It’s a Doozy

August 11, 2006 “It’s a doozy” is an expression that is still commonplace today, though it originated in the 1920s reflecting the awe with which the public regarded the American-built Duesenberg automobile. Beginning with a win in the first major post WW1 European Grand Prix, the Duesenberg brothers went on to build exquisite luxury machinery for the USA’s wealthiest people and the brand became commonly regarded in the United States as the world’s finest, hence the expression. With famous automotive marques such as Maybach and Bugatti being returned to the marketplace as modern interpretations of their glorious forebears, it’s hardly a surprise to hear that another landmark automotive name is to be relaunched. In the meantime, we came across this remarkable example of a 1930 Duesenburg Model J, one-off Arlington style long wheelbase body, which will be one of the feature cars to be auctioned off in January 2007 at the Scottsdale Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Event. The Model J flagship has a 265hp motor and would have cost around US$25,000 when it was built, making it the ultimate badge of success. Duesenburg ran simple adverts which played on this theme – no imagery of the cars ran in the adverts which simply stated “He drives a Duesenburg.” Nice detail piccies.

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