Danville Street Sighting - 1947 Willys Jeep CJ-2A

November 11 marks the Veterans Day holiday in the United States. Unfortunately I don't have any military vehicles in my archives to commemorate the day, but here is the next best thing. It's one of the earliest examples of a civilian Jeep, a Willys CJ-2A.

Danville Street Sighting - 1949 Studebaker 2R5 Truck

Today marks the sixth day of the fabled countdown to Christmas.

On the sixth day of Christmas my archive gave to thee:
Suede Studebaker,
Fine Nomad bling,
Ford Thunderbird,
Beige French shed,
Tuned Chevy LUV,
and a Park Lane down on the street.

Lately there's been a rash of Studebaker trucks popping up around here. Okay, that's overstating things slightly, but I know of at least three. One of those is a restored mid 1950s one that I see driving rather often. Then there's this 1949 example that I've seen a number of times, marketed by a gentleman with an assortment of classic pickup trucks that all seem to be for sale. You'll see several of them on California Streets in time.

Danville Street Sighting - 1946 Ford Super DeLuxe Custom

Every so often I pass by a shop in Danville and there's something interesting parked off on the side street. This usually happens while I'm on the clock at work in my van, so I can't stop. They aren't always there when I come back, and I usually don't get to meet the owner. This time I got lucky.

Alameda Street Sighting - 1946 Chevrolet Stakebed Truck

Two years ago I featured a mid-1940s Chevy commercial flatbed truck. That one was a challenge to identify because of I don't know commercial trucks very well. Here we have another one which may be a 3600 series 3/4 ton model, which if I've guessed correctly is classified as a model 3609 stake bed.

San Francisco Street Sighting - 1949 Kaiser Traveler

This is Independents' Week, where we take a look at American classic cars not produced by the Big Three of Ford, General Motors or Chrysler. Second up this week is a 1949 Kaiser Traveler.

Danville Street Sighting - 1949 Packard Standard Eight

This is Independents' Week, a recurring feature here on California Streets around the 4th of July, celebrating cars from independent American manufacturers. That means no Big Three cars from Ford, General Motors or Chrysler. This is a 1949 Packard Standard Eight Touring Sedan.

San Ramon Street Sighting - 1948 Ford Super DeLuxe V8 Coupe

When I was a kid I loved 1940s Fords. Heck, I still do. The '40 and '48 were my favorites, then I discovered the '49 and fell in love with that too. I even like the '42 to some extent. Every kid is fascinated seeing the DeLorean time machine in action in Back to the Future, but I cringe every time I see how they abused Biff Tannen's black '46 Ford convertible.

San Ramon Street Sighting - 1940 Buick Model 81C Limited Convertible Phaeton

Lately one of my favorite sources for street sightings is a quiet street within walking distance of my house. Most of the time I strike out, but when something's there, it's really good. This was the first one I found on the street, a 1940 Buick Limited convertible sedan.

San Francisco Street Sighting - 1946 Chevrolet 1-1/2 Ton Flatbed Truck

Let me just start this post by saying I'm not an expert on medium-duty commercial trucks. My identification of this truck is a best guess since the Chevy trucks didn't change a whole lot between 1941 and 1946 (1947 for the bigger ones). Near as I can tell, this is a '46 Model 4408, Series OS, 1-1/2 ton cab and platform truck with the 160-inch wheelbase. Or maybe not. Any help is appreciated.

San Ramon Street Sighting - 1948 Buick Super Sedanet

It's been a long time since the full-size two-door fastback was a competitive player in the marketplace. Probably not since the 1970s has anyone seriously pursued that style as a mainstream model, usually more as a niche performance model. Earlier than that, domestic manufacturers took advantage of the public's interest in sleek, streamlined forms and produced a unique body style known as the sedanet (or sedanette depending on who you ask). Buick produced Sedanets from around 1940 until 1952, available on certain years of Specials, Supers and Roadmasters.

Danville Street Sighting - 1948 Oldsmobile Dynamic 68

It's almost safe to say I've seen more custom cars with late-1940s Oldsmobile grilles than actual Oldsmobiles from that era. It's as if everyone scrapped them and forgot they existed. Fords, Chevys, that's all that seems to come out of the woodwork. The occasional Buick, Cadillac, Mercury or Chrysler product will pop up now and then, but Ford and Chevrolet seem to dominate the American classic car population and Oldsmobile is rarely represented. A postwar Olds, even a garden-variety four-door, is a red letter find for me.

