The physical deterioration of some project candidates will lead enthusiasts to place them in the “too hard” basket. However, some are so cheap they will leave potential buyers second-guessing whether they should accept the challenge of tackling a build. This Devin bodyshell is an example of that thinking. It is a fiberglass field find that probably can’t remember its better days. The body has numerous cracks and breaks, and many readers will wonder why they would even bother giving it a second glance. However, it is undeniably cheap. You could take it home by handing the seller $600. The Devin is listed here on eBay in Westport, New York.
Devin Enterprises, located in El Monte, California, developed a reputation during the 1950s and early 1960s for producing excellent fiberglass car bodies. They used these to build their own models that buyers could purchase as kits. However, they employed an ingenious production technique utilizing fifty molds that could be fitted together in various configurations to produce twenty-seven distinct one-piece bodies. The process allowed a Devin body to bolt perfectly onto anything from a Crosley frame to some larger ones produced by British and American manufacturers. The seller states this one has a wheelbase of approximately 102 inches. That doesn’t gel with any of the regular production models, suggesting this may have been a one-off the seller believes was powered by a V8. This is a case of “what you see is what you get.” The buyer receives the bare body that has seen better days. There is no frame or other structural pieces, and the items used to prop up various sections suggest the body has the rigidity of a wet Reebok! There are cracks, breaks, and signs of delamination. However, some careful repairs could make it suitable for use as a mold to produce a healthy replacement. Otherwise, I suspect someone may view it as nothing but garden art. The seller says the body could be packed into a 5′ x 5′ x 2′ box for transport.
I’m a realist, and I appreciate that the deterioration visible across this Devin’s body means it will probably never see active service. However, if someone is considering a kit build, it could function as a mold for a fresh fiberglass creation. Its low weight means that with an appropriate frame and a V8 under the hood, the new owner could slip behind the wheel of a distinctive car that packs a punch. Do you think that will happen, or are its roadgoing days a distant memory?
Looks like a dead animal.
Just stay home and put your 600 bucks through the paper shredder. Remember, it’s only a deal if you want it.
Definitely “too hard”.
Dropped from a C-130?
Some assembly required????
Batteries not included????
Actually, it appears that, nothing is included….
Cant even say it needs a frame off restoration….. Being as how it doesnt have a frame lol.
Not sure what you could do with it, but judging from the photo it would make an interesting planter for your front yard….
paint it up real pretty with a brush fill it with black dirt and plant some flowers, its dead, make some nice yard art for a few years though.
I guess his wife told him to get rid of the trash around the house & he’s hoping that some fool with more money than brains will just hand him $600!
Looks like the underground animals running around the desert in a movie years ago.
It would make a nice planter.
Doesn’t want to pay to take it to the dump so he’s going try and sell it, I don’t see how anyone would want this thing.
If it will fit into a 5′ x 5′ x 2′ crate, it will easily fit into a small dumpster!
One man’s trash is another man’s treasure I guess. I am right now working on putting an Almquist Sabre 1 back together. ( body is in 8 pieces ) It’s way worse than that Devin. I bought it to mount on my wall like a moose but….., I decided I’m taking it to Bonneville to fun on the salt. I’d pick up that Devin it’s fiberglass easily repairable for far less than a new Devin body goes for today.
102″ would most likely be a Corvette C1 frame.
Looks like roadkill. Don’t bother resuscitating this critter.
I just completed a Devin/Crosley/MG 1275 with Daton wire wheels. Totally virgin to me. It costs twice what it is worth, but one of the most beautiful 50s roadsters anywhere.
When I first looked at this, I thought it was a 50s product of my neighbor, Ed Almquiat. He had some bodies made in rhe 50s. His son, my college roommate and close friend of 50 plus years, is restoring one.
Would make a good prop for a low-budget post-apocalypse indie movie.
Could be a very interesting car shop sign with just a little creativity and construction of a good frame, nice paint job. Light enough to get it up on a pole or up on the side of a building. Too far in my case but someone bound to snap it up.
That’ll buff right out.
This was funny…about 37 years ago when I first heard it.
Building a custom car depends a lot on what you want the finished product to be, and how much effort (physical and financial) you are willing to apply to the project, balanced with how much of those resources you have available. If one is looking for an easy project, this is not the one for them; if one has expansive vision and a willingness to expend the effort and resources, this could be part of an amazing vehicle some day.
A new category of collectible – “vintage kit car barn find”.
Beautiful…In a Salvador Dali Melting Clock Sort of Way.
Haul it to the dump…they may laugh and tell you to go away.
I owned a Devin once, in the late 60’s. Tubular frame, model A front axel, lever shocks, Columbia 2 speed rear end, 322 Buick V8, and a 3speed Ford transmission. HA! Quite a mongrel! Yet, given the weight, I was in High School Heaven! When a 57 Chevy ran me off the road on Rosecrants Blvd, the fiberglass shell was reverted back to a puzzel. After several stitches, my body survived. I put the engine in a 1950 Ford pick up that I still have to this day.
At the time, I could have used this body for patch panels. Just 55 years too late.
I’m not the one to do it, but I think it’s worth saving. The Devin was better looking than most kit cars.
You can buy new a new Corvette chassis.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgEzYy-dzzA
Absolutely. The Devin had one of the nicest looking bodies built in the 1950s. This one could be saved, but it would take many hours and cubic dollars. They might make new copies, but this one is an original. They were built very light. The fiberglass is less than an 1/8 inch in most places. The thickest part of the body was the interior insert (missing on this body). Still worth saving.