Duesenberg J-356

1932 Duesenberg Model J Tourster in the style of Derham

For sale at St. Louis Car Museum & Sales | St. Louis, Missouri

Ordinarily I wouldn’t feature a car on a Saturday, the day I normally reserve for auction results or, well, my day off. But this is a makeup post because two weeks ago I featured J-355, a car which had already been featured. I knew this car was for sale, and it was going to be skipped so I could feature that other car. So I felt dumb, and here we are.

This is a Model J that was constructed from pieces of other Duesenbergs. In total, three cars combined to make this one. A Willoughby Sedan originally sat atop this chassis and the engine came from a Murphy Convertible Sedan. Other parts came from a car that was once a Rollston Cabriolet. But it does have an actual Duesenberg engine, no. J-356.

The body is not original. It is one of a few built by a man named Ted Billings to an exacting standard in the style of a Derham Tourster. This type of Model J isn’t the most desirable, but it will get you in the ever-exclusive “I-own-a-real-Duesenberg” club. The cost of entry? $799,900. For more information, click here.

Update: Failed to sell at Motostalgia, Houston 2014.

Update II: Failed to sell at Bonhams, Greenwich 2015.

Duesenberg J-310

1935 Duesenberg Model J Sedan by Derham

Offered by Auctions America | Auburn, Indiana | August 30-September 2, 2012

Okay, one more Model J to close out Duesenberg Week. This one is still available for you to purchase, coming up for sale at Auctions America’s Auburn Fall Sale here in a few days. This car has a somewhat convoluted history and is, like many Duesenbergs, a combination, of sorts, of two separate cars.

The body, the Derham Sedan style you see here was originally attached to J-551. The owner didn’t like the new aerodynamic design updates and waterfall grille and had Duesenberg reinstall the 1929-style grille and trim bits to the car.

Sometime later, the body was removed and the engine and chassis of J-551 were used for another project. The owner of J-310 used the original body from his car (a Judkins Limousine) for a separate project as well. Well, the remnants of both J-551 and J-310 ended up in the hands of the same owner, Homer Fitterling, who mounted the Derham body you see here on J-310. So two leftovers were combined to build this car. When Fitterling reassembled it, he added the updated Duesenberg parts to the Derham body that the original owner did not care for.

This car was owned by a number of people during the 1980s and 90s and has spent the last 10 years or so in a museum, being driven on a limited basis. It is ready to be used and you will not find another one like this as the body, with the factory updates, is one-of-a-kind. Auctions America hasn’t published an estimate, but expect it to sell for north of $500,000. The complete catalog description can be found here and click here for more from Auctions America’s Fall Auburn sale.

Update: Sold $456,500.

Duesenberg J-270

1929 Duesenberg Model J Dual Cowl Phaeton by LeBaron

Offered by Gooding & Company | Monterey, California | August 18, 2012

This Model J has the LeBaron Dual Cowl body on it – my favorite bodystyle. This body was originally attached to a different chassis and engine than it is now. When it was first bought, it was wrecked and the chassis was junk. So Duesenberg removed the body, repaired it, and fitted it to a new chassis and engine, the one it currently has, including engine J-270.

One reason this car doesn’t really look like all the other LeBaron Dual Cowl Phaetons is because in 1937, the then-owner took the car to Derham and had them streamline it a little. There are aspects of this car that scream “1930s Art Deco” instead of “Big 1920s Touring Car.” The skirted fenders and bullet headlights are an awesome additions.

This car has been with the current owner for almost 60 years. It has been used regularly and never restored, just mechanically maintained. The two tone blue paint on the Sweep-Panel body (which is hard to see in the photo above) has helped create the nickname “Blue J” for this car.

For being unrestored, this is a truly impressive automobile. The pre-sale estimate was $2,000,000-$2,750,000. The complete catalog description is here.

Update: Sold $1,980,000.