1942 Hudson Super Six Station Wagon

This Hudson is known as the 'Death Valley Woody.' It is a Campbell-bodied 1942 Hudson Super Six Series 21 Station Wagon that has a history that dates back to 1969, when Hudson-Essex-Terraplane Club members Pete and Nancy Booz received a tip from a bear hunter who saw this Hudson Station Wagon, which was located at an elevation of 7,000 feet on a barely passable mountain road with a 35-degree grade near Death Valley, California. It had been used for years by a prospector to carry the minerals he mined. After hearing about its existence, Mr. and Mrs. Booz trekked in to see it and found the wooden bodywork mostly present and intact apart from the roof, and the grille, radiator, engine, and transmission were all gone.

Californian Carl Mendoza, interested in this abandoned Hudson, found no one claiming ownership, so he brought the car down from its mountain lair and placed it into storage. After a stroke in 1970, his wife sold the car to Richard A. Griffith of San Francisco, who intended to restore it. After realizing the extent of the work and the need for a Hudson donor chassis, Mr. Griffith purchased a replacement sedan – one with an incorrect wheelbase. The vehicle was then brought to Al Safferin's garage in Phoenix, Arizona, to see if it could be restored. Mr. Safferin declared the work was beyond his expertise. Next, the car was purchased by the Hostetlers after having located and purchased a 1942 Hudson Commodore Eight Sedan with the correct 121-inch wheelbase length.

By Daniel Vaughan | Jan 2019