Being a Massachusetts car it was probably doomed before it was parked. That climate is horrid on cars and those older ones did not have the anti-corrosion methods that they use today.
Steve never fails to remind me how old I am. Watching the Hudson brothers on tv was almost all we had back then when I was the human remote control for my uncle!
Growing up in Massachusetts cars like this always remind me of my childhood. Loved (still love) finding old cars in the woods and sitting in them and playing with the knobs & buttons. Sad to see this pair of Hudsons forgotten to time!
Again Steve, we thank you for the automotive history journeys and for taking our minds off of the ugliness of the world and learn things we never knew before. God Bless You!
You've got a good camera person. When they do close-ups of dark spaces, it's well lit up. They aren't losing the plot and focusing on random stuff. You should give them a hefty raise!
lighting up those dark spaces is actually an automatic feature of the camera, but you have to understand how that works to take advantage of it. Basically, there's no extra light involved. You just get close in and away from the extra light that the cam is adjusting for.
Who da hell would let that classic beauty’s rot like that on the wood’s!? Should be punished for it!😢wow! Impressive video and history Steve!✌️👍your automotive knowledge is amazing!
I would love to have an old flathead Hudson. The way the body is draped over the frame is so cool. The original lowrider. And a good racecar too. Just awesome
Steve, you're off on the years on those. The first one is a '52 based on the sort of upside down wishbone in the middle of the grille and the low taillights. The second one is a 52 or 53, the grille would show for sure. 1954 got a sort of a fin with a taillight up on it, somewhat like a 53-54 Chevy tail light. The grilles were more like two scoops, too. I had a couple of these. One was a '49 that sat in a garage from 1964 to like 2010. I bought it, it cranked, I never got it running. Sold it to a guy in Ohio. I flat towed it and it was like it wasn't even there behind my truck. Very stable. The other was a '48 I saved from the crusher. No front clip but it too towed fine. Somebody at one point had a Chevy six in it, it had crude mounts. It went to Albany somewhere. Still have a '42 coupe left. Rare. But nobody's much interested.
Always love the videos, I have a 1951 Hudson Hornet myself. but the two Hudson that you showed are not 1954. the first car you show is a 1952, the second car is a 1953. 1954 had a wide grill and the dash board is different. always love seeing old Hudson's.
The last Hudson built was 1957 , and the two your are standing next to aren`t 54 but earlier . Take it from a Studebaker man from N.H.The stainless around the windows is worth saving .
Hudson, immortalized in Robert Johnson's "Terraplabe Blues". While most other independent car makers were making 'normal' cars for the masses, Hudson aimed higher and got there too. Everyone forgets that the US was in the depths of an economic recession from the mid-to-late 50's- they were not "good old days" but rather hard times which took down many once-viable American companies in every field. We remember performance versions, but then and now most cars were sold with mundane drivetrains meant for economy and reliability. Till the OHV V-8's took over, Hudson was noted in both market segments as being a very good car which everybody liked, and the "Twin H" Hornet was THE Muscle Car of it's time.
Smokey Yunick adopted a few creative ideas for the Hudson’s he built for NASCAR racing. Oversized engine ports, hot cams, reverse rotation engines. And so on…
I love your video content, as well as your presentation. Top notch stuff! I've been binge watching your channel, and have been learning quite a bit of automotive history as well. Keep up the good work, Steve!
Steve my man keep it coming man getting information from you is like drinking from a fire hydrant. Thank you for the refreshing knowledge! You never cease to amaze me.
When I was a kid one of my uncles had a Hudson. I loved that car. Also, would have liked to of had a Henry J or a Kaiser. Those two Hudson’s could be saved. If the owner doesn’t want to do so I wish he/ she would let someone else do it
In my part of the world too many people won't sell a car because they "plan to fix it up" someday, which never happens then they turn to rusty-dust which is good for nobody. Most of the good finds here are already gone, but if you know where to look and how to approach folks there's still some around which can be had. The "Henry J" was a bare-bones cheap car, unwanted in it's time and of only scrap-metal value later on; they made a cheap lightweight platform for a gasser though, and that's why they're remembered today.
@@MrTheHillfolk Read your comment to my husband.....you had him rolling on the floor!! (He lusted after his friend's model back in the 70s and never had one of his own......but he recently bought a pair of basket case Henry Js ...... to build that gasser!!!)
