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56 BARRETT-JACKSON EXPERIENCE SPRING 2024CROSSING THE BLOCKTHETWELVEAs one of the earliest automakers and one that stood throughout its active years at the summit of the fine-car market, Pierce-Arrow remains legendary for its engineering excellence and uncompromising commitment to quality. The grand V12, also known as the “Twelve,” marked the crowning achievement of Pierce-Arrow and one of the final chapters in the company’s saga. Karl Wise, the company’s new chief engineer at the time, headed development, with testing commencing in 1931. Part of the program included speed-record runs on Utah’s Bonneville Salt Flats, where driver Ab Jenkins smashed 66 AAAsanctioned speed records in 1933 and set a new world mark of 127 mph over 24 hours in 1934. Debuted in November 1931 for model year 1932, the Pierce-Arrow V12 was offered in 140- and 150-horsepower tune and introduced revised styling with gracefully flowing bodylines, plus newly available Ride Control driver-adjustable shock absorbers and Startix automatic starting. For 1933, Pierce-Arrow’s model lines were reorganized and redesignated, with the V12 powerplant uprated to 160 horsepower on the 136-inch-wheelbase Model 1236 and uprated to 462ci and 175 horsepower for the 137-inch-wheelbase Model 1242 and 142-inchwheelbase Model 1247. Renowned for their commanding power and performance, the majority of 12-cylinder Pierces carried some of the most luxurious and stylish custom coachwork ever devised. While most often reserved for somber sedans and limousines, the larger 12-cylinder Pierce-Arrow Model 1242 and 1247 chassis were also utilized for dashing semi-custom, factory-cataloged bodies crafted by LeBaron. Among them was a beautifully proportioned and appointed Convertible Sedan.Despite Pierce-Arrow’s characteristic excellence and the seeming logic behind the company’s 1928 merger with Studebaker, it was clear by 1933 that financial results were worsening, resulting in PierceArrow reverting to its former independence. Neither the V12 and its ongoing development, its growing tally of highly publicized speed records, nor the brilliant Silver Arrow show car of 1933 could return the company to long-term sustainability, ultimately resulting in cessation of automobile production in 1938. This LeBaron-bodied 1933 Pierce-Arrow Twelve Convertible Sedan stands as one of the grandest and most prestigious Full Classic automobiles remaining from the celebrated Classic Era as defined by the CCCA (Classic Car Club of America). One of as few as three examples remaining in existence, according to the current Pierce-Arrow Society Register, this exquisite LeBaron-bodied 1933 Pierce-Arrow Twelve Convertible Sedan was purchased during the 1980s in startlingly well-preserved original condition by Californian Pierce-Arrow collector and historian Pat Craig from the nephew of a man who acquired the Pierce in 1944 and then placed it into longterm storage. A total professional restoration was completed during the 1990s, overseen by Craig. While an early Hollywood provenance was believed to have been attached to the vehicle in the past, extensive archival research conducted for Craig proved inconclusive. Nonetheless, luxury automobiles like this Pierce-Arrow Twelve were obviously owned when new only by the wealthiest or most famous personalities during the early-1930s trough of the Great Depression, lending credence to the possibility of an early Hollywood connection. A new owner acquired the Twelve in 2004 and, during the latter A GRAND PIERCE-ARROW MOTORCARIS HEADED TO PALM BEACH