1929 Pontiac.
Thanks to Ian Moorcraft for providing not just the first photo for the 1929 Pontiac images page, but also by so doing, helping me identify a car in an original old photo from my own collection (shown further down). Ian's photo is a family shot from the 1950s, the vintage Pontiac belonged to his dad in Canada and is shown here on a trip out one day. Ian is the young boy sat in the rear, and of this particular car, Ian remembers the following:
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"When we went to the Drive in Movies in the Pontiac we would always get abuse from the driver in the car parked behind because the height of the Pontiac blocked the view of the screen! The car had removable split rims to change a flat, these had a buckle arrangement to clip the join in the rim together prior to bolting it back on the wooden wheel.
My Dad always broke these clips off in a temper, meaning a trip to the breakers yard for a replacement. In later life I became aware that a three-legged, jack type, tool was available to spread the rim to fix the clip in place, pity he didn't know about it at the time!"
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"If you look closely at the front wheel of the Pontiac (below) there is a lump of putty stuck on the hub, why? Well, that day was very hot and the wooden spokes on the front wheel shrunk due to the front hub running hot and all the grease melted. We stopped at a farm and played a hose on the wheel to swell up the spokes, the farmer gave us some grease and off we went. After a few miles, the grease started to melt and run out. We stopped at a hardware store and Dad bought a pound of putty and slapped on the hub and we continued to the beach and home again without further trouble!
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"The Pontiac eventually gave up, and was replaced by a 1930s Graham-Paige that broke the front joint of the prop-shaft on another trip to the beach."
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Excellent memories there Ian, thanks again for sending this contribution over to be shared on OCC.
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Another c1929 example.
The car in the following photo, from my own collection acquired over many years, also looks to be from about 1929. Identifiers that help confirm that this too is a Pontiac include the distinctive window surrounds, picked out in a lighter colour, and also the curved styling detail that can be seen on the scuttle. The shape of the screen visor and other details including the radiator mascot, just confirm the identity.
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Whereas Ian was able to provide great background information with regard to his dad's car, alas nothing is known about the next car featured, nor about the well-dressed motorist stood alongside it. He looks a trifle stern and not a little pensive - perhaps the likely lack of any on-board heating was weighing on his mind!? The trees bare of foliage, and traces of snow or ice on the ground, coupled with the sturdiness of the gent's apparel, all point to this being a winter's scene.
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Just visible in the background, beyond the wooden fence, are unusual-looking curved structures - whether there's enough detail there to perhaps shed light on the location at least, I don't know.
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Return to Page 21 in the road transport archive, or visit the main index of photographs by clicking here.
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