This 1937 Buick Roadmaster 80 is not just ANY 1937 Buick Roadmaster limousine. It is a custom bodied creation by Brewster, one of only one in this style!
1937 Buick Brewster History and Provenance:
This car was purchased new by Esther Maria Chapin , wife of Charles Merrill Chapin ( The Merrill comes from Merrill -Lynch, the brokerage firm ) . She originally purchased This body on a 1935 Ford, and then had it transferred to this new 1937 Buick in ’37, according to the records kept by the Brewster Society. This car has body number , or “Brewster Number” 9062.
Sometime in the 1950’s, it was featured in an advertisement for Inskip, Which of course was the dealership formed by John Inskip the former Chief of Brewster! It’s obviously this same car, which was a unique, “High Headroom” design, of which only one was produced according to Don Weir of the Brewster Society.
It was shown in the book, “70 Years of Buick” by George H. Dammann, obviously the same photo as the Inskip Advertisement, and incorrectly identified as a Limited ( it’s actually a Roadmaster chassis based on the engine number ).
By 1973, collector James P. Tuschinsky of New Jersey owned it, and he applied for, and received, CCCA Classic Status on 3/7/1973 for the car, from the records kept by the CCCA.
Sometime shortly thereafter, Russ Jackson, the Barrett-Jackson auction Mogul, purchased it from Mr. Tuschinsky, and he owned it until his passing in 1993. He must have really liked it! It appears that it was sold at a subsequent Barrett-Jackson auction.
There are 3 photos of it on page 103 of the Beverly Rae Kimes book, “The Classic Car” published in 1990. At that time, it was under Russ Jackson’s ownership.
More recent owners were Ross Parsons in 2003, and George Albright III by 2007. Mr. John Ritchie of San Francisco bought the Buick in 2008, and the Vault Classic cars owns it now.
The Roadmaster Chassis is a very capable one, with independent front suspension, hydraulic brakes, and a powerful 130 Horsepower Straight Eight overhead valve engine of 320 cubic inches. The former owner had this car comprehensively serviced, including all new brakes, tires, and more, with the intention of driving and showing the car. His efforts resulted in a car that drives and operates beautifully, easily keeping up with traffic on the freeway. The transmission is synchro-mesh, the steering is light, and in general this car is a delightful car to drive!
No shortage of Illumination from the original headlamps and the nice Guide driving lamps!
The brilliance of Brewster design is evident here – this limousine looks light and stylish! Note the trunk, mounted on a folding trunk rack – that’s an original Brewster feature too! The Roadmaster wheelbase was 131 inches, which yields a car that fits easily into modern garages, it’s only 17 Feet long and 6 feet tall.
It’s a beautiful car. It’s been well taken care of, too – the body is in excellent condition, the doors fit and shut and line up beautifully. And speaking of shutting the doors, it sounds really good when you do it – they close with that double click satisfying sound that only comes from a hardwood framed structure and high quality latches.
The front end styling was done in the heyday of Harley Earl, chief of the GM art & color section. Think about how streamlined this looked compared to just a couple of years earlier.
The beautiful – and original – rear compartment, sumptuous in wool broadcloth and polished Mahogany wood.
It’s amazing to me that this interior survived so well! Note the Jumpseats.
There they are in the Up position, ready for additional passengers.
Here’s a nice detail of the Vanity, the ashtray, the pull strap, and, if you look closely at the end of the arm rest, the buzzer button to alert the chauffer to do something!
This is the view when seated in the lap of luxury! Note the excellent mahogany wood trim.
Excellent original wool doorpanels and carpeting.
The steering wheel is beautiful, with vibrant and smooth plastic. It’s either the best original steering wheel I’ve ever seen, or it’s been restored. Also note the dashboard – another custom Brewster touch, made from Mahogany, and using the original ’37 Buick gauge cluster in the center, and clock on the right side glovebox. Also note the pull-back inside doorhandle.
Here’s a close-up of the instruments, all of which work properly.
Nicely redone front seat. I should point out some de-lamination in the divider window. All the other glass in the car is great.
Nice doorpanel.
Coachwork by Brewster !
.
The paint job is pretty old, I estimate based on information in the file that it was done sometime in the 1960’s. It’s smooth and looks like lacquer, but it shows various buff-through spots, chips and the like.
Look at the beautiful doorhandles, they are specially made by Brewster.
The trunk is a neat piece- it’s custom made, and the lock mechanism is very interesting – you unlatch the 2 latches, and then turn the key. The lock mechanism itself is spring loaded, so it almost unlocks itself when you turn the key!
You can see some paint distress on the trunk.
There’s the powerful 320 Cubic inch straight 8 Overhead valve Buick engine! And, it runs great! Lots of power, it easily keeps up with Freeway traffic.
Here’s the passenger side of the engine. You’ll note the square bin at lower left is the tool bin, which has the jack and some other tools included.
A beautiful and rare car!
Stylish and formal!
Ready for the next car event or tour!