| My late brother Arthur saw the car for sale in the White Triangle news, and suggested I buy the car. I told him I didn’t have the money and he said ” buy it you won’t ever find another car like it”. Arthur had recently imported a 1946 Hudson coupe. ( Now owned by Alan Walker). A.J. and I had always like the American bodied Hudson of that era.
At that time I had an earlier model Hudson on which I had completed a full restoration. I then sold the earlier model and rang the guy in America, a Mr Hal Waddell who lived in Melbourne Florida, I had met Hal on one of his trips to Australia some years before.
He told me the car was still for sale and we negotiated a price over the phone. $11,500 US . He told me that the car was too dear for the Yanks and he had not had any enquiries from anyone in the US.
He said I would love to sell the car to you and see it go to Australia.
He then sent me out a heap of photos, all angles of the body, the mileage at that point was 14,093 original miles.
I sent Hal the money to pay for the car, and arranged shipping through a company in Australia, this was in December 1988. At that point the car should have been picked up ready for shipping to Australia. In early March 1989 Hal rang me and asked when I was going to organize shipping, I told him the shipping company told me the car was on the water and would arrive in Sydney shortly, gave me the container number the ship it was on etc. Hal told me “The car is still in my garage” I rang the shipping company and after some checking they said “oops” look like we have made a blunder”.
The car eventually arrived July 1989, six months after paying for it. There were many sleepless nights. Remember this car was bought sight unseen until it arrived here in Australia. Hoping I had done the right thing.
At that time I had a table top truck, so A.J. and I hired a trailer and went to the shipping terminal to pick up the car. We were directed to a large storage shed were the car was. When A.J., saw the car he said to me “That’s not your car it is in far too good a condition” and yes it was my car and in perfect condition. We picked it up and trailered it to it’s new home in Australia.
This 1942 Hudson Two Door Brougham is the only 1942 Two Door Brougham 21 series on the American Hudson Clubs register.
|
