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Personal Introduction and the Family 812

  • De Paul
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14 Jul 2022 18:45 #45690 by De Paul
Replied by De Paul on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
For anyone interested, I found the old Bring a Trailer listing for the car, back in 2016 when it was more complete:

bringatrailer.com/2016/12/18/rare-factor...37-cord-812-beverly/

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  • uconn_1965
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14 Jul 2022 16:43 #45689 by uconn_1965
Replied by uconn_1965 on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
I wouldn’t worry about a smooth steering wheel. A lot of early 1937 Cords had smooth steering wheels. Another example is the rite way 3387 headlight lens that were in all 1936 Cords but they also were in some early 1937 Cords. The rest of the 1937 Cords had the 3900 lens.
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14 Jul 2022 16:35 #45688 by De Paul
Replied by De Paul on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
Your guess is spot on. It is a 1937, but that isn't the original wheel at all. Most of the parts were stripped and then slowly replaced with other parts since 2016. The car was originally Geneva Blue, as Terry pointed out. I didn't even notice the locking glove box. You have some outstanding attention to detail.

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  • De Paul
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14 Jul 2022 16:30 #45687 by De Paul
Replied by De Paul on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
To my knowledge, you're correct. It was a Geneva Blue supercharged 812 Beverly with dark blue interior. Now it is cream color with a green steering wheel and bullet holes up the side. Time does strange things I guess haha. I would like it back to original Geneva Blue with correct steering wheel ideally.

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  • uconn_1965
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10 Jul 2022 12:46 #45653 by uconn_1965
Replied by uconn_1965 on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
My guess would be the green steering wheel is not original to the car. The color does not match the steering column tube or shift arm. Also it appears to be a smooth steering wheel common to 1936 Cords while the finger grip steering wheel is more common to 1937. The locking glove box door would indicate a 1937 Cord.
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  • Terry Cockerell
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10 Jul 2022 03:29 - 10 Jul 2022 04:04 #45652 by Terry Cockerell
Replied by Terry Cockerell on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
Jeremy the first picture you posted of your grandfather with the car shows it has the outside pipes. Was it originally supercharged or had just the pipes been added? What does family history say?
Also the car is in a dark colour. In your most recent pictures the firewall looks to be either dark blue or dark green.
The steering wheel is green. To the best of my knowledge Cool Orchard Green was a fairly light colour. My best guess is the car was originally Geneva Blue with a dark blue woollen broadcloth interior. Some more investigation will probably confirm this.
Overall the body looks to be in reasonable condition ............................ I hope that proves to be the case.

T cockerell
Last edit: 10 Jul 2022 04:04 by Terry Cockerell. Reason: Revising text
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10 Jul 2022 00:11 #45651 by De Paul
Replied by De Paul on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
That's interesting! and it makes more sense considering what I've heard about Cord during that time period. I can't wait to see what else we can notice about this old machine. It's been through a lot.

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  • uconn_1965
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09 Jul 2022 23:54 #45650 by uconn_1965
Replied by uconn_1965 on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
Highly unlikely that the firewall has been changed. Possibly a renumbered 1936 Cord to a 1937 Cord.
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  • De Paul
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09 Jul 2022 23:43 #45649 by De Paul
Replied by De Paul on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
I've always wanted to visit that area! I may have to take you up on the offer. I'll message you when I'm closer to travelling. Thank you! ( and if you don't see my other reply on this thread, the block was swapped)

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  • De Paul
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09 Jul 2022 23:41 #45648 by De Paul
Replied by De Paul on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
The firewall must have been cannibalized at some point and this one was thrown in with the 810 motor swap. At least, that's all I can think of to explain an early year firewall being there. Good eyes!

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  • De Paul
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09 Jul 2022 23:39 #45646 by De Paul
Replied by De Paul on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
I should've posted this in the introduction to avoid confusion, but this is not the original motor. I was informed that the original was effectively destroyed and an 810 motor was swapped in to make it a "driver". My plan is to save enough to have a new 812 block machined from the original schematics, if anyone has access to those and then stamp it with the original serial number. There are many new companies out there offering competitive rates on machining from CAD files and if there is enough interest, I could build a company around this idea to ensure anyone who wants an 812 motor in their driving 812 to reasonably get one. Then expand that idea into Auburns and Duesenbergs. That may or may not prove to be realistic though.

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  • De Paul
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09 Jul 2022 23:26 #45645 by De Paul
Replied by De Paul on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
Rest assured, once I have the car in my possession I will be taking an obscene amount of photos haha

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  • pete kelly
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09 Jul 2022 23:24 #45644 by pete kelly
Replied by pete kelly on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
Interesting also it is set up for the GCO generator and has the S/C throttle setup.
CORDS???
Pete
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09 Jul 2022 21:54 #45643 by uconn_1965
Replied by uconn_1965 on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
Odd, I just noticed on the firewall that it also has the punch out holes for the water and. Oil fillers which would make it an early 36 firewall and not supercharged. Hmmmmm.
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09 Jul 2022 21:47 #45642 by uconn_1965
Replied by uconn_1965 on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
Not a very clear photo of the engine and my eyes are going bad but it looks like the throttle linkage is up high for a S/C set up and at least one of the tabs on the block looks like it’s drilled to accept the copper and rubber insert for the supercharger. Can’t really see the other 3 tabs or if the center crankshaft boss had the oil wiggler insert for the supercharger oil supply.
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  • JIM.OBRIEN
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09 Jul 2022 01:20 #45639 by JIM.OBRIEN
Replied by JIM.OBRIEN on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
Hi Jeremy,
I'm outside Allentown PA (an hour north of Philly. I have 4 Cords here right now (5 if I get mine back) in various states if you want to take a detour on your trip.

