Based on the aerodynamic advances incorporated into airplane design in the 1920s and early-1930s wealthy Chicago resident Lyman Voelpel commissioned the Hill Auto Body Metal Company of Cincinnati to construct his “Arrow Plane” in 1932. The unique coachwork was built on a 1932 Ford Model “B” chassis with the four-cylinder powerplant turned around and mounted in the rear. The engine was equipped with a Miller ohv conversion head and Winfield carburetors. The Ford transmission, driveshaft and torque tube transferred power to a Ford rear axle mounted in the front that was turned around and converted to steer the machine. In 1933 Hill Auto Body constructed the first of six McQuay-Norris streamliners loosely based on the “Arrow Plane” design, the auto parts maker used the cars for testing its products. The Voelpel “Arrow Plane” has survived and can be viewed at Hemmings Daily.
