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LOT 263

Selling on Friday

From The Tom Haag Estate Collection

1932 Ford V-8 Hi-Boy Roadster

OFFERED WITHOUT RESERVE
  • Old-school build with exceptional components
  • Modified 286-cid Mercury V-8 engine with custom-built Ardun heads
  • Built by Rod Palmer of Arizona Street Rods
  • Formerly of the Richard Munz Collection
  • Accompanied by a soft top and a complete list of engine upgrades

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For those that know vintage hot rods, the first thing their eyes spot when they see this roadster are the legendary Ardun heads mounted on the Mercury block and accompanied by an Austin-Ardun special intake manifold designed to accommodate a trio of Stromberg 97 carburetors. Brothers Zora and Yura Arkus-Duntov operated a small shop in New York when they were connected with Ford to help design a modification to provide more power for the flathead V-8 used in commercial vehicles. They developed an overhead valve configuration which provided a hemispherical combustion chamber. While this new head design did what Ford wanted it to do, the company engineers were already working on prototype OHV engines and plans for full-scale production failed to materialize. The brothers advertised these miraculous hemi-heads and sold a few of these conversions, estimated to be no more than 200 to 250 sets. A few lucky early performance masters discovered these heads and, for those lucky enough to find a set of original Ardun heads, they became legends wherever horsepower was displayed.

Reportedly, Richard Munz connected with Rod Palmer, founder of Arizona Street Rod, and the fabrication of this 1932 roadster was initiated. Palmer created his own chassis and bodies with the same exacting quality that Henry Ford’s engineers had in the original design. The engine was bored out to 286 cubic inches, and fitted with 10-to-1 Venolia Pistons, a 4.125” Crank, and a long list of other features before the dual crowns of original Ardun heads were mounted to the block. While the chassis is finished in gloss black, the body of this roadster is simple matte black. With a tight body, room for driver and passenger is snug but enjoyable; driving this car will take you back to the days when you had to really love the road. Henry Ford’s original front and rear transverse leaf springs provide most of the “bounce” for this ride, with rebuilt lever-type shock absorbers on all four corners. Pressed steel wheels fitted with Mercury hubcaps minus the bright trim rings are riding on Firestone tires, 4.50-4.75” X 16” up front and wider 7.50” X 16 blackwalls to the rear. Little touches such as the “8-Ball” shifter add to the vintage feel and look. Showing just over 2,900 miles on the odometer, this roadster has barely been broken in; it needs to be driven and if you are a hot-rodder at heart, it needs you behind the wheel.

Documents & Files

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1932 Ford Roadster Parts List.pdf

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