1931 Pontiac Series 401 Sedan

The stock market crash in late 1929 and resulting economic depression hit the automobile industry particularly hard; for the majority of Americans at that time a car was a luxury, not a necessity. General Motors fared much better than most automobile manufacturers; Pontiac sales were up over the numbers posted for 1930, as were dealer profits. The 1931 series 401 Fine Six wasn't a carry over model either, but a new body on a longer 112" wheelbase chassis. The roadster and 4 door phaeton models were discontinued but a 2 door, 4 passenger cabriolet with roll-up windows was added to the model line. The remainder of the line consisted of a 2 door, 2 passenger coupe; a 2 door, 4 passenger rumble seat coupe; a 2 door 5 passenger sedan and a pair of 4 door 5 passenger sedans; a standard and a Custom.

For consignment a small prewar gem if you will in the form of a 1931 Pontiac Series 401 Sedan. A well cared for example starting to show its age, and all original with a restoration done approximately 35 years ago and is still a good driver with a roomy interior and a smooth ride. Definitely worth a look for the serious Pontiac collector.

Exterior
While it wears an older respray in a pea green with a complimenting pine green, it still maintains a fair shine, and shows faults overall in the form of scratches, chips and some slight bubbling all around. White pinstriping adds accent to the pine green, which snakes its way around the upper door line, the roof and the windows. A nicely preserved oval chrome grille surround is filled with a chrome mesh and its impressive style is highlighted by the headlamp tie-bar. This grille is flanked by 2 large headlights and dual marker lights just below and a chromed bumper swoops across the bottom. Overall, the chrome is in very nice condition and sitting atop the radiator surround is the familiar Indian chief head ornament, which denotes a 6-cylinder engine under the hood. The hood side panels are clad with traditional louvers supporting the swooping hood top. More pine green for the deeply crowned fenders with parking lamps atop which melt into running boards, complete with rubber step plates then swoop back up to create the flowing rear fenders. Pea green covers the center of the body and shows off the styling cues nicely. Bringing up the rear is a freshly powder coated spare wheel and tire and below is the single combination stop and taillight along with twin added tail lights and simple split shiny chrome bumpers. Freshly powder coated black 19" wire wheels adorn the 4 corners are wrapped in like new period correct wide white wall rubber.

Interior
A swing of any one of the 4 doors reveals some light brown tweed door panels. These are in mostly good condition, with nearly no wear to soiling. An overstuffed front bench with some tufting and buttons, also in light brown tweed matches the door panels in nearly perfect condition. Another bench is in the back which matches the front and stretches from armrest equipped door panel to door panel. More tweed for the pillar liners and a clean tan mohair headliner hangs tightly above. Black indoor/outdoor carpeting is on the floors in the back and up front we note a textured black rubber mat. Upfront a simple black steel dash has a central panel with a wonderfully grained oak insert and original gauges set within this panel. More of this oak appears in front of the driver and passenger as it graces the nicely curved top face of the dash. The original black plastic steering wheel fronts this dash and presents with some cracking and a missing horn button. Meanwhile an aftermarket temperature gauges has been added to the steering column.

Drivetrain
The 200.4ci inline 6-cylinder engine is holding up well, and over time is presenting in traditional green within the patina riddled engine bay. A 1-barrel carburetor in the form of a Marvel carburetor sits beside the big 6, and a 3-speed manual transmission is in back. Turning the tires is a rear axle weighing in with a 4.55 ratio. We note new fuel lines have been installed as well as the addition of an electric fuel pump to ensure proper fuel delivery.

Undercarriage
A drive to go up on our lift reveals light surface rust on the frame and crossmembers, black straight steel, and some road dirt and patina…however, no invasive rust. Leaf spring suspension is seen front and rear, and mechanical drum brakes are all around. A single exhaust system is on for spent fossil removal.

Drive-Ability
A quick starter, and smooth shifter as we tooled around the massive Classic Auto Mall Lot. The car handled well, drove fairly smooth, and was overall a fun drive. If we had the time, we believe this car would cruise on the highway just swimmingly.

Overall a mostly original car with an older restoration, showing some age but still a shining star amongst our vast inventory. With newly powder coated wheels and newer tires, it runs as well as expected and looks just dandy. Throw your picnic basket in the rear seat area and go for a cruise with the missus enjoying some motoring, Pontiac style.

Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special interest automobile showroom, featuring over 650 vehicles for sale with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle barn find collection is on display.
This vehicle is located in our showroom in Morgantown, Pennsylvania, conveniently located just 1-hour west of Philadelphia on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The website is www.classicautomall.com and our phone number is (888) 227-0914. Please contact us anytime for more information or to come see the vehicle in person.