I’ve seen the Antique Automobile Club of America’s (AACA) Hershey Fall Meet described as the largest automotive flea market in the world. And this is why, finding myself within striking distance of it, I decided to attend and see what it is all about.
The meet takes place in early October every year. It’s a 3 day event, Thursday through Saturday. The first couple of days are dedicated to transactions: there is a huge parts flea market, a car corral full of cars to buy, and an RM auction. The final day is mostly dedicated to a car show.
I arrived in Hershey Friday mid-afternoon. Figuring the chances of finding anything for my own cars at the flea market were slim to none, I dedicated myself to the car corral on Friday and to the car show on Saturday. My first impression was that Hershey Park is a huge venue, and it is utilized to the fullest. It is so large you really need to attend all 3 days if you want to see everything.
Strolling through the car corral I saw a huge variety of cars. Mostly American but from all eras, from Model Ts to C4 Corvettes and everything in between. A few European cars as well. Porsches, MGs, Jaguars. But very few Japanese ones.
Another thing that struck was how the attendants skewed older. Which makes sense. You need some disposable income to be able to afford a hobby like this. And almost everything there was quite original. Younger folks might prefer modified cars.
Saturday started out wet, which is typical of October in Pennsylvania. I arrived at Hershey park as the last cars were entering the show grounds. Inside, owners were busy wiping their cars down in preparation for judging. Fortunately the rain eventually stopped, making for a much better experience for everyone involved.
I had never seen so many pre-war cars together. Marques I never knew existed. I always consider it worth to attend a meet if I see at least one car I’ve never seen before. By that measure, this was an outstanding success. And there were also a lot of younger vehicles. Again, predominantly American in origin.
There were many pristine low-mile time-capsule examples as well as well-used unrestored cars. These were part of the HPOF (Historic Preservation of Original Features) class. Patina was alive and well at Hershey 2018!
I strolled through the field, taking pictures until my battery died. At 3 PM came the best part: all the cars rolled out of the field by their own means and I just watched and listened, taking it all in. Have you ever seen a steam car rolling down the street? It sounds exactly like a small train! It was very memorable.
Please find a few of my highlights below. A full picture gallery can be found here.
Arguably the star of the show was this beautiful 1938 Reo tractor and Curtiss Aerocar combination. This is late thirties streamlining at its finest. The trailer, aptly nicknamed “Vagabond”, was one of the earliest fifth-wheel trailers. The tractor was custom built by Standard Carriage Works of Los Angeles. It currently features a Cummins 6-cylinder diesel engine, fitted in 1953 after the original V12 died after more than 250K miles of use! It was really hard to photograph as, understandably, people flocked to it like bears to honey.
“It’s such a comfort to take the bus… and leave the driving to us”. It’s a 1950s GMC PD-4501 Scenic Cruiser in what I assume to be period livery. The very definition of Americana. I believe it is powered by a Detroit Diesel Series 71 2-stroke V8, but I could be wrong.
There were so many Ford Model Ts that they had multiple classes dedicated to them.
The exposed mechanicals is my favorite part of the brass-era cars. This is a late 1910s Scripps-Booth, a Detroit-based manufacturer I’ve never heard about before. It features an overhead valve 6 cylinder engine. Note the exposed pushrods, rocker arms and valve springs.
I had never seen a Checker Cab before and had no idea of how big they are. Look how huge it looks next to a W108 Mercedes S-Class. It’s crazy to think these used to be all over NYC only a few decades ago.
This 1993 Mustang Cobra was one of the youngest cars at the show, leading me to believe the cutoff was 25 years old. If I remember correctly the car had less than 400 miles on the clock. Original owner. It even has the window sticker still on it! I hope the person bought two, one to show and one to drive. Otherwise it’s a little sad…
Early 90s sports cars remind me of my childhood and are inevitably my favorites. These two were both pristine examples with very low miles (11K on the Miata and 3K on the Elan, if I remember correctly). I think the Miata’s design aged much better than the Elan’s. Do you agree?
It’s hard to believe only 20 years (give or take one or two) separate these two Fords. The changes between late 20s and late 40s cars were very large. Now picture a 1998 and a 2018 car of the same segment side by side. They wouldn’t look all that different. It’s normal, industries evolve faster in their early days.
This freshly restored and somewhat early Porsche 356 looked amazing. Makes later 356s look busy and ugly. It made me realize I really like clean, unadorned cars.
This 2nd generation 1965 Chevrolet Corvair features one of the first automobile turbocharger applications (the first one appeared in the 1962 Oldsmobile Jetfire). I find the accessory drive belt’s path super interesting. Apparently it caused a few problems back in the day.
This 2nd generation 1968 Plymouth Barracuda Fastback looked gorgeous. In my opinion these are much better looking than the more popular 3rd generation cars.
This beautiful and well-worn 1949 MG Y belonged to the HPOF (Historic Preservation of Original Features) class.
Watching and hearing cars like this 4th generation Pontiac Bonneville drive by was one of my favorite things about the meet.
