When the “new Cord” made its debut at the New York Auto Show in November 1935, it turned the automotive world on its ear.

Onlookers reportedly stood on the roofs of other cars just to catch a glimpse of Gordon Buehrig’s stunningly advanced “new, original, and ornamental design for an automobile,” with its aerodynamic “coffin-nose” louvered hood lacking a traditional radiator shell; its “step-down” floor; its unitary body construction; its hidden door hinges; its pop-up headlamps; and its total lack of running boards.

Underneath was no less innovative, with a Lycoming V-8 running the front wheels through a four-speed, electrically shifted pre-selector transmission, which was operated by a “key” off the steering column; essentially, it was an H-pattern gearshift in miniature.

Orders for the new Cord flooded the manufacturer’s headquarters in Auburn, Indiana, but the car was not quite ready for production.

By the time cars finally began to be delivered, many impatient customers had ca...