Backfire
I enjoy the historical articles in
Hemmings Motor News, particularly
those dealing with some of the lesser-known oddities of the evolution of the
auto. David Traver Adolphus’s tale of
the Adams-Farwell revolving-cylinder
engine fit that bill fully.
However, his statement that, due to
centrifugal force, “…the cylinders would
have had an increasingly difficult time
returning from the bottom of their
stroke” bears some examination.
Since the crankshaft is fixed, the pistons (and rods) are actually describing
a circular path about the connecting
rod journal and do not reciprocate in
the same sense of a more conventional
engine arrangement. There would be
a constant centrifugal force on these
engine parts. There would be varying
forces during the induction, compression, combustion and exhaust cycles, but
these would be of a similar magnitude to
those encountered in other internal combustion engines.
Thanks for a great magazine. I always
pick it up as soon as it arrives.
Mike Kiley
San Diego, California
I read with interest your article on the
Duesenberg Model J by David LaChance.
Having just read the book Rolling
Sculpture, by Gordon Buehrig, I must
make a few corrections.
Alan Leamy did indeed work for
Auburn as a designer, but he designed
the fabulous Cord L- 29, and the 1934
Auburn, not Duesenbergs, to my knowledge. The article alludes to the fact that
Gordon designed the radiator shell.
Gordon states in his book, “The chassis:
fenders, running boards, radiator shell,
hood, headlights, taillights, bumpers,
horns, instrument panel, etc. These
items were designed by Harold Ames
and Errett Cord.”
Gordon Buehrig penned some beauti-
ful Duesenberg bodies, but also the 1935
Auburn Speedster, the Cord 810 and the
Continental Mark II, among others.
Mike Huffman
via e-mail
Concerning the recent article in the July
2009 issue about unrestored collectibles:
I was intrigued to see this on the front
cover and bought the issue with great
anticipation to read about unrestored
cars. From the outset of reading about
the cars, I was very disappointed in the
fact that the Corvette was repainted
many years ago, as was at least one of
the other cars.
They can no longer be classed as unrestored due to the fact that they no longer
have the factory paint, etc. This is somewhat misleading to the novice crowd
who are already confused about collectible cars. I have been involved in every
facet of the auto industry for 30 years
and now have two totally original cars,
a 1958 Oldsmobile and a 1970 Chevelle
SS 454 LS6, both of which have excellent
original paint; the Olds is considered by
anyone who sees it to be probably one of
the best original cars in the world.
It was featured in the local Edmonton
Journal last summer in a full-page article. Another car here in Edmonton is a
1963 Avanti that is 100 percent original
and won best of show, survivor class,
in the Powerama Show last year. I don’t
think that these cars should be featured
because I won them, but because they
are a tribute to the original owners, and
because they let the public see that really
beautiful survivor cars are out there.
If you are interested in seeing photos
or reading articles written about these
cars, contact me.
Bill Storr
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
I read with interest the letter from Jim
Kraft in the August issue regarding the
1929 Model A on the cover of your June
issue. Sorry to inform him, but the model
depicted is a beautiful 1929 Murray body
Town Sedan Fordor.
The Fordors in 1928-’ 29 had a different cowl from the other body styles and
the 1930-’ 31. As referenced by Jim Schild
in his book, Original Ford Model A, The
Restorer’s Guide, on page 18: “The Tudor,
Coupe, Roadster, and Phaeton have a distinctive vertical coupe pillar that separates the hood and cowl from the rest of
the body. The Fordor sedan has a different design that continues the lines of the
body into the hood and cowl.”
I, too, am the proud owner of a 1929
Tudor, and made the same mistake until
I learned more about the wonderful
Model A.
Tommy Scott
Pearland, Texas
Here’s my contribution to the Total Car
Recall experience (Between the Lines,
July 2009): I ordered a new 1983 Corvette
in 1982, later to learn they would be
10 HEMMINGS MOTOR NEWS • SEPTEMBER 2009
branded as 1984 models. Production had
started in late March of 1983, and mine
was on its way.
On May 11, 1983, I got a phone call from
my salesman telling me the car was in and
asking if I could pick it up that evening,
as they really didn’t want it to remain at
their facility too long and risk any damage
due to curious enthusiasts who found out a
new ’Vette was at the dealer.
May 11 was also my girlfriend’s birthday, and plans had been made to go out for
a nice dinner that evening. You can see
where this is headed...dinner didn’t happen; instead, we got the car and drove over
to other friends’ homes, etc., showing it
off. Fast forward to October 8 of that year,
and we were married. Since that time, I
have never had the occasion to forget her
birthday. May 11 will forever be associated
with getting the ’ 84.
Last year when my ownership of the car
reached 25 years, I had a cake made that
was half Happy Birthday to Lori and half
a Happy Birthday to the ’ 84, complete with
a model car on the cake! She has come to
expect this kind of thing, so no repercussions were felt.
A sad footnote to this took place when
my mother recently passed away on May
11 of this year at age 91. She died at her
townhome, where the ’ 84 was stored. That
makes three events taking place on the
single date, and some years Mother’s Day
falls on the 11th as well, so that is definitely a date that will hold significance for
years to come. And to think it all started
with the 1984 Corvette... .
A further footnote on the car: It currently
has just under 23,000 miles, has been
Bloomington Gold Certified, Survivor
Certified, NCRS Top Flight, and was the
representative for the 1984 model year on
the Historic Motorama II caravan last fall
commemorating GM’s 100th anniversary.
This June it has been invited to be on
display at the Bloomington Gold Special
Collection, which I’ve accepted. I’ve had
numerous ’Vettes since, but the 1984 has
always been one I decided to keep, and
now I’m reaping some of the rewards of
being the original owner of a “collector”
car.
I currently have a 2003 convertible and a
2005 coupe, both of which are likely to be
sold in favor of a 2010 Z06 before the government tells GM they can’t build them
anymore.
Thanks for the interesting article and
the general upgrade in Hemmings overall.
I look forward to it each month.
Wally Grivna
Shoreview, Minnesota