I adored this 1991 Efini MS-9 for sale in the car corral. Efini was Mazda’s failed attempt at a (Japan-only) luxury brand but it produced some fine automobiles. This is the earliest example of a car with a fully integrated (blinker and main headlight in one) composite headlight I’ve ever seen. I believe the MS-9 was sold in the US as the Mazda 929. By the way, that weird looking Mitsubishi 3000GT in the background is actually a Dodge Stealth…
Also for sale was this delicious Lamborghini 400 GT 2+2. Exotic GTs are typically less appreciated than their sports cars brethren. Sometimes undeservedly so, as this car demonstrates.
This 1.1 liter, supercharged 1933 MG L-Type Roadster was full of exquisite details, like the preselect gearbox.
The first Chevrolet Corvette was crude but oh so pure…
And last but not least, we have what I believe to be a 1960 Chrysler Windsor. The excesses of the jet age… The contrast against the Fiat 124 in the background is stark.
That Art Deco ’38 REO and Aerocar fiver…FANTASTIC!!! :):) If one were a Industrial Designer…a lot of creative fun could be done “updating” that concept/LOOK. DFO
The Porsche would be from around the ’53-’55 period – it uses the one-piece “bent” windshield instead of the smoothly-curved glass that came along for 1956.
Wow, you picked out some cool things to highlight. That opening tractor and trailer combo is amazing. And I love that early OHV engine in the Scripps Booth. How interesting that all of the valve gear is in the head but the spark plugs still screw into the block.
I had never heard of Efini before, how great for someone who knew what it was to find it. How many people walked right past it with no idea what it was?
I will join you in your love for the 67-69 Barracuda – but only the fastback. To me the hardtop and convertible look like Chrysler trying to copy the 2nd generation Corvair.
Spark plugs in the block were actually fairly common in the pre-war era for ohv engines. Combustion chambers were large (due to the low compression), and it was undoubtedly easier than trying to squeeze them into the head along with the valves.
This is a Nash big six:
Agreed on the Scripps-Booth engine. It gives a certain sense of satisfaction to be able to look at something mechanical and see how it works – this pushes that, that pivots there and pushes that thing down, against that spring, and so on. But those parts must have worn fast, being exposed to all the dust and grime of travelling on unsealed roads.
Messy too. Total loss lubrication. That’s one I’d forgive not being driven much.
As a child, I discovered the Lamborghini 350/400 GT through car magazine pictures when they were still new and seemed very exotic, even compared with contemporary Ferrari’s. Something about the headlights, and that arcing roofline really appealed to me. I called them “Lamborjeenies” for quite a while, until I was finally corrected. I hadn’t seen a picture of one … let alone in the metal … for a long time, and it still looks really good to me. Thanks for sharing!
LamborGenie – that sounds like something from The Transformers Meet Aladdan. 🙂
Actually, fifth wheel trailers were not uncommon going back to the 1920s. There were a number of them, many custom or homebuilt, that were attached to the back of the many large cars back then. Roadsters, with their expansive rear area, were practically like pickups, and were ideal for 5th wheel tow vehicles.
That REO tow vehicle and its trailer are spectacular. In the late 30s, there were numerous custom built vehicles that were highly streamlined and with unorthodox configuration. I suspect its design was likely influenced by the famous “Jungle Yacht” (below) designed and built by Designed by Count Alexis de Sakhnoffsky for Commander Atillio Gatti to be used in his African explorations. The motive power was provided by 1937 International trucks. They were used to make lots of newsreel movies and received widespread publicity. But this REO rig takes that even one step further.
I’ve seen the REO at the old Petersen in LA couple of times, I guess it’s still part of the collection. If memory serves, it was built for the owner of Forest Lawn Memorial Park.
CC fave Brooks Stevens also got into the fifth wheel act, with this Zephyr Land Yacht, built for a Milwaukee man of leisure named Plankington in 1938. Very similar to the REO – the trailer is a modified Curtis Aerocar.
Wow… that W108 Mercedes and that gray A-Body Barracuda are calling my name!
BTW- some folks may notice I’ve been most conspicuous by my absence these past several months. Unfortunately, my dad suffered a stroke last December and most of my free time has been caring for him and my mom.
Also- some weird technical glitch has me completely locked out of CC, or any other WordPress powered site, on my home computer. I can’t log in, I can’t submit articles, I can’t even comment on others’ posts. And I have no idea how to fix it.
I’m currently writing this on my phone. If I can figure put what’s wrong, I’ve got lots of good stuff coming, with literally hundreds of pictures in the can. If not- well, it was nice knowing everybody :'( .
Sorry to hear of the troubles Chris, best wishes
Beautiful photos. The lower sun in the Fall, with less washed out colours compared to summer photography, really highlights the cars. Nice contrast added with the dark mottled clouds.
The Reo tractor and trailer is gorgeous. I found automotive designers in the 1930s often managed to quite successfully convey aviation themes in their shapes. The upward cant of the cab, the airplane-like windshield design, and overall fuselage shape, are very reminiscent of the tail dragger airliners of that era. Generally, I found various car designs of the 50s for example, didn’t convey the jet age as successfully as many of these 30s shapes managed to reflect then current aircraft design.
