A Duesy of a day!

Today Paladian had Blipbear and I suggested we take him to The Wanaka Warbirds & Wheels Museum at Wanaka Airport for a flying lesson. While I did photographs of the various planes and cars there, the standout attraction for me was the new acquisition, the Carole Lombard owned 1934 Duesenberg Model J.

The car is one of only a handful of its kind believed to be outside the United States and the only one in the Southern Hemisphere. According to Duesenberg records the original owner of the car was Hollywood actress Carole Lombard who shared her passion for luxury cars, especially Duesenbergs, with her husband Clark Gable.

The car came into New Zealand ownership in 2011. A start had been made on restoration in USA, but when it arrived in New Zealand a dedicated team of Wanaka craftsmen undertook a major restoration, determined to take it back to its original glory.

The original owner, actress Carole Lombard, paid $US17,000 for the vehicle. At the time she was Hollywood's highest paid actress at $US500,000 a year which was five times the amount received by the United States President.

When it was built the Duesenberg possessed the most powerful production car engine in the world. The straight 8 motor puts out 265 horsepower and can reach a top speed of up to 200 kilometres an hour. The Duesenberg Model J has been described by many as the greatest car ever built in the United States. It is a reflection of their value today that some 378 of the original 481 Model J Duesenbergs ever built are still in existence - and all but a handful of these are in the United States.

This car in Wanaka is on display on a rotating carousel, which gives a 360 degree view of the whole car. Seen even clearer in LARGE. I can only guess of the value of this car today.