Hi Gang…

Another missing Sport Custom from the early ‘50s – the ’51 Doray Sport Custom.  I love cars that haven’t been seen in years – those are the ones that are most fun to find.  And this one’s from my backyard in Florida – at least it was 60+ years ago.  That’s not too bad – I think we might just find it 🙂

Not too many customs were known to come from Florida in the ‘50s – and what a great story this would be to find.  Doray was a small company based in Miami, Florida and they built at least two custom cars that I’m aware of – probably more.  We continue our search for information as well as both cars.

This particular Sport Custom shows up in many magazines of the early ‘50s – most prominently on the front cover of the September ’51 issue of Motorsport.  Curiously, there isn’t an article inside about the car, but they do share the following information about the car “on the cover” as follows:

Motorsport, September 1951

Cover: Willys Special shows that customizing need not be limited by make or model. Owner-builder H. R. Jenks of Doray Inc., Miami, used Willys chassis-engine.  Photo by Jack Cansler.

The ’51 Doray also appeared in Motor Trend Book 101 on Custom Cars (1951) – the first such booklet Motor Trend published.  This means that the Doray may actually have been completed in ’50.  Let’s see what they had to say:

Custom Cars
Motor Trend Book 101: 1951 

’49 Willys Jeepster forms the working base of this planned, semi-production sport car by Doray, Inc., Miami Springs Florida.  While the chassis is strictly stock, the only body parts taken from the Jeepster are cowl, windshield and doors.

The hood is obviously from a ’37 Cord.  Balance of body, from blunt, business-like grille to squared-off rear-fender tip, is crafted from steel stock.  Front-wheel fairings turn with wheels and are broken and hinged at rear to allow full wheel travel.  

Fabric top is removable and is carried behind seats with spare wheel and tire.  Wheelbase is 104 inches and overall length spans 178 inches.  Road clearance to pan is 6 and ½ inches.  Price has not been set.

Summary:

No doubt there are more articles on this interesting postwar Sport Custom, and we look forward to sharing more of what we learn about this interesting car in future stories here at Forgotten Fiberglass.

Hope you enjoyed the story, and until next time…

Glass on gang…

Geoff
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