I love the looks of the stepdown Hudsons. They looked like they were chopped and channeled right from the factory. There was a 49 Hudson on a property next door to where I used to go deer hunting with a swapped in Twin H setup in it. EVERYONE in that area was afraid to attempt to ask the old hermit named David Freidlund who lived there about that car or the VERY NICE 52 International pickup truck both of which hadnt been driven in many years, as David was known to fire 1 and only 1 warning shot as soon as anyone came onto his land then would yell out that the next shot wouldnt be a warning. In fact when the Deputy Sheriff would go do his weekly welfare check on him to make sure he was alive, he would turn into the driveway and wait at the end for a moment for the anticipated LEAVE ME ALONE warning shot from him then he would quickly leave. It turns out they figured that everyone around the area knew to stay off his land and it was easier and safer for the deputies to just leave him alone other than the weekly welfare check rather than get into a shootout with him. When I was hunting the neighboring property I was not warned about any of this but was just told to not bother him and I didnt find any of this out until later, after I walked over there during an afternoon hunt when I was hunting that end of the property and all I saw was fresh wolf tracks which meant no deer would be around there which I saw as an opportunity to try talking to the mysterious old hermit and possibly get him to sell me the car and possibly even the truck since is had also started to snow. He had let his guard down because his old collie watch dog that was usually outside didnt bark as I walked up to his door, so he asked me who I was and what I wanted and I got invited into his shack for a cup of hot coffee (the dog had actually led me from my deer stand to his door on a trail after it refused to leave from under my stand for the previous hour so it had claimed me as its friend which also helped me decide to try talking to him). We visited for a couple hours when a deal was struck and an agreement reached for paying for both the car and truck the next weekend when I would be back for hunting again. He handed me a Hudson hubcap off his wall above the table and told me take it with me as a confirmation of our binding agreement that I would follow through with the purchase. When I got back to the hunting camp, EJ the head of the hunting party was pissed and asked me where I was because they were getting ready to go out looking for me. So I told him I was visiting the neighbor and he looked puzzled and asked what neighbor? I said Old David.. I am going to buy his Hudson and International from him. E.J. laughed saying I need to just admit I was lost in the woods..... That was until he noticed the Hudson hubcap in my hand, then he turned white as snow saying that I need to go and toss it back up by the car where I stole it from and hopefully I wont get shot doing it. I repeated that I visited him and he gave it to me to confirm the deal. THEN is when I was told how absolutely NOBODY ever went on his land as he was too dangerous. I again said I had visited him with no issues. Then there was a sudden and unexpectedly loud knock on the hunting shack door. EJ opened the door and stepped back in shock because at the door stood old David. He asked for me by name and EJ finally snapped to attention and invited him in from the cold. David had came over to tell me he has the titles ready for when I come back next weekend. Sadly when I got back the next weekend there were a few cars in Davids driveway so I figured I would wait until after his company left before going over to pay him. When I walked into the hunting shack, EJ asked if the vulture nephews were still at Davids. I asked if that was who owned the cars that were there, and EJ told me the sheriff had stopped by a few hours earlier asking if EJ would watch Davids dog until arrangements to pick it up later that day could be made. When the deputy stopped to do his weekly welfare check on him there was no warning shot, no yelling, nothing but his dog whining at the outhouse door. David was found dead in his outhouse and had apparently been dead about a couple hours. His nephews refused to keep the deal for the car and truck and had already started removing everything from the shack of a house to sell and had already sold Davids immaculate old White fsrm tractor as the buyer was there to get it within an hour of when I had gotten to the hunting shack before I had even tried to talk to the nephews. Turns out they were just waiting for him to die so they could get the land and sell of his antiques. So that is how I lost out on a great old Hudson with Twin H.
Yeah, peculiar styling, I’m much more accepting of it now. In the late 70’s I had a neighbour who drove a Twin H Power Hudson, what a contrast to all the other cars on the street. Like you say, they had their day in the sun, The Fabulous Hudson Hornets in NASCAR. I don’t think the win on Sunday, sell on Monday adage work for them though.
Hudson's was a department store in Detroit. Part of the original building is now incorporated into Ford Field (the site where Hudson's once stood). So, this brand was the only car company that was a department store!
Really neat to see a Twin H-Power Hudson. A shame those cars are in the state they're in today, but I suppose if someone was really ambitious with the cash to support their ambition, the Twin H-Power would be worth it to restore. Needs the 3 speed manual out of the other one though! I've loved these cars since I first watched Morgan Freeman let the clutch out and give some gas to that beautiful burgundy 1948 Hudson in Driving Miss Daisy in 1989. Hudson was really a big name in NASCAR in the early years of the sport. What the cars lacked in power as opposed to Ford's flathead V8 they made up for in handling in the turns. As I understand it, these cars were among the flatest, tightest handling cars of the era, right from the factory. Thanks to that "drop down" design. Of course once the big three came out with OHV V8s, that spelled the end of Hudson. They never developed a V8 that could keep up with the big three and the V8 you mentioned them getting in '55 was a Packard engine after the merger. Steve as a fellow model builder I'd suggest you take a look at the 1952 Fabulous Hudson Hornet plastic model kit by Moebius Models. It's a highly detailed kit of the real Fabulous Hornet that was the early stock car champ upon which "Doc" Hudson was based on in Cars (that was Paul Newman's last project before he passed - and all the car guys know that Newman was a skilled race car driver as well in real life so the roll seemed to fit him perfectly)
Years ago I worked for Jack Clifford. He had an affliction for Hudson's. Something that I never could understand but hey everybody needs a hobby. He seemed to pretty good at racing them. I saw some of the trophy's that he had won. 6=8.
Steve, when they have an error in the audio Cold war motors adds a correction in text on the screen. This is an excellent practice because not everyone will find the comments about the error. I hope you adopt this procedure. Thank you.
When I was a kid in the 70's , a friend of the family had 2 late 1950's DeSoto s parked in the back corner of their 3 acre property. They were parked there in the late 60's when they were no longer road worthy and the brush and weeds grew up around them. The friend would sell parts off them over time till they were just shells of the 2 cars. This site always fascinated me as a kid and I asked my dad why we couldn't have junk cars in our yard? He said my mom would "kill him" . In the mid 80's he finally junked the 2 wreaks ; I stopped over one day and the area was cleared and mowed !
