1933 Stutz DV-32

Harry Clayton Stutz built his first car in five weeks. It finished 11th at the 1911 Indianapolis 500, despite numerous stops for fresh tires, to prompt its creator to set up the Ideal Motor Car Company to manufacture the 'Car That Made Good In A Day.' A year later, in 1912, Stutz built its most famous product, the Bearcat Speedster. It was a minimalistic vehicle that was devoid of non-essentials, making it one of the first true sports car. In 1912 Stutz won 25 out of 30 competitions entered, thanks to the Bearcat. The Bearcat was part of the Stutz lineup until the end of the 1924 season when the installation of Frederick E Moskovics as company president marked a change of emphasis, now focusing on the luxury market.

In 1926, Stutz introduced its first eight-cylinder chassis called the Vertical Eight. It had an under-slung worm final drive, which allowed coachbuilders to craft elegant low-slung bodies. In 1927 at Indianapolis, a Stutz sedan set a new world speed record, averaging 68.44mph for 24 hours. A year later, an example owned by a French pilot and inventor named Charles Weyman and driven by Bloch/Brisson, finished 2nd at Le Mans behind the Rubin/Barnato Bentley despite losing top gear 90 minutes from the finish.

The original Stutz Vertical Eight, which debuted in 1926, was used for the development of Stutz's DV-32. The Great Depression crippled many manufacturers, and for Stutz, they lacked the necessary funds to design a completely new engine. Instead, they continuously fine-tuned and upgraded the powerplant they had. The DV-32 began as a 322 cubic-inch former BB engine that Charles 'Pop' Greuter, the dean of the Stutz engineering department, had redesigned to include dual overhead camshafts and angled valves above the hemispherical combustion chambers. This arrangement led to the 'Dual-Valve 32' name, for its four valves per cylinder, totaling 32. The upgraded engine offered 156 horsepower, which was about the same horsepower per-cubic-inch ratio of the Duesenberg Model J. The engine was mated to a Warner three-speed transmission and sent power to the rear axle. Around 200 examples of the DV-32 were delivered and depending on the coachwork, had a top speed of around 90 mph.

Stutz offered the DV-32 with a variety of factory-built and semi-custom bodies. Indianapolis's Weymann American Body Company produced the 'Chateau line' using the French Weymann body-construction method under license. In similar fashion to other automobile bodies of the era, Charles Weymann's used a hardwood inner structure but clothed it in layers of cotton batting and fabric, with an outer layer of colored Zapron synthetic leather rather than metal. This made the bodies flexible, lightweight, and devoid of squeaks. The Zapron-paneled bodies required constant maintenance and repairs, resulting in the later use of more resilient aluminum.

Among the bodies offered on the Chateau Line was the five-passenger sport sedan called the Monte Carlo, which featured an unusually low roofline and windows and a fully integrated luggage compartment within a curving tail. This body style was available on the DV-32 chassis from 1931 through 1933.

In 1934, Stutz built just six cars and by 1937, the company was declared insolvent. Total DV-32 production reached just 150 units (as many as 200).

by Daniel Vaughan | Jun 2019