Here’s some additional pictures of the 1938 REO tractor and Curtis’s Aerocar trailer.
https://www.google.com/search?q=1938+reo+tractor+and+curtiss+trailer&oq=1938+reo+tractor+and+curtiss+trailer&aqs=chrome..69i57.26066j0j8&client=tablet-android-alco&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8
The REO tractor–does anyone know more about the original V-12? Gas or diesel?
See above link. Lots more info, it was in the Peterson Auto museum and was just reconditioned mechanically to be driven to this 2018 Hershey meet.
A 212hp pancake White gas engine.
White actually made a couple of different flat-12’s from the 30’s up into the late 40’s. I believe that Reo used one of the later versions common in White transit coaches. White transits were common in Los Angeles before the GM diesels became popular.
That Reo equipage is hard not to gape at. Attach large Zeppelin on top for travels overseas. Even if it was just model for kids, which the exaggerated proportions of the tractor resemble, it would be considered a very high-style, valuable deco toy. Being full sized, there wouldn’t be a deco collector unwilling to part with a large sum for it if they were able.
The Miata has aged gracefully, though arguably not as timelessly as the original Lotus Elan from which it took many cues. The new Elan never looked right from the first, seeming almost as wide as it was long. I vaguely recall stories of a production snafu with these, wherein the presses were wrongly dimensioned or drawings misunderstood or somesuch, but the perpetually cash-strapped company did not have the resources to fix it. Possibly urban myth, ofcourse. The cars themselves got very good reviews on their release.
Really fine photos you’ve taken here.
The patterned, fabric covered spark plug cables on the 1910s Scripps-Booth, remind me of the outdoor Christmas light strings my dad kept from the 1940s and 50s. The wiring appearing to be covered in a woven, weatherproof fabric-like material. Rather than the rubber/plastics we are familiar with.
I think fabric covered over a rubber core. Some house wires were made this way as well.
Thank you, that’s what I figured, to insulate the wiring. I recall the Christmas lighting appeared to have a semi-glossy surface that further weatherproofed it.
I remember that wiring. In time the rubber disintegrated and you had all these weird shorts. When I was growing up the wiring in our twenties apartment block was condemned, but only fixed thirty years later, under a new owner…..
Thank you all for your knowledgeable and kind comments!
Anyone else notice what looks to be an electric starter on the Scripps-Booth? I thought the first electric starter was on a 1912 Cadillac. Could the Scripps car be newer than 1910?
According to the show’s listing, it is a 1918 Scripps-Booth 34 – S.
Couple of thoughts on your excellent article. And, you’ve got one over on me. Despite having originally joined the AACA back in 1968, I’ve yet to make a Hershey show. Unfortunately, October is the busy month for 17th century reenactment, and I never have an open weekend that month.
First off, the AACA is the original American antique car club, and back in the 50’s and 60’s was the ONLY American antique car club that mattered. Obviously, times have changed, but this is the outfit that I grew up with, and set a lot of my car show attitudes (as has been painfully obvious over the years).
There is a 25 year limit on cars allowed to be showed, and we’re talking original, original, original. Take your hot rods and resto-rod crap and show it elsewhere.
Now, there is one big exception to that rule: Antique hot rods. If it’s a documentable hot rod from years earlier (not sure if just 25 years, but I have a feeling it takes longer in this class) that has been restored to it’s modified, documentable (as in, hot rod magazine, rock and roll album cover, etc.) ‘originality’ there is a class for it. But only for the cars that were done back in whatever period the AACA wishes to cover. No modern hot rods done in period fashion. Yes, even the curmudgeons in the AACA finally started acknowledging that those historical hot rods were as much a part of automotive history as the production cars.
Yes, the crowd is older here. First off, because the usual rule of ‘what was cool in your high school days is what you want to restore’ isn’t just a modern concept. Back in 1968 when I joined the Flood City Chapter, I was by far the youngest member, most of the guys in in were my dad’s age. And I was also odd in that I was turned on by 25-30 year old cars, not the current stuff. And it takes an old guy (seemingly) to want to mess with something like a pre-WWI Scripps Booth. I’ve got a bad feeling that within the next thirty years all those pre-Twenties cars are going to be limited to stationary displays.
Scripps-Booth was one of the more important pre-WWI automakers in the US. By 1916 they had been purchased by Chevrolet, and therefore became part of General Motors, only to be discontinued as a brand by 1923. There are a few 1915-1918 Scripps-Booth models that are accepted by the Vintage Chevrolet Club of America, for showing at Chevrolet shows.
Funny, other than the ’38 REO tractor – Curtiss Aerocar, none of the other cars shown warranted more than a passing glance for me. Just goes to show Hershey displays something for every automotive taste.
That’s OK, not everyone likes the same things. Feel free to browse the linked gallery, you might find something you like better there.
Wow, that Corvair! Just, wow! That sums up my review of the Corvair.
I wonder who’s going to be interested in Hershey in 20 years? (I’m an old guy myself). A low mileage Miata. These are low to medium-priced cars who sole purpose is being fun to drive.