My friend Brule Hampton had a 51 hornet 2 door with a hopped up twin H. The header on it was hand crafted by a gentleman who built the headers for the nascar hornets, and it was all gas welded and hand hammered. He sold that car for 130k to a Hudson collector
My husband and I always enjoy your videos! Always a wealth of information told in an easy to listen to style as if we were right there with you....fun to see all the oldies we grew up with. But hubby thinks the 54s had one piece windshields as he remembers that distinctly from the one his father owned. His dad was a longtime owner of a variety of Hudsons, both step downs and earlier models. Some ran and drove regularly. Others, like the post war one we still have, are just old friends that may never run again. Not every old car has to be restored to retain its value.....that's often in the heart of the beholder!
It is not just the windshield. The 54s were a complete reskin. None of the sheet metal is the same as the cars in the videos which are not 54s. I hope Steve will put a correction in the video. Just a little piece of text on the screen at the time of the 54 references would prevent a lot of people from being misinformed.
The first Hudson plant still stands on Mack Ave in Detroit MI. It was Aerocar briefly before that. The Hudson Model 20 was so successful, the company outgrew the little plant in months, and they kicked of construction of a great new Albert Kahn designed factory on Jefferson and Conner (demolished).
May I share these observations: I owned a 53 Hudson Hornet and 54 Hudson Hornet and drove them for many miles in the mid and late 1960s. My experience is that the upside down "v" in the grill means it is a 52 Hudson Hornet, the first of the two cars in the woods, it had a broken windshield and stick shift.
When I was a youngster my grandfather had a Hudson Hornet and later owned a couple of Nashes. From the Nashes he followed by owning some of the Ramblers of the early 60’s. Great cars and great content 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼 Thanks Steve!
My favorite part about driving miss daisy was when morgan and Dan went to pick up Jessica's new caddy and morgan told him he bought that beautiful dark red hornet
Who would have thunk it!!🤔 Hudson had sixes with more CID than their V8s! 😳 GM Hudson and others held off on V8s until mId fifty’s!! Ford had prototypes around 1900! 🤷♀️
Steve, absolutely excellent. I have an abiding passion for these innovative cars and own two restoration projects - a '49 Super Six and '52/'53 Pacemaker. The detail innovation on these cars never cease to amaze. Keep up the great work.
Steve's right, there are lots of similar cars by the side of the road, in the woods, etc. If you're a New Englander you've seen them on rural secondary roads. Very interesting episode as always.
Those are absolutely not 54. The 54 rear quarter did not slope down. It went straight back and the tail light was at the end of the quarter in a much higher position.
I agree, the taillights, dash, hood, and grill all appear to be earlier model Hudson I was thanking the first one is a 51 with the inverted V in the grill but could be a 52 also
@@55hemidodge 51 has a more square tail with the lights up higher on the back. 52-53 have those low curved lights that somewhat resemble 49-50 Mercury.
As you probably know, the step down design ran 48 thru 54. The Nash/Hudson merger was mid year, reportedly they continued to build the 54 Hudson Hornet thru the 54 model year. Did you know Hudsons had mechanical linkage running from the brake pedal to the rear brakes in event of loss of hydraulic fluid. Only Hudson offered this.
Hey Steve, That first Hudson is a 53 not 54 as the 54 had a different grille and one piece windshield and a few other changes that made it a little different and in my opinion nicer as the last one in the series. Really enjoy your shows,
The big hood ornament IDs it as a 51 or 52. 53s had a small fake hood scoop. Definitely not a 54 though. 54s had a different rear quarter and tail light treatment (more like a Cadillac) and I believe a one piece windshield. The 54 also had a fake hood 'scoop' but it was considerably wider than the 53. Also, 1957 was the final model year for Hudson.
I believe they have a couple of the "Grand National Racing" Hudson Hornets on display in the museum located in Darlington SC..or they once did..I'd have to dig thru some Old Pics I took from there in the early 80's..my 1st attended race was at Darlington..84 Southern 500
As of this writing, I understand you are in the hospital recovering from a health challenge, believe me you are missed, this is wishing you a most speedy recovery. I find that you know cars internally, externally and eternally! Barrett Jackson expressed the other day how much they missed you, I share their feeling.
The Hudson shown with the tree on the hood is either a 52 or 53 Hornet, it has hydramatic in it. A 54 Hudson Hornet has tail lights up higher similar to a 55 Chev. Also a 54 Hornet has a one piece windshield and totally different dash board from the ones in this picture.
My cousin has a '51 Hornet four door that he bought without an engine or transmission, he put in a 302 engine from an old Econoline van but he's leaving it with the original paint rust and all outside of the dashboard that he woodgrained himself.
I have fond memories of riding in my grandpa's 1949 Hudson Commodore ( 308 /3 on the tree). He bought the car brand new and it was driven until the early 1980's.
@@kevinrussell5099 ...Thanks for the info ., Pretty sure it was a "49", I remember my dad saying it was the big 6 with pistons the size of paint cans. He is in his late 80's and has trouble remembering stuff, my gramps has been gone for about 35 years. I'm trying to piece some of this together. I remember the day they towed the Commodore away and wishing we could have kept it!
@@throwingsparks the pistons in a 262 were pretty darn big, not that much smaller than the Hornet engine. I rebuilt the engine in my,'49 and was pretty impressed by the size. Where the 308 got it's extra displacement was mostly from a longer stroke crankshaft.
I seen a Hudson Hornet Twin H Power a few months ago, i am guessing it had been done up, it was in pretty good condition. Metallic Brown i think was the colour nice car!!
