VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1933-1936 1935 Chevy Cabriolet Roadster

Hi,

I am a new member to VCCA.

This is my first post.

I am the owner of a 1935 Chevy Roadster in original unrestored condition. Manufactured in Canada with all numbers matching.

The car has been stored inside since the 70's. It is in need of restoration, however, everything is in tact.

I am going to restore to original condition.

Just wondering if anyone has any knowledge of this particular car or how many of these cars are out there.

Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Hey Paper! Welcome to the VCCA. I hope you're planning on signing up for the club as well, and sharing your story with us. I believe there were 50 roadsters built in Canada for 1935. There were an additional 1176 built in the USA as well. Quite a rare car. Did you find it in Ontario or Saskatchewan?

Hi,
Thank you!

The car is from Saskatchewan.

My father is apparently the 2nd owner...maybe the 3rd. My mother wasn't too sure, as the man he got it from won it in a contest. The car was from BC originally as was the contest.

If it's the car I'm thinking of it may be #50 of the 50 built. I had a phone call from someone interested in it a few years back and was looking for info on '35s. We had a thread on here about it. It turned out it wasn't for sale. I'm assuming you're the family that wanted to keep it? Great call, if it's the car I'm thinking of!

Is this it?

Just saw your name in the on-line roster! Woo Hoo!!! Another Canadian member!!

Yes, that is the shop and my dad's car (now my car)

It is a little worse for wear as he is now in the nursing home these past 4-5 years.

You'll learn a lot from Mike Lynch on this site... He'll be along soon. He can smell talk about '35 roadsters!

PAPER, I have a picture of the firewall plate from your fathers car, yes its the last left hand drive roadster STANDARD SERIES EC , off the line for domestic sales , yours is #50 as the tag says on the firewall.

I have that same picture from Raisin River sask, from a person locally to you who was looking at purchasing it, along with a friend of mine from Stoney Creek Ontario.

GM Canada Chevrolet made 50 LHD for domestic sales orders and 4 RHD for export, they also made 9 LHD for export and a further 24 RHD for export.

the Chevrolet model designation for this car is 12-46 it is NOT a fisher built body, the body was supplied to Chevrolet by Hercules-Campbell an outside supplier. The car came with a rumble seat only, no trunk.

Only difference between a 1934 roadster and a 35 roadster is the motor and the frame, with the 35 frame being equipped with an X member and much stronger. Other item is the radiator ornament is different.

The car has issues with the front and rear fenders needing quality metalwork repairs, Best to go to a proper restoration shop to have those repairs done correctly. Regular body shops are not equipped to do the repairs properly.


I am also re-doing a 35 Chevrolet roadster that came from argentina as a right hand drive.

Differences between a roadster and a convertible/cabriolet.

A roadster has side curtains with plastic or glass sewn into the cloth and they are installed using rods that go into rod pockets on top of the doors. A roadster windshield swings open.

A cabriolet/convertible has a fixed windshield and does not open and the doors have windows that roll up and down like a regular car. This body was made by GM FISHER. The cabriolet was not made in 1935 in a *standard series *


mike lynch........whitby Ontario Canada

Cabriolets weren't made anywhere in N. America in 1935, Standard or Master. They returned as Standards in 1936.

Do you know how many are remaining.

GM Vintage indicated to me that this car was the #50 of #50 made in Canada in 1935.

You probably spoke to George. At vintage Vehicle services Canada

Like I said its the *last left hand drive roadster* #50 made in Canada FOR DOMESTIC SALES. Only 50 were produced.


They also produced and exported the right hand drive models

How many of the 50 built in 1935 for sale here remain......
who knows, nobody . lots of cars are held in private collections and un -accounted for.

mike

George is who I spoke to.

The serial number indicates #50, so the last off the line.

My father always said it was rare.

The restoration is sentimental and the company I am using is highly recommended. They will strip to the bolts and reassemble.

Paper.....not to confuse you.....it is body serial # 50 of the total of 99 cars produced at Oshawa Ontario. The other 49 were left and right hand drive and built for "export" to areas around the world . total of 99 roadsters built.

