About quiz # 220: 1932 Ford 18 (UPDATE: body by Kelsch?)
We owe you an apology, but first about the Ford. It was instantly recognizable by its radiator shape as a 1932 Model B, but when Ford introduced this model with the new Flathead V8 it was marketed as the Model 18. Only Ingo Jost, Ted Wilmarth. Thomas Rudolf and Philip Peeters had this correct. But now the apology. When we made this quiz we were positive that the coachwork of this Ford was made by Kellner in Paris, France. However, some of the answers we received set us thinking that we could have been mistaken. Some said it was made by Alexis Kellner in Berlin; Leo Heus mentioned Drauz from Heilbronn. We therefore sought the expertise of Thomas Ulrich who told us: “I can definitely say that Alexis Kellner of Berlin has nothing to do with Kellner Paris. I would say that the Ford V8 may have an Alexis Kellner body. The problem is that the firm Alexis Kellner AG became insolvent in summer 1931 and seized to exist under this name. But after that date there where still some bodies produced. Alexis Kellner sold some of his patents to Drautz, who where one of the main body suppliers for Ford Cologne. During the car exhibition in Berlin 1933 Drauz and Kellner exhibited there and shared a stand. It’s not clear if Drauz has bought the company Alexis Kellner or only the patents. So I think the Ford from your photo has a body made by Drauz after Kellner patents.” Thus our clue that the coachwork was made in France was wrong and we have therefore decided that there is no winner today. (RB)
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Thomas Ulrich is researching the history of Alexis Kellner but runs into some problems. He writes: “After 1932 it becomes very difficult. He left Germany around 1932/33 and went to Switzerland where he worked first with Gygax, for a short time as Gygax and Kellner and later he worked for Langenthal. Alexis Kellner lived until 1939 in Berne, but what happened to him afterwards I don’t know. So if someone can give me details of his later live, I would be very interested.” Contact us (RB)
Update by Hans Compter: “The body clearly is an all steel series produced cabriolet version which limits the German coachbuilders on Ford chassis to Ambi-Budd and Drauz in that year and the French ones to Kelsch and Mathis.
Ambi-Budd to the best of my knowledge had lost Ford as a customer to Drauz by 1932. Alexis Kellner’s all steel and other cabriolet patents had also gone to Drauz and the latter set up a second factory with the enlarged former Kellner’s production.
However the reasons why I think that this is a French body and not a German Drauz are four-fold:
(1)- Drauz followed Alexis Kellner designs on the larger cars and the German Kellner was known to mainly produce elaborate de-luxe cabriolets. The body on your quiz photos does not strike me as being very “de Luxe”.
(2)- The “waistline” styling on the Drauz Ford bodies starting with the 4 cylinder “Rheinland” through to the 1935/36 V8’s went much further down than on the Ford in your quiz. It ended right under the relatively low designed rear section of the hood (“top” for our American readers)
(3)- All Drauz Ford cabriolet (convertible) hoods/ tops can always immediately be recognised by a leather strap which runs in the centre from the front right through to the back. The car in your quiz does not have such a strap, unless of course the Dutch restorer of the car did not have old remains to go by,
and (4) To the best of my knowledge none of the large German Fords starting with the 4 cylinder “Rheinland” had a bar between the headlights. They were also mounted further back than on the car in the quiz.
Of the two abovementioned French all-steel bodymakers Mathis can be deleted I think because cooperation and production with Ford only started in 1934 which then became the Matford. The same bodies were also used on Chenard –Walckers for a while. But Carrossérie Kelsch S.A. of Levallois-Perret with its all-steel patents in my view is the most likely builder of this a bit stark looking “economy” body. I owned at least four early 1930s French cars with all steel series produced Kelsch bodies, amongst which a Rosengart, two La Licornes, an early open Fiat “Balilla” roadster and a 1932 French frontwheel drive Babyford also known as the Tracford. So it is quite possible that a small series of this 1932 Model 18 was also imported into France as a rolling chassis and then bodied by mainly Kelsch. The owner should be able to identify if it is indeed a Kelsch by looking at the flexible way the body was mounted on the chassis. Jean Kelsch Clément lodged a patent for this.
Why the name of the French Ets. Kellner of Paris was mentioned in this context is not clear to me, I have never seen a series produced all steel French Kellner. There was also a Swiss Kellner coachbuilder in Langenthal.
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