The success of the Hornet on the race circuit prompted my father to buy a new one in the early 50's. He always bought coupes but settled on a 4 door as that was all he could find.
Wonderful content as always. My dream car is a 1951 Hudson Hornet coupe with Twin - H Power. I'd be fine waking up in the morning to find that the Hudson was all a dream. For fear of waking up to find it gone, I will not say that my dream car is my '83 Euro 4 speed Mercedes 240D. (It might actually 84 due to a letter in the twelfth character of the VIN and a january 1984 build date under the seats) Though it's been my daily for two and a half years, the odometer says I've put 36 miles on it. Add my voice to the fellows who are complimenting your cameraperson. Very well done.
Another well informed video thank you Steve I love your shows I really do.. I heard pole barn garage picked up a car in Texas West Texas that you told him about the GTO.. way to go Steve.... That car will become an icon. Cheers from western Canada
They were known for their extreme durability and considered over built. I converted a 50 Hudson sedan 308 twin carb from a 6 volt positive ground to a 12V negative a couple of years ago and loved it. Owner still drives it on 1200 mile rallies a couple of times a year.
What hurt the 1954 Hudson sales was the fact that they were in the same price range as GM's Oldsmobile and Buick that both by 54 had modern V8 engines. My family's second car ( Mom's car ) was a 1957 Nash Rambler back bought second hand in 1959 when I was three when we moved out of the city ( Peoria, Illinois ) into a brand new split level model house in the suburbs. You had to drive everywhere in the suburbs instead of just walking a block or two to the store or bakery and hardware store so second cars were a must for just about every family in the burb's back then.
Who knew these old cars would be so interesting. When I was young there was a junk yard pretty much in the center of the town where I grew up. I call it a town but I guess it was actually a village. 1200 souls. Anyway the junk yard had these Hudson's, Ramblers and other extinct cars. If I had had any idea I would have taken some of the emblems. The place was unfenced and this was before any regulations.
Steve I don't want to bring you down, but the green one was a 52 and the blue one was a 53. 54 was a different body style. Also Hudson was founded in 1909.
My friend back then my neighbor growing up . His dad had 2 Hudson's . We were like 12-14 and was Messing with them and we got one to run on a can of gas and was driving it around in the yard. 0 brakes. Was a 3 speed on column .
Jeez Steve if we only knew each other 20 yrs ago..I was at Curboys before they did their cleanout back around 2006 or so, in my search for good quarter panels for my Corvair I ran across a Hudson that HAD the twin H intact..I knew it was something special and vowed to get back there to pull it, but like the cars in your video time passed { in my case } and last i heard everything had been crushed..SAD...I wonder what dealership there was, back in our native area
The amount of car knowledge that flows out of Steve is incredible. Great video as always.
Steve, you make me care about cars i haven't even heard of before. You are an amazing host please keep up this content!
A real shame a Twin - H Power car ended up rotting in the woods. That would've been a great resto project if it had been stored.
It would be interesting to know if the engine was still in the car. However, a big tree on top of the hood makes that a bit difficult.
@@61rampy65 just bring a chainsaw 👍👍
Being a Massachusetts car it was probably doomed before it was parked. That climate is horrid on cars and those older ones did not have the anti-corrosion methods that they use today.
Steve never fails to remind me how old I am. Watching the Hudson brothers on tv
was almost all we had back then when I was the human remote control for my uncle!
1952 Steve
Growing up in Massachusetts cars like this always remind me of my childhood. Loved (still love) finding old cars in the woods and sitting in them and playing with the knobs & buttons. Sad to see this pair of Hudsons forgotten to time!
Love the Hudson look….
Again Steve, we thank you for the automotive history journeys and for taking our minds off of the ugliness of the world and learn things we never knew before. God Bless You!
You've got a good camera person. When they do close-ups of dark spaces, it's well lit up. They aren't losing the plot and focusing on random stuff. You should give them a hefty raise!
Good joke!
lighting up those dark spaces is actually an automatic feature of the camera, but you have to understand how that works to take advantage of it. Basically, there's no extra light involved. You just get close in and away from the extra light that the cam is adjusting for.
Who da hell would let that classic beauty’s rot like that on the wood’s!? Should be punished for it!😢wow! Impressive video and history Steve!✌️👍your automotive knowledge is amazing!
I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks that way!
Damn right.Must be the sleekest looking sled of that period
Probably going to fix it up one of these days. LOL!
Once upon a time it was just another old, used-up car.
This particular Hudson has the step down to the ground design 👍
The Fabulous Hudson Hornet
I would love to have an old flathead Hudson. The way the body is draped over the frame is so cool. The original lowrider. And a good racecar too. Just awesome
Steve, you're off on the years on those. The first one is a '52 based on the sort of upside down wishbone in the middle of the grille and the low taillights. The second one is a 52 or 53, the grille would show for sure. 1954 got a sort of a fin with a taillight up on it, somewhat like a 53-54 Chevy tail light. The grilles were more like two scoops, too.
I had a couple of these. One was a '49 that sat in a garage from 1964 to like 2010. I bought it, it cranked, I never got it running. Sold it to a guy in Ohio.
I flat towed it and it was like it wasn't even there behind my truck. Very stable.
The other was a '48 I saved from the crusher. No front clip but it too towed fine. Somebody at one point had a Chevy six in it, it had crude mounts. It went to Albany somewhere.
Still have a '42 coupe left. Rare. But nobody's much interested.
