Imagine completely restyling the exterior of your house. Now think about doing the same thing just one year later. That’s essentially what Hudson did for the 1937 model year, which “meant the complete redesigning of cars that were completely new for 1936” and an increase in power. Our Pick of the Day benefits from those improvements as well as a restoration finished by specialist James Mundstock. This 1937 Hudson Terraplane Cab Pick-up is listed on ClassicCars.com by a dealership in Scottsdale, Arizona.
According to a guidebook about its 1937 models, Hudson said the overhaul “called for completely new body dies, fender dies, hood dies and for important changes throughout the chassis.” Double carburetion helped increase engine output, which jumped to heights of 96 or 101 horsepower for Terraplane models and 101 or 122 for Hudson models. This Terraplane Cab Pick-up was part of Hudson’s line of Terraplane Commercial Cars, which had all-steel bodies mounted on the new boxed Double Drop “2-X” Frame. Approximately 11 years ago, someone started bringing this truck back to its former glory. As restoration specialist James Mundstock says in this video, he assisted in the process, but after the primary restorer died, Mundstock ended up finishing it.
What a job well done. Not only is this truck a great design with sweeping curves, but its dark green exterior – with wide-whitewall tires – and tan interior colors make it even more attractive. The bed, which extends past the rear bodywork, helps make the most of this truck’s three-quarter-ton rating. Its tailgate flips down to reveal storage areas for things such as tools and the original screw jack.
The cab’s interior features thoughtful comfort and convenience features. A knob on top of the brown dashboard controls the vacuum-operated windshield wipers. Climate control hardware consists of a steering column-mounted fan and a dealer-installed heater with doors that can be opened to direct warm air toward the driver or flipped up to make things more pleasant for the passenger.
As part of the overhaul, an electric fuel pump was added to make starting up the original 212ci inline-six easier. The base level of output was 96 horsepower, but do you see the “Power Dome” lettering on the cylinder head? That means this I6 was equipped with a higher 7:1 compression ratio and 102 horses, which are directed by a three-speed manual gearbox.
Many classic vehicles need a long list of updates. This 1937 Hudson Terraplane Cab Pick-up isn’t one of them. In many ways, it was new for ’37; now it’s new once again for you. You can make it yours for $72,900.
Click here to view this Pick of the Day on ClassicCars.com
