Lot details
Registration No: SV 6296
Chassis No: 417166 8590
Mot Expiry: April 2012

THE PROPERTY OF JAZZ TROMBONIST AND BAND LEADER CHRIS BARBER

By the mid 1920s a prodigious increase in the demand for owner-driver cars was redefining the luxury market on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Thanks to the launch of its prescient Single Six range a few years earlier, Packard comfortably topped the American prestige sales charts. Keen to respond, Alfred P. Sloan Jr. and Lawrence P. Fisher conceived a companion marque for Cadillac. The presidents of General Motors and Cadillac respectively, they chose the name LaSalle - in honour of the famous seventeenth-century French explorer who boldly laid claim to the entire Mississippi river basin - and determined that the newcomer should act as a trailblazer for its illustrious sibling. To this end Larry Fisher lured a young hotshoe stylist away from the renowned custom bodyshop of Cadillac's California distributor, Don Lee. Commissioned to shape the first LaSalle, Harley Earl took his inspiration from contemporary Hispano-Suizas (Earl was subsequently chosen to head-up GM's seminal 'Art & Colour Section' and would remain there until retirement). In keeping with its 'junior Cadillac' status, the resultant Series 303 range was powered by a large capacity 90-degree V8 engine. Though, with their shorter wheelbases and lower kerb weights, the early LaSalles were surprisingly quick and agile. A point proved in June 1927 when division test driver 'Big Bill' Rader covered 1,532km aboard a stripped-out production roadster; his 153km/h (95.44mph) average speed being just 3km/h less than the one posted by that year's Indianapolis 500 winner.

Introduced in August 1928 for the following model year, the LaSalle Series 328 was overseen by chief engineer Ernest W. Seaholm. Available with a choice of two wheelbases (125-inch or 134-inch) and nineteen bodystyles (fourteen Fisher and five Fleetwood semi-custom designs), the newcomer was powered by an enlarged 328 cu in (5375cc) V8 engine allied to three-speed manual transmission. The latter's use of synchromesh - a real novelty during the late 1920s - gave far easier and smoother gearchanges. Further benefiting from such technical niceties as a helical bevel final drive, safety glass and Duplex-mechanical 15-inch drum brakes, the Series 328 was adorned with chrome-plated brightwork. Featuring extravagant body mouldings and rich colour schemes, the various open and closed models were decidedly rakish. Total LaSalle production for the 1929 season amounted to 22,961 cars of which just 1,500 were Series 328 Coupes (though, today survivors are comparatively few and far between). Well engineered and nicely appointed, the Series 328 has long been accorded 'Full Classic' status by the Classic Car Club of America.

Finished in Cream with Brown body mouldings and Brown leather upholstery, this particular left-hand drive example is the property of well known jazz trombonist and band leader Chris Barber (www.chrisbarber.net). A two-door Fixed Head Coupe with Rumbleseat, it is believed to have spent time in the Minnesota region and had undergone a competent cosmetic refurbishment before being bought by Mr Barber from 'Rader's Relics' of Winter Park, Orlando, Florida. Imported to the UK during 1988 and licensed here ever since, the Series 328 was treated to an extensive bodywork restoration some eight years later. Carried out by West Hoathly Garage of Sussex, the work included a bare-metal respray, full re-trim, rewiring (6-volt system) and sundry rechroming etc. Returning to the same Rolls-Royce & Bentley specialist during late 2004, the Fixed Head Coupe underwent a thorough service and had a bulkhead-mounted charging socket installed to prolong its battery life. Still smart to behold, the 2/4-seater boasts a period LaSalle mascot, wind-down rear window (to aid conversation between passengers), cream instrument panel, windscreen peak, golfer's cubby, LaS headlamp bar, blade bumpers, HC cylinder heads and 'War of the Worlds' rear lights. Starting readily upon inspection and riding on the optional wire wheels, this handsome Vintage American Coupe is offered for sale with sundry paperwork, MOT certificate valid until April 2012 and current historic class (free) road fund licence.