Photos of Vintage Auto Dealerships, Repair Shops, and Gas Stations

Here's a twist. Make the dealership look like it looked 70 years ago

Don Lee (post #80) had another store he built in 1949 at 14401 Ventura Blvd, Sherman Oaks, CA. He sold it in 1955 to "Casa de Cadillac:, and they made naming and other cosmetic changes to the building.

Over the years, GM started enforcing brand image changes with dealers. Casa went along then decided to fight GM about going BACK to the old look (like its was built, like it was when they bought it) of the signage and without Hummer.

Casa wanted the tower to go back to the 1949 -mid 1990's style. GM was insistent Casa could NOT go back to that style (it was no longer the brand image lettering GM was using, and "hey what about Hummer?").

They worked it out and Casa got their way -- guess they moved enough iron that GM had to punt?.

source: Dealership Classic: Casa de Cadillac Restored To Its Full 1949 Glory

1949
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1955 to mid 1990s
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What GM wanted Casa to keep -- lettering is a bit different, but blocks on the tower are front lit and NOT neon, PLUS GM insisted on having "Hummer" signage
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Today - back to the 1955 look
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Good that some stories do end well!
 
Another twist .. but ya gotta leave US to find it. I am always amazed at the structures that go up in Asia .. but this car dealership took a few Singapore dollars to build.

The Wearnes Group in Singapore and the location is 45 Leng Kee Road, Singapore. Building was built in early 2000's.

The tall structure in the background, architecturally designed with "W"s" representing the last name, is a "display case" filled with vehicles. Yeah, the showroom goes up into the sky, vs. spead-out on the ground.

They say they were formed in 1906 and today claim are the largest retailer in Singapore, and one of the largest luxury car dealers in SE Asia.

Inside this display case is shown below, as well as the ground floor "Lounge & Bar". Last photo below is the "used car" department with examples of "bargain" prices (1 Singapore dollar equals 0.70 USD (70 cents)).

Get your grown-up wallet out when you walk in this dealership. These folks are serving up the cheddar for sure.

Cool building anyway. Wonder what Middle East dealerships look like?

source: Wearnes Automotive Singapore | A Leading Luxury Automotive Retailer In Southeast Asia

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Unrecognizable today, except this building's history is well-known by its current owner.

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Above photos from the 1960's when it was established/built by Milner Pontiac. 2011 East 11th, Tulsa, OK (on Route 66). In the intervening years it was Quinn Dodge, and Downtown Dodge.

Then it set vacant and vandalized for a couple decades finding no alternative usages of any kind .. until F. C. Ziegler Company (a church supply company) bought, refurbished, and added to it (large warehouse at the back) for their purposes.

If you didn't know what this was, its hard to tell today by looking at it ... but the large windowless brick expanses and large wooden "facade" sorta gives it away.

source: Classic dealership finds new life

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In the 80's, one of the larger shopping malls (Penn-Can Mall) around here was booming. Here's a 1988 pic.

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That mall now. 16 different "dealers", although really just different brands with the dealership owned by one guy, Roger Burdick.

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The Peter Fuller Bbuilding, built 1927, 808 Commonwealth Ave., Brookline , MA (Boston suburb).

Albert Kahn design, one of the few (of his many designs) outside the midwest. Another registered historic building, it is now living large, coming up on 100 years old, as the center for student life at Boston University.

Sorry - it caught my attention looking back at places I used to live. Though I didn't know what it was until today, this building reminded me of my Detroit high school, also a Kahn design (long torn down now).

sources: Photos: A Look Back At Commonwealth Avenue's 'Auto Row', Peter Fuller Building - Wikipedia

1950's
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Today
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One more from Brookline MA and specifically Boston University. Former Nash dealership, 640 Commonwealth Ave. now the College of Communications at BU.

Any doubt, check the right side building architecture.

Commonwealth Avenue used to be "Auto Row" back in the day, and many of them have been reused by BU and other entities.

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Last Brookline/Boston University example. The former Noyes Buick dealership, 855 Commonwealth, is now the College of Fine Arts at BU.

