Reader Geri W has quite the task ahead of her, as she has been charged with cataloging and selling a collection of barn and field finds in Victor, Iowa. The first car that is ready to go is this Hudson Hornet Convertible, which is a rather rare find! Geri isn’t completely sure on what year it is, but she thinks it could be a ’49 or ’50. If it’s a Hornet, I’m guessing it’s a ’51, as that’s the first year the Hornet was available. Whether it’s a late ’40s Super or an early ’50s Hornet, it’s very rare and deserves to be saved! You can get in touch with Geri via email here to make an offer or get more info. Oh and she is asking $10k for this project or best offer.
$10k seems like a lot for a project like this, but when was the last time you came across a Hudson Convertible? And she wanted me to emphasis that they are open to negotiate! This one has it’s original 308 inline six, it’s convertible top mechanism and is showing 74k miles on the odometer. Obviously at this point, mileage probably doesn’t matter that much, but having parts like the mechanism intact really does! Finding a new top will be tricky enough, but finding the whole thing would definitely be costly.
Here’s the big inline six. It’s looking dirty, but original and complete. Geri didn’t say whether any attempts have been made to try and start it, but hopefully it at least turns over.
While I see lots of surface rust, I actually don’t see any big holes. It looks like the driver’s side rear fender is missing, but replacements are available. Oh and did I mention that Geri has 2 more Hudson Hornets available, so if you’d like to get a parts donor, that’s an option! I really would love to know the full story of how this rare Hudson ended up in an Iowa barn and why it was parked in the first place.
Here’s an overview of the other cars Geri needs to find homes for! While they all look rusty, I see some interesting stuff here, although I think it will be hard to top this Convertible! If you have any questions for Geri, be sure to ask either in the comments or via email. I want to thank her for listing this amazing find with us! Let’s find a good home for it and be sure to keep an eye out for more of these finds in the near future!
Wow. Have wanted one since I was a kid.
Here’s your chance to finally own one Rich!
I think my wife may have some issues with this though. lol
Maybe need to visit Iowa. That field of cars looks interesting.
This reminds me of the Dark Blue 53 Hornet Super Wasp my grandfather and I dug out of the mud near a swamp. It was pretty solid for being that close to water for a New England car. We got it running and sold it to a father and son so they cold restore it.
Field of dreams
Old style dashboard means it’s not a ’51 which was first year for Hornet as well.
Anyone notice the size of the top of the windscreen frame. Hudson never made a convertible body in these models, if one was ordered they would pull a coupe off the line and cut the roof off to make a convertible hence the heavy looking header frame size.
IF it has a VIN on the right front door post tag, copy it down, post it, and we’ll know what year and model it is. Hornet engines are distinctively ribbed a couple inches above the oil pan flange. Again a number for the engine will say what it came from.
Well I see at least eight Hudsons in the bottom photo and the yellow Metropolitan may be one too. Most notable is the Hudson pick-up at the far end of the photo, next to the tow truck. Good luck with this.
This is a 1950 Hudson Pacemaker Convertible owned by previous HET Club member Bruce Baker. It was stored inside for quite a while and the last time I was there, I believe all the convertible parts were there, but that was 5 years ago.
Yes, Bruce bought this 50 Pacemaker from an old farmer in Wanamingo, Minnesota, quite a few years ago. When he bought it, it had the original 232 in it, so if it’s got a 308 in it now, Bruce must have switched it. The car was stored behind a corn crib and Bruce said he bought it primarily for the cowl and other convertible-specific parts. I don’t know how bad the rust is in the unibody. I tried to buy it from him but at the time he didn’t want to sell it.
I’d be seriously worried about hornets. The real ones.
Why is a trumpet stuck in the exhaust manifold?
It’s a very rare factory option. One of none! :-D
It’s a very early factory version of the musical horns you can buy for your cars today, either that or the car once belonged to Louis Armstrong!
In checking an old J C Whitney catalog for 1959, They list an “exhaust trumpet horn”, only $1.89! Looks like it’s powered from the exhaust pressure, with an electric solenoid operated from a switch on the dash, but with the trumpet that close to the engine, it’s gonna sound a short blast each time either #1 & #2 cylinder is on the exhaust stroke! The drawing shows what appears to be a coil of tubing, I suspect it was supposed to be placed further away from the engine.
I’d like to hear what that sounds like, from about 20 feet away!
Sell the truck sell the truck!!
AMX Brian, there is no such thing as a Hornet Super Wasp. It was either a Hornet or a Super Wasp, it can’t be both.