On November 21st one of hot rodding’s most iconic cars will be presented at RM Auction’s Art of the Automobile event – Dick Flint’s ’29 Ford Roadster. For many individuals of the post WWII era this car will definitely strike a nostalgic chord. It appeared in the May 1952 issue of Hot Rod Magazine. The magazine cover represented the spirit of adolescence that sought to burst out of the confines of 50s conservatism.

Fun fact – the driver featured in the photo is Dick Flint and the passenger in heat was his friend Bob Roddick making a leap for Harriet Haven, a UCLA co-ed at the time. This feature would solidify Flint’s ’29 within the hearts of hot rodders across the  country and in less than a month it will be up for grabs.

Dick Flint represented the essence of the first wave hot rodding community where performance and style were key. He was a member of the Glendale Sidewinders, the SCTA’s oldest club. These folks were dedicated to speed and embodied the heart of amping up their custom builds in order to gain the crown and bragging rights on the Southern Californian lake flats.

His roadster was the product of three Model A’s that had been gutted and parted in order to create the ’29. “The Dick Flint Roadster featured a distinctive hand formed aluminum midget race-style track nose and belly pan.” Neil Emory of Valley Custom worked on the nose, pan, hood, and bodywork while Flint fabricated the grill, nerf bars, and took care of all the mechanical work. The stance of the Roadster was made possible by a custom frame that Z-ed in the rear.

When Flint had originally assembled and built up the car, “it featured a 1940 Mercury flathead with 3 5/16 bore, 4 1/2 stroke, Edelbrock 9:1 heads, and a Winfield 1A cam.” Loyal to his racing spirit, Flint took it out to the famous El Mirage dry lake, 125 miles north of Los Angeles at the edge of the Mojave Desert, in 1950 and pushed the car to 143.54 mph.

In 1959 Flint put his roadster up on the classifieds of Hot Rod Magazine. He was asking $2,500.00 at the time and ended up selling it to Duane Kofoed, a founding member of the L.A. Roadsters, in 1961. Duane dropped a Chevy V8 into the roadster and drove it regularly on L.A. Roadster runs for the next decade.

According to Kustomrama, “Duane later sold the car disassembled to its previous owner, Don Orosco. Don Orosco, owner of DBO Motor Racing restored the car after being hidden for several years. After restoration, the car went on to win the Hot Rod Class, and then the Dean Bachelor Memorial Trophy at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in 1999.”

With such a rich history Hemmings estimates that Flint’s roadster will range from $700,000 to $900,000 at the auction making it a possible auction record for hot rods.

The auction will be held at Sotheby’s showroom in New York City. For additional details on Dick Flint’s ’29 you can visit RM Auctions. How much do you think Flint’s historic hot rod will go for?