1938 Hispano Suiza Xenia Coupe

 I recently learned about a car built in 1938 called the Xenia Coupe. The car was built by Andre Dubonnet to show off his new independent suspension. He used a Hispano Suiza H6C chassis and modified it to include his enclosed coil spring suspension.

Hispano Suiza was a European manufacturer of the finest luxury cars up until 1936 when they turned from the manufacturing of cars to aviation engines.  The cars that they built in the 1930's were considered some of the finest in the world at the time.

For his creation, Xenia, Andre Dubonnet used a Hispano Suiza H6C chassis and chose Jaques Saoutchik to form the one of a kind body. The result was an avante-garde interpretation of the teardrop, and was different from any other cars of it's time. The Xenia's styling was inspired in part by art deco architecture.

Jaques Saoutchik was the founder of a top-class French coachbuilding company. In the 1930s the company became famous for their high quality and often extravagant designs. Here are a few of those designs.

A Little History

Here is a little history of Lawry's Used Cars that was first posted over at An Arkie's Musings.

My Daddy started Lawry's Used Cars in Mena, Arkansas in 1979. I have been in business with him since I moved to Arkansas in 1981. My Daddy has been in the car business since he was in college. For most of my life I have worked with him. I got started very early as these photos show. Here I am helping him sand a car in Collegedale, Tennessee.



From Tennessee he moved to Colorado where he opened Tri Town Service in the Dacono, Frederick, Firestone area. In the early 70's, the business was moved to Erie, Colorado. When Daddy moved from Colorado to Arkansas I operated Tri Town Service.



Several years ago I made a trip back to Erie, Colorado and took this photo of the old Tri Town Service building.



When we moved to Mena, Arkansas in 1981 I joined Daddy at the Lawry's Used Cars location. This is what the business looked like in the 1980's.



Here is an aerial view of what Lawry's Used Cars looks like now. Several buildings have been added over the years.



Even though Daddy is at the age when a lot of guys are taking it easy, he still works full time operating Lawry's Used Cars.



Over the years the business has had some close calls. We have been right on the edge of two tornadoes. In the 1993 Mena tornado the 4 bay carport was picked up off of its foundation and moved a couple of feet, and a tree fell across one of the buildings and we had to repair and replace the roof. In the 2009 Mena tornado We had signs blown down but very little other damage even though less than a mile away homes were completely destroyed.

In April of 2007 a controlled burn in our area became out of control. The fire jumped the tracks behind our business and burned a number of cars. Thankfully the fire was brought under control before it reached our buildings.





For 30 years now Lawry's Used Cars has been a big part of my life. It is still enjoyable to go to work each day; I get to meet so many nice people. We have had people from all over the world stop in at our little business here in the Ouachita Mountains of Arkansas. Here is a partial list of collector cars for sale at Lawry's Used Cars.

Minivans In Japan

I ran across these photos over at the blog A Time To Get. They really grabbed my attention as I had never seen anything like these. They are awesome, I would love to have one. Dream Factory Blow takes the stock micro vans that cram the streets of Japan, and turns them into custom creations styled after iconic American trucks and vans of the 1970s.

Honeymoon Frazer

Recently my parents went on the Hemmings Cruise 2010. They had a wonderful time and visited with many wonderful people. Whenever old car people get together one of the topics of conversation is always the cars they used to own.

One of my Daddy's favorite car stories is the story of his honeymoon car. It was in 1954 that he spotted a 1949 Frazer Manhattan behind a gas station in Nashville, Tennessee while he was going to college in nearby Madison, Tennessee. The Frazer had been sideswiped and the front bumper bent, but it was only five years old, it was very nice, and it was only 100 dollars.

After buying the car he found out that it had belonged to Rod Brasfield, a comedian on the Grand Ole Opry. That made it a celebrity car. Unfortunately he also found out that number 5 rod was knocking.


ROD BRASFIELD AND MINNIE PEARL

With the help of his friend Louie he dropped the pan, pulled the crankshaft, had the number 5 throw ground to .060, installed a new bearing and put it back together. With a little body work and some Bondo, which was a fairly new product at the time, along with a gallon of blue paint it looked good and he was proud of it.


