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Free Delivery: 1951 Crosley Super Convertible

left-frone

Doesn’t this look just like a cute little puppy who needs a new home? And with free shipping from Romeoville, Illinois to anywhere in the continental US , what’s your excuse this time? (Oh yeah, sorry, the wifey!) With only about 350 built and fewer than a dozen of these known to exist, it is rare and unique. It’s listed on eBay with a BIN of $10,500. I’m not sure it’s really museum quality, but it does look nice, so the price might be reasonable. The seller says it had a frame off restoration 15 years ago, but it’s showing some age.

rear-above

The wood work looks solid and original. The upholstery doesn’t look very well done, but perhaps it’s how they were done?

dash

It even has a radio. Look at the size of that speaker! The heater might keep your toes warm.

top-up

The top looks to be in good shape. The paint is not perfect, but looks typical for the times.

engine-right

Things are clean, tidy and original under the hood. The generator looks to be half the size of the engine. That is a tiny engine, about 40 CID with 28 HP. It will get you to 60 MPH in less than a minute, perhaps as little as 40 seconds. There were racing versions which did very well in the 750 CC class too. Modifications included a double overhead cam and even a supercharger!

front

This Crosley wouldn’t take up much room in your garage and would stand out at car shows. It could be a fun little driver, on city streets anyway. It’s hard to imagine what anyone would add to this little car except for perhaps a few clowns (Can one write about a Crosley without mentioning clowns at least once?). One could increase the horsepower, but, uh, why? I can’t imagine a blown Crosley. It would go well with one’s yacht to drive around the marina. I wonder if that propeller really spins though?

Comments

  1. Avatar Baby Boomer

    Wow, what a slick little car. Being from Ohio, where Powel Crosely Jr. started out, I would love to own this little treasure. My Wife and I have my Grandmother’s Crosely stove (it’s huge), two radios, one table top and one console model and Her refrigerator, and all are still working ! Quality…..built to last for sure. Unfortunately, I have too many irons in the fire, even with the free shipping. The grille propeller offered by auto parts stores (such as Midwest Auto Parts and Warshawsky in Chicago…to become J.C. Whitney) at the time, did spin at about 25 mph and above. I have one from My Dad’s ’49 Ford. This a time machine that hearkens to a simpler time when quality and affordability counted for something and should be preserved as it rolled out.

    Like 1
    • Avatar Roselandpete

      I don’t think Warshawsky “became” Whitney. They were the same company, as I recall, and existed simultaneously. I think they were aimed at different markets though.

      Like 0
  2. Avatar waynard

    This is a great little car but his pricing is way off in my opinion. Yes, it’s scarce but it’s no museum piece. Sure would like to see the undersides of this one. Upholstery is a disaster, which the seller almost totally avoids commenting on; not to mention a few other odds and ends.

    Book price on this, for a perfect #1 car, is $10,600. This is a #3 car, at best, which books for a little under $4800.00.

    Would I pay a premium for this? Yes. But not nearly what the seller is asking.

    BTW it’s either restored or it’s original. It can’t be both.

    Like 0
    • Avatar Bobsmyuncle

      10 500 might be steep but in all fairness Alaska IS in North America.

      Like 0
  3. Avatar Scotty Staff

    That’s a beauty. Fantastic condition and maybe not a bad price for a rare convertible. Nice find!

    Like 0
  4. Avatar charlie Member

    Toss up with the “what is it?”. The bottom line, or my bottom line, is would I say “yes” assuming I had garage space and it was given to me. Tough question for me. Would not take the ’28 Chevy, or the big Lincoln.

    Like 0
  5. Avatar D Grass

    If I am not mistaken, this could very well be the same one my family owned back in the late 1990s, with the same color combination inside and out. It was in incredible shape back then, having been garaged for years by the previous owner.

    If indeed this was the same car, I have my doubts about it being restored frame off; it looks exactly the same as it did 17 years ago. The only differences I see are new hoses on the engine, a painted radiator, and painted valve cover. (If the previous owner was from Grundy Center Iowa, this would indeed be the same car.)

    Good luck getting these up a hill, with a no syncro transmission and only good for about 20 HP, these were heavily underpowered despite their small stature.

    Like 0
  6. Avatar Mike L

    Just drove a 47 pickup across the block a mecums Louisville that sold for $8,200. It was not all origanal. But WOW what a fantastic little truck. Yes and multiple people came up and made clown jokes. Wish it were mine!!

    Like 0
  7. Avatar Loco Mikado

    This type of car with solid door frames is more correctly a roll top convertible. Common on British and French cars after WWII and also 50’s small Nash’s which had a motorized top as opposed to the others that the top snapped on very similar to boats like this one.

    Like 0
  8. Avatar Roselandpete

    Like Lois Lane’s car?

    Like 0
  9. Avatar Loco Mikado

    Exactly, Lois Lane’s car in TV’s Superman series was a ’50 Nash Rambler Convertible Landau as it is more properly called

    Like 0

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