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Ok, before you ask: What's the deal with Packard and Albert Kahn?

Can't answer that, but many business arrangements were formed (heck, this Ford family and Firestone family even inter-married) turn of the 20th Century as the "Gold Rush" days for the brand new auto industry.

Think what these cats were doing .. replacing the horse .. and racing to put a car (or two or five) in every "drive way" in America (nee, the whole world). First ones there could win big. They did .. the steel people, the tire people, the manufacturers and their dealers...

Detroit was the "Silicon Valley" of its day only it was cars of course and not computers. Packard knew that and hightailed from Ohio to Detroit.

Packard liked what Kahn was doing pure and simple. Packard wanted to win the "car wars". Being able to seize the advantages the assembly line, building in factories tailor-made for that in terms of size, layout, and cost.

Recall 1905 Kahn designed the Packard complex in Detroit with reinforced concrete "Kahn System" from Truscon (his brother's company) and Packard went from wood factories to spacious big boxes that were a must IF you were going to compete
There's more to the Packard story, and the architecture of the industry. The Packard Proving Grounds, 49965 Van Dyke Ave, Shelby Twp, MI (about 40 miles north of downtown Detroit Packard complex).

Built in 1927, Albert Kahn designed all the buildings.

Packard figured it needed a dedicated facility -- high speed, real-world test track, engineering and repair facilities, and a "lodge" for a resident general manager and dormitories for visiting engineers -- in order to test what they believed were the best, most luxurious cards in the world.

The facilities are still there 100 years later. Its used for historical tours and stuff, but gets extensive reuse by holding some of best car shows in the country, as well as events like weddings and charity functions.

sources: https://www.hemmings.com/stories/20...storation-re-creation-of-albert-kahn-building, Packard Proving Grounds - Wikipedia, Albert Kahn, Architect of the Packard Proving Grounds - Packard Proving Grounds Historic Site

1927 through about 1956
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Today
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A coda.

Like the Fisher Body brothers, a bit more to the Packard/Kahn architectural story than one post can cover.

Not a happy ending for these houses. It has to be noted that Grosse Pointe MI (city northeast of Detroit) is where many of the turn of the 20th century "old money" rich and the "nouveau riche" auto barons built a "few" of their mansions.

Red flag is approximate location of this ritzy Grosse Pointe real estate on Lake St Clair and its proximity to downtown Detroit.
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The early builders/land owners had these giant lakefront lots to boot, and note this part of the city borders Lake St. Clair.

So, what happens to large plots of lake front property? Down with the old (nice but old and NO AC), up with the new, and of course subdivisions.

Several of this houses were razed, land subdivided, and new mansions built in their place.

source: Albert Kahn, Architect of the Packard Proving Grounds - Packard Proving Grounds Historic Site
Henry B. Joy, Packard President from 1909 to 1919) and his Kahn-designed house in Grosse Pointe Mi -- the called it "Fair Acres". Built in 1910 but torn down in 1958 after Joy's wife died.

First pic is back side facing Lake St. Clair. Second pic is front just off Lake Shore Drive where land entry to property would be.
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Alvan Macauley, President of Packard 1916 to 1939, and his Kahn-designed house, also in Grosse Pointe MI. Built in 1929. stayed in rich peoples' hands till 1974, when it was demolished.

A few pics of Alvan's personal Packards in front of his house. A 1937 station wagon (notice the gate is the same design Kahn used as the gate of the Proving Grounds .. see below) and Alvan's own 1939 Packard Super Eight.
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Meanwhile, back at the Proving Grounds, some cars and some building architecture ...

A 1935 Packard Model 120 Sport Coupe parked by the Lodge
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A 1934 Packard 1102 Funeral Coach by front gate
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1952 Packards parked by the Proving Grounds garage.
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Little more on current day reuse of the Packard Proving Grounds, with a neat 2 minute video mixing the "old" with the "new".

source: Packard Proving Grounds Historic Site -Events & Weddings Available
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How about another photo of a gas station? Here is the Streamline Moderne station that Gulf built at the time of the 1939 World Fair.

