1938 Graham 97 Supercharged Cabriolet
Like many advanced American designs of the late 1930s, “The Spirit of Motion” caught on much stronger in avant-garde Europe than in its home country. The finest European coachbuilders took Northrup’s aerodynamic lines as their muse, among them Jacques Saoutchik of Paris. Saoutchik installed custom cabriolet bodywork on several “Sharknose” chassis, of which the car shown here is believed to be one of two existing examples and the only one currently in the United States. 1938 Graham 97 Supercharged Cabriolet was one of two Saoutchik-bodied Grahams displayed at the 1938 Paris Salon, with this particular car being the more special of the pair, with its cantilevered doors and folding windshield. It was the car displayed on Saoutchik’s stand, where photographs depicted Pierre Saoutchik presenting it to French President Albert François Lebrun. It was shown again at the Faire de Lyon in March 1939, as featured in the Graham factory newsletter The Supercharger.
Our subject car was one of two Saoutchik-bodied Grahams that were displayed at the 1938 Paris Auto Salon was subsequently shown at the Faire de Lyon in March 1939.
Then the supercharged Graham 97 began a remarkable journey that took it from Algiers to the famed Harrah’s Collection and to the show field at Pebble Beach.
116 bhp, 217.8 cu. in. L-head inline six-cylinder engine with crankshaft-driven supercharger, three-speed manual transmission with overdrive, independent front suspension with coil springs, semi-elliptical leaf spring rear suspension, and four-wheel hydraulic.
Auto Restoration performed a spectacular restoration. The heavy, 52-inch-wide cantilevered doors operate with a finger’s touch. The two-tone plastic dash was painstakingly re-created. The result was stunning; however, it only received a Second in Class at Pebble Beach, which had to be disappointing.
To be eligible for Best in Show, which we assume was the objective, a car at Pebble Beach must first win its class, so that goal was not to be realized for this Graham.
It did receive a Best of Show at a concours in Canada, however, and the Classic Car Club of America has accepted it as a Full Classic by virtue of its dramatic coachwork.
The Northup-designed automobiles were inspirational and unique, but the sales were dismal. Unable to retool, Graham joined resources with the ailing Hupp Motor Company in late 1939. Unfortunately, despite positive public response, the car they built ended up having worse sales for both Graham and Hupmobile than either firm’s respective preceding models.