Jim


Gary - Jeremy's Cord is not supercharged, just external exhaust - look at the block.
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  • 1748 S
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09 Jul 2022 00:17 #45637 by 1748 S
Replied by 1748 S on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
No matter what condition these cars are "found" in... They are spectacular. Documenting the "as found and the as left" is a real treasure too. It appears this car was supercharged too and the exhaust has tags on them. Thats a really nice thing because we tend to forget things. If you can take a closeup picture of the voltage regulator and the Autolite generator I like many others can tell you if they are the correct original types. I can even tell you what month and year any Autolite generator was made by the sreial number.


Gary Parsons
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  • De Paul
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08 Jul 2022 20:58 #45635 by De Paul
Replied by De Paul on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
Here are some of the photos I received from John:

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  • De Paul
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08 Jul 2022 20:35 #45634 by De Paul
Replied by De Paul on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
Hi Jim,
I would love to attend some meets! I'm currently in Utah, but that may change as I look for a new job and transition out of the military. I might wind up staying here or moving as far as Hawaii. It all depends on where the opportunities line up at this juncture. If you know any local Utah Cord owners I think it would be great to meet up! I will absolutely message you when I'm ready for parts, or if you're located on the way between UT and NC, I could stop by. Thank you very much.
Jeremy

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  • JIM.OBRIEN
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08 Jul 2022 01:02 #45631 by JIM.OBRIEN
Replied by JIM.OBRIEN on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
Hi Jeremy,
Welcome to the Club. You should attend some of the Club meets. There you get to talk with the people that know the Cords. The big reunion is Labor day weekend in Auburn In. But there are lots of smaller meets around the country. Where are you located (or planning on settling down and hopefully we can hook you up with some local Cord owners.

Also, when teh time comes let me know what parts you need, I have lots of extra parts.

Jim
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  • Terry Cockerell
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07 Jul 2022 22:41 #45629 by Terry Cockerell
Replied by Terry Cockerell on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
Can you post some pictures of the car as it currently looks ?

T cockerell
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06 Jul 2022 17:20 #45625 by De Paul
Replied by De Paul on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
This is great advice. Thank you very much! I anticipate becoming much more active as I begin working on my Cord. There is already such a great treasure trove of information, it's easy to overlook the subtly very important things like taking pictures. I appreciate the warm welcome!

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06 Jul 2022 17:14 #45624 by De Paul
Replied by De Paul on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
Thank you very much for the pointers! I'll definitely be making stops at those locations. You must have the patience of a very realized monk. I couldn't imagine the difficulty of restoring an antique American car abroad. I was building a schedule to aim for completion/road worthiness in 3 years, but that may not be realistic.
My great grandfather bought the car new, to my knowledge. There is no previous ownership. However, it sounds like it was on quite a journey since my grandfather sold it. Dr. Meredith was telling me the car was involved in a shootout among other things, so it will be interesting learning more about the car as time goes on.
My email is [email protected]

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  • 1748 S
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06 Jul 2022 15:48 #45623 by 1748 S
Replied by 1748 S on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
Welcome to the club. Please, before you remove or work on any piece of the Cord use your phone to collect pictures of how you found it. It really helps as a referal to what things looked like before you started. Understand the way you found it may or may not be correct. But you at least have a running place to start with. Without pointing you towards the greats in this forum just ask questions. Attending the festive in Auburn and watching the judging or even signing up to assist the judges helps you understand these complex cars.


Gary Parsons
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  • Joe Holderman
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06 Jul 2022 10:43 - 06 Jul 2022 10:44 #45621 by Joe Holderman
Replied by Joe Holderman on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
Welcome, Jeremy!

Future Cord owner.

Messenger Link: m.me/hotrodjoe
Last edit: 06 Jul 2022 10:44 by Joe Holderman.
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  • Terry Cockerell
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05 Jul 2022 23:49 - 05 Jul 2022 23:51 #45619 by Terry Cockerell
Replied by Terry Cockerell on topic Personal Introduction and the Family 812
Hi Jeremy what a wonderful and incredible story. I enjoyed every word of it. Welcome to the incredible world of the ACD club.
Restoring a Cord is a challenge especially oustide the US. I live in Australia. Thank God for the ACD Club and the Internet.
You mentioned the car was a gift upon the safe return of your grandfather from WW2. Is there any know history of ownership prior to then?
Three significant places to visit or contact would be The ACD factory in Oklahoma, Auburn Cord Parts in Kansas and Bill Bicknell in Missouri who is a specialist rebuilding Cord engines and gearboxes.
What is you email address ?
I'm almost at the end of completely restoring my 810 Westchester. It has taken eight years .................. which is about three times as long as I intended.
Perseverence is rewarded in the end with a wonderful driving car that still turns heads and stops the traffic.

