1936 Classic Cars for Sale
Lincoln Zephyr debuts, Cord 810 shocks the show circuit, and front-wheel drive returns to American roads
1936 produced two cars that genuinely changed how designers thought about the automobile. The Lincoln Zephyr, priced from $1,275 at introduction, brought flush pontoon fenders and a fastback roofline to a volume-production car for the first time in America. Its 75-degree V12 had well-documented reliability problems with cooling, but the body was undeniably correct. It set the visual template that Ford would follow for years.
The Cord 810 was the other earthquake. Designed by Gordon Buehrig in roughly six weeks for the 1935 Chicago Auto Show, it debuted without a finished powertrain. The retractable headlamps, disappearing door hinges, and coffin-nose hood had no precedent. Front-wheel drive was revived on an American production car for the first time since the 1929-1932 Cord L-29. The 125-horsepower Lycoming V8 powered the front wheels through a Bendix electric preselector transmission that required patience and mechanical sympathy to operate well.
Packard, Cadillac, and Pierce-Arrow still occupied the top of the traditional market, but 1936 was the year the old hierarchy began to crack. Harley Earl's influence was visible across every GM line. The industry was moving whether or not the old-guard coachbuilders moved with it.
- The Cord 810 debuted at the November 1935 New York Auto Show as a styling prototype with a simulated engine; production cars did not ship until early 1936, with only roughly 1,764 units completed for the model year.
- Lincoln produced approximately 14,994 Zephyr units in its debut year, making it the most successful V12 automobile in American sales history to that point.
- Duesenberg produced its final factory-assembled examples in 1936 before E.L. Cord's financial collapse shuttered the Indianapolis operation later that year.
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1936 Ford Model 48
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1936 Ford Model 48
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1936 Buick Century
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1936 Ford Model 48
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1936 Chevrolet Deluxe
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1936 Chevrolet Touring Car
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1936 Buick Special
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1936 Pontiac Streamliner
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1936 Chevrolet Tudor
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1936 Buick Special
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1936 Chrysler Airflow
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1936 Ford Cabriolet
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1936 Ford Model 50
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1936 Ford Custom
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1936 Ford Coupe
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1936 Ford F1
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1936 Ford Model 50
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1936 Chevrolet Master
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1936 Ford Humpback
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1936 Ford Coupe
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1936 Chevrolet Master Deluxe
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1936 Ford Model 68
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1936 Ford Model 48
Market: Cord 810 Westchester and Beverly sedans typically trade from $50,000 to $120,000, with convertible phaetons commanding $150,000 to $250,000 when correct. The Lycoming transmission's reputation for complexity suppresses prices relative to the cars' historical importance. Lincoln Zephyr sedans from 1936 are more accessible, generally $25,000 to $60,000 depending on condition.
Buyer's note: On a 1936 Cord 810, confirm the Bendix electric preselector transmission operates through all four forward positions without hesitation, as rebuilds are expensive and donor transmissions are scarce.