Pontiac barely made it through the Great Depression. In 1935, it was set to be absorbed forever into GM as a cost-saving measure when Frank Hershey, working under Harley Earl, stepped forward with the Silver Streak styling that would become Pontiac’s hallmark until 1956. By the late 1940s Pontiac was playing up the Silver Streak theme on every model. The underlying sheet metal shared its contours with other GM cars, but the brilliant streak was responsible for bringing Pontiac to fifth place in sales in 1948. Here on eBay is this 1948 Pontiac Torpedo two-door sedan, for sale at $11,000 with no bids yet. This car is located in Holly Ridge, North Carolina. Barn Finder T.J. gave us this great tip! The Torpedo was very similar to the more expensive Streamliner, except it was three inches shorter. No, we didn’t measure the wheelbase; the VIN gives this one away, with an “A” in the fourth digit. Streamliners had a “B”. The lack of fender trim tells us this is not a Deluxe but the base model. The paint is original – or what remains of it, and the seller says there’s very little rust.
The engine is a straight-six flathead displacing 239 cu. in. and making about 90 bhp. The odometer reads 56,000 miles. This year would mark the first time a Hydra-Matic automatic was offered, but this example has the three-speed manual. The motor, clutch, and transmission are said to be good, and the car apparently runs well. The seller does say the brakes need bleeding, but if you haven’t driven a heavy 40s sedan with drum brakes yet in your automotive life, I will say it’s easy to mistake normal operation for “requiring repair”! That said, bleed away, it’s a good idea for any car you acquire as a project or survivor-driver.
The interior needs new upholstery, but the remains of the trademark striped grey cloth are still obvious. The back seats have a temporary cover installed, which didn’t help a lot. The trunk still has a spare, but it looks like a haunted house in there. I would tear it apart for a good cleaning at the very least.
The car’s front displays the characteristic silver streak, flowing in a single band across the hood. The hood ornament is missing, which is tragic since that’s an expensive and glamorous item. But the grille, bumper, and headlight surrounds are fairly straight and shiny. As a price guideline, we have a very recent sale at Mecum Kissimmee this year, of a low-mileage black ’48 Deluxe two-door with a straight-eight, for $28,600. Interpolating from that, I’d say this car’s buyer should keep the monetary investment minimal, perform basic maintenance and drive it to enjoy it!
Great writeup and great car.All it needs is the hood ornament and a blanket for the seat.
My Mom’s first car when I and my
sister were very young. Her car was
the DeLuxe model with all the shiny
bits, big straight 8, and a 3-speed on
the tree. It also had 2-tone paint too.
I can still Mom rowing through the gears to this day. Great subject for
a portrait too!
Maybe I’m a cheapskate but I just don’t see $11,000 here. Maybe $4000 at the most. What do you folks think?
You could get this up on a lift and find the whole frame is rotted.
I see a lot of good buys on Barn Finds but I also see a lot of clunkers Do you folks think some of these worn out beaters actually get the price people are asking for them?
So offer him $4K, what’s the worst that could happen? And no, I can’t see anybody sane paying the ask for any of these cars. Auctions are a different situation.
I agree. Granted it’s a two door, but it’s a six, Pontiac division’s styling was still a year away from really hitting its postwar stride and it’s not exactly a pristine time capsule. When it comes to the brakes, likely the new owner’s wallet is going to do a lot more bleeding than the existing hydraulics.
I’d love to have it; it just needs to be about 500 miles closer and $6k less ‘optimistic.’
Harvey
I may have a hood ornament for this vehicle
I inherited a 47 torpedo hit rod restoration and cleaning out the stuff inside found lots of original engine parts and trim pieces
Cool car. I’d give it a camaro clip and a 455 with an automatic. Nice 12 bolt out back. Aside from some interior work I wouldn’t do much else right away.
Wow! How incredibly original…..sigh
Well…. what do you suggest Mike?
Yes, leave it alone and leave it original!
I think the seller of these must subscribe to junkyard dealers price manual. It going to need some work to make it worth that price. Not a bad looking car but needs some serious time and money to bring a high price. I think these guys do minimal amount to get a clunker running and then try to retire off it. For a car in this condition $5K would be a good starting point.
Has anyone noticed the Galaxie ragtop in the background ? That thing took a hard hit to the rear ! It looks bad but I hope it could be fixed
Note the 8-volt battery. Not the best solution for a hard starter.
Not a whole lot of cranking power in a six volt battery. As long as the 8 volt takes a decent charge it’s a small help. Starter spins a bit faster and sometimes that’s all it takes.
Interesting Oklahoma license plate, but in Holly Ridge NC down by the beach near Surf City and the Topsail area. If it had the Indian Head hood ornament it might be work $11K, but without it only $4-5 as others have suggested…if it really is running and drivable.
After Pop’s 1940 Dodge had a sad rejection attempting to french kiss a trolley car in Brooklyn in 1948, to celebrate my birth, he bought a 1948 Pontiac 4 door in blue. Rational being that he was, he hated the Pontiac because the trunk leaked on a brand new car. He suffered with that until 1951 or late 1950 when he bought a 1951 4-door Kaiser Traveler (in an off-pink/maroon/mauve sort of color). 3 on the tree with an overdrive. With his size 12s he wore out multiple clutches in the Kaiser until he gave up and bought a 54 Chrysler Windsor automatic and gave the Kaiser to Ma (replacing her 1940 Olds). I don’t believe it ever needed another clutch until it died years later. We lived in salt country but none of their cars ever rusted out. Perhaps because we had a 2 car garage, but they didn’t get washed that often. I suspect the much heavier gauge metal used then (and 3 sons washing them after the winter) saved them from rusting.
In 1954, my stepfather purchased 1949 Pontiac Station Wagon, and it was still a cool looking car… and with 7 of us kids, much needed.
In Europe this just-after-war cars are not that popular and
Mercedes offered the Ponton which is as 219 also driveable,
spacious and comf’table but not that big as the Pontiac.
Hard to define a fair value for this bc there are rarely cars
offered. By 3-4000$ i agree to the estimates given here.
The pro is their charming design. And the simple technique.
The con the lack of spare parts.
Such cars are special on vintage cars but i think with
overseeable effort you can bring it to a presentable condi-
tion incl disc brakes and a refined electrical system.
What makes me curious is the original paint is partly still
present. What kind of chemicals or varnishes were used
back then to make it so long lasting? Today, a water-based
varnish is wiped over once with thinner or silicone remover
and the colour is gone.
In 2015~2017…took a 49 Silver Streak …from green 2 silver(2dr)…Really turned out Great !!! OEM straight 8…grey interior…but that green had to go….only had 42k on the o~dom ….rust freeee…
Kinda………but all minor…..
Kool jar when we were done w/ it.😎
In a heartbeat……..we did a 49….
Can we say : Lead slead’….
I just want the sheet metal….