Lucky
You are correct. The second one is a 1953.
was that '42 a government car???
Yeah he duffed the years but otherwise pretty accurate.
@@hudsn51 Not a huge deal really, I can tell 48-49 and 54, the other years I have to look at pictures for which details to sort them out.
Roadside crawl is king
Always love the videos, I have a 1951 Hudson Hornet myself. but the two Hudson that you showed are not 1954. the first car you show is a 1952, the second car is a 1953. 1954 had a wide grill and the dash board is different. always love seeing old Hudson's.
The last Hudson built was 1957 , and the two your are standing next to aren`t 54 but earlier . Take it from a Studebaker man from N.H.The stainless around the windows is worth saving .
Superb job, Steve!! Love those Hudsons. Thanks for taking us along...
A BEAUTIFUL SIGHT!
Hudson, immortalized in Robert Johnson's "Terraplabe Blues". While most other independent car makers were making 'normal' cars for the masses, Hudson aimed higher and got there too. Everyone forgets that the US was in the depths of an economic recession from the mid-to-late 50's- they were not "good old days" but rather hard times which took down many once-viable American companies in every field. We remember performance versions, but then and now most cars were sold with mundane drivetrains meant for economy and reliability. Till the OHV V-8's took over, Hudson was noted in both market segments as being a very good car which everybody liked, and the "Twin H" Hornet was THE Muscle Car of it's time.
The recession was only 1958. Strong but brief.
Hudson: great cars, great river, and the Hudson Brothers duo: classic.
Years ago I worked at a trailer manufacturing company named Hudson Brothers in North Carolina. Great video sir. Thanks.
Smokey Yunick adopted a few creative ideas for the Hudson’s he built for NASCAR racing. Oversized engine ports, hot cams, reverse rotation engines. And so on…
Cars is an awsome movie. Watch it with your young kids. I did. Long live Paul Newman's contribution to the movie. Go Hudson Go. Thanks Steve.
I love your video content, as well as your presentation. Top notch stuff! I've been binge watching your channel, and have been learning quite a bit of automotive history as well. Keep up the good work, Steve!
Steve my man keep it coming man getting information from you is like drinking from a fire hydrant. Thank you for the refreshing knowledge! You never cease to amaze me.
When I was a kid one of my uncles had a Hudson. I loved that car. Also, would have liked to of had a Henry J or a Kaiser. Those two Hudson’s could be saved. If the owner doesn’t want to do so I wish he/ she would let someone else do it
I'm pretty sure those two are too far gone. Mother nature is slowly reclaiming them.
When I was a kid building models in the 80s, I thought that all Henry Js came as gassers from the factory like that revell kit I built 😁
In my part of the world too many people won't sell a car because they "plan to fix it up" someday, which never happens then they turn to rusty-dust which is good for nobody. Most of the good finds here are already gone, but if you know where to look and how to approach folks there's still some around which can be had. The "Henry J" was a bare-bones cheap car, unwanted in it's time and of only scrap-metal value later on; they made a cheap lightweight platform for a gasser though, and that's why they're remembered today.
@@MrTheHillfolk Read your comment to my husband.....you had him rolling on the floor!! (He lusted after his friend's model back in the 70s and never had one of his own......but he recently bought a pair of basket case Henry Js ...... to build that gasser!!!)
@@MrTheHillfolk I felt the same way in the 60’s 😂😂
I think it's a 53 Steve, 54 had the one piece windshield. 🤔
The 54s also has restyled rear quarters with the first hints of fin-like slab sided shape.
I have a 1951 2 door pacemaker i put the 308 twin h power motor in it and used the 232 head , it was very fast 💪
I love the looks of the stepdown Hudsons. They looked like they were chopped and channeled right from the factory. There was a 49 Hudson on a property next door to where I used to go deer hunting with a swapped in Twin H setup in it. EVERYONE in that area was afraid to attempt to ask the old hermit named David Freidlund who lived there about that car or the VERY NICE 52 International pickup truck both of which hadnt been driven in many years, as David was known to fire 1 and only 1 warning shot as soon as anyone came onto his land then would yell out that the next shot wouldnt be a warning. In fact when the Deputy Sheriff would go do his weekly welfare check on him to make sure he was alive, he would turn into the driveway and wait at the end for a moment for the anticipated LEAVE ME ALONE warning shot from him then he would quickly leave. It turns out they figured that everyone around the area knew to stay off his land and it was easier and safer for the deputies to just leave him alone other than the weekly welfare check rather than get into a shootout with him. When I was hunting the neighboring property I was not warned about any of this but was just told to not bother him and I didnt find any of this out until later, after I walked over there during an afternoon hunt when I was hunting that end of the property and all I saw was fresh wolf tracks which meant no deer would be around there which I saw as an opportunity to try talking to the mysterious old hermit and possibly get him to sell me the car and possibly even the truck since is had also started to snow. He had let his guard down because his old collie watch dog that was usually outside didnt bark as I walked up to his door, so he asked me who I was and what I wanted and I got invited into his shack for a cup of hot coffee (the dog had actually led me from my deer stand to his door on a trail after it refused to leave from under my stand for the previous hour so it had claimed me as its friend which also helped me decide to try talking to him). We visited for a couple hours when a deal was struck and an agreement reached for paying for both the car and truck the next weekend when I would be back for hunting again. He handed me a Hudson hubcap off his wall above the table and told me take it with me as a confirmation of our binding agreement that I would follow through with the purchase. When I got back to the hunting camp, EJ the head of