A2

Bill Shark
Car Story

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The mystery car rusting away in a field near Antigonish, Nova Scotia, and featured in this column last month, has been positively identified as a 1929 Hudson Model R Standard sedan. Ted Fox of Brighton, Michigan, owns a restored example of this model, and he supplied the photo you see here to show us what the old car in the field looked like when it was new.

Enlarge Photo

This restored 1929 Hudson Model R Standard sedan is owned by Ted Fox of Michigan.

The mystery car prompted several e-mails and letters. Guesses ranged from a 1926 Wills Sainte Claire to a 1934 Chrysler, with a 1929 Essex coming closest without hitting the bull's eye (the Essex was built by Hudson.) The design of the engine was at first a source of confusion, and prompted Yours Truly to suggest the car might be a McLaughlin-Buick because those cars always had overhead valve engines, and the old car in the field appeared to have one. That guess was only half right. The 1929 Hudson has an F-head engine, which has intake valves in the head and exhaust valves in the block.

The double row of louvers on the side panels of the hood is another clue to the car's identity. So also is the design of the front and rear bumpers, which are spread slightly apart in the middle.

The pine cone design on the instrument panel and the inside door handles and window cranks was used by Hudson in 1929 on its regular production models, of which our feature car is an example. Custom bodied Hudsons were fancier and used a rose design. The four front-opening "suicide doors" with piano-style hinges are a feature of the 1929 Hudson Model R Standard sedan, and this also is a feature of the car in the field. The Model R Town sedan has front doors hinged at the front.

The Hudson Motor Car Company was formed exactly 100 years ago, with the first production Hudson completed on July 3, 1909. The car was named for Detroit department store magnate J. L. Hudson, who put up most of the money to get the company started. The Hudson was a proud marque for nearly 50 years, and the last Hudson was built at the end of the 1957 model year, a casualty of competition from the Big Three.

n As a thank you, if your story is published in this column you will receive a copy of Bill Sherk's book "60 Years Behind the Wheel: The Cars We Drove in Canada 1900-1960". To share your stories or photos e-mail billtsherk@sympatico.ca or write Bill Sherk, 25 John St., P.O. Box 255, Leamington, ON N8H 3W2.