Back in the fifties and sixties, fiberglass bodied sports cars were hot! People built them, they raced them, and many companies made money producing them. LaDawri was one of the biggest players in the game and this Daytona was one of their top offerings. We have featured a few over the years and they always look like fun. This particular is in Lennon, Michigan and Tim, the owner, would like it to go to one of our readers who will finish the build.
The body is currently riding on a 1954 Jaguar XK120 chassis, but unfortunately it is not included in the sale. So, you will need to find a donor for a chassis and drivetrain. Tim has a manual and blueprints that go with the car that will hopefully make the job easier. You could use a Jag, early Corvette, or just about anything else that you could make fit under there. This is basically a blank canvas. What would you do with it?
If you are interested in finishing this awesome project, be sure to place your bid below. Any questions can be posted in the comments section too. Thanks for listing this with us Tim! We hope it goes to someone with the resources and ingenuity to finish the job. If any of you have a neat project like this that you would like to sell, please consider auctioning it off right here on Barn Finds!
Location: Lennon, Michigan
Bid On This Auction
Bryce bid $656.00 2017-08-27 13:58:46
robert bid $555.55 2017-08-27 13:23:03
Alex bid $450.00 2017-08-27 12:16:44
Todd bid $300.00 2017-08-27 08:20:03
Jared bid $200.00 2017-08-21 18:14:38
I’ve had two LaDawri’s. Both ran too!! One had a 409 Chevy, the other a 392 Hemi. Shoulda kept ’em! Fast and dangerous as stink!!
Since the corvette frame and suspension didn’t change from 63 to 79 how about getting a totaled late c3 from copart for a grand? Would yeld a nice old school IRS setup under this body…
This car needs a custom tube chassis with all modern suspension. As for power train something really cool, maybe a totaled Maserati Quattroporte, or dare I say something from Lexus or Infinity
Or you could do what they did back in the day, shortened V8 Ford chassis with a flathead!
What’s the wheelbase and where’s the windshield?
Look carefully, the windshield appears to be lying on the passenger side floor.
Windshield was an early ’60s Chev/GMC truck piece, top edge mounted down on the cowl.
I have a 1990 Corvette frame with all the suspension and brakes for $1600.
John
How about something totally different. (Hear I go thinking out of the universe again. Ya I have been accused of that before.) Tube frame from scratch. Saab 99 front suspension with a transverse leaf front spring tied to both upper control arms. (Helps keep the un-sprung weight down, makes it easy to make the front height adjustable and makes a clear path for air to the flat “air cooled six” in the front. (Corvair or Porsche will do) You can make it a front driver or rear driver. Depending on your “BEND”! If rear driver you can use any gear box you deem cool. But use an older BMW rear suspension for low center of gravity weight and simplicity. I know I am strange.
Pretty cool car – but looking at finished examples, the fender to wheel gap looks so strange. Almost like the body needs to be channeled or a tube frame needs to be crafted to get that car down to the ground a bit more… if it was a bit closer to the pavement thinking it would look a lot better profile-wise.
Remember, the cars of the day had huge suspension travel and tires with sidewalls that often far exceeded tread width. Rather than to achieve handling through suspension design, it was often common practice in some “road race” cars to add weight (lead) to the frames to hold the cars down. Go look at some of the Cadillacs that ran the Pan-American Road Race. Some of them must have weighed three tons. Those kinds of engineering practices required lots of tire clearance.
John… that’s all nonsense… there was no ‘huge suspension travel’ Tires were the same width ( or narrower) but had NARROW tread width… and the idea that is was common practice of adding lead to improve performance is ridiculous….
…This body has not been properly installed on the chassis… attached is my LaDawri Daytona ( Y Block TriPower & 3spd OD) that was PROPERLY built in 1959… and even the later 1970’s 14″ wheels, still fill the wheel wells properly
I want to put mine on a early 50’s chevy chassis, I have a 302, 327, 350, steel crank, 2:20 muncie etc just not the time. It too is sitting on a Jag chassis which SHOULD get a plastic 120 body No, I don’t think I’ll be bored for the rest of my life
ROAR PHD (Projects Halfway Done)
So is this a ‘No Reserve’ auction?
I saw one on H.A.M.B. a few years ago mounted on a Henry J chassis. I think they were trying to get $3000 for it.
John D. yes, this body was designed for the Henry J chassis
I don’t know how you can say it was designed for any particular chassis, it was as close to a bare shell as LaDawri could make it when new – look at all the plywood that’s necessary for firewall, cockpit walls and floors etc and the body kit certainly didn’t come with any of it – you’d have to design and fit to the chassis you wanted to use. Both of mine were built on shortened ’50s sedan frames, the 392 Hemi car had a ’57 Plymouth frame as it’s base, the 409 was a shortened ’64 Chev! And plenty were built on 1930s Ford V8 frames as well!
@ Brakeservo……. I guess you never read the Company’s original Product Description and the original LaDawri Assembly Instruction Manual (both of which I have had for many years)
.
It clearly says ” Henry J Chassis ” ….
The body dimensions , wheel openings, trunk liner, all were designed to FIT a Henry J chassis without chopping it up, and the manual provides a list of Ford suspension and drivetrain parts that make that all go together easily.
however, having owned many LaDawri Models over the last 50 years, including 3 Daytonas, as well restored dozens of LaDawris, Devins, Kellisons Glaspars Fiberfabs and others, I know some bodies were put on other chassis..
. …… but many of those never had the correct stance…
. just like the one listed here, the wheels don’t fit the wheel wells properly.
….
Car is currently setting on a 54 Jaguar XK 120 Roadster Frame not included in sale.Windshield is a 55 to 59 chev truck upside down.Iam the seller. 810-240-0986
Hi Tim,
Is this still available?
Tim, is this still available?