T cockerell
Last edit: 05 Jul 2022 23:51 by Terry Cockerell. Reason: Adding pictures
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  • De Paul
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05 Jul 2022 18:09 #45616 by De Paul
Good afternoon everyone. My name is Jeremy De Paul and I'm fairly new to this forum, so please allow me to introduce myself. Hopefully this is the right section to post in. I'd like to give you a little background on me and my family in regards to our Cord 812. You may be familiar with Dr. Meredith who is a member of this club as well, so you've likely already heard a some of the story. If you're interested, please stick around for the long version! If not, just know I'm happy to meet you. I'm looking forward to restoring my family's Cord with my son and attending meets. If you know of good resources, I'd love some tips. I've already been combing the archives here on the forums and it's amazing, so thank you already for that! I'll be travelling across the country in August to pick up my car. If there are significant places I should visit while travelling, like Broken Arrow OK, please let me know.

A little background on me: I'm originally a Californian, but I've lived in about 13 states now, spending a majority of the time in the Midwest. I enlisted in the military almost 10 years ago after a string of random jobs like construction, personal training, audio/visual production, and building track-focused BMWs. In the military, I work on the F-35 stealth fighter jet, but wear many hats. Currently, I've been put in charge of the unit's security and physical fitness programs, among other things. I'll be looking to transition to the civilian sector soon. I very much enjoy automotive culture and have always loved pre-war cars, *especially* the Cord 812. It's legendary within my family. I also have a two year-old son who is absolutely enthralled with cars. I think it would be wonderful to bond over the family car with him. It's long been an aspiration of mine to find, restore, and go for a drive with my grandmother in the Cord that I've heard so much about growing up. I know I don't have much time to make that a reality.

Earlier this year, I reached out to Dr. Meredith in response to him contacting my grandmother about his recent purchase. To my understanding he was looking for background information on the vehicle and actually found an old unpaid Chicago parking ticket in the glovebox my grandfather received in the 50s. He found my grandmother from that ticket and coincidentally a little later, I was having a similar conversation with her. I remembered hearing several stories about my grandfather and his Cord, so when the subject came up, she gave me Dr. Meredith's contact information. Ironically, I also had an unpaid parking ticket from Chicago at the time I spoke with him. I guess it runs in the family!

Many members of my family talked about the Cord and how my grandfather would take them to the local club meets so they could see and hear the car that was such a significant part of his life. You see, that Cord was a gift from his father for coming back from the second world war in one piece. There should be a photo of that below. My great-grandfather immigrated to America as an 8 year old, by himself. He met up with relatives in Chicago and later established himself in real estate. To my knowledge he quickly became successful and diversified into the automotive market, becoming a large shareholder of Auburn/Cord. Although he sold the majority of his assets throughout the aftermath of the Great Depression, he was still fairly wealthy until his early passing at 40.

My grandfather was a highly decorated combat medic in World War II. After his service, he attended college for electrical engineering where he met my grandmother. On their first date, she refused to get into the car at first. It was too low, too sporty, too flamboyant; all the things that make it such an iconic vehicle. She had a similar sentiment to my car (a low-slung flamboyant BMW roadster) comparing me to my grandpa the last time I saw her. Eventually they honeymooned in northern Wisconsin, taking the Cord the whole way. My grandmother recalled, at nearly every stoplight, someone would be revving their engine in challenge. I am grateful that this car has turned up in my life, as it's rekindled a fond relationship with my grandmother which I had been neglecting over the years. For instance, I had no idea she enjoyed fishing until we discussed her many trips up north in the Cord to go camping. I don't want to bore you all with stories, but she did recall that selling the Cord was the only time she remembered seeing my grandfather cry. They spent a decade together and started their family with that car, but it was more than that. It was also my grandfather's connection to his father. Many years later when they retired, my grandmother offered to get him another Cord; however, he refused. It wouldn't have been the same. Now I have the opportunity to return it to my family. I might not be able to speak to my grandfather anymore, but through his Cord I'll at least have that connection. I'm looking forward to giving it the attention it deserves with a faithful restoration and seeing you all on the road in the near future.

It is currently in a miserable state of disrepair and was stripped mid-2016, based on the account of Dr. Meredith and the old advertisement I found on bring-a-trailer.com. I know it will be a long journey, but I would ideally like to put the 812 motor back into my Cord and restore the original upholstery. Hopefully, I can track down some of the interior parts that were stripped because those are the ones my great-grandparents physically touched. I would like to honor their memory when I drive the car and relive their experience as close as possible, right down to using the same gear selector lever and radio dial they used. Thank you for reading this far! I'm excited to begin the journey. If you have any questions for me, I'll be happy to answer them.

Cordially

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