OCR Text |
Show i Cars Antique By ROSITYN KIRK who cut tec Is antique cars bit off his riK says George it iw kins, 479 W, 2 id) S , Bountiful, who is a i ollertur anil has two completed antique urs in the garage and one being teonv iti il in the garage basement. t i a lit f It ki-r,- " brochure from Chrysler, showing a coverlible with yellow wheels. So the wheels were painted yellow, He said several firms reproduce the to fit the renovated cars. tires old-siz- I BIT IVfN though George knows thut imnj'ie i. us are his weakness, he can't seem to resist, Presently he is working nn lie r tie ai ion of a 1931 Plymouth coupe .uul lio been 1 01 responding wnh other unique tar buffs in all parts of the mm(rv to find parts lie needs to restore that automobile. In die course of advertising for parts, he has learned tlo-rore parts fur a 19.14 hiysler available. Although the Chrysler p.uts are quite similar to the Plymouth. ihe use not exact. In the course of burin mi, be has received on offer to sell his Ilytmmth chassis to a man In Indiana. t Gf ORGE isn't sure what to do about getting into the renovation of the third car I I cause be has already restored a 1931 t hrvsh r sedan and has renovated a 19.11) ildsmohde .forge s lys he has asked himself the "How many old cars does one i m 'nim, a, v need ' He said his hobby reached ,u h proportions several years ago that he had io take a year out from his renovation in build a garage to house his old cars i HE THREE ordinary modern owned by the family, sit outside a m the covered carport. "We cant io ke p our new cars in the garage, he said. fieotge first became interested in old ,u s when he saw some that had been stored by the Utah Valley Old Car Club ami were on tour. Also one of his friends wa-mieier.ied in old cars. I d i I . HE HAD a chance to buy a 193! Chrysler wdan in lily, Nev. and that was his first romance with a car. He spent six or seven ve.us renovating the car, although about iwo years is the usual time needed. At the time he picked up the old car it was running under its own power, but he brought u from L'ly on a trader. He said now the sedan has been oirpletcly rebuilt. Every nut and bolt has neen changed. "Its in good enough shape that we could drive it to New York and back. But George says the family has not gone on such long tours as that. The Veteran Motor Car Club of America .ponsors six tours a year. The whole Hawkins family took one tour to Ophir, Utah, a ghost town. NINETEEN year old Susan drove the min Oldsmobile, which has been taking part of the family, while other family members rode in the five passenger Chrysler. The Chrysler was the first car that George renovated, laboring after work hours and on weekends. Parts for the Chrysler renovation have come from over 20 states The hub caps came from New Jersey. Pieces such as a rear bumper, door handles, cowl lights, headlight lenses, dome lights and window frames all were discovered through placing and answering ads for car parts. GEORGE HAS subscribed to Hem-mmMotor News, an antique car dealer's magazine which provides 400 pages of news and advertising about old I answered the other ads and found i ars. parts I needed to repair the Chrysler, George said. When the automobile was almost finished, he found books were available showing the colors that the 1931 Chryslers were originally painted. All those colors-blac- k, blue, green and ntaroon-we- re very dark, almost black, and so George decided on a light gray color with black fenders. Many of the he said. original cars were Then he had seen an old original sales two-ton- e, Hawkins family THE EIGHT-membhas put over 5,000 miles on the old car since the renovation was complete. He said the five passenger sedan is comfortable inside since it has more leg room than modern cars. "But you don't get as smooth a ride, They've learned a lot about cars since then." Since many of the engine parts cannot be renovated, George said that some companies had adapted to making engine parts for old cars. Others make uphol- -' Mery materials that are similar to the original, George purchased the uphol- Mery material from a company In Massachusetts which specializes In that production. Merial Hawkins, who also makes period clothes for the family to wear while riding in the car, reupholstered the inside of the ouiomobiie. THE BUMPER guard for the old automobile couldnt be purchased so George made one out of solid steel with a hack saw and a file. "It took several tries to accompljsh that project," he said. The musiot, a gazelle, was one of the last tout hes. These hood ornaments also serve as radiator caps in the old cars. While George Hawkins renovating the Chrysler, a was Chrysler which has been restored by George Hawkins, Bountiful took six or seven years to 47 complete. But when finished it was in comparable running condition to when it left the showroom still A 1931 1950 Olds- mobile, one like a car that they had owned in 1954 and had taken on their honeymoon, years ago. became available for sale. "We were building the garage and were broke and so we decided not to buy it," George said. BUT GEORGE couldnt stop thinking about the car and Merial dreamed about it one night and so they decided to buy the Oldsmobile convertible. That car, which had sentimenal value to the Hawkins, has been renovated, but not restored. The Hawkins children especially like to drive m the 1950 car. George said he is still undecided about whether to finish his current project. Just how many cars does one guy need?" he asked. "Then we need a variety of clothes to match the cars. That is another cl ef ' - ' U T fin SO ACCORDING TO George one of the biggest changes in cars over the years is the absence of running boards. About 1940 the running boards came off. The old cars are of higher quality in many senses since the metal is much heavier. In those days people didnt trade in their cars every two years and so they had to last longer, George said. But he said that modern cars are much better engineered. "Really its about a tradeoff. Most cars built before e 1935 had bodies. George has been restoring old cars since 1967. He says most of the time he is so busy with the old cars that he doesn't have time to repair the three other vehicles that the family owns. George did work with his son John on a 1963 Buick last winter so that it could be placed in running order. "John is into the car thing a little," he said. WHILE George decides on his next project, the chassis of the 1934 Plymouth coupe sets on blocks in the basement of his garage. He brought the old car home from West Texas where he found it while attending a school in connection with his work with the Federal Aviation Administration. He could keep trying to find parts to restore that car or could buy a 1934 Chryster sedan that he has found is available in Bluebell, Utah. "Old cars are a kirtd of disease. Its incurable, George said! "But Im letting a little more rational. Hes not sure that he wants to begin on another project as time consuming as the Chrysler renovation which was rebuilt down to every nut and bolt. Im not immortal. I dont know whether I can live long enough to restore another car like that one. vv:r- .a Zy'-- 1 I H0F?ntEr5 Reupholstering the interior of the Chrysler was a job undertaken by Merial Hawkins. Fabric for the upholstery was purchased from a firm in H CARR 1 AGE I t Massachusetts. wood-fram- PHOTOS By KIM MORRIS The mascot of the 1931 Chrysler, a gazelle, serves as a j- - f f a:a'-:- s V i- V,- ... '! sfi';', , v 1 &" ' I AJ,A The license plate indicates that George Hawkins is only one of the many people who restore old care. The Veteran Motor Car Club of America sponsors six old car tours every year. hood ornament as well as a radiator cap. spokes of the tires are painted yellow similar to a convertible Hawkins saw on a brochure. that Mr. cars are ine cnassis ot the 1934 Plymouth Coupe is the current project being rebuilt. Parts for the found through advertising in Hemmings Motor News, an antique car dealers magazine. |