VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1937-1945 Side mount spares on a 1937 coupe

Hi all,

I just had a picture emailed to me of a 1937 fisher body sports coupe with front fender mounted spares. Dickie seat, front external sunvisor , rear fender streamliners.

Picture is in 1953.(first Car picture)
How common was this?
My 1937 fisher body catalog shows sport coupe with rear
mounted spare.

I could email the picture to someone to post for all to see.
Good interest photo.

Thanks Jack

No fender mounted spare tire fenders are listed in the parts book (US) for 1937. I have seen a sedan here in the US with then though. No Chevrolet literature shows them but I have seen pictures of European cars with them.
The Sport Coupe (rumble seat or dickie seat) coupes are few and far between. Was only available in the Master Deluxe series in the US,,,have seen "foriegn" Master (straight axle) cars with the rumble seat
The external visors were not available in the US till after WW II
The streamliners (skirts) were never common but you find more restored cars now with them.
Would be intrested in seeing the picture.....see my profile for address.

Thanks Gene,
Has fwded the email to you,

The car and owner are/where in Western Autralia.

It is a very unusual find as they were not sold here, as holden" were producing sloper Coupes here, It is certainly a 1937 Fisher
body coupe though.

It wasn't common on Fisher bodies but there were several other body makers for 37 Chevys.

All the Cantrell station wagons have side mounts. Campbell had it on the tailgate with disastrous results.


Here's a photo of a coupe with a side mount.


It is not possible to open the hood on a Fisher 37 with a side mount unless a hinge is added. I've only seen one Sedan Delivery with a side mount on the right. The owner said it was impossible to check the water and oil. Many scratches on the hood (bonnet) proved he tried.

I have an unrestored Martin-Parry with a left side mount. Fitzjohn carried the spare on the roof. My Flxible has it under the luggage compartment. Really hard to access.

Thanks Lou,
Have emailed you the photo.

Have just been in contact with the person who sent me the photo.

He has informed me that he Grew up in Rhodesia, and that he bought the car in 1953, may have been first registered there in 1939 and thought it was a 1939 model till i told him it was a 1937

He said it had twin side mounts, also had the twin tiny seats behind the driver. It was RHD , he couldn't remember if it had Knee action or I Beam.
Thanks Jack

The 1937 US rumble seat coupe would have had a spare tire exposed on the rear panel. The little interior seats were not availble.....there would have been no room for them as the leg room space for the rumble seat passengers would have used that area. He amy be thinking of a 1939 chev coupe or some other 1937-38 GM car. The rear fender skirts are GM. Can't tell for sure if it had knee-action but the way the front ends hangs I would guess that it did. If you notice the side mount wheels on the different cars sit at different heights in relation to the top of thee hood. I would suspect that these were adapted later at a non-US factory.

Gene

Any chance this is the sedan you saw? I bought it in MN from a local car club member. The car was made in Janesville, WI. You are correct that no US parts book shows welled fenders. However, a 1937-1946 Canadian parts book shows them as group 8.130 part numbers 602638 for right and 602637 for left.

The previous owner didn't have the mental capacity to remember its history and is now deceased. I also called another possible owner's family, from a business card I found, he too was deceased and the sons/brother/wife had no knowledge of the car. How the fenders got from Candada to WI is a mystery.

I have seen pics of cars in Australia with front sidemounts, and I think they were referred to as "Opera" coupes or sedans. Don't recall if they were on one side or both. I have also seen on Ebay a commercial vehicle similar to the picture Lou posted with the spare on front left fender.

You can open the hood without scratching it, BUT it takes a bit of extra effort and attention. You have to force it a bit to "flex" the hood to slide it past the mounting brackets.

Greg

Greg,
Thats the car I saw. I believe it was at the Middle West Meet in Iowa City a few years ago. I may have spoken to you briefy at that time. Bill Dirnberger and I did discuss the car.
My guess is that the fenders were installed later by the dealer or owner. It sure makes for a unique car.
I wonder if or how many Canadian cars had side mounts or if they were more or less for the cars they exported.

In 1934,1935 and 1936 the Masters that had side mounts had stronger springs in the knees. They can be identified externally from the outside. The knee with the standard load spring has a top (round) cover that is 2 1/16" high. The knee with the stronger spring has a 2 23/32" cover.

What a "sweet" looking 37 sedan. I like the 37 Cantrell Woody even better that Lou posted a month or so ago. (I don't remember seeing it back in Sept when Lou originally posted it.) Two very sharp looking cars to my eye. I'd be willing to change my name to 37Bill if....

Gene/Bill

You would have had to seen it much prior to 2002 when I bought it, and it had sat for a several years. Can anyone check VCCA member records to see if Ed Dudley of LeCenter, MN was ever a member?

I have only the 2006 VCCA Directory at my fingertips --- Ed Dudley / Minn is NOT listed. He may be listed in a previous every-five-years directory; but he is not listed in the 2006 Directory. :( :( :(

I couldn't find the name going back to 1976-although I am missing some rosters.

The 37-46 Candian parts book also shows different knee action units for "rear carrier jobs with heavy springs and fender well jobs. Not sure what rear carrier units are.

I have not compared my 2 GA master deluxe cars to measure the knee action caps you mention, but the parts book also shows different part numbers for the caps. Also show different part numers for the springs inside the unit