1948 Crosley CoBra wagon walk-around & drive

Introduction to Ole, my mostly-restored 1948 Crosley station wagon. Crosleys were very small cars made in Indiana and Ohio 1939-1952. They had many firsts, including an affordable overhead-cam engine (OHC), fenderless styling, and all-steel station wagon bodies. In 1948, Crosley had the best-selling station wagon in America! This car still has its rare original CoBra (Copper-Brazed) "tin block" engine, which was made of 100+ pieces of stamped steel, brazed together and galvanized to make a very light (18lbs!) engine block. Very clever design, but prone to rusting out due to poor quality antifreezes at the time. In 1949 Crosley switched to a cast iron block assembly (CIBA) of the same engine. Almost all Crosleys were eventually retrofitted with the CIBA. COVID-19 caused the Crosley Automobile Club (http://crosleyautoclub.com) to have their 2020 meet as an online event. As part of the celebration, Crosley owners all got their cars out on July 11 and shared videos. Take a walk-around tour of the car and its features, then go for a ride and watch some drive-by footage. Enjoy!

Added 9 Aug 2026