The 1936 Duesenberg SSJ Speedster was a slew to lay eyes on and a car so limited that only two were work up .
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Duesenberg advertised its Model J – inaugurate on December 1,1928 , – as “ The World ’s Finest Motor Car . ” And it plausibly was , given its majestic 142 1/2 - in wheelbase , mighty 265 - bhp neat eight , and the o.k. customs coachwork money could buy .
In 1932 , the supercharged SJ debuted . With 320 horses on rap , what could be more appealing than a short - wheelbase Speedster ? Even actor Clark Gable could n’t defy its allure .
Only two 1936 Duesenberg SSJ Speedsters were build : one for Clark Gable , the other for Gary Cooper . Riding a 125 - inch wheelbase , 17 - 1/2 inches shorter than a stock Duesie , the SSJ Speedsters sported a lightweight open - two-seater body produced by Central Manufacturing Company , an Auburn subsidiary company in Connersville , Indiana .
feature of these 1936 models included the sr. - style assailable fenders , 17 - column inch wheels , and Duesenberg ’s famed vertical - barroom grille . The cockpit was cozy for two , but the dashboard carried comprehensive instrumentation , even a tachometer and an altimeter caliber . Note the five chrome strips on the rearward fenders , a complement to the trim on the running play boards .
The heart of the SSJ Speedster was the 420 - three-dimensional - inch unbent eight locomotive . It featured dual overhead cams and four valves per piston chamber . With the motor - typesupercharger,320 horsepower was on tap .
concord to one advertising , “ This supercharged Duesenberg will throttle down to three miles per minute and will speed up from a stand kickoff to 100 naut mi per hour in twenty second . ” Top f number was a arrogate 130 in high gear , 104 in second ( in a tourer with the top down ) .
The winded Duesie was also “ as quiet as the illustrious Model J , with the elision of a pleasant soft telling of the supercharger . . . . ” At the rear , the 1936 Duesenberg SSJ Speedster feature an external spare tyre and smaller “ late - style ” round rear light . The extraneous exhaust pipes sprouting out of the hood shouted “ charged , ” but were optional on J models as well .
An eagle nameplate announce the Duesenberg , know to many as “ King of the classic . ”
Although this SSJ fall through several hands from 1948 to 1953 , Alfred Ferrara , of Gates Mills , Ohio , has own it for more than 40 years . It ’s not the kind of car that ’s promiscuous to part with .
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