the hunting party was pissed and asked me where I was because they were getting ready to go out looking for me. So I told him I was visiting the neighbor and he looked puzzled and asked what neighbor? I said Old David.. I am going to buy his Hudson and International from him. E.J. laughed saying I need to just admit I was lost in the woods..... That was until he noticed the Hudson hubcap in my hand, then he turned white as snow saying that I need to go and toss it back up by the car where I stole it from and hopefully I wont get shot doing it. I repeated that I visited him and he gave it to me to confirm the deal. THEN is when I was told how absolutely NOBODY ever went on his land as he was too dangerous. I again said I had visited him with no issues. Then there was a sudden and unexpectedly loud knock on the hunting shack door. EJ opened the door and stepped back in shock because at the door stood old David. He asked for me by name and EJ finally snapped to attention and invited him in from the cold. David had came over to tell me he has the titles ready for when I come back next weekend. Sadly when I got back the next weekend there were a few cars in Davids driveway so I figured I would wait until after his company left before going over to pay him. When I walked into the hunting shack, EJ asked if the vulture nephews were still at Davids. I asked if that was who owned the cars that were there, and EJ told me the sheriff had stopped by a few hours earlier asking if EJ would watch Davids dog until arrangements to pick it up later that day could be made. When the deputy stopped to do his weekly welfare check on him there was no warning shot, no yelling, nothing but his dog whining at the outhouse door. David was found dead in his outhouse and had apparently been dead about a couple hours. His nephews refused to keep the deal for the car and truck and had already started removing everything from the shack of a house to sell and had already sold Davids immaculate old White fsrm tractor as the buyer was there to get it within an hour of when I had gotten to the hunting shack before I had even tried to talk to the nephews. Turns out they were just waiting for him to die so they could get the land and sell of his antiques. So that is how I lost out on a great old Hudson with Twin H.
Yeah, peculiar styling, I’m much more accepting of it now. In the late 70’s I had a neighbour who drove a Twin H Power Hudson, what a contrast to all the other cars on the street. Like you say, they had their day in the sun, The Fabulous Hudson Hornets in NASCAR. I don’t think the win on Sunday, sell on Monday adage work for them though.
Hudson's was a department store in Detroit. Part of the original building is now incorporated into Ford Field (the site where Hudson's once stood). So, this brand was the only car company that was a department store!
Really neat to see a Twin H-Power Hudson. A shame those cars are in the state they're in today, but I suppose if someone was really ambitious with the cash to support their ambition, the Twin H-Power would be worth it to restore. Needs the 3 speed manual out of the other one though!
I've loved these cars since I first watched Morgan Freeman let the clutch out and give some gas to that beautiful burgundy 1948 Hudson in Driving Miss Daisy in 1989.
Hudson was really a big name in NASCAR in the early years of the sport. What the cars lacked in power as opposed to Ford's flathead V8 they made up for in handling in the turns. As I understand it, these cars were among the flatest, tightest handling cars of the era, right from the factory. Thanks to that "drop down" design.
Of course once the big three came out with OHV V8s, that spelled the end of Hudson. They never developed a V8 that could keep up with the big three and the V8 you mentioned them getting in '55 was a Packard engine after the merger.
Steve as a fellow model builder I'd suggest you take a look at the 1952 Fabulous Hudson Hornet plastic model kit by Moebius Models. It's a highly detailed kit of the real Fabulous Hornet that was the early stock car champ upon which "Doc" Hudson was based on in Cars (that was Paul Newman's last project before he passed - and all the car guys know that Newman was a skilled race car driver as well in real life so the roll seemed to fit him perfectly)
Years ago I worked for Jack Clifford. He had an affliction for Hudson's. Something that I never could understand but hey everybody needs a hobby. He seemed to pretty good at racing them. I saw some of the trophy's that he had won. 6=8.
Steve those were not 54 Hudson’s 52 and 53 I believe thanks for showing those cars
Steve, when they have an error in the audio Cold war motors adds a correction in text on the screen. This is an excellent practice because not everyone will find the comments about the error. I hope you adopt this procedure. Thank you.
When I was a kid in the 70's , a friend of the family had 2 late 1950's DeSoto s parked in the back corner of their 3 acre property. They were parked there in the late 60's when they were no longer road worthy and the brush and weeds grew up around them. The friend would sell parts off them over time till they were just shells of the 2 cars. This site always fascinated me as a kid and I asked my dad why we couldn't have junk cars in our yard? He said my mom would "kill him" . In the mid 80's he finally junked the 2 wreaks ; I stopped over one day and the area was cleared and mowed !
How heartbreaking to see those two Hudsons rotting away in the woods. Such an important part of automotive history!
It's downright criminal! What kind of person does that?
A Hudson Hornet with a flathead engine would be nostalgic. Wish I had one.
Man, I would love to be cruising around in a nice Twin-H Hornet. Neat old cars!
Shades of On The Road by Jack Kerouac. I’ll always remember their cross country trip in Neal’s Hudson.
Live Hudson's. Great looking cars & also make great kustoms
My friend Brule Hampton had a 51 hornet 2 door with a hopped up twin H. The header on it was hand crafted by a gentleman who built the headers for the nascar hornets, and it was all gas welded and hand hammered. He sold that car for 130k to a Hudson collector
A neighbor of mine has a Hudson pickup. Maybe from the 30s. Every year all the Hudson’s come to his house and have a BBQ great cars
Hudson Hornets are nice cars to restore. Nice find. Fontana, CA has a Hudson grave yard.
