Pulling Out All the Stops
Adding the stylish (and inefficient) Woodslites to a Looonnnng and Low hood.....eye catching on this 1930 Cord Cabriolet!
Errett Lobban Cord was, seemingly, fearless. He’d worked his way into the industry on sheer chutzpah by bluffing his way into a Chicago Moon dealership, and his success there led frightened investors at the failing Auburn manufacturer to take a chance on him as the man who could turn their brand around. First as general manager in 1923 and soon as president he did so in magnificent style. Auburn became the springboard for an empire.
Like Henry Ford, E.L. Cord believed in controlling as much of the manufacturing process as he could, and acquired Auburn’s engine supplier Lycoming. New subsidiary Duesenberg used Lycoming engines as well, albeit a heavily modified version.
With Auburn selling between $1,000 and $2,000, and Duesenberg starting at over $8,000, there was a big gap in the lineup, and Cadillac, Packard and Pierce-Arrow were all targeting a sweet spot at $3,000 to $4,000 with their mid-range cars. The market was booming, and E.L. Cord wasn’t about to miss out.
The new car would be the first with Cord’s name on it, so he was determined it had to be special, especially in styling which he wanted to be lower and sleeker than the competition. At the same time he didn’t want to compromise on headroom. In keeping with his “be different” motto, he determined that front-wheel drive was the answer.
In 1926, Cord purchased the rights to a front-wheel drive passenger car design from Harry Miller, whose FWD race car had made a very strong showing at Indianapolis in 1925. He hired Miller himself on as well to oversee engineering, and Miller in turn brought on engineer and driver Cornelius W. VanRanst; together, they had a working prototype by 1927. Together with Auburn and Duesenberg engineers in Indianapolis, they began developing it into a production-ready automobile. On a test drive in 1928, the doors popped open on a rough road, which inspired Auburn to use the first known application of an x-brace in the frame. Cross and roller joints in the driveshafts were replaced with double universal joints to quell vibration. The engineering reportedly wanted more time to develop the car further–for instance, despite the engine being set far back in the chassis with the transmission in front of it, the weight balance is unfavorable and L-29 Cords have difficulty with traction under certain conditions, such as climbing hills in the rain. The car was capable of high-speed driving, but Lycoming’s 125hp, 298.6-cu.in. straight-eight was taxed during acceleration of a 4,320-pound cabriolet and never designed to be in this reversed installation, driving the transmission in front of it.
But any shortcoming were lost behind the L-29 Cord’s styling. The longest and lowest hood in the industry combined with that sensational radiator made the car a sensation, as well as proving irresistible to coachbuilders.
In four short years of production, Auburn built just over 5,000 L-29 Cords, before the Depression combined with a lack of distribution and lingering public mistrust of the unconventional configuration ended sales in 1932. That was ample time, however, to make it a legend and completely change the course of American luxury car styling.
Because of the L-29s avant garde construction and high cost, some $3,000 and up, comparable to a less-expensive Chrysler Imperial or V-8 Cadillac, owners tended to be artistic and adventurous. Frank Lloyd Wright famously owned one, as did designer Brooks Stevens.
AS ALWAYS....COMMENTS & INVITATIONS with AWARD BANNERS will be respectfully DELETED!
Pulling Out All the Stops
Adding the stylish (and inefficient) Woodslites to a Looonnnng and Low hood.....eye catching on this 1930 Cord Cabriolet!
Errett Lobban Cord was, seemingly, fearless. He’d worked his way into the industry on sheer chutzpah by bluffing his way into a Chicago Moon dealership, and his success there led frightened investors at the failing Auburn manufacturer to take a chance on him as the man who could turn their brand around. First as general manager in 1923 and soon as president he did so in magnificent style. Auburn became the springboard for an empire.
Like Henry Ford, E.L. Cord believed in controlling as much of the manufacturing process as he could, and acquired Auburn’s engine supplier Lycoming. New subsidiary Duesenberg used Lycoming engines as well, albeit a heavily modified version.
With Auburn selling between $1,000 and $2,000, and Duesenberg starting at over $8,000, there was a big gap in the lineup, and Cadillac, Packard and Pierce-Arrow were all targeting a sweet spot at $3,000 to $4,000 with their mid-range cars. The market was booming, and E.L. Cord wasn’t about to miss out.
The new car would be the first with Cord’s name on it, so he was determined it had to be special, especially in styling which he wanted to be lower and sleeker than the competition. At the same time he didn’t want to compromise on headroom. In keeping with his “be different” motto, he determined that front-wheel drive was the answer.
In 1926, Cord purchased the rights to a front-wheel drive passenger car design from Harry Miller, whose FWD race car had made a very strong showing at Indianapolis in 1925. He hired Miller himself on as well to oversee engineering, and Miller in turn brought on engineer and driver Cornelius W. VanRanst; together, they had a working prototype by 1927. Together with Auburn and Duesenberg engineers in Indianapolis, they began developing it into a production-ready automobile. On a test drive in 1928, the doors popped open on a rough road, which inspired Auburn to use the first known application of an x-brace in the frame. Cross and roller joints in the driveshafts were replaced with double universal joints to quell vibration. The engineering reportedly wanted more time to develop the car further–for instance, despite the engine being set far back in the chassis with the transmission in front of it, the weight balance is unfavorable and L-29 Cords have difficulty with traction under certain conditions, such as climbing hills in the rain. The car was capable of high-speed driving, but Lycoming’s 125hp, 298.6-cu.in. straight-eight was taxed during acceleration of a 4,320-pound cabriolet and never designed to be in this reversed installation, driving the transmission in front of it.
But any shortcoming were lost behind the L-29 Cord’s styling. The longest and lowest hood in the industry combined with that sensational radiator made the car a sensation, as well as proving irresistible to coachbuilders.
In four short years of production, Auburn built just over 5,000 L-29 Cords, before the Depression combined with a lack of distribution and lingering public mistrust of the unconventional configuration ended sales in 1932. That was ample time, however, to make it a legend and completely change the course of American luxury car styling.
Because of the L-29s avant garde construction and high cost, some $3,000 and up, comparable to a less-expensive Chrysler Imperial or V-8 Cadillac, owners tended to be artistic and adventurous. Frank Lloyd Wright famously owned one, as did designer Brooks Stevens.
AS ALWAYS....COMMENTS & INVITATIONS with AWARD BANNERS will be respectfully DELETED!