DADDY'S HONEYMOON 1949 FRAZER

The 49 Frazer was the first car that Daddy ever put five dollars worth of gas in at one time. It had a tank that held over 20 gallons and gas was 24.9 cents a gallon. Soon after the Frazer was repaired and repainted it was December 1954 - time for my parents wedding. They headed from Tennessee to cold and snowy Michigan where they were to be married. By the time they got there there was a tic tic tic in the engine. Daddy thought it was a loose tappet, so he adjusted the valves out in the snow.

BOB AND PAT LAWRY


After the wedding they headed for Kansas. As they drove along the "tappet noise" got louder. They only had 35 dollars between them as the traveled, and they spent 5 dollars on a motel the first night. The knocking was getting louder. Daddy pulled off the number 5 plug wire and kept going. At 75 miles per hour in overdrive, you could barely hear the noise. They made it back to school safe and sound and a month later scraped $6.75 together for a new bearing insert and after it was installed the Frazer was running good again.

After awhile they sold the Frazer and bought a 1949 Chevy convertible but that is another story for another time. I hope the Rod Brasfield/Honeymoon Frazer is still alive somewhere. Daddy did find a 1949 Frazer Manhattan for sale at Country Classic Cars in Staunton, Illinois, and just had to once again own a car like his honeymoon Frazer. Like all of his other cars the Frazer is for sale. If you would like to own this blue 1949 Frazer Manhattan with recent paint, wide whites and an original rough interior, 3500.00 will make that happen.

1946 Mercury Pickup For Sale

1946 Mercury Pickup, rare Canadian only model, runs good
15,500.00

A little history of the Mercury Pickup.

Mercury trucks first came to the market in 1946. When production of Ford vehicles started after WWII, Canadian truck buyers had a choice of either the Ford nameplate or the Mercury nameplate on trucks built in Canada. Because smaller Canadian towns had either a Ford-Monarch or Lincoln-Mercury-Meteor dealer, but not both, the Lincoln-Mercury-Meteor network got the Mercury truck.

Canadian-made Ford and Mercury trucks differed, for the most part, only cosmetically. Many years it was just "Mercury" versus "Ford" letters on the hoods and pickup tailgates, plus distinctive medallions that set them apart. The only years that the Mercury truck had it own distinctive look were 1946 and 1947. In those years the Mercury trucks were treated to a heavily-chromed grille and bumper treatment, compared to the Ford's plain looks.



In 1946 there were 2,074 Mercury truck units produced 1/2 ton through 1 ton. The peak year for Mercury truck production was 1952 with 12,676 sold. The need for a dual marketing network was eliminated with the Automotive Trade Agreement signed by the United States and Canada in 1965. The free-flow across the border brought the phase-out of the Mercury trucks with 1968 being the last year they were produced.

You can own this unique low production truck. Give Bob a call at:
Lawry's Used Cars
479-394-9938

Car Art

I enjoy manipulating photos that I have taken to make them look like paintings or drawings. Here are some of my favorites


This is a 1939 Lincoln that we sold a few years ago.



1950 Cadillac that we used to own.



The 1942 Desoto was so wild and unusual with its hidden headlights, that it lends itself to this psychedelic interpretation.



The 1959 Edsel was supposed to lead us into the future. This futuristic outer space depiction fits the Edsel well.



This 1933 Plymouth street rod was built here in Mena, Arkansas and is still seen on the local streets.



I took a picture of this 1950 Studebaker street rod at the Wilhelmina Rod Run.

Collector Cars For Sale

Here is a partial listing of the collector cars that are for sale at Lawry's Used Cars in Mena, Arkansas. For more information call Bob Lawry at 479-394-9938.

