Voiture Cord 812 Cabriolet 1937 a vendre

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To Be OFFERED AT AUCTION WITHOUT RESERVE at RM Sothebys' The Arizona Auction event, 28 - 29 January 2027.
Offered Without Reserve | $250,000 - $350,000 USD

A charming Cord finished in Ganges Green
Listed in Josh B. Malks’ comprehensive reference, Cord Complete
Auburn Cord Duesenberg (ACD) Club Certified Category One (C-315)
Formerly of The Terrence E. Adderley Collection, now offered from The Groendyke Collection
Concours-quality restoration by the ACD experts at Brian Joseph’s Classic and Exotic Service
Best in Class at the 2017 Boca Raton Concours d’Elegance
Feature car at the 2022 McPherson College C.A.R.S. Club Motoring Festival
A Classic Car Club of America (CCCA) Full Classic

The enduring appeal of Gordon Buehrig’s "coffin-nose" Cord was its complete departure from period design, making for a revered icon of the Art Deco era. The new Cord was packed with revolutionary features including semi-unitary body construction, hidden door hinges, a front-opening hood, and concealed headlamps that far outpaced its Detroit competition. This cutting-edge styling was perfectly matched by its engineering, boasting a front-wheel-drive four-speed transaxle by Detroit Gear with a Bendix “Electric Hand” electro-vacuum pre-selector shifter, as well as a potent V-8 Lycoming engine. It stood as the ultimate driver’s car of its generation, reaching its peak expression in the dramatic, two-passenger cabriolet body style primarily produced for the 1936 810 series, with unsold models becoming 1937 812s.

This Cabriolet on offer is one of the Cords originally completed as a 1936 810 model, which, after remaining unsold, was subsequently renumbered by the factory and sold the following year as a 1937 812. The car is listed in Josh B. Malks’ comprehensive reference, Cord Complete. While initial ownership history is not known, by 1962 the Cord is recorded as being under the ownership of a J. Irving of Indiana. It was subsequently acquired from Mr. Irving by Terrance Roday of Indianapolis. By 1999 it was under the ownership of James Peters of Wellesley, Massachusetts who showed it that year over Labor Day weekend in Auburn, Indiana. There it was inspected by the ACD certification team and certified. The ACD inspection paperwork notes the car as being Red with an aged 1950s paint job and a brown interior.

In February 2003 the Cord was acquired from Mr. Peters by Dean H. Harrison of California. In 2005 it was certified again, still red and brown, retaining the ACD Club Certified Category One (C-315) classification, updated with Mr. Harrison’s ownership. By 2012 the Cord was listed for sale, having been restored at some point in Cigarette Cream over a red interior.

It was later acquired by Terrence E. Adderley, joining his impressive Michigan-based pre-war collection. He commissioned a restoration by the ACD experts at Brian Joseph’s Classic and Exotic Service—conveniently located around the corner from his collection—to its current presentation of Ganges Green over a green interior. Under Mr. Adderley’s ownership the restored Cord was shown at the 2017 Boca Raton Concours d’Elegance, where it won Best in Class.

In late 2021 it was acquired by The Groendyke Collection. Shortly thereafter, in May 2022, the Cord was a feature car at the McPherson College C.A.R.S. Club’s 22nd annual Motoring Festival. Mr. Groendyke was a strong supporter of the McPherson College Automotive Restoration program, funding scholarships and showing a car every year in May at the student-run show. Since his acquisition, this Cord has proudly represented the “C” in the Groendyke Collection’s ACD trio. It retains its original serial number plate and original Central Manufacturing body plate. Its Lycoming engine, however, appears to have been replaced at some point in its life, as the stamp on the block does not match that on the car’s original serial number plate. Today the Cord remains in beautiful condition throughout, with the high-quality of Brian Joseph’s restoration still on full display.

The "coffin-nose" Cord stands as one of the sharpest design dichotomies in automotive history, fundamentally clashing with the rest of the 1930s market. While mainstream American automakers were building tall, upright, chrome-heavy automobiles, designer Gordon Buehrig approached the Cord with minimalist, aviation-inspired Art Deco architecture. Ahead of its time in its day, it remains a timeless, celebrated classic, beautifully epitomized by this wonderful example.To view this car and others currently consigned to this auction, please visit the RM website at rmsothebys.com/auctions/az27/.