This Stammer Roadster is the creation of a man named Fred Stammer who was a metalworker with aircraft industry experience. Designed and made by Fred Stammer on a modified Willys 77 chassis and fitted with a modified Ford V8-60 engine and gearbox this is a project car that exudes character.
Fast Facts
- Fred Stammer wanted a classic European sports car, but he couldn’t afford one.
- Rather than giving up Fred decided that if he couldn’t buy the car of his dreams then he would design and build one.
- The car took two years to build and when complete in 1950 was capable of 100mph.
- The Stammer Roadster is being offered for sale on Bring a Trailer as a project car at time of publication.
I think that there are many out there who would like to design and build their own car, and a special few actually manage to accomplish it, just as there are those who are able to create their own motorcycle.
Back in the post-war 1940’s and 1950’s in the United States hot rods and customized cars were popular and it was in that environment that a Burbank, California man named Fred Stammer decided to create the car of his dreams. He’d originally wanted to buy a British MG but found that they were a tad beyond the capabilities of his bank account.
So if he couldn’t buy the car of his dreams what was there to stop him from making it – a car with much more character than anything he could go and buy at a dealership.
Fred was a metalworker who worked in the aircraft industry and who had both skills and experience fabricating sheet metal for aircraft construction.
Fred needed a foundation – a chassis that would form the foundation of his dream car and he got his hands on a Willys 77 chassis which he modified to suit his planned creation. Then he needed an engine to form the beating heart of this unique sports car. MG’s were fitted with four cylinder engines of rather modest capacity and Fred didn’t want to build an enormously powerful car, but he wanted it to be exciting.
Fred wisely chose a 136 cu. in. Ford V8-60 side-valve “flat head” engine with its three speed manual gearbox. The V8-60 needed a bit of tweaking to make it rather more exciting so a set of Weiand cylinder heads were fitted with polished ports and compression ratio raised to 8.25:1.
The flywheel was lightened to make the engine more lively, and the engine breathed via a pair of Stromberg 81 carburetors.
Like so many of the sports cars of the era Fred decided to use cable operated drum brakes to provide the stopping power. The Bugatti’s of that era used mechanical brakes also.
It took Fred Stammer two years to complete his car. He fabricated the bodywork using sheet steel and fastened it all together using countersunk rivets, as would be done in aircraft construction.
Fred’s dad was a skilled woodworker and he hand fabricated the mahogany wood dashboard and steering wheel.
The car rode on staggered-diameter wire wheels as befitted a classic sports car of that time.
When the car was complete Fred tried his hand at racing it. It would do 100mph at the engine’s peak revs of 5,500rpm, which was a respectable result. But the car was far more than the product of its performance. It was a road-going classic that just oozed character.
The car was featured in a number of magazines including Popular Science, Road and Track, and Motor Trend.
By the 1980’s the Stammer roadster was due for some refurbishment and so it was taken off the road and the work begun – but ultimately not finished. The car was acquired by the Petersen Automotive Museum in 2021 and is being offered for sale as a project car at the time of publication.
You will find the sale page on Bring a Trailer if you click here.
The car looks to be in a decent condition for restoration. The engine is said to be seized and some items will need to be fabricated. But from the pictures it looks like it is a good starting point from which to bring it to completion.
Picture Credits: All pictures courtesy Bring a Trailer.
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.
