mod@tech

Like many of you, not only am I a car enthusiast, but I’m also a bit of a watch nut. Ever since I was a little kid trading toys for cheap plastic timepieces, I’ve always had a watch of some sort. My wish list is always growing; diving into Paul Miquel’s book “Rare Watches: Explore the World’s Most Exquisite Timepieces” has only added to it. It also taught me that James Ward Packard, who co-founded the Packard Motor Car Company, is partially responsible for the Patek Philippe Henry Graves Jr. Supercomplication pocket watch, one of the most complex—and legendary—timepieces ever created.

From a young age, Packard was mechanically inclined. According to the New York Heritage Digital Collections, as a student at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania, “James spent a great deal of time working on his own engineering projects in his dorm room. He created a magnetic arrangement that connected to the lock on his door, allowing him to open the door with the flick of a switch. He also rigged a telegraph line to a friend’s room and was considered a good operator.” In 1890, James and his brother William started the Packard Electric Company. Nine years later, following a unsatisfying ownership experience with a Winton automobile, the brothers released the first Packard automobile. The following year, per the Automotive Hall of Fame, they established the Ohio Automobile Company, which was renamed to the Packard Motor Car Company in 1902. Packard’s fascination with mechanical objects (and his subsequent financial success) led to him being a client of renowned Swiss watchmaker Patek Philippe; he had the watchmaker create several unique timepieces, such as a gold ring watch in 1917 and a silver-encased watch for the top of his ebony walking stick in 1918.

Packard wasn’t the only wealthy Patek Philippe aficionado in the early 20th century. Henry Graves Jr. was born into a family that made its fortune in railroads, banking, and commerce, not to mention he was the son of Henry Graves Sr., a New York Stock Exchange governor and co-founder of the Wall Street firm Maxwell & Graves. In addition to being an equestrian, yachtsman, and marksman, Graves Jr. was also an avid collector who amassed rare Chinese porcelain, Old Master etchings, American Revolution-era naval prints, and coins. His love of Patek Philippe horological creations led to one-offs such as a clock concealed inside a 1904 20-dollar gold coin.

Eventually, an unofficial rivalry developed between Packard and Graves, each man trying to top the other with the number of complications in his timepiece. In 1925, Graves directed Patek Philippe to craft “the most complicated watch” with “the maximum possible number of complications.”

Eight years later, Graves received the product of unprecedented research, engineering, and artistry: a 1-pound, 3-ounce pocket watch with a 74mm gold case filled with 920 individual parts and a staggering 24 complications displayed on two dials. A 2014 Sotheby’s listing for the Henry Graves Jr. Supercomplication shows that those included:

• Perpetual calendar: Shows the correct day, date, and month regardless of the length of the month, and automatically adjusts for the leap year. Accurate until 2100.
• Moon phase indicator
• Grande Sonnerie with Westminster chimes: Strikes the hours and quarters at every quarter hour and plays the Westminster chime, which many know from the Big Ben clock in London.
• Minute repeater: Strikes the quarter hours and minutes.
• Split-seconds chronograph: Used for timing two events at the same time.
• Sidereal time: “Based on the amount of time it takes the Earth to make two consecutive transitions of a meridian by a fixed star.” A sidereal day is approximately 23 hours, 56 minutes, and 4.1 seconds long.
• Equation of Time: The difference between apparent solar time (the time indicated by a sundial) and mean time (the average of solar time).

A 2024 Hodinkee article indicates that the celestial chart, equation of time, and sunrise and sunset subdials were calibrated specifically to Graves’ New York City residence on 64th Street and 5th Avenue.

The biggest number of all associated with the Henry Graves Jr. Supercomplication is its most recent auction price: at a 2014 Sotheby’s auction in Geneva, it sold for more than $24 million—a record for a timepiece, which also happened to beat the Supercomplication’s previous record of $11 million set in 1999.

In the history of the American auto industry, there have been model years that stand out as unique. In the case of the four cars below currently listed for sale on AutoHunter or ClassicCars.com, they all are from a certain model year that featured a lot of new and old, all of it unique. Can you tell us what model year that may be?

While you’re at it, tell us the make of each. Easy enough, no? Post your answers in the Comments section below.

Click on a photo to reveal each car

Every Tuesday, The ClassicCars.com Journal brings you a fun automotive puzzle. Once you’re done with this one, you can play a game or two from past Tuesdays.

