Thursday, June 23, 2016
1940 Ford Two-Door
What a nice looking old car! This 1940 Ford two-door looks very original, although no claim of originality is made by the seller. As a matter of fact, they don’t tell us much at all! We don’t know how many miles it has, much about any work that has been done, or much of anything about its history, other than that it is currently located in Golden, Colorado.
Not only is the paint shiny, so is the chrome. Notice that the fins are straight as well. This is a really attractive car, and I don’t generally care for brown cars. Thanks to Stu for putting us on to this great find!
Here’s the rear view, and it looks just as nice as the front. Don’t those open doors look inviting? And as you can see on the left, this Ford is keeping company with a much faster Ford on the left! The seller does tell us that the floor and frame are “nice.”
While the interior isn’t perfect, it certainly doesn’t look bad. There is a missing radio according to the seller and the clock seems to be gone as well (that’s the hole in the right side of the dash.)
There’s an awful lot of leg room back there! Again, it’s not perfect, but it’s nice. Overall, this looks like a 4 to 5 year old used car that’s been kept up with.
The seller tells us that this is a 59A flathead V8, which means it could be from a later car. It doesn’t look as nice cosmetically as the outside of the car, but the seller says it runs, drives and stops well. I don’t know about you, but this looks like a pretty decent car to pursue. If you are interested, it’s up for sale here on eBay, with bidding still below $6,000. What do you think it will take to own this one?
Source: barnfinds.com
1962 Ford Ranchero
Regular Barn Finds readers know I love me some Falcon-based Ranchero! My first automotive memories are from the inside of a 1963 Falcon wagon, and I love my pickup so much maybe it’s a dream woven from those two memories! In any case, this is a pretty nice looking driver Ranchero that’s had the same owner (third one) for the last 10 years. Thanks to Jim S. for sending us this great find!
I’m pretty sure I don’t agree with the seller’s interpretation of “rust free.” It looks like there is some covered up corrosion along the rocker panel, and there’s a strange riveted patch on the other side right beyond the rear wheel well. That being said, Wimbledon White always looks good on 1960’s Fords! The seller tells us that they purchased the vehicle from California and have never used it in the salt now that they are in Southampton, New York.
There’s that patch I was talking about. If you are going to take the time to fabricate a nice patch like that, why not weld it in place properly? This shot does do a nice job of showing off the bed, which the seller maintains can carry 850 pounds. That’s a pretty decent amount for a truck this small, don’t you think?
That’s a pretty nice interior for a driver! The red and white combination really works for me, and somehow the faded carpet just blends right in (red + white = pink!) The seller is claiming 67,000 miles. What do you think? Based on the interior it might be possible, but I’m not sure myself.
If you can convince me that the valve cover and air cleaner paint are original, then maybe I’ll believe that low mileage claim. It does appear that there have been some radiator cap or overheating issues, although I suppose that could just be old age. The newish battery, modern plug wires and clean oil filter are all indicators that the seller’s claim of regular use is true, although with a three on the three I’m not sure I’d want to be in a lot of stop and go traffic. If you have become intrigued by this Ranchero, take a look at the auction here on eBay, where the buy-it-now is $5,650 but who knows, maybe the seller would consider a lower offer?
Source: barnfinds.com
1935 Ford Phaeton
This old Ford was stored in a basement for almost 60 years. It’s very original and many of the missing parts are included. It will need running boards, an interior, top and much more. The front part of the floor is rusted, but the rest of the car is pretty solid. Thanks to Fred W for the tip.
The dash is all there and original. It even has the key. That is daylight you see through the floor, though.
The paint, if not original, is certainly old. It could possibly be left as it is if it’s restored to look original.
It’s easy to imagine what this old Ford looked like on the road. That skinny bumper certainly hasn’t fared very well.
The engine certainly looks untouched. After all these years, that old flathead may be frozen.
