I may be able to piece some facts together but have to know up to what point in time you know of the car still being driven and where so I don't mention stuff out of context..I know a guy that has been looking for it for years and as of 5/6 years ago had no luck according to a friend of his...I have thought of a couple 33/34 bodys that people had but I can't remember the history they told me of them and can't quite place the time frame..If the guy I sold some old radar wheels to would contact me we could probably sort out time frames better but his name and his friend's [looker] escapes me....Car was in Hartford,CT autorama in late 61' or early 62' as its show pic was in March, 62', Car Craft Mag, pg 22, lower left corner and I know that it was running around Storrs, Ct about 68'...I would like info on the sectioned 49' Coupe, of builder Doug Fernandis, page 23, bottom right corner, last seen running around Wethersfield, Ct about 67/68..
Thanks for the info Yeah I don't know anything about the car ,just like the look of it And I was wondering it might have some cool history somewhere Posted from Austinrod
I asked the same question years ago about the car's history and picture requests. I received similar replies. Mystery.
IIRC it was in the pits at CT Dragway when Jack Chrisman made exibition runs in the Howard Cam Twin Chevy Dragster. Summer of '61? I remember taking a snapshot of it from the front, not sure if I still have it buried in my collection or not, will keep an eye out for it. Ed
I have a decent amount of history on this car and some very rare pictures. Im at work and then off to a wedding this afternoon. I'll post up some info and pix asap
The ice box coupe was built by Rene Lussier of the C.A.R.B.S. car club in Hartford, Connecticut. the car was later sold to a guy in Coventry, Connecticut who sold it to a guy in Florida. supposedly the guy in Florida got killed by a car while eating his lunch on a park bench. everyone that I know that knew of the car said they lost any info after that.
Holy Crap, Ridgerunner, I was there that day. Year after I graduated from high school, buddy and I made the "big trip" from Rhinebeck to Colchester, CT that Sunday. I remember we got lost in CT and were sitting at a tee in the road not knowing which way to go and along comes a candy blue 27 T roadster with a chrome roll bar so we just followed him. If my old memory is right Chrisman was running a flat nose on the car, with the twin bears of Howard Cam's painted on it (like a sheet of plywood)? And I sure remember seeing the Ice Box, with its vanity CT plates and the chrome spider web on the grille shell. Man thanks for bringing back a good memory for an old guy!
Found more info in ( east coast hot rods ) post 405 shows a semi famous local car, that has just one rear view in the "Cool Cars/Square Rollbars" book. I have been looking for a front end pic for a long time. This is the Ice Box, in later form, most likely the medium blue metallic I saw when it was in my town in the very early 70s. It was originally white with chrome door hinges, looking like the antique home iceboxes from long ago. Was in some well known 50s drag race against another well known coupe, maybe the one in the same post? Early version is said to be Caddy, but then replaced by a Nailhead Buick, which I think is shown. Car went to Fla in the late 70s or even 80s, all apart, no motor or perhaps SBC mocked up, color said to be brown. Sat there in a home garage for a long time, now lost. And more info Remember seeing it at one of the old Stafford swap meets, in brown, no motor, was not a lot of money, wish I'd bought it, but we just got a house etc. etc. Still have a photo in my office,(from when it was white). And more I never saw it at the Stafford swap, I must have missed that year. Anyways, your color of brown matches what another local guy said, when we last saw it at the rod swap on Rt 5 in S.Windsor, at a car auctions big parking lot. That swap I think was part of Juliano's club he was in. Had to be mid to later 70s? I just can't recall years anymore, but that swap was not there for too many years. I didn't think it had a motor either, but the other guy thought there was a sbc mock up block in there? As I recall, the seller was from Coventry Ct. Boy that car went to shit in just a few short years, from when I last saw it on the road in Tolland & Rockville Ct, about maybe 70 or 71, it was still Nailhead, still blue. It was for sale at 3500 in that blue/nailhead version when I saw it 70/71? I think a Pratt worker? bought it when it was all messed up/apart/brown, but retired later, and hauled it to a residential garage/home in Fla, and was still there for 20 years, then his CTfriend lost track of the guy and car. More F&J, will try to post the shot I have in the AM, if I remember right, there was an asking price of $1200 at Stafford...guessing it was very early eighties? And more The Ice Box was a 33-34. I dont know of any pics showing it in a more 'modern' state or such. The details always get sketchy after "It went down to Florida...." There were rumors that the car had come back north to CT and was in a garage/barn etc... but nothing substantiated. Last reliable info was that the car is