Currently listed on AutoHunter is this frame-off-restored 1957 Chevrolet 150 Utility Sedan powered by the pioneering fuel-injected 283. Having a fuel-injected Utility Sedan would have been the racer’s choice since it was the lightest Chevrolet save the Corvette. As this is a solid-lifter car, the engine is hooked up to a three-speed manual. Other features include Positraction with 4.11 gears, though it’s also significant for what it doesn’t have: radio, cigarette lighter, heater, and clock. A rubber floor mat also seems quite appropriate for this sort of car, doesn’t it? Painted Tropical Turquoise and India Ivory with a gray cloth and vinyl interior, this early muscle car comes from the selling dealer with a clear title.

The Tropical Turquoise and India Ivory two-tone paint is complemented by a chrome spear and band that start at the rear fender and reach the door. Other features include a chrome driver-side mirror, Fuel Injection badges and racing flags on the rear fenders, rocket-inspired hood ornaments, and more. A set of 14-inch painted steel wheels with Chevrolet hubcaps is wrapped in 8.00 BFGoodrich Silvertown whitewalls.

The cabin features a front bench seat covered with gray patterned cloth and vinyl upholstery; as this is a Utility Sedan, there is no rear seat. There really isn’t much else to describe other than what is lacking because this vehicle was ordered without power-robbing items that add weight—no radio, no lighter, no heater, and no clock.

Instrumentation includes a 120-mph speedometer and gauges for the fuel and coolant temperature. The odometer reads 4,894, which is the mileage driven since the restoration.

The EK-code 283ci small-block V8 was rated at 283 horsepower with fuel injection. The fuel injection unit has been rebuilt and adjusted, plus authenticated. The engine is paired with a column-shifted three-speed manual.

The undercarriage features a Positraction rear axle with 4.11 gears, which was heavy stuff for 1957. Drum brakes can be found at all four corners. A dual exhaust system routs the spent fuel out the rear corners.

This award-winning 1957 Chevrolet 150 Utility Sedan with fuel injection may not appear as pretty as a Bel Air Sport Coupe, but it may be more beautiful. For those people who believe muscle began before 1957, this Tri-Five is a historical seminal high-performance machine, one spec’d out with the lightest model and body style and the most powerful engine. This AutoHunter Spotlight is one not to be missed, so bid wisely and bid high because once 11:15 a.m. (MST) on Thursday, December 18, 2025, comes around, you will have to settle for a lesser ’57 Chevy.

Visit the AutoHunter listing for more information and a photo gallery

Since the introduction of the original W113 Mercedes-Benz 230SL, Mercedes has literally owned the entire category of the roadster GT car. Over the years only Cadillac (with the Allante and the XLR) and Lexus (with the SC430) attempted to move into this market, but gave up after a few years due to the fact that when people wanted a luxury roadster GT car, they wanted a Mercedes SL. There is a good reason for this. Not only does it have no competition in the marketplace, but also every single generation of the Mercedes SL has produced some of the finest-built Mercedes cars of the time – in fact, some of the finest built cars in the world, period. My Pick of the Day is from the generation that firmly established the SL as a measuring stick of success: a 1973 Mercedes-Benz 450SL listed on ClassicCars.com by a private seller in Boise, Idaho.

The 450SL was the car to have in the 1970s and ’80s. It represented elegance, taste, style, and success. It was the car of choice for world leaders, actors, millionaire businessmen, and rock stars. Mercedes probably sold more of these cars to the entertainment industry than any other manufacturer ever. Their ad campaigns of the time only helped this. Heck, people seemed to embrace Janis Joplin’s 1971 song “Mercedes Benz” for years.

I have owned two of the SL’s R107 generation, which this car is a part of, and have to say that the build quality is better than any single car of the era. Not only are they built using the finest of materials, but also the door gaps, interior finishing, and every single piece you can see or touch is nothing short of the best in the world. Take a look at one of these cars in a showroom, open and shut the doors, and you will know what I mean. The idea of bank-vault solidity was first used to describe this era of SL Mercedes.

This specific car is an early example, with the small European bumpers as standard and a much more basic and yet still well-constructed interior. This is the SL that was built before the overly complicated climate controls, making it an easier car to live with than the later models. In addition, those small bumpers make this car’s design look perfect.

The SL has been repainted in its original color of Signal Red, a color that looks spectacular, especially against the red MB Tex interior. I see no dash cracks or anything else that makes the car looks like it has any cosmetic needs. It includes its hardtop and soft-top and still rides on factory steel wheels with color-matched hubcaps.