This is going to be a big expensive project for someone whether it’s restored to stock or custom. Sadly, it is not likely to remain stock. It would be nice, though, if the stock look is maintained even if it’s mounted on a modern chassis. It is listed on Craigslist in White House, Tennessee with an asking price of $18,000. Complete unrestored examples of these are rather rare, but is there any way this could be worth anything near this amount? What do you think would be a fair price? It will interesting to read the comments and see what ideas you have for this Phaeton.
Source: barnfinds.com
1955 Ford Customline Sedan
This is an original, 63,000 mile car that has been in storage for the last sixteen years. What an incredibly nice survivor! This is a 1955 Ford Customline four-door sedan and it’s in almost perfect condition for never having been restored. There is no rust or bodywork on this car and it is wearing all of its factory-applied paint! It’s in Rossville, Indiana but it’s longing to be a part of your collection so don’t wait on this one.
It’s hard to believe that this car is original, what a nice piece of history this is. If this color doesn’t define 1950s America I don’t know what does. I half-expected the seller to have a drive-in tray resting on the driver’s window and maybe a pair of fuzzy.. er.. wait, ok, those are here. But, I guess a little theatrics is ok when you’re working with such a show-stopper as this car is.
This is the first year of the second-generation Ford Customline and it’s a totally new style than the 1954 car was. I believe that this color is Sea Sprite Green and it’s perfect on this car. and is in almost perfect, preserved condition, somehow, after sixty-one years. The Customline was positioned above the Ford Mainline and below the new Ford Fairlane.
The interior looks as nice as the rest of the car does. This is an automatic so no need to shift for yourself here, just put it in D and go. Ford made 471,992 Customline cars in 1955, wow! Even the trunk looks great in this car. I’m guessing that there are seat covers on the seats since there is no mention of them having been reupholstered. I can’t imagine that this gray velvet/velour is the original color or fabric for the seats?
This is Ford’s Y-Block 272 V8 with around 160 hp and 258 ft-lbs of torque. Not a tire-burner by any stretch of the imagination but enough power to get you to where you’re going in style and comfort. The engine looks like it’s brand new under that new, non-stock radiator hose and new radiator cap. I’m guessing that the engine has been repainted, or at the very least the valve covers have been, but I could be wrong.
This fantastic car is listed on eBay with a price of $5,900! That is well within reason for such an original car as this in such great condition. This would be a nice way for someone to get into the collector car market for not a lot of money. Would you keep this car original and just maintain it as needed, or would you add your own custom touches to this car and personalize it a bit?
Source: barnfinds.com
1973 Ford Transit MK1 Camper
Now that summer is almost here, for those folks who have more than one season where they live, it’s time to load up the camper and head out onto the road. This 1973 Ford Transit MK1 Camper is located in the Stanstead area of the United Kingdom and it sure looks like a winner. It has been in storage in Ireland for the last eighteen years and has recently been taken out of its slumber and brought back to life.
This would be a nice vehicle for me, that ladder would lead to a heck of a photo vantage point on the roof. This was the first-generation of Ford Transit to be built in the United Kingdom and it was introduced in 1965 and ran until 1978. They sure made some nice looking vehicles based on this van chassis.
The seller doesn’t mention what the make of the camper is but it also looks like it’s in fantastic condition. It even has a compartment for, you know… which is very handy in a camper this small. The seller says that the interior “is totally original and everything works as it should.”
The driver’s compartment looks clean as a whistle. There are only 82,000 miles on this camper.
It’s hard to believe that a V4 engine could pull all of this weight around, but it does. This should be the infamous Essex V4 which was designed to fit in the short nose of the Transit van. This particular engine is the larger 2.0L version with about 93 hp. The engine is “infamous” because it’s a 60-degree V4 which is inherently unbalanced and it uses a balanced-shaft to try to give it some level of smoothness, albeit a small level of smoothness. It was also known for running rough and having head gasket leaks. I’m assuming that this engine runs as well as everything else looks on this great camper. It’s listed on eBay with current bids at £3,800 ($5,370) with less than a day left. Get this camper before it’s gone! Is this something you would use like I would, or do you prefer staying in hotels?
Source: barnfinds.com
