1935 Duesenberg SJ553

Considered the most beautiful formal town car of the period, this outstanding one-off creation was penned by Christian Bohman and Maurice Schwartz and is the most powerful town car ever built. Commissioned by Mars Candy Company heiress Ethel Mars, SJ533 is one of just 36 factory supercharged Duesenberg’s  and one of the few to retain its original coachwork, drive-train and chassis. It has a 320 bph, 420 cubic inch four valves per cylinder twin overhead camshaft in-line eight cylinder engine with a Schwitzer Cummins centrifugal supercharger, three speed transmission and a 153.5 inch wheelbase.  It was featured in the November 16th, 1936 issue of Time magazine over the caption “The costliest car in the United States is the Duesenberg, a Cord product”.  Expensive it was, with Ethel Mars having paid more than $20,000 for the car.

Taken a the 2014 Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance.

You may purchase a print in our dElegance 2014 online gallery.