1932 REO 8-35 Royale Convertible Coupe

In August 1904 Ransom E. Olds was forced out of the company he had founded, the Olds Motor Works. The firm built the curved dash Oldsmobile and was one of the largest producers of automobiles at that time. Olds immediately started a new company, using his initials to name it the REO Motor Car Company. REO would become a large and well-known manufacturer of automobiles and would prosper into the 1920s. However, it the aftermath of The Great Depression, production of REO automobiles would cease in 1936.

REO decided to enter the luxury car market in 1931 and retained the services of Amos Northup, the chief designer of Murray Body to style the new cars. The resulting 835 Royale series REOs, powered by a 125-hp straight eight engine, were some of the most exciting cars on the road in their time, and they are today recognized as true Classics.

This Royale 8-35 has a long 135-inch wheelbase and is powered by a 358 cubic-inch 8-cylinder engine that produces 125 horsepower at 3,500 RPM. Additional features include a nine-bearing crankshaft, a one-shot lubrication system, thermostatically controlled radiator shutters, and the handy golf club side storage door.

This 1932 REO Royale convertible coupe was purchased in September 1931 by Miss Elizabeth Jeffreys, of Pueblo Colorado. Miss Jeffreys was the first woman to obtain a pilot license in Colorado. A story passed down with the car relates that she took her new REO to Bonneville, Utah salt flats to test the designer's claim of 120 mph top speed. The REO is said to have clocked 116 mph. Miss Jeffreys kept the car until she died, whereupon it passed to her sons, who sold the car in 1978. The present owner is the fourth owner.