It is a beautiful thing

Yes, the picture at the left and top is 10231 S, finished! I took this picture at my house this last weekend. I've got a bunch of pictures to post, so I'm organizing them into groups. The first will be the body shop pictures, the second the engine, third the interior, and fourth the exterior.

Sheryl and I took the car to the Auburn Spring Warm-up in Auburn, Indiana this past weekend. It was like a cotillion for the car - 10231 S was the only Cord there, and in my mind, she was the prettiest girl at the ball. From the moment we pulled in, car-jaded ACD members watched and then came up to the car, with questions.

I really want to write a few words about the ACD club here. It's an amazingly eclectic group, held together by these cars. I thought we would be the youngest people there, but I was wrong - I also thought it would be very wealthy people, given how much it costs to buy and maintain these cars, but I was wrong again as well. I felt welcomed, and putting a Cord back on the road (even if it was Pat that did all the work), got me street cred right off the bat.

Interestingly, I met a judge there who was like a walking reference source for the 812 Cord, yet he doesn't own one. I met another guy who owns several Auburns, yet I doubt he knows much more mechanically than how to open the hood on one.

These guys are quite philosophic about these cars and their relationship to them. I had one guy ask me if I was the owner of the car. I responded that I was the current caretaker. This was the right thing to say. I certainly can't see ever selling the car, and it has outlasted it's previous owners, so chances are good that it will outlast me!

Since this is a blog, it's time for me to pontificate a bit - It's such a shame that so many of these cars have become artifacts - cars in shape, but museum displays in terms of functionality.


If a car isn't run and driven, it's a simple matter of time before the people that own the car stop knowing *how* to keep it running. I know that even driving the car around the block will cost it points in a judging, but if you think about it, never driving it makes winning awards the only real satisfaction. I have to say, driving home after the meet in the evening with just Sheryl with me, was wonderful. The car is timeless.

And to boot, it didn't break down!