Stephen Pellegrino (Poindexter) posted this at the Cohort with the following comment: “Mystery Car: I don’t know what this is”. Maybe some of you can help him out.
Cohort Pic(k) of the Day: The Mystery Car
– Posted on September 30, 2020
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Curbside Classics Archives
Old car brochures skips a few years for these, but this grille appears related to / inspired by the ’39 Ford pickup line. The shape isn’t right, although I’m thinking a year or two prior had similar fronts.
It also appears to have a Ford flathead V8 between the front wheels.
Nothing springs to mind for the rest of it.
Yes, definitely! Here’s another ’39 Ford truck ad that shows the grille pretty well. Sure looks like the same grille.
Some form of early, obscure, kit car maybe sold out of the Sears or Montgomery Ward catalog?
I think Jason had the right idea with a 1938/1939 Ford truck- the grille and the flathead are there, as well as the wheels. Take a look of the photo I attached of a 1938 Ford truck restoration from Hemmings; the downward slope of the front frame horns, as well as what I can see of the suspension and steering seem to match. I think we can safely say this thing is based on a late thirties Ford pickup, but the source for the body and fenders is a mystery to me, assuming they’re not a fully custom creation.
I’m getting a King Midget vibe with a wider track chassis under it. It looks like there is an original rear wheel opening behind the added on fender.
A clever mash-up of the aforementioned Ford and a King Midget is probably the closest anyone’s going to come. Not too bad of a custom, either, certainly more interesting than a typical T-bucket.
Reminds me of a Dellow, but it obviously isn’t. Dellow only used the UK Ford 1172cc engine to my knowledge, and the details are different.
There is also dashboard photo posted at the Cohort and Ford gauges confirms idea that this car is based on some late thirties Ford. But Lincoln V12 steering wheel badge and Russian lettering just adds more mystery – seems that both were added to some homebuild kit car as a joke.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/147108383@N02/50384023016/
FWIW, I shared this pic with a friend who is fluent in Russian, and he provided a translation:
высокий = “high”
уровень масла = “level of oil”
низкий = “low”
He also mentioned that there would typically be some kind of warning lights adjacent to the badge that would correspond with the “low” and “high” labels. Doesn’t really help a great deal with identifying the car, but just thought I would share in case you were wondering about what that badge indicates.
My Russian is pretty bad but I think “масла” is also used for margarine or butter, another of those catch-all Russian words.
Yes, масла is indeed butter as well as grease, a fact that amused me as a child in my Russophonic household. And the word for key is the same as for wrench, even if it’s not for for turning Allen screws: ключ
Did some online search and found a discussion from 2010. Owner of then just purchased car trying to figure out what is this:
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/anyone-ever-see-this-in-w-n-y-jalopy-out-of-rochester.530276/
My first reaction was a home brew version of a Dellow https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dellow since the grille look very Ford.
https://barnfinds.com/first-dibs-1951-m-i-special-roadster/
Not sure the ID is accurate, but looks to maybe be the same car? It appears there were few M.I. Specials built, and each is detailed differently.
Here’s a pic the car in the link at BF. The M.I. cover image car obviously has a different grille and hood.
My first thought was a poor man’s home brew of the Lotus Super Seven made famous in Patrick McGoohan’s timeless “The Prisoner” series.