Arm Chair Cars

Thanks for the notification but I had managed to buy one from Canada a few years ago but had not fitted it when I decided to completely restore the car.

No eBay APP ID and/or Cert ID defined in Kunena configurationTerry if you are looking for a factory radio this may work for you. Its exactly like me factory radio. This did not sell on ebay reciebtly but you can still contact the seller.

I recently discovered that the Actonite Cord was not fitted with a radio when it left the Factory consequently it had one of the round ash trays. When the car arrived ten years ago it had a speaker in the roof but the radio had been removed. The two holes were in the firewall to mount it. I assumed that it had a radio originally although there was no under floor aerial. Recently I discovered that the two holes in the rear cross member to mount the rear aerial brackets had never been drilled. I also have pictures from the 1950s showing a telescopic aerial which was later removed and the body patched up. Durng the recent restoration work the hole had been cut in the headlining for the speaker .............. so there was no turning back.

Thanks for mentioning this Jim. Only reason I did not draw attention to this is I remembered the ash tray as an option in place of the radio. Glad you mentioned it. Like you posted... Not everybody knows of this option.

One interesting item that has been overlooked (at least not mentioned) by everyone - The car doesn't have a radio - in place of the radio head is an ash tray. This is correct and rarely seen these days.

I'm amazed in the interest in figuring out the true disposition of this car. The outside exhaust and being an FB engine makes this an interesting "hybrid" car. Coupled with the rear dual exhaust really makes me whant more information on how and when this car was "built" and for who. Maybe the new owner will join our club so we can help him or her determine what this is. I find the leather interior interesting but no door trim or arm rests seems like a takeaway to me. Am not sure is an armchair car was not equipted with armrests. Way back is around 1974 or 75 my father and I got to look at a really ruff armchair in I recall Huntington Beach Ca. It was even the same color outside but the inside was maroon wool.

This is a very interesting "hybrid" Cord. Another piece of data would be to obtain the stub-frame numbers on outside of RF frame rail , if they are legible and assuming the stub-frame to be original to the car. The present possessor of the car could attempt to supply this information.

Hi Dayton. To Recap what we know and don't know. The model 812 serial number 1518 tells me the car is a 1936 that was renumberd by the factory (or dealer) as a 1937. There should be an S at the end of the serial number to indicate it's a Beverly as evidenced by the interior. The engine number and the interior indicate it was a very early 1936 (originally).

The inconsistencies include outside exhausts, locking glove boxes and no cowl fillers, all of which could have been changed or added during a restoration. The big one is the 8 louver fence. while we have a could of theories on how or why this was done I think it will take a knowledgeable Cord person inspecting the car to see what is going on.

To Ron's point there are some inconsistencies, that from a history point, would like to be sorted out. But it is a Cord and it had all Cord parts (at least the major items). If you are looking for a "correct" Cord you might want to keep looking. If you are looking for a Cord that you can drive and enjoy then that's a whole set of different questions that need to be asked.

Good Luck. Jim

Looking at the front of the car it appears that the hood or bonnet has been reduced in height to accommodate an eight louvre grill for better cooling.

Not to confuse the issue, but a Sotheby's rep sent me a picture of the plate, which is stamped MODEL 812, SERIAL NO. 1518 (no 'S'), ENGINE NO. FB359. He also sent a picture of the stamping on the engine, also FB359. I don't have either of my Malks books with me, but in my conversation with Ron, I believe he found some of this car's information incomplete and/or contradictory. I would be glad to attach the picture of the plate, but don't know how.

The early Beverlys did not have the bustle trunk. The bustle back was a latter addition.

RandyEma wrote: Hello . The car in Question is 812 1518 S FB 358 Ron Irwin commented about this that it was a non factory change on the louvers .My only thought was that somebody used a LWB rad and to make it fit modified the louvers. R

Randy, so does this mean its a Beverly without the traditional bustle trunk? Only reason I ask this is the "S" at the end of the serial number generally means the car you might be looking at anywhere is a Beverly Sedan. This is still a very nicely finished car.

Hello . The car in Question is 812 1518 S FB 358 Ron Irwin commented about this that it was a non factory change on the louvers .My only thought was that somebody used a LWB rad and to make it fit modified the louvers. R

Hi Dayton,
I'm not sure how they they got the 8 louvers on a standard body. I would like to get a close look at the car in person. It almost appears the louvers have been lowered but I really can't tell from the photos. There are several tings on this car that don't add up. I appears there have been a lot of changes over the years to the car. I would like to see the rest of the numbers on the car to have a better idea of where it fit in the production. That might give some clues.

Interesting findings by Ron.. If anyone would know about this car Ron sure would. I was just looking over this car again and am seeing several oddities like no startix start system. No trim on the door panels. This body looks like a Westchester and not a Beverly. The steering wheel seems to be smooth and not ribbed but a renumbered car could have been delivered this way too. The air filter is not black but once again that's small stuff. I'm fairly sure the headlight cables are coming out of the wrong fire wall holes. The hood prop on the center radiator support is also not factory. Final noted item is no car ever left the assembly line with dual tail pipes out the back. Even the supercharged cars did not have duel exhaust out the back... Am not tearing down this car by any means. Just pointing out issues seen.

Hi: long-time Cord enthusiast, new to Forum. In my due diligence on the 1937 812 'Armchair' Beverly in Sotheby's Auburn auction, I spoke to Ron Irwin. Ron identified Serial #1518 as a re-plated, unsold 1936 810, which led him to question how the car's 8-louver hood, taller than a 7-louver hood, has been made to fit this 1936 body? Any thoughts? Thank you, Chris

The fixed Arm Chair interiors were only on the very early Beverlys. To my knowledge none ever left the factory in leather.

I recall something like thirteen cars were out there. I think the Cord Complete book might tell how many were actually made. Leather was offered for the seats. This car has a few "things" that are not year accurate. The heater is not correct. The horn brackets are not correct. The generator is from a 1936 car. The outside exhaust is not accurate to the non supercharged engine but... It might have been added after the car left the factory. Some owners did this when the 1937 supercharged cars came out. Its very difficult to prove the factory did this because of a fire many years ago. Many of the build records were lost. This is still a very nice car. I'm not knocking what someone has done. Just noting originality of a fine car.

When I was about 10 my dad took me on my first trip to the reunion. I remember two things from that trip. One was rummaging through the Graham factory looking for ACD parts. My dad started doing that in the 50s with Ted Billings and he pulled a LOT of nos parts out of there. The other thing was looking inside a Cord and seeing bucket seats and a divider window. I thought it was the coolest thing in the world. I see that RM is selling an Arm chair car at Auburn. I was wondering how many were built and if they were originally leather?
www.rmsothebys.com/en/auctions/AS18/Aubu...chair-beverly/661590