Danville Street Sighting - 1948 Pontiac DeLuxe Torpedo Convertible

This was easily one of my favorite cars to photograph so far this year. Which is funny, given that the 1948 Pontiacs have never been on my short list of favorite cars. There are just so many cool Art Deco details on this beast, I couldn't help myself.

Danville Street Sighting - 1940 Ford DeLuxe V8 Coupe

Every now and then I get lucky and something cool turns up on the road, then it happens to park nearby on a public street. Such was the case with this 1940 Ford that rolled past me while I was driving through Danville one afternoon following work. I'm not typically a fan of brown cars, I'm a fan of the '40 Ford and this one definitely spoke to me, brown and all.

Emeryville Street Sighting - 1942 Buick Special Series 40A Touring Sedan

One of the smallest production years in American automotive history was 1942, the final year of civilian car production before American factories switched over fully to building military equipment for the war effort. A few companies managed to secure government contracts to build ambulances, staff cars and transport trucks based on existing models. Others retooled and provided engines for military vehicles and still others built tanks, jeeps, aircraft and countless other mass-produced resources for the U.S. military fighting World War II. Buick produced just 92,573 cars in the short 1942 model year, of which 1,611 were Series 40A Special 4-door Touring Sedans. The Special 6-passenger Touring Sedan was offered in two versions, the 40A and the 40B. The 40A was a short-wheelbase, less flashy version. The 40B was eight inches longer and included more chrome trim on the rear fenders to match the pair of "speedline" strips on the front fenders. The 40B Touring Sedan sold 17,187 copies.

San Ramon Street Sighting - 1941 Dodge D-19 Luxury Liner

The first time I ever recall seeing a 1941 Dodge Luxury Liner was in January outside the Silicon Valley International Auto Show. They're not nearly as popular with owners today as Fords and Chevys of the same era, making them very hard to find. I commented on this in my feature on it. So naturally I stumbled upon another one in my own town a mere two days after I wrote the post.

San Jose Street Sighting - 1941 Dodge D-19 Luxury Liner

Prewar cars can still be found here and there on the roads of California, but one will often notice that they all seem to be Fords (or in some cases Chevys). Very rarely do you see Chrysler products of this era, particularly Dodges. Here we have a Dodge D-19 Luxury Liner sedan.

Oakland Street Sighting - 1947 Ford Super DeLuxe V8 Fordor

Some of the best cars only seem to appear when I don't have my camera with me. I had jury duty. No point in bringing my camera. The thing was, there were no trials scheduled that day, so the entire group was excused. I went to hang out with my friend in Oakland, and naturally there at the curb was the "old forties car" he had previously told me about next to the coin laundry place near his house. He loaned me his point-and-shoot and I pointed and shot.

San Jose Street Sighting - 1941 White Super Power Fire Truck

Someone somewhere had to recognize the irony of a car company building a vehicle called the White Super Power at a time when Hitler's Nazis were steamrolling over Europe. This fact was not lost on other manufacturers such as Studebaker, who dropped the name Dictator from their lineup in 1937. The Studebaker Dictator had been so named because it 'dictated the standard' for its competitors. But by that year the word 'dictator' was not fashionable. Likewise, White Super Power refers to the White Motor Company flathead six-cylinder engine under the hood, not to any racist tendencies or support of Hitler on the part of the manufacturers.

Danville Street Sighting - 1943 Dodge WC-52

In the United States, November 11 is Veterans Day. It's a day when we honor those in uniform who have fought for our freedom. In honor of our armed forces, I'm featuring a World War II military truck, a Dodge WC-52.

San Jose Street Sighting - 1949 Ford Tudor

I'm a big fan of the "shoebox" 1949-1950 Fords. They were not the first all-new cars following World War II; that distinction goes to the 1947 Studebaker line. However the 1949 Ford was almost completely new with the exception of its old six and flathead V8 engines. It made the previous model look antiquated overnight.
My love of the '49 Ford began years ago. I found a picture of one in a magazine that was a mild custom in light blue with frenched headlights, and I drew it as part of a project I was then working on. Then Hot Wheels came out with a '49 Ford in pearl white and I bought it. I pestered my parents for a Testors-branded (actually produced by Motormax) 1/24 scale die-cast model kit of a green '49 Club Coupe for Christmas.

I assembled it in an hour and have loved it ever since.