VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1937-1945 were 37/38 sidemounts offered in europe only?

were these sidemounts a holden or fisher option in `37/38?

According to the parts book and other literature the 1936 was the last year for US cars to have sidemounts.
There is a 1937 M.D. 4 door in Minnesota that has side mounts and it was built at Janesville. The present owner claims that is the way the car was when purchased new and they look original.

I looked for years to find a 37-38 sidemount fender. I did find photos of stock 38s with dual sidemounts in South Africa and India both were commerical cars (taxis). I even thought about trying to make the fender from another model. The latch is almost impossible to find. That's a really rare item.

Please look around the 1:27 mark which shows a 1937 Chev cabriolet with side mounted spare tires.



This is a Chevrolet training film which I expect was produced in North America and the car is LHD (you can see the driver's hand movement in one frame). Can someone can confirm the actual plant location from the background images? From this I think there were factory sidemount Chevs produced in North America in 1937. These may all have been intended for export, but it could be possible some stayed here even if not officially offered in the US market.

I posted this photo in the members photos a few years back. 1937 Coupe with dual sidemounts taken in Rhodesia in 1953.
https://vccachat.org/ubbthreads.php/galleries/127559/1937_chevrolet_coupe_with_twin#comments

I am wondering if all 1937 convertibles were assemebled at one plant due to their limited production. In the later years all convertible bodies were made in Lansing an and shipped to the various assembly plants. If the 1937 convertibles were made at one plant I would guess it would have been at Flint due to being located near Lansing.

Gene,
The answer to your "wondering" is probably not. It would be less expensive to ship a body to an assembly plant than a whole car to a dealer. Of course that does not mean it is a 100% as the bean counters were not in as much control as they are today.

At 1:35 of Headlighter's Youtube clip, the factory is Oakland, California. Makes sense that they could be export models, being on the coast.

i know they offered 1 side mount in 1939 on the woody and delivery bodys,what about europe?
were these offered overseas?
i was sent a a couple pics of a 37 with duals, and this front end.

In 1939 the right side mount was used on wagons only. It required a special two piece hood on the right side so the hood could open without hitting the high mounted side mount.

George Dammann's Sixty Years of Chevrolet book shows a factory photo of a South American produced 1936 phaeton with dual side mounts. It may be a S. American item...

Dual side mounts were a US factory option. Not real common but there are some around.

I am the owner the the aforementioned car. I will try yo post a picture when I get to my desktop computer. While I can't confirm they are original to the car, I see nothing to the contrary to indicate otherwise.

Gene
I have never been able to find a listing for "welled" front fender in a US parts book for 1937s. Can you find a listing? I can find them in a Canadian parts book.

GM historian David Hayward, via another forum, suggests that my 37 right hand drive (RHD) Fisher bodied cabriolet originated out of Tarrytown? NY. Besides being RHD, it has the same parking lights on the fenders shown above. I have only seen those style lights on export models. My belief is my car, shipped in from New Zealand, came from Argentina, and was problably a crate-knock-down from the New York plant.

I have seen the video clip mentioned above a while back, but failed to notice what side the driver was on or if it had parking lights, but I did note the side mounts, or welled fenders, as I too have them as Gene mentioned above.

Those are from Fisher, not Holden bodies

Here is a picture of it:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/uus4lwz01orqp1m/DSCN7279.JPG



If the picture doesn't appear can someone else post it?

No problem. Click on the link and up pops the photo. Nice car.

Yep, the link works fine.

that`s an interesting pic of the `37,there would be no way to mount a tire cover
pics of the european `37 front end, has a more common mounting bracket, more of the styles you find on other GM cars IE: BUICKS, and PONTIACS.
I have a 1935 and 1936 PONTIAC both convertibles, both has more common mounting brackets that mount to the frame, then through the tire well, then the tire, leaving the tire free to use a tire cover
on PONTIACS they offered a 6th "wheel option A.K.A. dualside mounts all the way to 1940

I have never found anything in US parts books, etc. that 1937 and 1938 cars had side mounts. From 1934-1936 the knee-action cars had different knee-ation units that were designed to carry the extra weight of the side mounts Nothing is listed for the knees of 1937-1938 cars with side mounts. An indication they were not so equipped.
I have seen this 1937 in person and everything looks "factory" .
I guess this will always be a mystery.