Welcome to the Fathers Day edition of Hooniverse, where I browsed through the “Other Makes” section of Ebay Motors to find interesting things to discuss here at Hooniverse. So, with that introduction out of the way, here are two significant and historical cars that are up for sale, but it’s the history of the companies that produced these vehicles that is the story here. Read more about these cars after the jump….


The Cord 810 of 1936 was like no other car built at that time. It was a sensation at the 1935 New York Auto Show, with the crowd actually standing on other cars to get a look at the new Cord. However, according to all things Wikipedia:

Many orders were taken at the show, but the cars were not ready to deliver until February. Cord had rushed to build the 100 cars needed to qualify for the show, and the transmission was not ready. Even so, Cord took many orders at the show, promising Christmas delivery, expecting production of 1000 per month; the semi-automatic transmission was more troublesome than expected, and 25 December came and went with no cars built.In all, Cord managed to sell only 1174 of the new 810 in its first model year, all the result of mechanical troubles.
Early reliability problems, including slipping out of gear and vapor lock, cooled initial enthusiasm. Although most new owners loved their sleek fast cars, the dealer base shrank rapidly. Unsold left-over and in-process 1936 810 models were re-numbered and sold as 1937 812 models. In 1937, after producing about 3000 of these cars, Auburn ceased production of the Cord.

This exquisite example of a restored Cord 810 Westchester Sedan has been put up for auction by Cascadia Classics of Portland Oregon. What can I say that the Ebay Listing can’t. This was one of the most beautiful cars built, and it is still a stand out bar none. Wouldn’t you want to own one?

After Cord ceased production, the design and tooling of the sensational 810 and 812 was put up for sale, and there were two rather ailing automakers that decided to work together to produce their versions of this classic sedan. However, I will defer to the Ebay Listing for the Graham Hollywood for a short history lesson (which is somewhat inaccurate):

In 1939 Joe Graham bought the 1936/1937 Cord tooling so as to build the 1940 Hollywood Graham, changing the looks of the front end. Graham badly needed a new car to supplement the poorly selling Sharknose. In 1940 the Hollywood made the news with its looks and its blown engine developed 120 hp. The air cleaner and carburetor were offset due of to height restrictions under its low hood and the unit body was built from the old Cord dies from the cowl rearward. Fenders, hood and front-end sheet metal were new, and the wheelbase was 115 inches, ten inches shorter than the Cord. The frame was shortened from the cowl forward, giving the front fenders a bob-tailed appearance and today the Hollywood is rightly recognized as a classic. Though the design was not a new one, the Hollywood attracted a lot of attention. While driving a prototype back from a trip to Indiana, Joe Graham was stopped by police in Michigan. No ticket, the police just wanted a look at the racy new car. In 1941 the Hollywood horsepower was upped to 125 on the supercharged six. The total number of 1940 and 1941 Hollywood Grahams produced was 1,859.

This Graham Hollywood in this Ebay Listing currently resides on the island of Puerto Rico, no doubt staying there after retirement. This car appears to be in remarkable condition, though the photographer could use a lesson in how to shoot cars. Currently this car is sitting at about half the value of the Cord, which sounds about right, though I don’t expect either of them to sell anywhere near their listing prices (which I’m guessing is somewhere north of $100,000 for he Cord, and about $25,000 for the Hollywood).

These are both pre-war cars that have reached their absolute pinnacle in terms of value, but they were both designs that were arresting in their day. So, to all of the Hoons out there, do either of these classic, pre-war, unique cars do anything for you, or should they just be consigned to a museum? Have your say.