[1] In 1924 Auburn output was down to six cars a day, Errett Lobban Cord—a successful automobile salesman—took over the distressed company, and brought in James Crawford to design and develop a new range of vehicles.

Other companies had already produced cars with 'boat tail" styling (Peerless, Packard, Hudson) but Auburn wanted to have an image leader in the segment.

The Speedster had a fixed windshield, but no side windows, no interior door release, an optional roof, a cockpit for only two in an aerodynamic body.

The open two-seater body styled by Count Alexis de Sakhnoffsky featured a boat-tail and a vee windscreen.

[2] The "Speedster 851", which would be the final production model of the manufacturer, was introduced in 1934 with bodywork by Gordon Buehrig that was ingeniously constructed and cost-effectively built.

With sandwiched front and rear fenders, backswept radiator, and external side-threaded exhaust pipes, the 851 Speedster is the iconic Auburn "Hollywood car."

The Speedster's iconic "boattail" design would be replicated on cars from later decades, with the two most notable examples being the 1963–1967 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray and the 1971–1973 Buick Riviera.

[citation needed] A 1935 Auburn 851 Phaeton Sedan appears during the "New Amsterdam Inn" number in the film Swing Time.