30 Jun Spanner Works: JP du Plessis

A regular feature outlining the activities of FMM’s workshop personnel who are responsible for repairing, renovating, refurbishing and restoring the museum’s large and varied collection of vehicles. This month, JP du Plessis reports on a gangster getaway car that did not want to get away…

“Bonnie and Clyde were pretty lookin’ people
But I can tell you people, they were the devil’s children
Bonnie and Clyde began their evil doin’
One lazy afternoon down Savannah way
They went and robbed a store, and high-tailed outa that town
Got clean away in a stolen car
And waited till the heat died down…”

When you think of a 1934 Ford, you think Bonnie and Clyde. It was the getaway car of choice for these infamous bandits of the Depression era, as it had a then rather powerful V8 engine. This specific year model did not see many changes or updates, as was the case in the previous two years. Still, for ’34 some items were updated, including a flatter grille design with fewer bars and a wider surround, straight bonnet louvres, smaller headlights and a redesigned logo, to name a few.

The museum’s example is a 1934 Deluxe Phaeton, finished in a classy dark blue with a tan soft top and light brown leather seats. While exercise driving on the farm one day, it was found that after an extended run, it was difficult or sometimes refused to start. JP du Plessis was tasked with finding the gremlin.

Due to temperatures rising on all moving parts the longer one drives a car, it was thought that the problem must be related to overheating. Taking the car on a long run, the spark was tested before the start and then again after the drive when, sure enough, the spark was found to be very weak at operating temperature – just enough to keep the engine running, but not to fire up the vehicle. So the distributor was removed, inspected and cleaned inside. All points of contact were also cleaned with fine emery paper. It was discovered that the spring under the graphite centre contact was very loose, so while a new one was on order, it was stiffened up with some steel wool so that it would not contract as much at higher temperatures.

After a couple of test drives under similar conditions, it was clear that the problem was identified and solved. Once the new spring arrived, it was duly fitted and the flat-head V8 once again roared through the tree-lined lanes of L’Ormarins.

(Intro lyrics are from the The Ballad of Bonnie & Clyde recorded by Georgie Fame.)