SPECIFICATIONS
ENGINE:
Cylinders: 4 Cylinders overhead valves
Bore: 3.69 Inches
Stroke: 4.00 Inches
Compression Ratio: 4.5: 1
Horsepower: 35 @ 2200 RPM
DRIVE LINE:
Transmission: 3 Speed Manual Floor Shift
Differential Gear Ration: 4.18: 1
Tire size: 4.50 X 21
BRAKES:
4-wheel internal expanding, mechanically actuated via levers and rods
PRODUCTION:
Coupes like ours Built in 1928: 150,356
Total Chevrolet Production in 1928: 1,193,212
COST:
Purchase Price New in 1928: $ 495
In 2022 Dollars: $5,495
COMMENTS
The National Coupe is a rear-wheel-drive road car with a front mounted engine. It is part of Chevrolet’s AB family of cars. The 171 Cubic Inch (2.8 Liter) engine is naturally aspirated via an updraft carburetor, four cylinders with overhead valves. It develops 35 horse power at 2,200 RPM. Power is transmitted to the rear wheels via a 3-speed manual transmission of the floor shift type. The approximate weight is 2,310 Pounds (1,048 KG). The car holds two persons in the single seat and cruises nicely at about 45 MPH (70 KPH). Although some models of the coupe had a “Rumble Seat,” our car is not so equipped. A rumble seat was developed in the early years of small cars. The traditional trunk (boot) lid was hinged at the bottom instead of the top and when opened there was a seat bottom near the floor and the seat back cushion was part of the lid. By a series of steps from the rear bumper and a step on top of the rear fender, one could step up and sit in the rumble seat, thus making room for two additional passengers. The rumble seat passengers were sitting in the open, with no protection from the elements.
As mentioned above, there were 150,356 units of the 1928 Chevrolet Coupes built that model year. In total, Chevrolet built 1,193,212 cars, making it the first year Chevrolet built more cars than Ford. In 1928, Ford sold only 713, 528 cars. The reason for this change in leadership came about when Ford discontinued the Model T Ford which had dominated United States car sales since its introduction in 1908. Henry Ford believed in a low-priced reliable car that the average worker could afford. He also was adamant that you made no significant changes in a car that was dominating the consumer market. Thus, he continued to sell the Model T Ford in the same basic concept for nineteen years. Even after competitors made more reliable and easier to drive cars, he stayed with the Model T. Finally, it was inevitable that Chevrolet was going to take over the number one spot so he consented to a re-design and introduced the Model A Ford in 1928. Unfortunately for Ford, he had to do a major re-tooling of all the production facilities and simply couldn’t supply the demand so people switched to Chevrolet. Chevrolet maintained this lead in sales for a number of years thereafter.
The most common question I am asked while at a show or if someone looks at the car is, “What is it worth?” and “How fast will it go?” Depending on who is asking the question and why, my standard answer is “To me it is priceless. As for how fast will it go, a more important question is: how long will it take for me to get it stopped!” To explain that comment, Chevrolets prior to 1936 and Fords prior to 1939 didn’t have hydraulic brakes, but rather what is called “Mechanical Brakes.” In basic terms, there are a series of rods and levers connected to the brake pedal. Adjustments are critical and not constant. While modern hydraulic brakes utilize fluid that exerts exactly the same pressure to each wheel no matter how hard the pedal is depressed, each wheel is afforded the same stopping pressure.
Mechanical brakes, on the other hand, are totally dependent on the initial adjustment That is a matter of drive, adjust, drive, adjust until the car will stop fairly straight when the brakes are applied. However, due to friction and binding of all the mechanical components it is very difficult to maintain the same braking on all four wheels. Thus, it is incumbent on the driver to learn the particular car and know that when the brake is applied the car will most certainly pull to the left or right. To make matters even worse, depending on how hard and how quickly you apply the brake it can change without notice. One time we were driving on a street in south Texas when a jacked up pickup truck backed out in front of me with only feet to spare. I hit the brakes as hard as I could and the car skidded sideways on the brick street sliding up to within a few feet of the truck. The tires screeched and finally got the attention of the driver who blasted his horn and gave me the one-finger salute as he burned rubber and sped away.
