1937 Cord 812 Beverly Supercharged

Serial No. 32410S “Geneva”

Stunning 1937 Cord 812 Beverly Supercharged with complete numbers matching engine, supercharger, and transmission. Outstanding ownership history with a partial restoration completed in 2007.  ACD Certificate of Authenticity included.  Founded by E.L. Cord in 1929, Cord Front-Wheel Drive automobiles were luxurious and highly innovative vehicles featuring unique front wheel drive drivetrains. Cords were produced by the Auburn Automobile Company in Connersville, Indiana through 1932. In 1932 Cord production was halted while automotive stylist Gordon Buerig designed a new vehicle to capture America's imagination.  This design, the Cord model 810, was introduced at the 1935 New York Auto Show. This fresh look included a vehicle with hidden headlamps, no running boards, front-wheel-drive with independent suspension, vacuum/electric pre-shift semi-automatic 4-speed transmission, and a flat front fascia with louvered grill! Today, they are often referred to as the "coffin-nosed Cords". The impact at the unveiling was beyond impressive, and many orders commenced. Unfortunately, production of the Model 810 proved difficult at the necessary scale. It would be 1936 before any vehicles could be delivered. It continued into the 1937 model year as the Cord model 812 with an optional higher horsepower supercharged model being introduced. Only 1,174 units would find homes in the 1936, and another 1,149 812's in 1937. It is believed very few of these 2,323 vehicles survive today, so they are undoubtedly one of the most sought after, and affordable, collector pieces ever to come from the Auburn, Cord, Deusenberg franchise. 

PRODUCTION:  The Cord presented here is one of 184 factory supercharged Beverly sedans, and one of the last dozen produced. This Cord “Geneva” is painted in its original Geneva Blue color with blue broadcloth interior and white piping. It is ACD-certified number C-457.  It remains fitted with its original, number's matching 288ci Lycoming V8 engine with factory supercharger producing a factory rated 170 horsepower when new and its original pre-select semi-automatic 4-speed transmission with synchromesh top 3 gears that operates superbly. Additional features include full dash instrumentation presented beautifully in a machine turned surround, front and rear folding armrests, dual cowl vents, crank out front windscreens, jeweled cigar lighter, front & rear bumper guards, locking glove boxes and fuel door, new Coker Radial Bias Look wide whitewall tires measuring 6.50-16, and beautiful chrome wheel covers.

EARLY HISTORY: In 1937, a Navy flight crew chief stationed in Pearl Harbor purchased this Cord Beverly and a Cord Cabriolet from Pacific Motors Limited in Honolulu. They remained in Hawaii through the attacks on Pearl Harbor until 1955 when they were shipped to San Diego by the flight chief, put on a flatbed and brought to Aberdeen SD where they remained in a shed until 1961.

In 1961 Irl Good of LaMoure, ND purchased the Cord with the intent to restore it. When Irl Goode died in 1987 the Cord was still in progress, and stayed with the Goode family until 1995, when they sold the Cord to retired Major Leonard P. Redburn of the WWII Army Air Corp.

Major Redburn was an Aircraft Commander on a B-25 with the 82nd Bombardier Squadron, 12th Bomb Group. He was shot down over North Africa during an American bombing raid and was the sole survivor of his 5-man crew. Suffering major cuts and severe burns, he surrendered to the Nazis after hiding in a downed enemy aircraft fuselage for over 24 hours. Over the course of the next few months as a POW he eventually landed in the notorious German Stalag Luft III prison camp (The Great Escape movie was based on this camp's tragic history). He remained a POW for nearly 32 months before being liberated.

PARTIAL RESTORATION: In 1995 Major Redburn brought Geneva to his home in Missouri and slowly began to finish the restoration started by Irl Good. By 2005, Geneva had been professionally repainted with an overhauled drivetrain and required only final sorting. Unfortunately, Major Redburn passed away in 2006, leaving his family the car. They commissioned Doug Jenkins Restorations to finalize the restoration and take it to Auburn in 2009 to be sold at auction.

In 2009,  the Cord was purchased by a well-known collector who took it to his private Colorado Springs collection, then on to Arizona through May 2016.

In 2016, a long-time Cord connoisseur purchased the Cord and drove it 1400 miles from Sedona AZ to Chesterfield MO in just 3 days without a single fault. During the drive, the odometer stopped working at 13,108 original miles. Since that time less than 2000 miles have been added.

CURRENT OWNERSHIP: Owned since 2018. 

Recent work:

• Replaced the fan/water pump belt

• Installed four new Coker Radial Bias Look tires and tubes, 650R16

• Rebuilt the fuel pump

• Replaced the muffler and tail pipe. I purchased a complete new exhaust system, but only installed the muffler/tailpipe as the rest of the system is fine. The remainder of the new exhaust system will come with car.

• Installed a 6V – 12V converter system only for the car lights, and have installed modern, bright, LED bulbs for tail/stop/turn functions (with a stalk-mounted turn signal lever) and modern LED headlights for nighttime driving. I considered these a safety feature. All were installed in a manner that the entire car lighting system can be brought back to fully original in about one hour. I have retained the original bulbs, reflectors, and lens covers (though one original lens broke in my clumsy hands – I have obtained a spare copy).

• Installed new distributor points and had them properly set and gapped.

• Installed a new ignition coil (I still have the original).

• Installed a modern air filter (I still have the original).

• Sealed the floor pan under the front seat and installed an Optimus 6V battery below the floor pan with access from under the car.

• Replaced the infamous transmission selector switch wiring connector under the hood with a modern WeatherPack connector (I kept the original as well). While not original, I have never had any shifting problems since installation.

• I regularly change the oil/filter, pump grease into all grease fittings, and put a drop or two of oil in all oil cups.

• I changed the coolant in 2019.

OPERATION: The Cord starts, runs, and drives well – but not nearly enough! Over the past year Geneva has been driven only a handful of times, most being a short 6 mile circuit, with one drive in October 2020 as part of a local antique car tour with five different stops over the course of about 50 miles. Geneva ran well for that event.

• Engine starts and runs well.

• Brakes work well.

• Steering works well.

• Shifting works well.

• Headlights, taillights, turn signals and stoplights all work.

• The gas/oil gauge, oil pressure gauge, tachometer, temperature gauge all work.

• The speedometer works, but the odometer stopped working 5 years ago at 13,108 miles

• The radio is not working, though I have never tried to diagnose the issue.

• Wipers are not working, though I have never tried to diagnose the issue.

• Clock is not working, though I have never tried to diagnose the issue.

• A small crack exists in the paint on the hood (see detail photos). The location is directly above the radiator cap. I suspect someone dropped the hood a bit too hard.

• There is some paint flaking off along the edge of the body just forward of the driver door (see detail photos).

For more information and dozens of additional pictures please text/call me at 301-651-9446, or email at [email protected]. Happy to answer any questions.

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