Craigslist Fun

"glemon" (glemon) 10/27/2020 at 20:09 • Filed to: None

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!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

1. Did you know this car was a thing?

2. What country was it made in?

3. What is “wrong” (not factory) about it?

Fun Part:

4.  What other cars are lurking in the garage?  Some are easy, others hard

Just Jeepin' > glemon 10/27/2020 at 20:27

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The only question I can half-answer is that I definitely knew Crosley itself  existed, although two of the cars in there do look familiar.

ranwhenparked > glemon 10/27/2020 at 20:27

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Yes, it was America’s first postwar sports car. Fun fact, Crosley also built the first all-steel station wagon, innovative little buggers, weren’t they?

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > ranwhenparked 10/27/2020 at 20:30

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“Sports” car

ranwhenparked > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker 10/27/2020 at 20:32

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It checks all the necessary boxes to meet the definition. Speed has never been one of them.

glemon > glemon 10/27/2020 at 20:56

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The easy ones are a Lotus Europa and a Datsun 240z (or maybe 260 or 280).

I think I recognize the tail end of the car in picture 5, and less sure but have a guess about the left side of the car in picture 6--any thoughts?  

PowderHound > glemon 10/27/2020 at 20:58

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I swear I have seen Crosley posted about at least a few times here in the past week but maybe it’s the “obscure cars for sale” facebook group. Skipping questions but there is a z car, 240? a lotus europa and I don’t know, is that brighter red one an MG? I wanna say the the duller red is a gullwing but I can’t imagine that’s right

ClassicDatsunDebate > glemon 10/27/2020 at 21:03

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The third brake  light can’t be stock

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > glemon 10/27/2020 at 21:05

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1. Yes! It’s awesome! Small cars = win!

2. The US of A!

3. Not sure what’s non-original as I don’t know they well enough...you’d better buy it so you can check and then return it to as original as possible :P

4. Z...? Lotus Europa...? Not sure what the teal car is....red one could be an Alfa or some sort maybe...or some sort of Shelby Cobra replica?

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > ranwhenparked 10/27/2020 at 21:09

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I guess? I don’t think I heard they handled very well. Though I suppose that’s not required either really. 

ranwhenparked > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker 10/27/2020 at 21:13

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I’ve never driven one, but contemporary magazine reviewers seemed to think they were pretty nimble, and they were raced competitively.

Though, I guess, when most American cars were essentially limousines masquerading as family sedans, it didn’t necessarily take that much to impress writers.

I have to think they were reasonably competitive with contemporary MGs and the like, maybe even on speed. The Hot Shot could allegedly hit 80mph, which wasn’t even that terrible for the time.

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > ranwhenparked 10/27/2020 at 21:21

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I take it back, they were SCCA champions in the under 750cc class.

I would like to have one just for fun. 

Kiltedpadre > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker 10/27/2020 at 21:26

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Does winning the first race at Sebring help you see it as a sports car?

http://crosleyautoclub.com/Sebring/Sebring.html

Kiltedpadre > PowderHound 10/27/2020 at 21:27

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I’ve posted about them twice in the last couple of weeks, and JustJeepin shared a Hotshot from Craigslist last week.

ranwhenparked > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker 10/27/2020 at 21:31

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I knew they raced SCCA, but didn't know that. Wonder what the competition was? Maybe prewar Bantams?

PowderHound > Kiltedpadre 10/27/2020 at 21:33

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Good, so I’m not going crazy.
…That you all know of

Kiltedpadre > glemon 10/27/2020 at 21:36

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The grill isn’t stock. Beyond that I’d need more pictures including under hood shots to say for sure.

Crosleys were built in Indiana. The company was owned by Powel Crosby Jr. He owned a company that made radios, record players, refrigerators, and he was the owner of the Cincinnati Reds for awhile.

Kiltedpadre > PowderHound 10/27/2020 at 21:45

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As it pertains to the internet posting of Crosleys, you are completely sane. On all other topics the jury’s out.

