MTFCA Forum

The owner of the red Torpedo shown below sent me a batch of photos. I am giving serious consideration of buying it and I know it needs TLC. I am wondering about what to do about the large gap between the top and the top of the windshield. I am comparing it to the blue Torpedo, which many of you have seen before.
I have not seen the car in person yet, although two of my friends got it running and gave me intel. What should I be looking at or measuring to asses fit issues? Is the windshield wrong or the windshield support rods? Any input from Torpedo experts is appreciated. This car has been in the same local family since the early 1950's and displayed in a museum for decades. So, it needs work to make it road worthy. I'm prepared for that but that top issue bugs me. Thank you Mark

Not an expert, but having had one a while back that I sold, the lower windshield on the red car looks to be "flatter" than the blue one? Could be an optical delusion tho. But yeh, sumpin aint right? Isn't this the same car that's been on Hemmings for like ever, starting out at around $40K? If so, man have prices tanked!

That gap is pretty big. I'm not a Torpedo owner, but I'd measure the length of the front bow from the pivot to the leading edge on both (or more) cars. It might be the bow was not seated inti the top socket far enough.
Good luck!

: ^ )

Keith

The windshield on the blue one looks like the way the windshield is fitted on mine. I have always considered mine to be correct because of the research that I have done. There should be a long brass cover to keep the rain from leaking through the crack dividing the upper and lower sections of the windshield. It is needed because of the way the windshield zig zags. The rain could fall through and land on your knees or the coilbox.
Check the steering column to see if it looks original. That is one of the parts that that is unique to the Torpedo. The length and angle it is mounted to the dash are different There are others, the sidelight brackets are different, the sediment bulb is different.
Those are the differences I can think of that would not be apparent in the photos.

Mark, I think there are two things wrong which are the bulk of the gap:

1. The top is very square in back and flat across the top...if the back raked back a little, the center bow would be the tallest, and then if the front bow was dropped down and the top material extended forward (perhaps 4-5") then the front bow would be in place correctly (a shame because that was a well done top but to the wrong profile)

2. The support rods from windshield frame to the body are clearly too short; the angled windshield is well below the top of the steering wheel and should be above the wheel. Extending these rods will bring the top pane to be perpendicular to the road lift the top of the lower pane to be above the steering wheel and less "flat", and then be tall enough to engage just behind the corrected top

All easy fixes with some $$ so that in my opinion would affect the price just a little bit.

I own the blue one. Mine was a little too tight in that picture because the windshield was too far forward. I since have adjusted it. I have seen that gap all over the place in 11 Torpedoes. Contact me through this site if you have any questions. I have restored three of these in the past 30 years. I would be more than happy to talk Torpedoes with you. Mark E.

love2T's wrote: ↑

Thu Dec 11, 2025 9:47 am

Isn't this the same car that's been on Hemmings for like ever, starting out at around $40K? If so, man have prices tanked!

Yes, this is the same car. And no, it is not a $40k Torpedo. It needs some things to be operational and some that should be fixed.

It has a lawnmower carburetor. It does not have a wire choke going through the radiator. Instead, it has a flexible choke cable that passes through a hole drilled in the front cross member with the knob sticking out front. It doesn't have brake rods from the brake lever to the parking brake. It has auxiliary brakes and I suspect that the rods to those interfered with standard rods. There is no carbide generator or even burners in the headlamps. Rear tires look like 30x3 rather than 30x3.5.

The car is full of Phillips head screws and Menards hardware. It will take a lot of research to find proper bolts and castle nuts.

My Torpedo has a wind deflector attached to the top. The top half of the windshield sits vertically and the wind deflector touches the windshield.

I decided not to buy this Torpedo. My barn has an extra bay but that limits working space without moving a car or tractor outside. Regardless, this car is currently listed for sale on hemmings.com for $28k. The owner is extremely motivated to sell and someone will get a great deal. He inherited the car, knows nothing about Model T's and doesn't even want to learn how to drive it. It's taking up space in one of his strip mall properties. Before I backed out of making a deal, we were talking $10k. This has an open valve engine, reportedly rebuilt by Herm Kohnke. Friend of mine had the engine running last week but cylinder 1 was not firing. Jeff Fries drove it and it ran better the farther he went. I have no skin in this deal.

Edit: I added a link to Hemmings.

https://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/li ... ne-2715529

Looks like a "driver" Torpedo with potential to be "corrected", if the price is right. I wonder what's under the paint....

If Herm really rebuilt the engine, that alone is worth $10K (or more).

TXGOAT2 wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 16, 2025 1:55 pm

Looks like a "driver" Torpedo with potential to be "corrected", if the price is right. I wonder what's under the paint....

Given the bad batch of resto pics on the Hemmings ad, even tho the seller claims it was painted "vibrant red" over "classic black", I bet that classic black was actually the original "all but black dark blue". What a dam shame they did that to that car. I still say I saw this car on Hemmings over a year ago for $40K and gave it a good laugh simply 'cause they painted it RED. The more ya dig into it, the more ya can see why it's been beat down this much. At $10K, I'm tempted, but I already sold one '11 Torpedo simply because at only 5' 6" I had trouble reaching the pedals, even with a 2" block of wood attached to the low pedal, I still had to stretch more than I preferred, especially on a long tour.

At the right price..... for a parade/driver car, it would be a good deal. An expert would need to assess how much of what is there is "correct" and if the car could be brought back to original configuration on some practical basis. At the right price, and assuming it is mechanically sound, I'd buy it and enjoy driving it.