1929 Ford Roadster with 1932 Ford Chassis hot rod - John Athan

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/?p=45412
Original Pre-War-built hot rods being preserved as they were first built is pretty rare. That hot rod being kept by the same owner all those years is even more rare (I’m looking at you Ed Iskenderian!). Most of you are more than familiar with the John Athan ’29 as it was featured in the ‘Hot Rod Milestones’ book by Dain Gingerelli (1999), fresh from restoration, and then a regular display item at the NHRA Museum in Pomona for many years. Personally, Athan’s roadster always stood out in my mind for that unusual ’39 Chrysler rear window being used as a windshield. Of course the hot rod was also heavily featured in the 1957 movie “Loving You”, driven by a young Elvis Presley at the height of his fame, often leading to the nickname of “The Elvis Roadster”. Rumor has it that E tried to buy the car from Athan for many years after the movie, but to no avail. The roadster remained in John’s family until just recently when it was offered for sale at the Mecum Indy auction earlier this week, but the bids ‘only’ went to $475,000, with what was a perhaps an optimistic estimated value range of $750,000 – $1,000,000. (For that much money they should have aligned the doors better and got the door handles level)

Mecum auction description states:

“This 1929/32 Ford Roadster carries unparalleled historical Hot Rod significance. Assembled in 1937 by John Athan, best friend of the famous Ed Iskenderian and an unsung pioneer of the Southern California Hot Rodding hobby, it is believed that Athan’s prized car was the first instance in which a Model A body was fused to a 1932 Ford frame, a build method that inspired many hot rod builders for decades to follow. A modified flathead V-8 in an exposed engine bay, the removal of fenders and running boards, and incorporating drop axles are just a few of the flourishes utilized by Athan that helped establish this early So-Cal Custom precedent.

This car was an absolute labor of love for Athan that no amount of money could buy. He and his wife drove the car from California to Las Vegas as an engaged couple, returned as newlyweds, and they kept the car for more than 80 years. He locked the car away in the 1970s before commissioning an exacting restoration completed in the late 1990s. Since completion, it has been displayed prominently in the Smithsonian Museum in Washington D.C., the Wally Parks NHRA Museum in Pomona and the Peterson Museum in Los Angeles. John Athan passed away in 2016 at the age of 95, and the car remained with (or perhaps “part of”) the family until 2019. A trend-setting roadster that inspired a movement and impressed a king, John Athan’s Hot Rod is simply without equal.”