A FEW 1928 EVENTS
- Calvin Coolidge was the 30th President of the United States of America (1923 to 1929) following Warren G. Harding’s death in 1923 and was serving his second term.
- 25 February: Charles Jenkins Laboratories of Washington, D.C. becomes the first holder of a television license from the Federal Radio Commission.
- 21 March: Charles Lindbergh is presented with the Medal of Honor for the first solo trans-Atlantic Ocean called Atlantic flight.
- 15 May: Walt Disney character Mickey Mouse premieres in his first cartoon, Plane Crazy
- 9 June: Charles Kingsford Smith completes the first trans-Pacific flight in a Fokker Trimotor monoplane, the ‘Southern Cross (aircraft) or Southern Cross’.
- 27 September: The Republic of China is recognized by the United States.
- 28 September: Sir Alexander Fleming notices a bacterium named bacteria-killing mold growing in his laboratory, discovering what later became known as penicillin.
- 15 October: The airship, ‘LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin known as Graf Zeppelin’ completes its first trans-Atlantic flight, landing at Lakehurst, New Jersey, United States.
MY HISTORY WITH THE CAR
I purchased the car in 2015 at a Chickasha, Oklahoma swap meet. I paid $9,000 with the stipulation the seller furnish five new tires and tubes as the tires were badly weather checked and cracking. Our main reason in purchasing this car is it is a four-cylinder car. Prior to this time, we were not allowed to participate in some tours as all of our Chevrolets up to that time were six-cylinder models. This car gave us the opportunity to participate in additional tours.
According to the seller, the car had been gone through and was ready for touring. Upon delivery, I decided to check the brakes and adjust as needed. That is when I realized it most assuredly had not been gone through completely! But for the price I paid it was still a good deal. As I began the process of checking everything out, I came to realize that the 9,000 miles indicated on the odometer was ACTUAL MILES! The car was outstanding mechanically, although I did go through all the mechanical components to assure miles of trouble-free cruising.
The previous owner had painted the car but had not installed some of the trim pieces, although he had painted them. Alas, the trim pieces were to be nailed onto the body, so I had to do some body work to get things properly configured. In the process I was to discover that the entire body had been removed at some point and had been set on the frame with only one bolt fastening the body to the frame. I was astonished that it made the two-hundred-mile trip on a trailer to my place without the body falling off!
One interesting situation arose, the car had the original honey-comb radiator installed. I removed it and had it cleaned, noting that pack rats had chewed upholstery as well as the radiator hoses and filled the radiator with their nests. After adjustments and re-wiring, I started the engine, it ran perfectly, but soon overheated. We were scheduled to go on a car tour in Arkansas so I called the organizer telling him we couldn’t make the tour as the engine was overheating and I didn’t have time to get a new radiator core installed. He told me to come on down as he had a spare radiator he would loan it to me for the tour. However; after installing that radiator, the cooling was marginal, bordering on overheating much of the time and it was a fairly cool tour time. As with all car tours, I had an abundance of suggestions so upon returning home, I removed the water pump to check it for proper configuration but couldn’t find anything wrong.
As I was pondering the problem, I set the water pump down on the bench and heard a rattling sound then saw something rolling across the garage floor. When I picked the item up to examine it, I saw it was an acorn. I couldn’t imagine where it came from as we had no oak trees, thus no source for an acorn. Then it hit me, I slipped the acorn into the inlet of the water pump and sure enough, it fit perfectly in the opening to the impellor, thus effectively shutting off most of the water circulation. The removal of the pack rat’s stored lunch resolved the heating issue and we have never had an overheating problem since that time!
Other than routine maintenance and adjusting the valves from time to time as is typical for those old cars, I haven’t had any significant issues mechanically. The car is reliable, runs well and has never let us down.