I've always been curious how vintage vehicles end up in the forest.
My husband and I always enjoy your videos! Always a wealth of information told in an easy to listen to style as if we were right there with you....fun to see all the oldies we grew up with. But hubby thinks the 54s had one piece windshields as he remembers that distinctly from the one his father owned. His dad was a longtime owner of a variety of Hudsons, both step downs and earlier models. Some ran and drove regularly. Others, like the post war one we still have, are just old friends that may never run again. Not every old car has to be restored to retain its value.....that's often in the heart of the beholder!
It is not just the windshield. The 54s were a complete reskin. None of the sheet metal is the same as the cars in the videos which are not 54s. I hope Steve will put a correction in the video. Just a little piece of text on the screen at the time of the 54 references would prevent a lot of people from being misinformed.
Nice video, rode in Hudson's when I was a kid late 50s early 60s.
Never rode in one, but have seen a couple and a guy in our area has one, not sure which engine but a cool car that he is restoring.
Hahaha! I was thinking about the "Cars" movie when this video started. Surprised you brought it up. That line still gets me "He did what in his cup?!"
The first Hudson plant still stands on Mack Ave in Detroit MI. It was Aerocar briefly before that. The Hudson Model 20 was so successful, the company outgrew the little plant in months, and they kicked of construction of a great new Albert Kahn designed factory on Jefferson and Conner (demolished).
May I share these observations: I owned a 53 Hudson Hornet and 54 Hudson Hornet and drove them for many miles in the mid and late 1960s. My experience is that the upside down "v" in the grill means it is a 52 Hudson Hornet, the first of the two cars in the woods, it had a broken windshield and stick shift.
My dad remembers my grandfather driving a pink and black Hudson. I love the hornets, and I love the twin H power!
Sorry Steve Those Hudsons are not 54’s. They are 52 or 53’s but nice try
When I was a youngster my grandfather had a Hudson Hornet and later owned a couple of Nashes. From the Nashes he followed by owning some of the Ramblers of the early 60’s. Great cars and great content 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼 Thanks Steve!
My favorite part about driving miss daisy was when morgan and Dan went to pick up Jessica's new caddy and morgan told him he bought that beautiful dark red hornet
Who would have thunk it!!🤔
Hudson had sixes with more CID than their V8s! 😳 GM Hudson and others held off on V8s until mId fifty’s!! Ford had prototypes around 1900! 🤷♀️
Steve, absolutely excellent. I have an abiding passion for these innovative cars and own two restoration projects - a '49 Super Six and '52/'53 Pacemaker. The detail innovation on these cars never cease to amaze. Keep up the great work.
Steve's right, there are lots of similar cars by the side of the road, in the woods, etc. If you're a New Englander you've seen them on rural secondary roads. Very interesting episode as always.
Bill,Mark, and Brett - The Hudson Brothers. Razzle Dazzle...If you get this reference without googling it, then you are of a fine vintage.
Those are absolutely not 54. The 54 rear quarter did not slope down. It went straight back and the tail light was at the end of the quarter in a much higher position.
Hey Steve
The first one is 1952 and I’m pretty sure the 2nd is a 1953. Neither is a 1954 as they had higher tail lamps.
I agree, the taillights, dash, hood, and grill all appear to be earlier model Hudson I was thanking the first one is a 51 with the inverted V in the grill but could be a 52 also
@@55hemidodge 51 has a more square tail with the lights up higher on the back. 52-53 have those low curved lights that somewhat resemble 49-50 Mercury.
@@55hemidodge the 1951s had vertical tail lamps… same as 1948-50
Get well soon Steve!
As you probably know, the step down design ran 48 thru 54. The Nash/Hudson merger was mid year, reportedly they continued to build the 54 Hudson Hornet thru the 54 model year. Did you know Hudsons had mechanical linkage running from the brake pedal to the rear brakes in event of loss of hydraulic fluid. Only Hudson offered this.
Hey Steve, That first Hudson is a 53 not 54 as the 54 had a different grille and one piece windshield and a few other changes that made it a little different and in my opinion nicer as the last one in the series. Really enjoy your shows,
The big hood ornament IDs it as a 51 or 52. 53s had a small fake hood scoop. Definitely not a 54 though. 54s had a different rear quarter and tail light treatment (more like a Cadillac) and I believe a one piece windshield. The 54 also had a fake hood 'scoop' but it was considerably wider than the 53. Also, 1957 was the final model year for Hudson.
The 54 was re-skinned. None of the exterior sheet metal was the same as 48 to 53.
@@arise2945 Thanks for correcting me on it being a 51 or 52 and not a 53.
Steve, your knowledge is outstanding I could listen to you and your passion about cars non-stop. Thank you I really enjoy your channel.
I believe they have a couple of the "Grand National Racing" Hudson Hornets on display in the museum located in Darlington SC..or they once did..I'd have to dig thru some Old Pics I took from there in the early 80's..my 1st attended race was at Darlington..84 Southern 500
Great video! Entertaining and informative as always !
As of this writing, I understand you are in the hospital recovering from a health challenge, believe me you are missed, this is wishing you a most speedy recovery. I find that you know cars internally, externally and eternally! Barrett Jackson expressed the other day how much they missed you, I share their feeling.
To bad that thing is in such sad shape. I love these old Hudsons!