The seller states that he “looked for a ’73 for a long time before I could find one this clean and original and strong. I’ve gone through everything it’s needed mechanically to take it from a B to a straight A.”  New brake hoses and new master brake cylinder were installed, as well as new fuel lines, new tie rods, new shocks, new correct Michelin tires, a new air-conditioning compressor, and fresh R12 in the A/C (which the seller states blows ice-cold).

In addition, the seller had the soft-top replaced with a correct German fabric top, and says the hardtop is in excellent condition.

They describe the interior as being “in amazingly good condition for a convertible of this age. The dash has no cracks. The seats are perfect. Carpet is like new. Door panels are complete and solid. The all-red interior is an amazing experience.”

These Mercedes 450SLs, especially the early ones like this example, are becoming more and more popular with younger collectors, who have found out just how well-built and amazing these cars were when new, and offer quality that few cars have today. They are simple to maintain, reliable, fun to drive, and still make a statement wherever they go. I think that shopping for one of these cars is a smart thing, as the demand for really good examples like this one are harder and harder to find. This 1973 450SL has an asking price of $25,000, which is a fair price for one this nice. I feel that this is truly a situation where you can buy it now or pay more later. If you buy it, I am betting you will not be disappointed.

Click here to view this Pick of the Day on ClassicCars.com

Last month, Jeep announced that it would mark its upcoming 85th anniversary with a celebration it calls “Twelve 4 Twelve.” As its numbers imply, a new Wrangler “buzz model” will be released on the 12th of every month for the next 12 months. November 12^th brought the 470-horsepower Wrangler Moab 392. Now you’re looking at the second release, the 2026 Wrangler Whitecap.

Inspired by “the classic CJ-Universal and its iconic Arctic White top,” the Whitecap package is available on the Wrangler Sahara and Rubicon models, and adds:

• Bright White painted grille with black slots
• Bright White hood decal (Rubicon only)
• Body-color fender flares
• Bright White 1941 side stripe decal
• Bright White painted hardtop
• Optional: Sky One-Touch power top with Bright White accent

It’s an attractive package, but it does bring to mind the Chief treatment for the JK Wrangler that Jeep rolled out for 2017.

If you want to place your order for a 2026 Jeep Wrangler Whitecap, you can do that now. Prices for the package start at $495 for the Rubicon X and go up to $2,690 for the Sahara (which includes the optional body-color hardtop) and $3,185 for the Rubicon (which comes with the optional body-color hardtop and body-color fender flares).

At the Barrett-Jackson 2025 Scottsdale Fall Auction, we found a special vehicle: an Ermine White 1961 Chevrolet Corvette “fuelie” that spent 53 years with the same owner. In this video, we take a closer look at this unrestored, matching-numbers, fuel-injected C1 with its original 315-horsepower 283ci V8 as well as its factory-installed fuel injection unit, distributor, generator, BorgWarner T10 4-speed gearbox, and Positraction rear end. Of course, it’s still equipped with a Wonder Bar radio, stock wheels, and even the correct spare, jack, and tools. With ownership history dating back to 1964 and a story tied to Harry Tillman and his speed shop in Aston, Pennsylvania, this fuelie sold for $81,400.

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The Ford Model T is possibly the most important car in the history of the automobile. It not only literally introduced the idea of the assembly line for car production but also was the first time a car was built with the idea it should be affordable for the masses. In addition, it was the catalyst for the adoption of the automobile as a primary form of transportation in America, and Ford sold millions of them. Today’s AutoHunter Spotlight is one of these cars, a 1926 Ford Model T. It is being sold by a private party in Scottsdale, Arizona, with the auction ending Thursday, December 18, 2025, at 12:45 p.m. (MST).

There are some interesting and little-known facts about the Model T. One is that it was conceived and designed in a secret third-floor room at the Ford Piquette Plant in Detroit by a small team that included both Edsel Ford and Henry Ford. Also, contrary to popular belief, when it was launched the T was available in red, green and blue, though by 1914, Ford transitioned to producing Model Ts exclusively in black, which started the legend that all Model T cars were only offered in one color. An additional tidbit is that Ford employees were required to sign a contract stating they had to buy a Model T as soon as they were able to afford one.

According to the seller, this Model T is powered by a correct 177ci inline-four mated to a two-speed planetary-gear transmission. Finished in burgundy and black with a black canvas retractable top over a gray cloth interior, this vintage roadster is now offered by a private party at no reserve with a build binder and clear title.

