to learn fast that cars from this era are not that desirable. Rare does not beget value.
@ On and On
.
. You nailed it !
Ones emotional attachment to a car only adds value to you, not the marketplace. Sad, but true.
Among Hudson folk, this is considered one of the rarest of the rare. It is true the the Essex Terraplane 8 was offered for one year only in 1933 and after that is was a 6 cyl only car until Terraplanes were discontinued by Hudson in 1938.VERY rare. Only one is rarer. The convertible model. I really wish the guy had posted a price.This kind of non pricing drives people away. The reality is that prewar sedans aren’t going to bring a lot of money and he may not know that.
And it has dual sidemounts– a rare option.
Brian, looking at the photos again I think the missing headlight is in a box in the back seat, along with the wheel cover and something else I can’t figure out.
Yup, headlight, covers for the sidemount spares and no doubt other goodies.
Agree with above comments on its real and perceived value.
Well we all have our ideas as to what is valuable or not, there are guidelines for valuation, yet one persons gold is another persons lead. Let the market stand, and the buyer be pleased.
God bless America