Barn Find/171ci 4 Cylinder/Ambitious Restoration or Wild Street Rod Material

1928 Chevrolet AB National Roadster

Looking very similar to the 1927 Series AA Capitol, the wheelbase of the Series AB was increased by four inches to 107 in. The updated look was one of the first projects from GM's Art & Color studio. It was the last Chevrolet to use a four-cylinder engine until 1961 and the Chevrolet Chevy II / Nova. Roadsters and touring sedans had the ability to fold the windshield forward on top of the cowl for open air driving. The Series AB was powered by Chevrolet's old 171ci four-cylinder engine, but with minor modifications to produce 35hp. Four-wheel braking was also now provided. Fisher Body provided eight different coachwork choices to include both open and closed body styles. The top choice was listed as the Imperial Landau listed at $715 ($10,776 in 2020 dollars).

For consignment a barn find condition 1928 Chevrolet AB National Roadster. A complete car, minus the top and framing and having various areas of primer touch ups, but with the seats and steering wheel workable on the interior, however for the mechanicals they will need some wrenching and TLC.

* Please Note: NO TITLE-SOLD ON A BILL OF SALE ONLY*

Exterior
Steel panels that do not have very much invasive rust on them, but have years of aging outside with faded paint, some surface rusting, and areas of primer touch ups for the panels adorn this all steel body. Yellow is the color for the main body and the gaps need attention, as do the gray primered fenders which are nicely curved around the surface rusted steel disc wheels in solid form, but have plenty of dents and dings to deal with. The front of the car has a cowled hood and a once shiny radiator surround, that currently is painted silver, dimpled, and very dulled. This is the same for the headlights flanking either side of the radiator that are supported on the outside by the front fenders, missing lenses, trim and having all around dullness. The passenger compartment is a squared off door that has the windscreen in front and the other door on the side. There is currently no top or top framing with the vehicle. A standard sloping truck lid is on the back and flows down to the spare tire holder and split bumpers presenting with chrome, pitting and rust.

Interior
The door panels have been ravaged by time and seen a fair amount of water damage and sun exposure. These are covered in a black vinyl material which is torn, faded and dirty. A bench seat sits nicely within the small cabin and has some wide tuck and roll black leather which is very cracked and worn through in several areas, particularly on the seat part which is showing through to the springs and padding. The dash has some fading, primer touch ups and cracks in the yellow paint. We note some surface rust appearing in a few areas as well as rusted knobs and pulls. It has the standard center oval speedometer and odometer flanked on either side by oval gauges and knobs. The floors have a combination of wood and original metal that is showing some surface rust on the metal and wood rot in a few areas of the flooring. The trunk area while dirty, is complete and appears invasive rust free, as a bonus some extra parts are included within.

Drivetrain
Under the unrestored cowled hood within the surface rusted engine bay is a blue painted 171ci Inline 4-cylinder. It has a 1-barrel carburetor and a 3-speed manual transmission on the back. The rear axle has a 3.82 gear ratio.

Undercarriage
A fairly heavy coating of surface rust abounds on all the underside parts. Surprisingly enough there is no invasive rust here but as in the interior, we note some of the wood flooring that is suffering from rot. Leaf springs are on all 4 corners and mechanical drums are on all 4 wheels.

So, we have a neat looking design car in search of an ambitious restorer that can bring this car back from its years of neglect. The basics are all here; one just needs to put a bit of sweat equity to make it a showpiece. A diamond in the rough.