RacinBob > glemon 10/27/2020 at 23:52

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A very smart engineer friend of mine I believe thought the crosley engine to be neat. If I recall correctly it had a brazed copper block.... Here is the story

The story of the post-war Crosleys really starts in 1943. It was in the summer of that year that Paul Klotsch, the chief engineer of Crosley Motors, met Mr. Lloyd Taylor of Taylor Engines. Mr. Taylor had designed a unique engine made of steel stampings, all hydrogen brazed together. The complete engine weighed only 133 pounds, was very compact and was producing an unheard of 36 horsepower at 5600 RPM from only 44 cubic inches. In addition to the novel stamped steel construction, the engine also had a shaft driven overhead cam. Technically, the jump from the pre-war two cylinder engine to this little four cylinder powerhouse was unbelievable. From a small, basically obsolete (in automobiles) engine to a small OHC design that wasn’t duplicated by the “Big Three” for over twenty years Crosley had achieved a near miracle.

Crosley took an exclusive license on this engine and before the end of the war had sold it to the government for many applications, most notable being generator sets. The first contract was for the U.S. Navy and required the engine to run continuously at full power for 1200 hours (if in a car travelling at 50 MPH, this would equal 60,000 miles-without stopping). From this contract many others followed, the little five main bearing four cylinder mill powered generators, auxiliary power plants, back up generators in PT boats, refrigerator units and even the Mooney Mite airplane after the war. It should be noted that the prototype 36 horsepower unit had a 9 to 1 compression ratio and used 100 octane fuel (Aviation Gas). For use in the Crosley cars, the engine was detuned to 7.5 to 1 compression ratio (still the highest in the industry) and delivered 26-1/2 horsepower. It was christened the Cobra-from COpper BRAzed. The entire block, of 125 stampings weighed only 14 pounds. The crankcase was an aluminum casting for ridgidity and the inside of the block was at first plastic lined and later zinc lined for resistance to rust. The block was held together by press fits, spot welds and crimps prior to brazing in a 2060 degree F furnace.

glemon > ranwhenparked 10/28/2020 at 00:58

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I didn't know it was the first all steel wagon, I did know they made a wagon, a guy a couple blocks down had Crosleys all over his front yard, including a wagon or two.

glemon > Kiltedpadre 10/28/2020 at 01:01

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Correct, the grill, never seen one like that, don't think it is really an improvement.  Hole for a hand crank?

glemon > RacinBob 10/28/2020 at 01:11

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And the Cobra engines didn’t stay together too well over time, electrolytic corrosion I think (I didn’t know about the plastic liners, but that sort of fits the theory). They started making them with a conventional blo ck. I seem to recall Crosley engines were popular in SCCA racing small bore class (D Sports Racing maybe?) for a long time after the cars were no longer competitive.

Also best racing story ever  http://classic-cars-talks.blogspot.com/2012/08/crosley-at-le-mans-1951.html?m=1

glemon > PowderHound 10/28/2020 at 01:24

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I think the back end of the red car is a Berkeley, a car smaller than the Crosley.

I thought the light blue one on the edge of the last pic might be a Turner, but don't think so now that I have looked at pics.  Stumped.

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > Kiltedpadre 10/28/2020 at 09:04

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Yeah I didn’t know that. Upon further googling it seems better than I thought. I think I was thinking of a different US built microcar? What was the rear engined one with a single speed centrifugal clutch? Early 60s I think?

Edit: King Midget! That’s what I had this confused with. Those are the ones that suck. Cute, though.

Kiltedpadre > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker 10/28/2020 at 09:12

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My other unreasonably useless obsession.

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > Kiltedpadre 10/28/2020 at 09:15

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The International King Midget Club hosts an annual meet in August in Bowling Green. That’s not that far away...

Kiltedpadre > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker 10/28/2020 at 09:25

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They do a big event in several different places each year. I know in 2019 they were in Marysville. I may try to make it to BG this year. I’m really hoping it won’t be long before they go back to Athens, Ohio. That’s supposedly typically the most popular since it’s where they were built.