For A Good Cause: 1942 Hudson Super Six

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Forgive me for sounding like one of those annoying pledge drives on PBS or NPR, but as the great-great grandson of a Hudson-Essex-Terraplane dealer, I can’t help myself: Every dollar you spend on this 1942 Hudson Super Six sedan will directly benefit the Hudson-Essex-Terraplane Historical Society. Won’t you bid now to support this important cause? There, now that that’s off my chest, let’s take a look at this extremely well-preserved, all-original Hudson, shall we? For starters, find it here on eBay, listed out of Indianapolis, Indiana.

Showing just 44,381 miles that I’d believe were original, this is one of 34,069 six-cylinder Hudsons built in the war-shortened 1942 model year. The seller points out the the new-in-1941 bodyshell rode on a fully-independent suspension with front and rear sway bars for excellent (for the time) handling, and the 212-cubic inch inline six was good for a healthy (again, for the time) 102 horsepower.

Why could I be persuaded that the low miles are original? It’s the little things, such as the full complement of original tags, labels, and stickers still fully intact. It doesn’t hurt either that the car, which was based in upstate New York for many years, still wears its original paint with no rust-through. There is some light moth damage to the wool upholstery, but all knobs and interior trim are present and the overall effect of the interior is very nice. All the evidence points to a gently used, well-cared for, well-loved car.

The six, under its unusual-for-the-era forward-hinged hood, is said to “[start] instantly and is whisper quiet and the clutch smooth.” All is not perfection—the horns, turn signals, and brake lights don’t work, the overdrive may or may not work, and the brakes are sticking—but those issues are relatively minor, and this car could easily be back on the road with a weekend or so worth of work. The period correct-looking blackwall tires, aside from the original spare, are all new.

A six-cylinder Hudson sedan may not seem like the most exciting car, but it does have a solid pedigree: as the bumper sticker points out, in the ’40s Hudson could claim “More Records For SPEED – POWER – ENDURANCE For More Years THAN ANY OTHER CAR IN THE WORLD!” This sedan might not be able to quite live up to all that, but it is remarkably original and solid, comes with a trunk full of NOS parts, the price (with bidding at $5,200 as of this writing) seems more than fair, and its sale supports a good cause. What more could you ask?

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Comments

  1. Beatnik Bedouin

    Cool car. I hope it goes to someone who will drive it and not just put it on display.

    Like 3
  2. Miguel

    I love glass tail lights.

    Like 2
  3. Solosolo UK ken TILLYMember

    I had a pale blue 1948 Commodore 8 convertible that 2 days after I bought it, smoked so much that you couldn’t tell where the car finished and the smoke began! One evening about ten of us crammed into it for a trip to the drive-in-cinema but one of the girls sitting on her boyfriend’s lap, managed to get her knee jammed against the beautiful, innovative, funky starter switch. End of starter motor, however, plenty of pushers at the end of the movie.

    Like 6
  4. Kenneth Carney

    Must be an early ’42 because this one has chrome trim. Anything built after
    January of ’42 had painted bumpers
    and trim. This lasted until Febrary 10,
    when all civilian car production ceased.
    The 44K mile claim could be legitimate
    as many patriotic Americans mothballed
    their cars for the duration to save valuable resources like gas, oil, tires, etc.
    Saw a program on the History Channel
    that detailed this practice. Dad said that
    after the war, folks took in their “blackout
    specials” and had the bumpers and trim
    chrome plated. Recalling it now, he told
    me that many ’42 models had no chrome
    trim at all. In fact, he said that many folks that couldn’t get a postwar car in
    ’46 simply added ’46 trim pieces to their
    ’42’s when possible to make them look
    new. Great car, would love to be it’s
    caretaker.

    Like 15
    • David P. Reeves

      My grandmother said that her father in law (my great grandpa) bought a new 1946 Plymouth after the war and it came with a 2X4 and an IOU instead of a front bumper!

      Like 2
  5. Howard A Howard AMember

    Pretty amazing car, heck, even the fan belt looks original. All I can say, is you couldn’t be in a hurry with this car and 6 people ( and grandma was no shrinking Violet), but this was it for travel, or the bus. Not really the most sought after for resto-mods, so hopefully it stays like this. I’m sure it does 55-60 easy with the O/D. You may look a tad out of place, though, among all the angry bumblebee faced jelly beans and 4×4 diesel pickups. Great find.

    Like 7
  6. Fred W

    Not that far from me. I there was space in the garage….

    Like 1
  7. canadainmarkseh

    Great old car in great condition. I can imagine driving this down the bulivard would get you quite a bit of attention. When I’m out on my sidecar bike I have people take pic’s of me and the bike while I’m driving down the road. And wanting to talk at a traffic light, it would be the same for this car you’d be surrounded by rubber neckers. I too hope the next owner preserves this old beauty.

    Like 3
  8. Uncle Bob

    The engine having to be rebuilt with relatively low mileage is a bit puzzling, but may be the result of improper storage prep. The clutch being replaced makes perfect sense when you consider that these had an oil bath clutch with the friction material being cork. Long term non use caused the clutch disk to bond to the flywheel and if forced during reactivation it would rip the cork “buttons” from the disk body.

    It’s at 6k with 20 bids……….some nickel and dime bidders………..might be stalling to the end tomorrow.

    Like 3
  9. Rex Rice

    My dad bought a ’42 Hudson right after WW II ended when new cars weren’t available and used car lots were empty. It had been a taxi, repainted & sold for more than it had cost when new. In his attempt to drive from Seattle to South Bend, IN, it broke down completely somewhere in Montana, where he traded it for a bus ticket home. I remember the plastic taxi interior.

    Like 4
  10. Wrong Way

    I want to find one in this good shape except a 54! I am partial to the Hudson since I was born in Crawfordsville Indiana!

    Like 1
    • Michael Dawson

      I am a Hoosier as well, and intrigued by WRONG WAY’s comment linking Hudson and Crawfordsville. Care to enlighten us on this connection??

      Like 0
      • Wrong Way

        Sure, I was born there, but grew up in Florida! Almost the whole town was related to me back then! Actually Alamo is where my roots begin! My grandfather was a big shot at Donnelly he worked there his whole life! My dad and uncle were quite the basketball players! My uncle Charlie went on with his career with basketball and playing for Phillips 66 which they sold the franchise to the Denver Nuggets! My aunt and uncle live in the big house on a hill in Alamo where my dad grew up! All my family from Alamo are buried in the Alamo cemetery! My mom was a Smith! That should give you enough to identify me or my family there! Let me know if you know or knew any of them!

        Like 0
      • Wrong Way

        Oh yeah, my uncle carried on with a great career with Phillips he was vice president in the marketing department!

        Like 0
      • Wrong Way

        This may not be the info you are asking for! I just assumed that you were asking about my family tree? If you want to contact me I will figure out how we can connect!

        Like 0
  11. 86 Vette Convertible

    I like it. Plenty of appeal to it. That’s a parade car if there ever was one.

    Like 0
  12. Will Fox

    A 1942 ANYTHING in this ultra-rare, complete condition is a collectible. Bear in mind, the model lasted from about Oct. `41 until the following January `42 or so only! Someone definitely loved this car, and went out of their way to preserve it. This is probably THE most complete original `42 model I’ve ever seen!

    Like 1
  13. Chuck

    This looks like a beautiful automobile to enjoy driving on sunny weekends. How cool would it be to see this in a local car show. The money for this car is going to a great place. If only I had indoor storage I’d love to own this beautiful automobile.

    Like 0

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