The older a vehicle gets, and the more historic the events it survives through, the more likely it is to develop the sort of character that only history and hardship can impart.
This 1927 Dodge is a prime example of that sort of automotive character building.
Fast Facts
- The Great Depression and “Dust Bowl” years of the 1930’s were, without doubt, hard years for all who had to struggle through them.
- This 1927 Dodge called “The Prospector” was found in Northern California and customized by Ian Roussel to make it a fabulous Dust Bowl era style vehicle.
- This car is coming up for sale by Mecum Auctions.
There are cars that have character – and there are many that don’t – but just occasionally you come across a car that just exudes character from the very metal its fabricated from.
Some cars are blessed with having character from new – that character being inherent in the design, laced perhaps with a sprinkling of marque appeal. But cars that possess the most in-depth character tend to be those that not only started out with a dose of what we nowadays think of as the “coolness factor”, but which acquired more as they grew older and went through the experiences that leave their mark, hopefully in the most beneficial way.
In my young days I lived and worked in an Australian gold mining town and there were a lot of cars and trucks that had character – which is hardly surprising because there were a lot of characters in the town, fiercely independent people with very definite ideas about what they wanted – and that was reflected in what they drove.
The United States has, of course, a deep history, and for those who lived and made their living in the remote towns and mining towns their lives built into them depth of character: character typically marked with self-sufficiency, and a well developed sense of what was important in life and what wasn’t.
This was seen through all eras of the United States development and one of the significant times was the Great Depression of the 1930’s. Money was scarce, jobs were hard to find for many, forcing them to find ways to support themselves.
That lack of money, and search for independent sources of income for survival, led some into prospecting, and into itinerant agricultural work.
Those years of the 1930’s were not only years of a money drought, but also they were the “dust bowl” years of drought for a large part of the inland United States over 1935, 1936, and then 1939-1940. The areas affected included New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, Kansas, and Nebraska.
These “dust bowl” years formed the setting for John Steinbeck’s novel “The Grapes of Wrath” and were marked by severe dust storms.
The “dust bowl” years created the background, and inspiration that gave this 1927 Dodge automobile its “creature of the dust bowl” character, and resulted in its being dubbed “The Prospector”.
This ’27 Dodge would no doubt have some tales to tell if iron and wood could spin a yarn. But as they can’t we are left to use our own imaginations to build possible stories around a car that would provide a delightful challenge to Sherlock Holmes powers of deduction.
This character filled ’27 Dodge was converted to a pickup during the Second World War to avoid gasoline rationing imposed during that time.
The car has been a custom creation by Ian Roussel after it was found in Northern California. The car has been shown in an episode of “Full Custom Garage” and found itself a place in the vintage Americana collection of California’s Funky Junk Farms.
Powered by a four-cylinder engine with a character appropriate cracked block and with a manual transmission this vehicle can actually be driven.
It comes with a roof mounted boat of sorts, and has a trailer for carrying supplies.
The sheepskin on the hood looks like it would serve well as a padded rest for one’s “pot rifle” when taking a pot shot at whatever was going to become dinner for the next day or three.
It also has well selected extra equipment of the sorts unlikely to be found on a modern car: gear that might make life in the wild manageable, with a Hurricane lantern to light up the darkness.
This looks to be like a vehicle with a range of possibilities – it could star in a movie – form a centerpiece in a Depression/Dust Bowl era museum exhibit – or could be the centerpiece of your shed/garage/barn that you have as your special space where you can enjoy a cigar, whisky, and time to think, or time with friends.
This automotive centerpiece is coming up for sale by Mecum Auctions at their Glendale 2025 sale.
You will find the sale page with more details if you click here.
Here’s hoping it goes to an appreciative home.
Picture Credits: All pictures courtesy Mecum Auctions except as otherwise marked.
Jon Branch is the founder and senior editor of Revivaler and has written a significant number of articles for various publications including official Buying Guides for eBay, classic car articles for Hagerty, magazine articles for both the Australian Shooters Journal and the Australian Shooter, and he’s a long time contributor to Silodrome.
Jon has done radio, television, magazine and newspaper interviews on various issues, and has traveled extensively, having lived in Britain, Australia, China and Hong Kong. His travels have taken him to Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan and a number of other countries. He has studied the Japanese sword arts and has a long history of involvement in the shooting sports, which has included authoring submissions to government on various firearms related issues and assisting in the design and establishment of shooting ranges.