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I found the story here -- credit to the Rego Forest Preservation Council:

"(T)he Gulf Station on the northeast corner of Queens Boulevard and Horace Harding Boulevard (had a) curved façade with curved windows and stainless steel accents (that) were among the other novelty features, since nearby service stations exhibited Tudor and Mediterranean influences. It was erected by John J. Meehan Construction Company for Gulf Oil Company.

It was deemed futuristic, coinciding with the 1939 – 1940 World’s Fair’s 'World of Tomorrow' theme, and was conveniently situated en route to the Fair when Horace Harding Boulevard was briefly known as World’s Fair Boulevard. (...) The site was redeveloped in 1987 when the 17-story Queens Boulevard Tower opened at 92-29 Queens Boulevard."

Here it is, seen from another angle as posted in a Queens Chronicles article devoted to "The World’s Fair Gulf Station, Rego Park:"

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Here is another Streamline Moderne Gulf Station, less grand than the above one, but still a cool building in my book:

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The image comes from Main Street to Miracle Mile: American Roadside Architecture (Chester Liebs, 1985) by way of a U of VT site. I have now bought a copy of the book to enjoy, and to figure out where this station was built.
 
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IF I had post #72 for my garage-house ... I like dreamin' ... :)

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Spotted this... Yea, not a dealership, but an advertisement for the Ford Falcon in 1962 in Buenos Aires.

According to this article, the Ford Falcon became a symbol of death and terror to the people of Buenos Aires, a few years before Pintos bursting into flame and guys leaving car shows in Mustangs. The Ford Falcon Death Cars of Argentina

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Big_John said:
According to this article, the Ford Falcon became a symbol of death and terror to the people of Buenos Aires, a few years before Pintos bursting into flame and guys leaving car shows in Mustangs. The Ford Falcon Death Cars of Argentina
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Well, that juxtaposition is rather misleading. The Falcons did not explode: instead, according to the article (thank you for the link), green ones were used to transport the feared goons of the Argentine dictatorship. Precisely, « dark green Falcon sedans (…) rounded up untold numbers of suspected opponents to the regime, who were then jailed, tortured, assassinated, or were simply never heard from again. »
 
ayilar said:
Well, that juxtaposition is rather misleading. The Falcons did not explode: instead, according to the article (thank you for the link), green ones were used to transport the feared goons of the Argentine dictatorship. Precisely, « dark green Falcon sedans (…) rounded up untold numbers of suspected opponents to the regime, who were then jailed, tortured, assassinated, or were simply never heard from again. »
Click to expand...
Well, yea, my humor sometimes doesn't come across.

My thoughts were that people are terrified of Pintos bursting into flame after a collision and we've all seen the videos of guys with Mustangs crashing into the crowd after a show. Bad stuff, but obviously nowhere near as bad as what happened at Buenos Aires.
 
Former dealership built in 1920's,, two stories, roughly 6,000 sq. ft. each. Depressed area near a small northeast US downtown trying to make a "comeback".

Looks like at one time, cars entered/exited the second floor .. there is a ramp from the 1920's still in the building/integrated in to the architecture.

Been many things since it was a dealership, several years ago got a major renovation as a restaurant that unfortunately did not survive the pandemic business hit. Hard work to make it "habitable" was done .. bathrooms, electrical, etc.,

Now a private residence for a family of five (three young children).

For me, my idea of an industrial space converted to a residence ... but missing a man-cave (someplace for a few cars, to store as well as space to work on them Plenty big though to have a lotta fun with.

2015 - Before the restaurant renovated it
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Today, as a private residence. Gives a sense of the size/layout, but you don't see is a large greenspace )looks like couple thousand sq.ft. on the roof)

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Some of the renovations. Again .. man-cave is missing, but I dont think we see all 12,000 sq. ft in this building. Some of it must still be restaurant-related (like the kitchen, food storage, etc.)
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