Your car serial #50 was the fiftieth body made of the total of 99 produced that year. Seeing as how only 50 were sold in Canada that would make your car the last car built for Canada sales

Your wallet is about to take a beating and the cost of actually restoring the car will far exceed the selling price you could obtain. Sales on ebay over the last 4 years of roadsters is in around the $30--$45,000 range . The joy is in ownership and driving the vehicle.

mike lynch

Mike, your numbers indicate that all of the cars built for domestic sales were built first, then the exports were built after. Is this known to be true, or could the exports have been built within the total production... i.e.) it's just coincidence that he's got body # 50 of the total 99 cars produced. Is there any chance that car # 79 was a left hand domestic sale? Also, the numbers you list above only add up to 87 cars...

here is exactly how production of the 1935 Chevrolet standard series ec roadster appear on the production sheet I have.

model.....................................LHD.....export RHD
12-46 4 pass reg road with R.seat--(domestic ) 50.......4
12-46XL 4 pass reg road with R.seat ---Export 9.......24
12-56XL 4 pass reg road with R.seat ---export 0.......12


adding up the numbers its :
domestic 50 , export 49 ( 40 RHD and 9 LHD ) total 99

the order of how the cars were built is unknown and it has to be assumed the exact serial numbers would be amongst the total of the standard series produced in 1935 :

domestic....................4874
export LHD.................. 138
export RHD.................. 448

total production Chevrolet Oshawa...5460 standard series

is it co-incidence that the ladies roadster body #50 is the last roadster built, see if I can find the picture of that firewall build plate I have

I was in GM of Canada Vintage Vehicle Services offices in Oshawa and they had stored and on display the actual firewall stamping machine that was used to make them. Franks office moved to another building and no idea of what happened to the machine.


mike lynch

the roadster in question, this is the details of that firewall plate ;

1935 MODEL 1246
serial number 512464462
engine number 5218258 body serial 50
trim 153 paint 512

serial number breaks down as 5 for the year, 1246 for the model , 4462 for 4,462 car down the line of the 5460 built

mike lynch...............

What's the difference between a 12-46XL and a 12-56XL ?

Brewster..........a 12-46 is a 4 passenger roadster , 12-56 is a 5 passenger standard series phaeton add the XL to it and its an export car 12-46XL or 12-56XL which could be LHD or RHD

we produced 3 LHD for domestic sales, 42 LHD for EXPORT AND 139 RHD for EXPORT

the 12-56 is a Chevrolet internal model number , not to be confused with a FISHER JOB number, which the open cars roadster and phaeton were not made by fisher

mike lynch

Great reading post. Thank you.

Maybe it is just my eyes but the instruments appear to be black with white lettering which indicates a 1934 standard. Have they been changed?

Firewall body tag that I have a picture of clearly shows it as a 35.

After 81 years since its build, I think your right and somebody previously changed the gauges, happens all the time.

Its too far up the serial number to say its an early 35.

mike lynch

Where did the photo come from?

I am from the family, another sibling decided not to purchase the car, I was next in line and decided to purchase.

The quote I received is substantial, but I am looking forward to doing this because it was my father's car and has been in the family for so many years.

Thank you for all of this information Mike.

You have obviously been researching for some time.

GM never mentioned there were another 49 manufactured for export.

What would the 1935 instruments look like?

The original owner won the car from a contest in BC, then took it to the Pasquia Hills. He was a farmer, I met him and he was pretty much a hillbilly. My dad had a Gulf Oil bulk plant and he traded him a tank of fuel for the car. Mom can't remember, but she said dad either traded a tank of fuel for the car or a truck. Or if the tank of fuel was for the 45 Colt Pistol trade with the same man or a truck. On of the two was used for the trade.


Dad wouldn't changed anything, and I can't imagine Don doing something like that either.

So are you going to do a factory correct restoration, or a restoration of the car as your Dad owned it. It's got a couple of incorrect "extras", like the hood emblems from a late '30's truck and the trunk ornament from a late '40's sedan. You keeping them, or filling the holes and taking it back to factory?