31 delux
- Thread starter Louis
- Start date
Steve Ciccalone
Well-known member
The Deluxe coupe was generally delivered with a rumble seat, cowl lights and an upgraded interior, typically mohair. If a buyer was adament, I'm sure the dealer could have converted the rumble to a trunk. Sometime in '31, the Deluxe was also delivered with a roll down rear window. It was not uncommon for a standard coupe to be fitted with cowl lights in the day and fairly typical by "restorers" since the 60's. I would try to find evidence of the original upholstery material if your car is unrestored. If it is a "restored" car with cowl lights and a trunk, it is most likely originally a standard coupe. There are always exceptions to the rule however.
Steve,
Thanks for the info. im still kind of new to this hobby, when i bought mine the guy said it was a deluxe, it has what looks like org. to the car cowl lights, it does not have a roll down rear window, and i can't tell if it had a dome light or not, it has a converted trunk to rumble seat mod.[an old one] so i don't know for sure what it is.
the reason i ask is i orded carpet for it today and wanted to keep it as close to org. as pos. i never plan on having it judged, but i like things right. Thank's agin.
Thanks for the info. im still kind of new to this hobby, when i bought mine the guy said it was a deluxe, it has what looks like org. to the car cowl lights, it does not have a roll down rear window, and i can't tell if it had a dome light or not, it has a converted trunk to rumble seat mod.[an old one] so i don't know for sure what it is.
the reason i ask is i orded carpet for it today and wanted to keep it as close to org. as pos. i never plan on having it judged, but i like things right. Thank's agin.
Last edited:
w.michael
Senior Member
Re: '31 deluxe coupe
I had the chance to see a very original 1931 deluxe coupe last week. This car was an indented firewall car. The original interior was one of the best preserved I have ever seen. The front compartment had mohair, with buttons in the seat; a roll down rear window; and a dome light. The spare tire was rear-mounted. The rumble seat compartment was also all original, both the seat and backrest, and the side panels. The cowl lights were original. The only thing missing was the carpet in the front passenger compartment--it had been replaced with a rubber mat.
I would look for some remnant of the interior fabric to help determine whether your car was factory deluxe, or whether it was deluxified in an earlier restoration. Sometimes if you remove the cowl light brackets, it is obvious that they are not factory drilled holes in the cowl, but rather have been bored by someone like me.
I had the chance to see a very original 1931 deluxe coupe last week. This car was an indented firewall car. The original interior was one of the best preserved I have ever seen. The front compartment had mohair, with buttons in the seat; a roll down rear window; and a dome light. The spare tire was rear-mounted. The rumble seat compartment was also all original, both the seat and backrest, and the side panels. The cowl lights were original. The only thing missing was the carpet in the front passenger compartment--it had been replaced with a rubber mat.
I would look for some remnant of the interior fabric to help determine whether your car was factory deluxe, or whether it was deluxified in an earlier restoration. Sometimes if you remove the cowl light brackets, it is obvious that they are not factory drilled holes in the cowl, but rather have been bored by someone like me.
Kurt in NJ
Well-known member
Mine was originally a trunk model, April-May 31, factory dome light, cowl lights, rear spare, the upholstry is 60s mohair so I do not know what was original.
Mike V. Florida
Well-known member
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Joop
Well-known member
Marco Tahtaras
Well-known member
Did the 31 coupe "deluxe" come with a rumble seat only, or did they also come with a reg. trunk ?...Thanks.
I was under the impression that the rumble seat remained an option on the Deluxe although the vast majority of those built included it. That may be incorrect or may have been a change in 1931 when Ford was attempting to bring the base price down to increase sales. Those that collect original ads and dealer brochures should be able to shed some light on this.
We owned a 1931 Delux coupe. It was purchased from the estate of the original owner. The car had just over 20,000 miles at time of purchase.
The coupe had mohair, dome light, cowl lights (all the delux features) and had a trunk. It was an early 1931. I doubt the original owner had the car converted from a rumble seat version to a trunk version. There certainly was no indication that the car had been altered in any way.
JD
The coupe had mohair, dome light, cowl lights (all the delux features) and had a trunk. It was an early 1931. I doubt the original owner had the car converted from a rumble seat version to a trunk version. There certainly was no indication that the car had been altered in any way.
JD