Crosley Motors was a small American manufacturer that produced tiny cars and related vehicles from 1939 to 1952 (except during the WWII years). Considering that so few of these machines survive today, it’s surprising that more than 80,000 were built before the company went belly-up. The seller may be heir to a barn and/or lot that contains 13 Crosleys (or more?) of various types and versions. This listing was posted several months ago, and they may be gone now, but the fact that so many are in one place at one time makes them noteworthy. This assortment is located in Lake Mills, Iowa, and is available here on Facebook Marketplace for an undisclosed price.
Crosley’s downfall may have been making the right cars at the wrong time. Gasoline was cheap in those days and – after the war ended – any car maker could sell almost anything due to pent-up demand. Small station wagons were the most popular with buyers, but they also sold sedans, convertibles, sports cars, trucks, and off-road vehicles.
The company was an innovator and is remembered for building the first mass-production car with an OHC engine, and the first with disc brakes on all four wheels. None of the Crosleys weighed more than 1,400 pounds, and the engines were no more than one liter in displacement. More than 93% of Crosley’s cars came after World War II.
From the photos provided by the seller, a little bit of everything seems to be offered. But none of them appear to be better than in “fair condition,” and we doubt anything here has run for years. How and why these automobiles were amassed may be the biggest mystery, so perhaps the seller’s father, grandfather, or uncle was a big fan and picked up one after another and never did much with them. Thanks for the tip, “NW Iowa Kevin”.
This is really sad. I do hope someone rescues these oddball and brings them back to life!
“…. The seller may be heir to a barn and/or lot that contains 13 Crosleys …”
These situations happen. If you put in the 35°02’57.5″N, 106°39’16.7″W map coordinate points into the Google Maps website, you’ll land at a location in New Mexico where there is currently a huge lot to the south filled with semi truck trailers. When you use the GoogleStreetmobile to see the very latest groundlevel view, there’s a bus parked behind the entrance gate, but when you use the “See more dates” feature to look at previous years’ views of that same entrance, the January 2021 view shows the lot nearly empty, with a 1950s era car near the center that has an enormous tree growing out of its engine compartment. The same views of that entrance gate for the years previous to that show the yard was filled at one time with hundreds of old cars. When I lived in Albuquerque in the late 1980s and a pal of mine had told me about the lot, I went down there to peer further in beyond the gate. Immediately inside to the right were stacks – plural – of Crosleys 3 or 4 cars high, with 2 or 3 Crosley Hot Shots parked right in front. I wonder how many were saved, plus where did all the rest of the cars in that yard end up?
Wait…..nothing about the radio’s or home apliances ?
WLW-700: Crosley Radio in Cincinnati — you can hear it anywhere east of Idaho.
My wife and I just yesterday visited Dezerland Park in Orlando, which is an amusement venue near Universal Orlando, and houses one of the largest Auto museums/collections in the country. It was pretty impressive for it’s diversity of vehicles, and the sheer quantity of vehicles.
I mention this because there were a few Crosleys in the collection. But who but a car guy would know about a Crosley? And I can honestly say I’ve never seen one coming or going from a cruise-in or a car show. So, this makes me wonder: is there anyone left out there who cares enough about a Crosley to do something with these cars? It would appear from the listing that even the guy who collected Crosleys didn’t care enough to do something with them.
It would seem the poor Crosley is now relegated to being a car museum curiosity. But, if you like Virgil Exner Imperials, well, Dezerland has an entire galley of them, and I loved it!
This would be a Honey Pot for a Crosley collector. Great mix of body styles.
Love these little cars, especially the wagons and vans, but have never seen one in person.
Crosley Automobile Club Inc.
https://crosleyautoclub.com
Evidently Lanchester cars in England had 4 wheel disc brakes in 1902! I don’t know if they were “mass produced” but they weren’t very efficient as the disc was made of copper and was very thin. Crossley made over 80,000 cars but just how many had 4 wheel disc brakes is anybody’s guess but having said that I would still give Crossley the benefit of the doubt and say that they were the first to have mass produced cars that had disc brakes on all 4 wheels.
I bet for under 10K you could own the worlds largest Crosley collection!
I really want a early wagon with a nice body to build a gasser out of
In St. Paul, MN, Facebook Marketplace, is a 58 Hillman Husky wagon that is built with a Chevrolet Chevette engine and transmission, and comes with a Miata engine and transmission for a future build: https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1335743952000310/?ref=search&referral_code=null&referral_story_type=post
that is pretty cool, too bad the body needs so much work.
Um yeah , no , lol. Frame and body are like a golf cart, as soon as you dump the clutch , the engine, steering wheel and driver will be going down the road while the body sits like a wet paper bag a bottle fell thru. Good luck brother.
Crosley manufactured the first mass-produced OHC Engine? I don’t think so! Singer in the UK pre-dated that by more than 20 years with their Singer Junior in 1926 and were beaten by Wolseley with their 10HP and 15HP models in 1919. Morris and MG also used Chain-driven OHC engines in many of their models from the late 1920s onwards.
Here’s another claim to fame, ex Wikipedia. “The first overhead camshaft (OHC) engine was built by the Springfield Gas Engine Company in 1895, following an earlier patent by J.W. Raymond in 1892.”
Two Crosley sold on Bat in the last month. Sedan for 9200.00 and a wagon for over 12 k. Small fry.
Mercedes-Benz, Bentley, and other manufacturers built OHC engines well before Mr. Crosley.
Crosley automobiles were a relatively common sight in the late 1940s: you tended to notice them because of their tiny wheels and ungainly styling, where the various parts did not appear to match to other components with any sort of in-common co-ordination. They were flimsy and narrow with unmatching side-windows, and did not seem to last for very long. By 1959 and 1960, you rarely saw one, except rusting away in a field someplace; and the last Crosley I saw driving on the road was a 1947 model, and this was in 1962.
I looked at Crosley Auto Club web site. A lot of interesting photos, like you said, look close and body panels, poorly fitted, flat panels with no shape or contour. There are a few wagons, sedan deliveries, and woodies that look fun.
When you see a full size human being standing next to one, you get a much better idea, how tiny they are.
“Ungainly styling” is right. They often reminded me of those pressed steel toy cars I had as a kid in the late 50s.
In 1952 I was delivering The Edmonton Journal around the city’s west end….one customer had a red station wagon version of a Crosley, that’s the only one I saw in person.
They probably sold more intensely in some places, than in others. But then again, I was particularly interested in cars, so I paid more attention, perhaps, than some did, Joe. Paper-route in 1952: you must be right around my age; no? Do you remember the goof-ball hit from that year, “It’s In The Book!”, by Johnny Standley, with the song about “Grandma’s Lye Soap” on the other side?
Yes I remember foundly, that song. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnGQiSfS8XA And yes, i’ll be 84 soon…too soon!
There is a Crossley dressed up as a Lil Red Ex, too!https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1952-crosley-deluxe-pickup-2/
Joe
Thanks for the links Joe.
I love that the speedometer goes to 70.
Some one had High Hopes or a good sense of humor.
Yes I remember that song vividly, and yes, I’ll be 84 soon.
There is a Crossley dressed up as a lil Red Ex on “bring a trailer”
I cannot post a link or my post gets deleted….do the search if interested.
I have a radio………..