Steve Peterson's 1940-50 ? Autocar U70 COE

04 January 2005

From Steve:

     These are pictures of my latest project. It is an Autocar U70 COE (made from '37 - '51 give or take a year). I don't know the exact year of mine, but suspect WWII-vintage as the base paint color is olive drab.

     I bought it on eBay and had to haul it home to Wisconsin from Connecticut. I bought a Dodge Dakota parts truck from the same party and used it to haul my prize home. (I needed Dakota parts anyway.)

     I don't have a lot of history. As I said, the base paint color is olive drab, then Gulf Oil orange with blue trim, and finaly fire engine red (North Canton, Connecticut Fire Deptment). It was purchased at auction from the fire deptment in about 1980 by the father of the person I bought it from.

     As you can see from the pictures, I didn't bring the whole truck home. I plan to build a hot rod car hauler, so the running gear was much to heavy for my needs and very expensive to have trucked a 1000 miles.

     If anyone is interested, the running gear might still be available.

Steve Peterson
Central Wisconsin

     Well, Steve's submission prompted a little conversation in the forums. Mainly because I (Editor now demoted to pencil sharpener) put it in as a Stovebolt. Shame. Shame. But, the exchange proved helpful. Here's some additional information about the Autocar from the gang.

     Gord provided a web site on the Autocar and an interesting song to Mr. Ford.

     From Jarge - It looks a lot like the International or Foadh Coe's of 1937-39. Try for a /39 Autocar??? The name has been around for 107 years and stood on it's own until a controlling interest was purchased by White in 1953 In 1981 Volvo got in the act and today White/Volvo still market the Autocar brand.

     Norse sent a patrol car out after me - "Since you asked ... yes, post it. (but watch out for the forum fuzz)"

     Red 58 thought it might be a 1948.

     TwoMany2Count - Books on the Autocar. And some history of the Autocar. Here's something ('40-41) close to his BUT the difference is Steve's is an extended cab and the passager door opens backwards (suicide).

     And a final coment by Jim Bow - "An older friend of mine was in the Navy in WWII. He drove an Autocar and towed a trailer full of torpedos from Connecticut to San Diego and deadheaded back, over and over. He described the truck as 6 wheel drive and that you could use 2 or 4 wheel, whatever you wanted. Sounds pretty cool. He also admits that he had a girlfriend approximately every 300 miles."

     So ... this autocar is a babe-magnet. Very interesting ~~ Pencil Sharpener :)