Reply To: 1936 Piece at Upcoming RM Auction

[Cord Blomquist]

Hi, I’m Cord Blomquist, and I’m selling this car at RM Auctions in Auburn this Friday. I can be reached at 202-615-0600 or [email protected] with questions about the car.

Here’s what I know about the car:

*Vehicle History*

This 1936 Pierce-Arrow Model 1602 Twelve Seven-Passenger Sedan features a 188 horsepower V-12 engine and an incredible 144-inch wheelbase. The car has 63,783 actual miles.

Production at Pierce-Arrow fell to an incredibly low number as the company struggled to grapple with the economic realities of the Great Depression. Production numbers vary from source to source because Pierce dissolved as a company in 1938 and records were destroyed or lost. A 1984 edition of “The Arrow,” the newsletter of the Pierce-Arrow Society, placed production at only 842 total cars in 1936. However, the “Standard Catalogue of American Automobiles” cites a sales figure of only 787 total models for that year.

1936 was not only a low-production year for Pierce-Arrow, it was also the last year this iconic American luxury brand would redesign its line-up. An overdrive transmission and vacuum-boosted brakes became standard equipment in 1936. The 1936-1938 cars have a distinctive arrangement of four headlights.

*Ownership History*

The oldest title record we possess shows that the car was owned by the Houston, Texas landmark Six Flags Astroworld in 1974. We believe it may have part of the Hofheinz Collection. From there it was sold in 1975 to Leo Gephart of Englewood, OH. Four days later it was sold to Rank and Son Buick of Milwaukeee, WI. This dealer sold the car to Marshall B. Belder of Canton, OH, who owned it from 1975 to 1984 when he gifted the car to his wife, Florence Belder, also of Canton. In 1986 ownership transferred to the McBel Trust with an odometer reading of 63,497 miles. On October 28, 1997 the title transferred to Gary W. Lawing of Tampa, FL. From there, the car was purchased by White Glove Collection and held by the Richard A. Blomquist Revocable Trust. This history is confirmed by George Teebay of the Pierce Arrow Society.

*Restoration*

Since being purchased by White Glove Collection, this Model 1602 has had a complete interior restoration at a cost of over $12,000. Pinstriping was added to the wheels and the forest green base-coat/clear-coat paint has been exact color matched and touched up where needed. The headlight retainer rings, hood louvers, grill, and front bumper have been polished or re-chromed. All interior and exterior door and trunk hardware has been re-chromed. The entire dashboard has been rebuilt and detailed. The engine has been detailed and the twin air filters have been restored. The side-mount mirrors were also restored and re-chromed. A set of Pierce-Arrow-branded Trippe driving lights were added to the car with a switch attached below the dash.

You can see photos of the car at the link provided along with scans of all the title and registrations information I have on the car. I also have photos of a 1930 Hupmobile I have for sale at RM Auction in Auburn, selling on Friday as well.