TOURS AND SHOWS
The first tour for the newly commissioned 1928 Chevrolet was to the Mid-America four-cylinder tour in Mountain View, Arkansas in May of 2015. This is the tour that I mentioned above where we had trouble with its over-heating but that was resolved. Even with those problems, we drove the car about 285 miles (460 Kilometers). Upon returning home, I resolved a few mechanical issues and made a few adjustments which made the car run even better.
The next tour was a Vintage Chevrolet Mid-America 4 Cylinder Tour in Council Bluffs, Iowa in May of 2016. While on that tour, I celebrated my 78th birthday, while the Chevy celebrated its 88th year anniversary! While visiting various historical sites, we drove the car a bit over 150 miles (200 plus Kilometers).
The longest tour was to Riverton, Wyoming in June of 2016. We had an interesting experience, not only on the tour, but on the way to the tour. We hauled the 1928 Chevy in a closed trailer towed behind a 2007 Dodge Ram pickup. When we arrived at one of our overnight stops in Douglas, Wyoming on the way to Riverton, the truck developed a problem that I couldn’t repair on the road. We were staying in a motel and the small-town didn’t have a car rental agency. Initially we thought we would have to walk everywhere until we could get the truck repaired on Monday morning. Then it dawned on me, we did have a car to drive! I unloaded the 28 and Saturday evening and all-day Sunday we used the old car as our primary means of transportation. Before long we were known all over the town of 6,000 persons! Even the Police Chief welcomed us at dinner one evening. We drove the car to attend church on Sunday morning and soon a crowd of people gathered around to look at the old car. As we were driving back to the motel, another older car motioned for us to pull over and we were invited to an old car show in town where we spent the afternoon with fellow old car enthusiasts.
After getting the tow truck back in service, we made it to Riverton in time for the start of the car tour. During the week we were there, we drove just over 400 miles (650 Kilometers) and drove the 28 Chevrolet over the top of a 9,000-foot mountain pass. I was amazed that the car handled the mountain driving with ease! On one of the day-trips, we were able to have lunch with a young man who was the Pastor’s son from our church in Wichita, Kansas. He is a teacher in Lander, Wyoming.
We let the ’28 have a bit of a rest while we drove other cars, then in June of 2018, we attended the National 4 Cylinder Tour in Altoona, Iowa. Driving about 275 Trouble free miles (445 Kilometers) we toured a number of historical and antique car sites. Again, the old Chevy ran perfectly, although we did stop and render aid to a few other old cars that weren’t quite so well prepared for the trip.
The last major car tour we have taken with the ’28 was to Harrison, Arkansas from April 29 to May 3, where I celebrated my 81st birthday and the Chevy completed 91 years of faithful service. We toured many historical sites as well at driving to Branson, Missouri to take in a show. Driving in rain some of the time, we again completed 295 miles of trouble-free performance (470 Kilometers). Due to the Covid pandemic of 2020, 2021 and lingering into 2022 we haven’t gone to any major tours as most of the sites we could have visited were either closed or severely restricted so other than local driving from time to time, the old car has lived in quiet repose in the garage, along with the other cars we own.
In addition to the formal tours the ’28 has participated in; we have taken it to a few special events or shows. There is a Frank Lloyd Wright house here in Wichita. At one time they held a fund-raising event and asked our car club to bring 1920’s era cars to have on display during the event. As a part of that event, we were given a free personally guided tour of the house and grounds. The car was on display for about five to six hours after which I drove it back home. Orpha followed me in the modern car as it was after dark when the event was over and those old cars really don’t have very good lighting. As slow as we drive, I am always concerned about higher speed traffic not being able to see the car in time to avoid a rear-end collision. It is our practice when driving the cars at night to follow in a modern well lighted car.
A few times we have had family gathering and Church Picnics at our home. Even though I give out our address, persons will often ask how they will know when they arrive at our home. I always reply, “I promise you; you will know when you are here!” I then park all the cars in a row along the driveway and no one has ever missed our driveway!
Often when we have guests or visitors, I will get the old cars out and either give them a ride or, depending on the circumstances, allow them to drive the car themselves. All our grandchildren have driven at least one of the antique cars, and most of them have driven all of them at one time or another.