History 1932 Ford just “the Deuce” But by Who & When?

.. The 1932 Ford: the Car referred to as just “the Deuce” But by Who and When did it first start being referred to and well known as such?
.. We all know the impact the 32 has had on automotive history but when was it fist realized as just “the Deuce”?

 

as far back as I can remember the hobby and most likely far beyond. My recollection goes back as far back as the late 50s In my life time it has always been the cream of the crop. Lots of haters over the years that has classified us as elitist but that is their problem.

 

Beach Boys "Little Deuce Coupe" made deuce coupe popular phrase IMO, no clue who originally turned it, just a guess, Calif builder quoted in Hot Rod magazine or Rod and Custom and it caught on. John

 

i will speculate it was almost immediately after they were introduced. my father , who was not a car guy and was born in 1913 , had a friend who bought a new `32 ford Tudor in 1932 . in my father's stories of his younger days and adventures with his friend he always referred to that car as a Deuce

 

When I build my first av8 (in 1959) my mentor was an old guy who had been building and racing flathead Fords since the 40's and he always referred to the '32 as a Deuce. I kinda detected a small bit of distain at times when he said it and always thought it was because the Ford v8 replaced his beloved Ford 4 bangers as the racing engine of choice. He would always talk with pride when recounting a particular race or especially a win that took place when he was a teenager and helping his dad and grandfather work on their T race car.

Frank

 

.. I go back to the late 40s and I can remember GIs in the neighborhood stripping fenders off 1930s era cars; but there was one jalopy I admired the Grille & V8 emblem on it, never knowing the year of it. Years later I noticed a Grille like that hanging on a guy’s garage and when I asked if he would part with it he said with disdain, “that’s a Deuce”. I was just a kid and I didn’t know what I had said so wrong. Much later I realized that was like asking a guy to give up his family jewels.

 

My Mom was a gearhead since she began driving. (1921) She had some T's, but her '29 A roadster was a 'Supe-Up'. (words derived from "Super" / "up".)
She had an older mechanic, Pete Dias, (Santa Clara garage, Pete was an Indy mechanic for years)
He hopped up her '29, downdraft carb, 'twin' pipes, and 2 years later, she traded it in on her '31 Sport Coupe: got a Rajo head, Wico mag, dual carbs, and a list of stuff. She held the record for elapsed time from Santa Clara to Holy City, one 'fast flapper!'

She never got beat by an 'A', (they called 'em "Aces", the '29s thru '31s.; Mom said they were ALL about 'buzzwords' and catch words)
When the '32s came out, the 'rod jockeys' called 'em like cards. (A's were 'Aces', '32s were 'Deuces'.)
She always got a kick out of the music then, the fast cars, and the slang was just 'the Bee's Knees'!
Local rod jockey Ned Conway maintained that my Mom was "Cute as a Bug's Ear!"
Deuces were Deuces around Santa Clara as soon as they came out! (to the 'A' crowd, anyway)

 

Atwater Mike;

.. Man you really knocked it out of the park on this reply and it makes perfect sense.
Sounds like your Mom was larger than life; & ‘All part of being Kool’.


Thanks, Ric

 

A drunk to his friend, as a 1932 Ford Roadster zooms by, "WOW! That's a DOOSEY". The rest.... is history.

 

If deuce means two, then Id'be a natural wouldn't it?

 

Thank you, Fab32 and Atwater Mike for the cool stories!!!

 

I had an OT '66 Nova years ago that folks called a deuce. It was explained to me that because "66" are two consecutive identical numbers the term "deuce" applied

 

early Novas are referred to as "deuce" because they are "Chevy II"s" as well. nothing to do with 66.

 

Atwater Mike, that story is great! Thanks for sharing.

Mad 034, I'm pretty sure your Nova was called a Deuce because it's slang for Chevy II. The "two" is where Deuce comes from.

EDIT beat to the punch again!

 

That explains why my '55 Chev is not a deuce also! Thanks guys.

 

"Doosey" was the word usually reserved for the famous Deusenberg automobile, not usually a '32. Just sayin'....

 

You Deuce lovers are going to like this; I went to the Dictionary (St. Martin’s Press).


One of the many definitions of Deuce, pronounced /dooss/ old French deus “two” from Latin duos, then Indo-European Old English /two/.


French /Deus/, is spelled the same way; Deus / 13th Century definition = ‘Ancestor of Deity’
There you go! That’s why we might hold such high regard for Hanks Deuce! But here’s the rub; now we have to start speaking French (all in jest).

 

I'm 62 and been a gearhead since about 8 or 9.......I've always heard it referenced as a Deuce ...It's always been known in my neck of the woods if you said Deuce, it meant a '32 Ford...nothing else..not Chevy, Dodge or any other brand...just a '32 Ford....also if you heard someone say ...it was a 40....it always meant a '40 Ford....nothing else......even before I owned one, I always wanted one...it's just something about pulling in at a Cruise In or a Car Event with a Deuce.....I heard someone say once..."Showing up in a nice Deuce is like showing up with the prettiest girl from another school at your Senior Prom.......you know all the guys are wishing they were you"..................nothing else...it's a Deuce....like riding a Harley...if you have to ask, you wouldn't understand....hehehe

 

I Googled...WHEN DID THE 1932 FORD START BEING CALLED A DEUCE?...........This is the most logical answer I read...........
www.oldcarsweekly.com/news/hobby-news/deuce_details

Dec 21, 2007 ... The '32 Ford is called the “Deuce” because of the “two” in 32. Yes, you knew that already, but did you ever consider that the 1932 Ford is the only car ... coupes and the roadster, were destined to become hot rod icons.

 

Thanks for the 'kudos', guys... I got 'started' in the hot rod life around 1953, when I was 11.
The older guys with the 'rods' were encouraging, (because I had a subscription to HRM, and collected and memorized the "Little Pages"...as most of you did)
Honk, R&C, Car Craft...I could quote paragraphs from Roger Huntington, Racer Brown, Barney Navarro...so I was 'accepted'.

Tannergang's notes are accurate. A '27 was a T, a '29 was a Model A Ford, understood. '32s were 'Deuces; '33s were Fords, albeit not as cool as '34s. '35s were Fords, but '36es were the real thing.
By the year, they were understood to be Fords. Period.
I recall a guy walking up to a crowd of rodders at the drags in '55, said he had a '40 Coupe for sale. We walked over to see it, but it was a '40 Chevy! The guys said, "You said it was a '40...It's a CHEVY! This ain't a '40..."
There were rules...
Finally, in 1955, a '55 WAS a Chevy. Sure took 'em a long time for that V8...(yeah, I know they had one in '18, but it didn't last...)

 

hey bar keep top it off

 

Be assured when old Henry rolled the first one out the factory door in 1932
it was called the " DEUCE ". The neat thing is that its a one year only deal .
the very thought of a 32 instantly makes you think HOT ROD like no other car ever built.

 

I've never called a Chevy II a Deuce.................. A DEUCE is a DEUCE and a Chevy is a Chevy.
So how come a '33 is not called a tre ?

 

This is my Deuce.........

 

Nice car Tanner. Be careful Oakie Don doesn't sweet talk you out of it.

Gary

 

He just got one like it......think he may keep it...at least till the wind blows again in Ok.

 

Not gospel, -----But I would say, after WWII, when the "Lakes" started up again.-----Don

 

... you just did! sounds good to me.
ric

 

Love your 5 window!!!!!!!

 

That is so cool, your Mom is an absolute legend! If you wrote a book about her I'd buy it! Do you have any pics of her and her 'Supe-Up'?