Re: Don’s 1937 (120) 138CD Deluxe Touring Limo

Posted by Don B On 2025/2/6 20:49:13

While showing Dad the pictures from the shop today, I had a chance to get a little more history of the car….and the damage it’s had.

It seems the rear end damage was, as Dad put it, “100% my fault”. Dad and two of my uncles had just finished rebuilding the engine due to a broken piston. This is also when two head studs were broken by my over zealous (and very strong) uncle. I know exactly which head studs they are as there are two that are longer than all the others. Back to the rear end damage. The engine was rebuilt and they were trying to start the car, but Dad was having starter issues. The plan was for Dad to put the car in 2nd and have my uncle push from behind in another car. Then, Dad would pop the clutch to start the car. Dad says he made two mistakes. First, he didn’t disconnect from the other car before popping the clutch like he says he had done many times before. The second mistake was the one he discovered the instant he popped the clutch. He had the car in reverse, not second. Whoops! He said that was a sick feeling.

Now, on to the break at the top of the driver’s side front fender. According to Dad, “that was my fault, too”. He says he was backing out of a very narrow drive that was next to some outside house stairs. He hooked that fender on the edge of one of the stairs and the result was that break in the fender.

Next, is the passenger side front fender that is rounded over. There has been some debate as to whether the ridge is still there and just covered with Bondo. According to Dad, that is not the case. It seems he was hit by a lady who had insurance, but her insurance company declared bankruptcy and wouldn’t pay. Dad couldn’t afford the repairs at the time, so he drove it as it was. By the time he got it in for repairs, he says he had worn a hole through the fender from the tire rubbing right where the ridge was. I suspect that may be the issue I still have with the right front tire rubbing if making a sharp right turn and going over a curb such as pulling into my driveway. I have to go very slow to avoid the tire rubbing. The new front springs made it a LOT better, but didn’t fix it completely. Now, I know that we need to make sure I have the correct fender clearance as the body work continues.

This is all really fun information that I am documenting with the history of the car. All these little stories of Dad’s time with the car are priceless!