Three-quarter rear view of a Blue, 1931, Duesenberg Model J, at the Car Stories Stage of the 2020 London Classic Car Show
The Duesenberg Model J is a luxury automobile made by Duesenberg. Intended to compete with the most luxurious and powerful cars in the world, it was introduced in 1928, the year before the stock market crash that led to the Great Depression. The Model J, available with a supercharger after 1932, was sold until 1937. As was common practice among the luxury car brands, only the chassis and engine were displayed, the body and interior trim of the car would be custom-made by a third-party coachbuilder to the owner's specifications. The chassis on most model Js were the same, as was the styling of such elements as fenders, headlamps, radiator, hood and instrument panel. About half the model Js built by Duesenberg had coachworks devised by the company's chief body designer, Gordon Buehrig, and executed under the name La Grande by company branches in Chicago, New York City, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Florida and Denver, as well as by smaller dealers. The rest were designed and made by independent US coachbuilders such as Derham, Holbrook, Judkins, Le Baron, Murphy, Rollston (later renamed Rollson), Walker, Weymann, and Willoughby, and Fernandez et Darrin, Franay, Gurney Nutting, Saoutchik, and others in Europe. The chassis cost $8,500 ($9,500 after 1932). At a time when the average physician earned less than $3,000 a year, most completed vehicles fell between $13,000 and $19,000, with two American-bodied J's reaching $25,000.) Figures for prices charged by deluxe coachbuilders in Europe are not available, but it is possible they were even higher than the more costly American built models. The J was generally available with either with a short in ( m) wheelbase chassis or long in ( m)). Special orders included two SSJs shortened to 125 in ( m) and a few extended to 160 in ( m) and over. The dash included mechanically timed lights that reminded the driver when to change the oil and inspect the battery.
Size: 5616px × 3744px
Location: Olympia Exhibition Centre, West Kensington, London, W1
Photo credit: © John Gaffen / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: -quarter, 120mph, 1931, 2020, 265bhp, 3-speed, 6876cc, blue, buehrig, car, centre, classic, derham, dohc, duesenberg, exhibition, gordon, haynes, international, london, manual, model, motoring, museum, olympia, rear, show, stag, stories, straight-8, toursters, twin-cam-straight-8, view
