A 1933 Sedan Delivery

[Digger]

Merry Christmas to all Barners! Just sharing info on my '33.

History
The Smith family of Clinton MI, owned it since the 1950s.

Billy Smith's Dad had found a '33 SD in the woods, and he used it as a deer blind for many years.In 1954, the Salada Tea Company had a 1933 SD for sale from their fleet that did not run. It was this car, number D-11. He bought it and quickly figured out the issue was the fuse block.He went into the woods, pulled the fuse block from the deer blind SD, installed into D-11 and it was running again.

In 1977 father Smith gave it to son, Billy Smith, who owned it all this time.Billy remembers being a kid sliding down the fenders like a slide.They drove and enjoyed the car for decades, taking it to parades, driving around town, and keeping it indoors away from the tough Michigan winters.

Condition
The great thing about D-11 is that it runs and drives, and probably the most original, in tact 1933 Sedan Delivery out there.If you found one that needed a restoration and was not complete, it may be impossible to find some of the crucial parts.

Exterior
The body metal is in great overall condition. After 81 years, only a few areas needed attention. There is a patch in the passenger side rear quarter. The SD has its original grille with emblems, bumpers, headlights, cowl lights, tail light. The passenger side fender is a replacement, as it is not welled for the spare tire.

Has correct 17" rims, with brand new Excelsior Competition racing tires and tubes. I added the old 1933 CA license plate to give it that vintage look.

Interior
Importantly, all the door jambs are solid, in tact and crust free. The door gaps are great, they all close perfect. Look and see ALL the original wood is there and stood the test of time: the wood bed, door frames, panel frames are all in great shape. The garnish moldings are all there, the header panel, dash and windshield frame, just how you would want them. Many fasteners are 81 years old, still keeping D-11 together. Check out the seats, and passenger side folds, up. Someone put a heavy sealer on the front floor, but upon inspection it is complete and rust free. All original gauges, working speedo and amp gauge. In tact fuel gauge, may be a simple fix to get it running. All the glass is excellent, windows roll down fine, windshield cranks out as it should.

Mechanics
Has a 1936 motor which starts right up, drives great. Tranny is fine, no popping out of gear, mechanical brakes are solid and stop the car in traffic as expected. Undercarriage is crusty and grimy, but original and in tact.

if you are restoring one and need specific area photos or info, contact me and I will send you what I can.

[VeryTangled]

Umm, [wiping mouth] SWEET!

[Channeling David Copperfield] More please?

Maybe underneath?

[donald1950]

Wow... nice.....

[waterboychuck]

Very nice. I love sedan deliveries.

[Lawson Cox]

Very, very nice.

[Digger]

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more photos.....

[Jim in Wisconsin]

I have a 33 2 door sedan, and can appreciate how rare and GREAT that car is! Wow, I would love to just drive it up and down the driveway.

[Digger]

I have had it up to about 48 MPH. The drive train would carry it faster, but the old body and suspension is telling me to cool it!

[Mtn Wudy]

I have a question...Can you draw me a map to ..."The Duck Blind".???
Great story,,thanks for sharing...Merry Chrismas to you and your family...

[mfagan]

I like it!!!!

[mercman from oz]

Wow, What a Honey. Love those Model 40 Sedan Deliveries. Spotted this one at the V8 Nationals at Lake Tahoe last year. Unfortunately, it wasn't displayed in the Concourse, which was a pity, as they are so rare & beautiful. These photos were taken in the car park at Harveys.

[GrandpasA]

Yes treasure map to the duck blind please..lol.. Great sd you got there..

[Mart]

Nice example, regardless of the body type, but especially so as it is such a rare body. I like the fold down passenger seat. Interesting to see the door pulls near the front of the door. My 33 5w has them near the centre of the door. Is having them near the front a general 33 thing or a sedan delivery only thing? (I wonder).

Mart.

[Digger]

Mart, that was a temporary location for the handles while I was cleaning up and prepping the doors and panels. Amazing that they were still around after all there years.

[al's28/33]

B E A U T I F U L !!!!

I have a '33 pickup and it gets more attention than my '28 Phaeton believe it or not.
Autos were made with character and style back then, nothing like today at all.

[Jim in Wisconsin]

It has cowl lights, like the delux cars, but only one tail light. I wouldn't think a sedan delivery would have been a delux, maybe someone just added the cowl lights?

[VeryTangled]

Hi Everyone, Jim, letting my thoughts run a little here...

Can you imagine that a Sedan Delivery would have to be acquired by the dealer rather than having it sitting on the lot when the customer arrived?

Does anyone know, in 1933 was it anything like today when dealerships would provide stock to other dealerships, or would it have been ordered from the factory for this customer?

Let's say it's either way but the dealership has to jump through a hoop to get the Sedan Delivery for the customer. Here's the hook... The dealership "up-sold" the cowl lights to pad their profit while they were cutting the deal for the original customer (likely the Salada Tea Company, from the original post, and someone was spending the boss' money!).

Seems plausible to my weak mind.

[Gumpy]

Awesome delivery thanks for sharing I havent seen but a few out here in cali, Merry Xmas!

[Digger]

I was curious about the comment regarding the cowl lights, so I looked in the 33-34 book. There are photos of brand new standard and Deluxe SDs and they both have cowl lights on them.

I have asked the Smith Family if they have any old photos of it, and any info, such as howitzer know it was numbered D-11 by Salada Tea Co. Looking at the more hidden sections of the car, I think it was originally black.

[Jim in Wisconsin]

My sedan has cowl lights, and now that I think about it, I wonder what exactly were they used for anyway? They take less current, and the charging systems weren't great so maybe they used them at dusk instead of the headlights. Using the headlights uses up most of the charging capacity, barely enough left to keep the battery up. I've had my car since about 1971 and I don't think I ever actually used them for anything, but they do work.
That car needs a nice old fashioned looking logo of some kind in the panel, if not Salada Tea, then something!
The more I look at those pictures, the more I love that car - thanks for posting it.