still in FLA. Maybe sans the grille/shell and engine. Have been trying to get better info about it for nearly 20yrs with out much progress. My guess is that it is sitting in a garage just collecting dust and storing memories. More The info I heard, came from Pratt & Whitney Aircraft workers. Some older guy there, knew the guy who retired to Fla with the car. I am not sure if the Fla guy worked at Pratt or not. when the car was for sale at the swapmeet in Soth Windsor, CT, supposedly the seller had a magazine showing the car, and maybe some other printed history. I am sure those would have went to the buyer, but if he passed away much later, and if the stuff was stored in his house, maybe they got seperated from the car....then a new owner would never be able to know what the remains used to be? Posted from Austinrod
Renee bought the car in 58 from a fella in Rhode Island. He flat towed the car back to his mom's house in West Hartford. The car was built in the backyard in a small shed. Renee was a welder at Pratt & Whitney in East Hartford and I believe a lot of the machine work was done at Pratt. As I understand it the " Ice Box" nerf bar was made in the fab shop there too. Here are some pix of the car from Oct of 59. The car was flat towed to a car show in Enfield, Connecticut. The car wasn't quite done yet The early configuration of the car was powered by a 331 Caddy, then Nailhead and finally was set up for an SBC. Last time the car was in CT was at a CSRA Swap Meet in South Windsor to my knowledge. It was at that point painted brown. I have to scan those pictures still . When Renee passed away all his belongings went to his ex wife who promptly threw all his pictures and trophys into the trash. Renee showed the car up and down the East Coast as well as campagained it at the strip. From what I under stand he had a room full of memorbillia. Renees mother kept a personal photo album which a friend of mine now has. I will post more soon Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
Neat 33/34! Here's to hoping it (still) sits apart in a dusty garage waiting for a traditional builder to find/rescue/build it up into a period piece once again. Here's to NOT hoping someone bought it in the 90's and built it into a billet smoothie Street Rod with a 3 piece hood, hidden hinges, billet grille, etc. and hundreds of us have walked past it at shows having no idea of the cars awesome heritage.
Matt, just had a flash back....I think I knew Rene Lussier at Pratt...If it is the same person he was the foreman at the Weld Shop [fab shop] at the Rocky Hill plant facilitys and I just got out of the apprenticeship and graduated to the Rocky Hill plant tool room where I started working, late 69' and would guess he was in his early 30's at that time, about ten years older than me...By the late 70's I worked with him alot swapping toolroom work for Fab shop work quite often and I got the impression that he had gotten divorced, and was with/caring for his mom...By late 80's early 90's his health was failing and left work, I don't know if he got the "golden handshake early retirement package" but he never came back..I heard he had passed away in about mid to late 90's...As best I can recall he never mentioned the Ice Box [I did know of the car pre 69', actually since it was in R&C in 62'] or talk cars; he may have had a Mustang or Cougar but memory plenty fuzzy now....
Yup Seb, thats him. His best friend also worked at Pratt with him and had a similar 34 coupe. I dont recall his name but I believe I may have a picture of the two cars side by side somewhere in my collection of old photo's. I gotta start a thread on another CARBS of Hartford car...... "the Voodoo"
This is exactly why I love this place! Sure hope you guys dig up some more on this wicked car. Look'n forward to the rest of the story...
Well I guess I should have talked to him more but we had jobs to do, while I didn't remember who built the car if he had said "Icebox" I would have known the car...Little story: I walked into his office one day with work order to get some steel plate cut up...Laying in a bed on top of a filing cabinet was a huge Cat, yes ferrell feline..Seems it showed up at the Weld Shop and he began feeding it out side; when winter was getting close he punched a hole in the outside office wall so the Cat could come in to the office and be out of the cold as he pleased...Cat spent a lot of time in the office, had all the comforts and he could watch all that went on through the office windows..Pretty sure Renee took the Cat home before he left; at least that's the way the story should end..
Got some potentially great news today while at work! I work at Pratt & Whitney in East Hartford. I was having a casual conversation with one of the guys from facilities today discussing how many old hot rods and customs have a connection to Pratt. He starts telling me about a buddy of his that retired from her that bought an old hot rod at the Stafford Swap meet that had a spider webbed grill. I damn near feel over. I gave my card to the guy I was talking too and urged him to have his friend call me. He no longer has the car but may know where it ended up
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