The early 1930s was a difficult time for U.S. automakers. People had little to no money thanks to The Great Depression. But that didn’t stop car builders from trying different things to engage buyers and their pocketbooks. A case in point is the Chevrolet Confederate, a one-year-only model sold in 1932. This one, located in Churubusco, Indiana, is said to be a two-owner car that’s been sitting in a garage for more than five decades. The seller has managed to get it running, but that’s it so far. The Chevy is available here on eBay for $15,000 OBO.
Technically the Chevrolet Series BA Confederate, this vehicle replaced the Series AE Independence from the year before. Sales were off by nearly 50% that year, but General Motors somehow still managed to lead the sales race. Unlike some other products on the market, the Confederate was powered by a 194 cubic inch inline-6 (60 hp) rather than a 4-banger. But Ford managed to come out with a V8 which helped divert some buyers. The Confederate didn’t look too much different than the Independence.
Two-passenger sedans were still popular back in those days and two levels of trim were available with the Confederate, Standard and Deluxe. The VIN provided doesn’t help distinguish which the seller’s car is, but the interior looks rather fancy (redone?), so we’ll go with Deluxe. As the story goes, this vehicle was owned by the same family until the seller came along, which we don’t think was very long ago. It had been sitting in a garage since the days of 25 cents gasoline. With some tinkering, the seller has managed to get it to run up and down the driveway.
From what we can tell, the body is mostly solid, especially for being 92 years old. But they made things like tanks back in the day, so that shouldn’t be surprising. The seller says some extra parts will go with the deal and a photo is provided of them. The odometer reading is 94,000 miles, quite impressive given the level of technology in the 1930s. Who’s up for a project?
This car could go either way for me. Mild street rod or drive as is. Either way, the car is good enough to not do anything to the body but clean and wax it and rechrome the bright stuff. Nice old car.
I love it. If I had the money…
I had my 32 confederate for 60yrs will never sell ‘hazel’
Maybe they should’ve named it the “Union”, it may have been a winner
Per Wikipedia:
Production slipped significantly from over 600,000 cars to 323,100 for the model year as the Great Depression continued, but was still sufficient for Chevrolet to retain first place in the American car sales table.
Seems like a winner to me.
Maybe so. But Chevy’s back then were disposable. Unless you needed the firewood.
Those weren’t really model names so much as identification codes. Starting with the early ’20s National, these Chevy names were on the firewall tag and the parts manual but never on the exterior of the car or in advertising (which only ever referred to “The Chevrolet”.
It wasn’t until the 1933 Master that Chevrolet had a model name that was used in badging and advertising.
Had a ’29 truck which was the first year for the Stove Bolt 6 that ran through 1936 when it was supplanted by the 216 in 1937. The Stovebolt engine had a forged steel crank but only 3 main bearings which changed to 4 in 1937. Because of that it was known to have a “whippy” crank, so back in the early 30s if you saw a racing Chevrolet it probably had the earlier 4 banger in it which was torquey and tough. Interestingly the 1928 Chevy had the longer hood in preparation for the 6 but the engine was not ready for production yet. :-) Terry J
People asking street rod prices for parade originals. Missed that window several years ago….
Wow……not many of these around.
I have attached a picture of my 1932 Chevy Confederate 3W Coupe.
Cool little cars…..
That’s a beauty little_shoes.
This was exactly my first car circa 1959. I couldn’t afford a 32 Ford so I got a Chevy. I just turned 15 and I proceeded to turn it into a HOT ROD, Chevy V-8, 3 speed trans and late rear end. I did almost all the work and was driving it on my 16th birthday. It was actually an easier build than a 32 Ford. I loved the car but after I sold it ,I crossed over to a 34 Ford,, several 32 Fords, a couple of 40’s , some fat fenders and 1/2 a dozen F-100’s. However ,I will always have a love of the old Chevy’s, even now as an octogenarian, I would consider building one if I got the chance.
I built a T huckster from parts. The body was from shoe store which used for truck load sales. Engine was from a Jitter Bug that I bought for the Ruxtel rear end. Ruxtel went in my roadster, and the roadster rear was mounted on the huckster frame.The jitter bug engine & trans was a power drive for a saw mill. Most likely the best used combo ever. It took 50 years of fun and enjoyment. It’s still working in Florida as a plant sprayer & advertising piece for the landscaper.
Additional info and fun fact! This car is not considered a deluxe, it is missing many accessories, that were available and would give it Deluxe status!
What company makes car seats like THAT? The beauty takes my breath away. Chevrolet should have offered this in 1932 to uplift everyone’s spirits during the bottom of the depression. But it’s almost too uplifting, more suitable for the living room.
This 32 chevy is a 5 window coupe not a sedan. It is in surprisingly good shape especially since it it’s mostly a wood frame body, my 30 pontiac 3 window coupe looked good also, but the body structure was ate up by termites.
the reason for very few Chevy hot rods from this era. Wood , but still a cool car to have at a much lower price.
Yep.
Correct. I believe in 1932 Ford first went with an all steel body and produced over a million of them. My chevy was 1 of @ 9000 made ( of that style).
People back then freaked out about that. The conventional thinking was that wood frames were stronger….lol
Gotta love it, the olden days and the rides.
The 32 Ford was always thought of as the quentisential hot rod car but this Chevy looks like it would make a very cool hot rod maybe just chopped not channeled .
Good luck with that project. With a wood frame body, with wood joints and carpet tacks holding it together. Coming from experience