The seller states that this T has undergone a restoration, which has been documented. Work looks to have included the body, chassis and the interior. It looks like a car that has held up well since the restoration, which used all period-correct components, and the body has a nice worn-in look to it with no serious flaws.

The interior looks excellent, with the gray cloth upholstery with a burgundy pinstripe appearing to be quite well-installed and in excellent condition. Of course, there is not a floor shifter, as it states in the listing—unless you consider the gear pedals to be shifters (which I guess they are somewhat). The lever you can see on the steering wheel is actually the throttle.

Under the hood is the correct 177ci I4 Model T monoblock engine. It has a compression ratio of only 3.98 and is fed by a single-barrel carburetor, which gives it a mighty 20 horsepower. If you take into account the very small contact patch provided by 12-inch 4.40 front and 4.50 rear tires, combined with the high center of gravity of the Model T, 20 horsepower—in my experience, having driven a few—is more than adequate, and these cars are thrilling at their top speed of about 40 mph.

One of the most interesting things about the Model T is that, more than 100 years after they were built, they still have a very strong following and a large car club community. Even more interesting is that the Model T club is primarily focused on driving events. If you want a prewar car at an affordable price that you can have a lot of fun driving—and find out what cars were like in the early days—this Model T is the perfect entry to this community.

If this 1926 Ford Model T is of interest, you still have time to add it to your Christmas list and bid on it before the big day, as the auction for this 1926 Ford Model T ends Thursday, December 18, 2025, at 12:45 p.m. (MST).

Visit the AutoHunter listing for more information and a photo gallery

When you’re a kid, ice cream is an occasional treat. But once you’re an adult, you can have a coneful of cookies and cream whenever you want (although your doctor may think otherwise). If you become the next owner of our Pick of the Day, you—and your friends, family, and even your whole block—can have the delightful dessert on demand. You can find this 1969 Ford F-250 Good Humor ice cream truck listed on ClassicCars.com by a dealer in Rogers, Minnesota.

Founded in 1920 in Youngstown, Ohio, Good Humor brought its ice cream creations to neighborhoods with an initial fleet of 12 freezer trucks. Kids and adults alike knew one was coming because the driver would ring a set of bells to announce his or her impending arrival. By the 1950s, that number had grown to more than 2,000, each one following a tight schedule, stopping at the same corners at the same time each day. According to Good Humor, “By 1960, each truck carried a menu of more than 85 treats, including creative ones like Banana Split bars and apple pie on a stick.” Through the decades, Good Humor switched truck flavors, going from Ford to Chevrolet and back to Ford. If you look at this page on the Good Humor website, you’ll see a Ford truck that looks an awful lot like the 1969 F-250 profiled here. Who knows? It may be this exact vehicle.

Unfortunately, a variety of factors made Good Humor decide to focus on distributing its products through grocery stores and retire its fleet of trucks in 1978. Some of those iconic vehicles were bought by distributors while others were purchased by individuals. In a 2021 article, Motor Trend estimated that less than 100 of them had survived.

Clearly, this is one of them, albeit it did benefit from a restoration. With the exception of the front end, everything was customized for ice cream delivery. The Hackney Brothers Body Company created the refrigerated rear compartment for housing frozen treats. Of course, this truck comes equipped with bells; there’s also a functional light bar on the roof to minimize the chances of people missing this truck’s arrival. If you look at certain photos in the gallery of the ad on ClassicCars.com, you’ll notice the driver-side door has been replaced with a solid panel—if the driver needs to exit the truck to pass out Original Ice Cream on a Stick Bars or Giant King Cones, (s)he just gets off the reupholstered black vinyl seat and walks through the opening and down the steps on the passenger side.

Despite starting as a work truck (with some sweet employee perks), this F-250 has some surprising features. Although there’s not a V8 under the hood, the one-barrel 240ci inline-six is connected to an automatic transmission. A closer look shows this truck not only has power brakes, but also power steering as well. In addition, the roof can be folded open to let in a breeze or closed to keep out the elements.

Even without its refrigerated section packed with sugary delights, this 1969 Ford F-250 Good Humor ice cream truck is appealing on multiple levels. For $109,995, you can buy a cherished part of your childhood, a cool collectible, a vehicle for your business or bed-and-breakfast, or a soon-to-be-popular addition to big family get-togethers.

Click here to view this Pick of the Day on ClassicCars.com