1965 Excalibur SSK sn 1002

We are pleased to offer 1965 Excalibur SSK Series I Roadster s/n 1002, from new in a special order Cadillac Fire Frost Silver with black interior and black top. As an ultra-early production two-seat model, Excalibur s/n 1002 is one of only eleven early cars fitted from new with a factory installed Paxton supercharger which kicked the Chevy 327 to 400 hp. That power is put through a Borg Warner four-speed gearbox backed up with a Hurst shifter. Excalibur SSK s/n 1002 is also one of only ninety-seven very-early-cars built with step-over doors and may be the earliest surviving example. The body and paint, the 327 engine and Paxton Supercharger and the four-speed Borg Warner gearbox appear to be all original. From new with cycle fenders and an optional luggage rack. Interestingly the large center driving light turns to follow the front wheels as they turn.

The Excalibur was a neoclassic styled by Brooks Stevens after the 1928 Mercedes-Benz SSK. The prototype premiered at the New York City Auto Show in 1964 and received a great reception, allowing Stevens to form the Excalibur Car Company to manufacture and market the cars. The standard Chevrolet 327 in 300-bhp Corvette tune made the Excalibur a strong performer. With the standard 3.31:1 rear axle, acceleration from 0-60 mph took less than six seconds, and the unrestricted top speed was 134 mph. Only a month after being introduced at the New York Auto Show the prototype was shown at the Road & Track Concours in Newport Beach then road tested by Road & Track, Car and Driver, Automotive Quarterly and multiple other publications of the time.

Excalibur SSK s/n 1002 is wickedly quick. When new a 289 Cobra weighed in at app. 2,200 pounds with 271 hp while this Excalbur weighed in a 2,400 lbs but with 400 hp. As Automotive Quarterly wrote in Volume #38, number 3 when testing the early Excaliburs, “Pull up alongside a 1966 Excalibur SS in your Mustang 350 GT or Camaro Z28 and in the time it takes you to sneer, you will be left behind with the twin roar of 300 hp of 327 Chevy V8 and a large measure of the rear tires floating in a thick haze around your car.” When tested by Road & Track for the August, 1964 issue, the quarter-mile was estimated at 14.0 seconds with an RPM restricted top speed of 125 mph. When tested by Car and Driver in 1965, they summarized the styling and driving by saying “In your heart, you know it’s right.”

Excalibur SSK s/n 1002 was delivered new to Hulbert Brundage, a pioneer in the imported automobile business, a hard core “car guy”, an avid racer and an early VW distributor and Porsche distributor. Today the famous Brumos Porsche dealership in Jacksonville is an evolution of his BRUndage MOtorS (Brumos) VW dealership. Brundage wanted the Excalibur as a potential sales competitor to the Cobra and so became a dealer. As a Florida-based racer and dealer he took s/n 1002 to the 1965 Sebring 12 hour race. While at Sebring it was used for promotional photographs with Designer Brook Stevens, long time Ferrari racer Bill Kimberly, Baron Von Hanstein, the racing director of Porsche and Denise McCluggage. The photo session was followed by several parade laps of the Sebring circuit by Denise McCluggage. The dealer’s cost was $5,150 and the list price was $7,990. A new style top, side curtains, seats and windshield frame had a list price of $487.68 but were included in the dealer cost of s/n 1002. The Paxton Supercharger was offered as a $600 factory option but was also included at no extra cost on this very early example.

The first owner, Peter Cook, was also a hard core “car guy”. As a child of the Great Depression he rose from poverty to become the West Michigan dealer for Jaguar, then the Michigan and Indiana distributor for Volkswagen and Porsche and later the Mazda distributor for Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin. As a fellow VW dealer, Peter Cook met Brundage at a dealer meeting and was smitten by tales of the car. On February 9th, 1966 Peter Cook bought the car from Porsche Southeast for $5,150. At the time s/n 1002 had been driven just 3,300 miles. During his ownership Cook drove the car slightly over 10,000 miles including a trip to Milwaukee for an Excalibur Reunion. Cook stayed smitten by the car for the next 44 years until health issues forced him to sell in 2010. The Excalibur was then sold to a third car dealer-collector who kept it in his personal collection from 2010 to earlier this year.

Excalibur SSK s/n 1002 comes with a truly amazing amount of documentation tracing the car back to its original factory order sheet. The files contain the original order sheet to the Excalibur factory by Porsche Cars Southeast dated 01 Oct., 1964; all of Mr. Cook’s correspondence with Brumos as well as his historical documents including the original letter of 25 Jan., 1966 from Porsche Car Southeast offering to sell s/n 1002 to Peter Cook; a copy of the cover letter of 03 Feb., 1966 which went with Mr. Cook’s check; the original Bill of Sale from Porsche Car Southeast to Peter Cook dated 09 Feb., 1966 for $5,150; the original cover letter of 09 Feb., 1966 from Porsche Car Southeast which was sent with the Certificate of Origin and the paid invoice and also the Use Tax receipt dated 25 Mar., 1966. Also included are multiple service invoices and parts invoices from the 1970s with labor rates of $18 an hour! Also included is a copy of the Road & Track Road test from August, 1964; a copy of the 1964 Automobile Quarterly Volume #38, number 3; a copy of the Car and Driver of 1965; an original Excalibur sales brochure; an original Brooklands Excalibur book; multiple Excalibur Club magazines; Peter Cook’s Excalibur Club membership card; multiple copies of the Excalibur’s Owner’ Club Circle & Sword magazine and decades of miscellaneous service and ownership paperwork.

1965 Excalibur SSK Series I Roadster s/n 1002 is only the second production Excalibur, has only 14,378 original miles; is one of only eleven supercharged and ninty-seven step-over door Excaliburs built and comes with a truly unique and impressive ownership and documentation file. S/n 1002 looks great, runs great, is user-friendly, has an amazing fifty-year patina, and offers awesome power.

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