Sarah Whitfield
Expertise
Pre-War Classics Coachbuilt History Concours Originality Duesenberg Packard
📍 Newport, Rhode Island

Sarah Whitfield

Third-generation classic car collector specializing in pre-war American and European coachbuilt automobiles. Researcher and concours enthusiast.

Sarah Whitfield grew up in a family that took pre-war motoring seriously. Her grandfather drove vintage cars across Europe, and she learned to appreciate the craftsmanship of coachbuilt automobiles from an early age through her father's collection of 1930s American classics. After a career in the arts, she turned her attention fully to the world of pre-war collector cars.

She has spent years researching period coachbuilders, marque histories, and factory records from the 1920s and 1930s — work that has given her a detailed understanding of what originality actually means in vehicles that have passed through multiple owners and restorations over nine decades. She attends the major concours events each year and writes about pre-war cars with a level of historical rigor that the subject deserves.

Her personal collection includes a 1933 Pierce-Arrow Twelve and a 1936 Cord 810 Phaeton, both unrestored survivors.

Magazine Articles by Sarah Whitfield

Coachbuilder shaping a fender on an English wheel — 1930s Duesenberg body restoration
Market & Values

Coachbuilt Body Restoration: Lead Work and Panel Fabrication Explained

Sarah Whitfield · · 7 min
Brass era headlamp glowing at dusk
Car Features

Acetylene Headlights: Lighting the Antique Road

Sarah Whitfield · · 6 min
1961 Lincoln Continental with both rear-hinged suicide doors open showing the pillarless center opening
History & Heritage

Suicide Doors vs Conventional: The Continental's Design Icon Status

Sarah Whitfield · · 6 min
1960 Ford Thunderbird Square Bird convertible with power folding top retracting into the trunk
Car Features

The Square Bird Convertible and Its Complex Top

Sarah Whitfield · · 7 min
Front three-quarter view of a 1959 Cadillac Series 62 with tall tailfins and twin bullet taillights at a car show
Car Features

Land Yacht Icons by Decade: The Models That Defined the Era

Sarah Whitfield · · 6 min
Red and white 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air on open highway at golden hour
Car Features

Why 1955 Started the Tri-Five Legend

Sarah Whitfield · · 7 min
1972 Rolls-Royce Corniche convertible with the top down parked beside an elegant hotel portico
History & Heritage

Drophead and Convertible Variants Compared Across the Two Marques

Sarah Whitfield · · 6 min
1955 Chevrolet Bel Air interior dashboard and two-tone upholstery
Car Features

The 1955 Bel Air Interior

Sarah Whitfield · · 6 min
1959 Ford Thunderbird four-seat hardtop coupe, three-quarter front view
Car Features

The 1959 Thunderbird

Sarah Whitfield · · 7 min
1958 Ford Thunderbird four-seat hardtop coupe, three-quarter rear view showing the back seats
Car Features

Four Seats and a Gamble: Why Ford Doubled the Thunderbird

Sarah Whitfield · · 6 min
1969 Plymouth Road Runner two-door hardtop, three-quarter front view
Car Features

The 1969 Road Runner Hardtop

Sarah Whitfield · · 7 min
1955 Chevrolet Bel Air styled as a period Motoramic advertisement, three-quarter front view
Car Features

The Motoramic Chevrolet: 1955 Ad Campaign

Sarah Whitfield · · 7 min
1955 Chevrolet Bel Air Sport Coupe pillarless hardtop, three-quarter front view
Car Features

The 1955 Bel Air Sport Coupe

Sarah Whitfield · · 7 min
1955 Ford Thunderbird two-seat convertible at a coastal overlook, three-quarter front view
Car Features

How Ford Named the Thunderbird

Sarah Whitfield · · 7 min
1969 Plymouth Road Runner, Motor Trend Car of the Year, studio shot
Car Features

Motor Trend Car of the Year 1969

Sarah Whitfield · · 6 min
Close-up of a 1948 Cadillac rear fender with its first modest tail fin housing the taillamp, the beginning of Harley Earl's fin era
Car Features

The Tail Fin Story: How Harley Earl Changed Car Design

Sarah Whitfield · · 6 min
1957 Ford Thunderbird racing on Daytona Beach during Speed Weeks
Car Features

Thunderbird at Daytona Speed Weeks 1957

Sarah Whitfield · · 7 min
Close-up of a 1937 Packard dashboard showing figured walnut veneer, ivory-faced gauges and broadcloth upholstery
Car Features

Leather vs. Woodgrain: The Truth About Luxury Car Interiors

Sarah Whitfield · · 6 min
1954 Chevrolet Bel Air convertible, three-quarter front view, cinematic editorial hero photo
Car Features

1953-54 Bel Air Body Styles

Sarah Whitfield · · 7 min
1968 Plymouth Road Runner on a dealership lot, three-quarter front view
Car Features

The 1968 Road Runner and the Muscle Price War

Sarah Whitfield · · 7 min
1953 Chevrolet Bel Air sedan, three-quarter front view, cinematic editorial hero photo
Car Features

The 1953 Bel Air: A Trim Level of Its Own

Sarah Whitfield · · 7 min
1951 Chevrolet Bel Air hardtop badge and grille detail, cinematic editorial hero photo
Car Features

How the Bel Air Name Began

Sarah Whitfield · · 7 min
1955 Ford Thunderbird parked side by side with a 1955 Chevrolet Corvette
Car Features

Thunderbird vs Corvette 1955: The Rivalry That Defined Both

Sarah Whitfield · · 7 min
1968 Plymouth Road Runner pillared coupe, three-quarter front view
Car Features

The 1968 Coupe vs Hardtop

Sarah Whitfield · · 6 min

Buyer's Guides by Sarah Whitfield

Comparisons by Sarah Whitfield

Q&A by Sarah Whitfield