1940 Buick Limited 4 door, twin sidemounts, older restoration, runs and drives - 17,900.00

1940 Buick Special 4 door sedan, recent paint and upholstery, runs and drives - 9900.00

1941 Buick Special 4 door sedan, restored, straight 8 with twin carburetors, runs and drives - 15,500.00

1941 Buick Special 4 door sedan, needs paint and interior, runs and drives - 5495.00

1946 Buick 4 door, original, good body, ran when parked - 3500.00

1967 Buick Electra 225 convertible, customized lead sled, runs great, good top, needs paint and interior - 4000.00

1972 Buick Limited 4 door hardtop, black, customized, runs great - 4500.00

1976 Cadillac Eldorado Convertible, old restoration, ran when parked - 3500.00

1977 Cadillac Seville 4 door, gold, 1 owner, runs great - 3000.00

1940 Chevrolet 2 door, original, runs good, needs interior - 5995.00

1951 Chevrolet 4 door Deluxe, exceptionally nice, good original interior other than front seat, runs and drives super, gun metal gray - 9900.00

1968 Chevrolet Pickup swb stepside, blue, extra nice, new paint and interior, new oak floor in bed, mag wheels, lots of chrome goodies - 10,200.00

1972 Chevrolet El Camino, orange, new paint, good interior, very nice - 10,500.00

1978 Chevrolet El Camino, customized with a bullet nose Studebaker front end, new paint, runs and drives great - 7995.00

1980 Chevrolet Pickup, black, customized, chopped top, electric doors, runs great - 10,500.00

1941 Chrysler Royal 4 door, ran when parked - 2995.00

1950 Chrysler Windsor 4 door, blue, original, ran when parked - 2995.00

1951 Chrysler Imperial 4 door, Chevy V/8, runs - 2995.00

1959 Edsel Ranger4 door, rough, ran when parked - 1995.00

1930 Ford Model A 4 door, original except alternator, new tan and brown paint with orange wheels, runs and drives - 10,900.00

1949 Ford Coupe body with 2003 Chevrolet S-10 chassis, running gear and interior, V/6, 5 speed, lengthened rear fenders - 9995.00

1949 Ford Coupe body with 2001 Kia Sportage chassis, running gear and interior, 4 cyl, Automatic, customized, shortened - 7500.00

1949 Ford Pickup, good body, no motor or transmission - 2995.00

1950 Ford 2 door sedan, light green, original flathead V/8, good original paint and upholstery - 9995.00

1950 Ford Pickup, original flathead V/8, red, good body and paint, all original except mag wheels, runs good - 7995.00

1957 Ford 4 door sedan, red/white with gold anodized side trim, recent paint, original interior, runs - 4995.00

1949 Frazer 4 door sedan, blue, recent paint, runs, wide whites, original rough interior - 3500.00

1951 Kaiser 4 door sedan, maroon, good body and paint, original interior, runs - 4000.00

1953 Kaiser Manhattan 4 door, customized, shaved handles, lengthened rear fenders, continental kit, ran when parked - 2000.00

1946 Lincoln Continental Coupe, good body, no motor or transmission - 5000.00

1947 Lincoln Continental Coupe, blue, decent paint and interior, 1950's Oldsmobile Rocket V/8 - runs good, looks good - 10,500.00

1977 Lincoln Versailles 4 door, blue, good original, runs good - 2995.00

1994 Lincoln Town Car stretch limo, rough, damaged top, runs - 995.00

1946 Mercury Pickup, rare Canadian only model, runs good - 15,500.00

1947 Mercury 4 door sedan, green, good paint, fair interior, runs good - 9900.00

1952 MG (replica) on VW bug chassis, built new in 1980, never been driven - 6500.00

1952 Nash Ambassador 2 door hardtop with continental kit, recent paint, original interior, runs - 4995.00

1956 Packard Clipper 4 door sedan, V/8, runs good, recent repaint, good interior - 6995.00

1953 Plymouth Belvedere 2 Door Hardtop, leather seats, new paint, runs and drive good - 4995.00

1960 Rambler American 4 door, looks good, runs and drives - 3995.00

1938 Studebaker Commander 4 door sedan, 6 cyl, original, good body, nice grill, ran when parked - 3750.00

1952 Studebaker Champion 2 door hardtop, rare, rough condition, ran when parked - 1500.00

1955 Studebaker Commander 4 door, recent pink/black paint, original interior, v/8, ran when parked - 3200.00

1960 Studebaker Lark 2 door hardtop, good original body, bad headliner, not running - 995.00

1963 Studebaker Lark 4 door sedan, v/8, runs good, good body, needs paint, fair original interior - 1500.00

1963 Studebaker Lark station wagon, v/8, fair condition ran when parked - 1500.00


Lawrys Used Cars
479-394-9938
richies@sbcglobal.net