This 1927 Chandler roadster is located in Kansas City, Missouri where it’s listed on eBay with a Buy-It-Now of $13,500 but inviting offers. When I first saw the pictures of this car, I thought it was a “replica” of a Mercer Raceabout. While I was wrong, I haven’t been able to find out much else about the marque. Certainly cute and in pretty good shape, I think with some work this could be a really unique car. Unfortunately, the car has been fitted with a late model Chevrolet 6-cylinder engine and an automatic transmission! I’m guessing the original engine was broken in some way and the owner dropped in the Chevy to keep it mobile. Would you try to find an original Chandler engine?
Here is a link to a thread before the seller dropped the Chevy engine into it: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/1927-chandler-speedster-gets-inline-6-transplant.253931/
I fail to understand why someone would want to ruin a wonderful antique This car is no longer a Chandler—it’s a chevy with a powerglide, that happens to have a Chandler body.
If I know my marques then the Chandler motor company was an ultimately unsuccessful attempt.
Don’t quote me but I think they operated from mid 1880s (1885/86?) To 1930, this would have been one of the last, if not the last model they produced, they produced cars ranging from approximately $2-3.5k (that’s US) and that was the cost THEN.
I’d try to find (or fix) the original engine/transmission. Part of enjoying a car like this is to learn and appreciate the original driveline for what it was when it first saw the light of day.
I have a 1925 Chandler with the stock 289 ci six cylinder, and I’ll tell you for its age and size (4 door sedan) it’s peppy. Maybe not quite by today’s standards, but it’s no slouch, and it has no problem running with normal traffic. To put a Chevy engine in one is just a waste. The owner said the engine ran, but parts were hard to find. So if it runs, what parts do you need to find? And besides, any good mechanic or machine shop can work with what’s there, tuning and rebuilding original parts. I just had the mechanic down the road rebuild the starter for me, and I’m getting the gas tank resealed next week. All in all, scarcity of parts is a lame excuse. These are a great (and rare) car as they came, and in my opinion it should have been left as-is.
i found the original engine for your chandler. whoever owns that car, i have the factory number matching motor..