I wonder if Towmater can pull that out and maybe we can race for the Piston Cup?
Thanks Steve, it's just like the Doc Hudson character in the movie Cars. 🤣 I wrote my comment before you mentioned it.
The Hudson shown with the tree on the hood is either a 52 or 53 Hornet, it has hydramatic in it. A 54 Hudson Hornet has tail lights up higher similar to a 55 Chev. Also a 54 Hornet has a one piece windshield and totally different dash board from the ones in this picture.
It is nice to see a car in the woods that doesn't have 500 bullet holes in it
My cousin has a '51 Hornet four door that he bought without an engine or transmission, he put in a 302 engine from an old Econoline van but he's leaving it with the original paint rust and all outside of the dashboard that he woodgrained himself.
I have fond memories of riding in my grandpa's 1949 Hudson Commodore ( 308 /3 on the tree). He bought the car brand new and it was driven until the early 1980's.
All '49's had a 262, if a six, or a 254 if a straight 8. 308 didn't exist until 1951 when the Hornet model came out.
@@kevinrussell5099 ...Thanks for the info ., Pretty sure it was a "49", I remember my dad saying it was the big 6 with pistons the size of paint cans. He is in his late 80's and has trouble remembering stuff, my gramps has been gone for about 35 years. I'm trying to piece some of this together. I remember the day they towed the Commodore away and wishing we could have kept it!
@@throwingsparks the pistons in a 262 were pretty darn big, not that much smaller than the Hornet engine. I rebuilt the engine in my,'49 and was pretty impressed by the size. Where the 308 got it's extra displacement was mostly from a longer stroke crankshaft.
I personally would love a Hudson just to look at
I seen a Hudson Hornet Twin H Power a few months ago, i am guessing it had been done up, it was in pretty good condition. Metallic Brown i think was the colour nice car!!
The success of the Hornet on the race circuit prompted my father to buy a new one in the early 50's. He always bought coupes but settled on a 4 door as that was all he could find.
Wonderful content as always.
My dream car is a 1951 Hudson Hornet coupe with Twin - H Power. I'd be fine waking up in the morning to find that the Hudson was all a dream.
For fear of waking up to find it gone, I will not say that my dream car is my '83 Euro 4 speed Mercedes 240D. (It might actually 84 due to a letter in the twelfth character of the VIN and a january 1984 build date under the seats) Though it's been my daily for two and a half years, the odometer says I've put 36 miles on it.
Add my voice to the fellows who are complimenting your cameraperson. Very well done.
Another well informed video thank you Steve I love your shows I really do..
I heard pole barn garage picked up a car in Texas West Texas that you told him about the GTO.. way to go Steve.... That car will become an icon. Cheers from western Canada
They were known for their extreme durability and considered over built. I converted a 50 Hudson sedan 308 twin carb from a 6 volt positive ground to a 12V negative a couple of years ago and loved it. Owner still drives it on 1200 mile rallies a couple of times a year.
What hurt the 1954 Hudson sales was the fact that they were in the same price range as GM's Oldsmobile and Buick that both by 54 had modern V8 engines. My family's second car ( Mom's car ) was a 1957 Nash Rambler back bought second hand in 1959 when I was three when we moved out of the city ( Peoria, Illinois ) into a brand new split level model house in the suburbs. You had to drive everywhere in the suburbs instead of just walking a block or two to the store or bakery and hardware store so second cars were a must for just about every family in the burb's back then.
this was really helpful! I just bought a 54 Hudson Super Wasp a couple of weeks ago and it's cool to learn about Hudsons.
Who knew these old cars would be so interesting. When I was young there was a junk yard pretty much in the center of the town where I grew up. I call it a town but I guess it was actually a village. 1200 souls. Anyway the junk yard had these Hudson's, Ramblers and other extinct cars. If I had had any idea I would have taken some of the emblems. The place was unfenced and this was before any regulations.
The Hudson Brothers?
Is THAT Chucky Margolis?
Chucky, Chucky, Chucky, Chucky!
Hey Mar-go-lis!!!
LOL
Steve I don't want to bring you down, but the green one was a 52 and the blue one was a 53. 54 was a different body style. Also Hudson was founded in 1909.
So sad to see those beautiful Hudsons die slowly in the woods....
Should knock on the door of that house and ask them why they have been left to rot there
Hudsons were NASCAR legends. Hard to believe.
My friend back then my neighbor growing up . His dad had 2 Hudson's . We were like 12-14 and was Messing with them and we got one to run on a can of gas and was driving it around in the yard. 0 brakes. Was a 3 speed on column .
really awesome looking car
You're a wealth of knowledge, Steve.
Great vid!!!!!!!!! 👍👍👍
Jeez Steve if we only knew each other 20 yrs ago..I was at Curboys before they did their cleanout back around 2006 or so, in my search for good quarter panels for my Corvair I ran across a Hudson that HAD the twin H intact..I knew it was something special and vowed to get back there to pull it, but like the cars in your video time passed { in my case } and last i heard everything had been crushed..SAD...I wonder what dealership there was, back in our native area
My neighbor had a Hudson with a continental package with the spare tire mounted to the bumper
Saw one of these Hudsons at the Coolgardie rubbish dump in Western Australia.
Woods, roadside, any crawl will do
Great video Steve! I loved Hudsons when I was a kid. Loved the body style. Never aspired to get one because they are so rare and expensive.
Lived in New Hampshire , there were cars in the woods all over