1935 Plymouth Coupe
Our 1935 Plymouth Car Story
By Janet Post
In 1968, a few months after getting married and moving from Auburn, CA to the SF Bay Area, a dear old friend of mine who was a widow called. Her name was Mary Neff. I had never met her late husband, but she lived alone on a country farm with a very protective dog. I used to visit her and take little things – while staying 6 feet from her dog! (“Social Distancing?”)
Mary had told me earlier that her husband purchased a 1935 Plymouth Business Coupe for her when it was almost new and a “one owner car” She drove that car for many years after which her husband bought her a new car which she began using. The ’35 Plymouth was no longer needed.
When Mary called me in 1968, she asked me if I would like to have her 1935 Plymouth. She was 90 at that point, and I sensed she was slipping somewhat. I drove up from SF to visit with her. She told me that she had written in her bible that I should have her car, but since she no longer needed it, could I please take it now. My husband Philip was with me, and she trusted him, so I drove the Plymouth home!
It was raining when I made that drive from Auburn CA to San Francisco, and it took me awhile to figure out the vacuum wipers! They kept slowing down or stopping on the hills. There was also a leak in the roof, so the rain came in. This, in turn wetted a mud dauber nest in the headliner, which finally gave up and dumped mud on my head. Despite this, the heater worked great and the car chugged along – I was in heaven!
I gave up the High Performance 1964 Mustang Cobra that I had (to my brother), and I drove my little Plymouth daily for years. My family starting growing, the car got a little tired, and I finally quit driving it. Then, around 1980 a neighbor of ours who was a mechanic agreed with us to totally dis-assemble the Plymouth and rebuild it. The motor was rebuilt, then my neighbor moved, so the car sat until 1990. At that point, an old friend of ours moved in with us, and we really got to work putting the car back together.
The car was repainted, and since then my husband Philip has kept up the car fixing little things here and there. Philip has taken a special interest in the car. One Christmas he bought me a new starter – which excited me and sparked his interest in giving me parts of some sort on special occasions!
The car is running to this day – enhanced with all of the history, love and caring from those who have surrounded it.
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