favorite cars of the golden era

[Shawn F.]

48-53 Chevy pickups are one of my favorite trucks. I almost bought a 53 Chevy and did not but regret that decision. You can build a nice daily driver out of one that handles and rides nice. S10 frame is almost like a bolt up deal on one and you can use the S10 rear end and even engine/trans combo if you wanted to.

 

[Aristaeus]

Two other favorites.
1950 Studebaker.

1951 Studebaker

 

[lord_k]

Two other favorites.
1950 Studebaker.
1951 Studebaker

Fine cars. Love 'em.

 

[rue]

WTH??? That truck is AWESOME the way it sits!!

I understand what you're saying, but poor Henry needs a lot of inside work and that's why we got him cheap. He IS cool, but I really bought him to restore to original condition. We'll see after we get done with his under the hood issues

 

[rue]

I agree...no need to change with your truck! Pinstriped black suede is very respectable, no need to go stock.

Thank you BoPeep

 

[Chas]

Hot rodders can't afford these cars. Perhaps the Boyd Coddingtons of the custom world, but not hot rodders. We prefer to chop up all the Ts and five-windows.

I was referring to the hotrodders of the 50's and 60's- the Zeph, along with the 49 Merc. were two of the most popular car bodies to customize and rod. Those, and the '32 Ford Highboy. Most of the restoration cars of these models disappeared a long time ago, and if you were to find one now you'd be extremely lucky. But you'd have to expect to pay $$ for them because anybody with one to sell knows what they are worth.

 

[David Conwill]

Chas, I've been studying '50s and '60s rods and customs for a long time now, and I don't recall ever seeing a Zephyr kustom. Zephyr gears in a '39 Ford trans, yes, but it seems that after the '49-'51 Mercury, the '39 and '40 Mercury is the next-most-sought-after car with customizers in that period.

The Zephyr caught on in the '90s with street rodders, though.

-Dave

 

[Chas]

Really? I was at Viva Las Vegas in 2002 and saw two at the Shifters car show there. One was an authentic rod from the 50's. There was another one at Paso Robles, though that one was more recent.

just because you've never seen one, doesn't mean that they don't exist. the zephyr has a distinctive body, well known to car people and impossible not to notice. I don't see any for sale as resto cars - never have. So where did they all go? It would be ridiculous to assume that rodders and kustomizers ignored them. and drive trains are beside the point. lots of other cars are popular with rodders: the willys, Ford Deluxe Coupes, etc etc.

Are you contending that the zephyr completely escaped notice by car kustomizers until the 90's? "All of a sudden" they were noticed in the 90's? It's not like there were complete and detailed records of what cars were customized at what period in time, so we might as well be arguing about how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.

 

[David Conwill]

Are you contending that the zephyr completely escaped notice by car kustomizers until the 90's? "All of a sudden" they were noticed in the 90's? It's not like there were complete and detailed records of what cars were customized at what period in time, so we might as well be arguing about how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.

No, but your statement was that they are impossible to find because they were one of "the most popular car bodies to customize and rod". If that were the case, I believe I'd have seen at least one.

I'd like to see the original custom, that would be interesting.

I mentioned the transmission thing because kustoms tended to keep their original drivetrains back then, so if the transmission gears were available in the '50s, that means there were more than a few Zephyrs in the junkyard instead of on the street. Used luxury cars don't hold their value well, which along with fairly low production numbers, probably accounts for the low survival rate.

-Dave

 

[Aristaeus]

If your talking about Zephyr's as a whole they are not hard to find in any condition. The 42 Zephyr might be, but not due to Hotrodders or Customizers. Production started in late 41 and had ended by feb of 42.
But with that you can still find them for sale.

http://www.oldantiquecars.com/Zephyr.html

http://www.lzoc.org/classifieds/forsaleprewarcars.htm

 

[Stearmen]

Not Common

If your talking about Zephyr's as a whole they are not hard to find in any condition. The 42 Zephyr might be, but not due to Hotrodders or Customizers. Production started in late 41 and had ended by feb of 42.
But with that you can still find them for sale.

http://www.oldantiquecars.com/Zephyr.html

http://www.lzoc.org/classifieds/forsaleprewarcars.htm

Very interesting! While some of the owners appear to be asking stupid money for their pride and joy, as a whole, they seem to be rather reasonably priced, expecially the sedans! I thought they were far more rare then they are and I have never seen a hot rod version until the 90s either, and I go back to the early 60s. Doesn't mean there wasn't one, just not common like Ford's and Murc's!

 

[lord_k]

1952 Delahaye 235 Letourneur et Marchand Cabriolet

 

[David Conwill]

I wish the engine in my Falcon looked like this!

-Dave

 

[Michael Vitone]

I'd sell a kid...ney for one of the following....

1958 Dual Ghia

1958 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham

1957 Lincoln Continental Mark II

1961 Facel Vega Excellence

 

[up196]

I'm kinda partial to the black 4 door in this clip from Cigarettes and Nylons from Cote Blanche Productions:

http://www.youtube.com/user/Coteblanche1

 

[scottyrocks]

I always liked the 1951 Kaiser Traveler. It was, arguably, the first modern 'hatchback' (not a station wagon or truck), the rear opening into the interior, via two doors; one up , one down.

 

[David Conwill]

I'm kinda partial to the black 4 door in this clip from Cigarettes and Nylons from Cote Blanche Productions:

http://www.youtube.com/user/Coteblanche1

That's a '30 or '31 Ford. Commonly known as a slant-windshield Fordor, I think the proper name is Town Sedan.

http://oldcarandtruckpictures.com/ModelAFord/1931_Ford_Model_A_Sedan-July14a.jpg

-Dave

 

[/|\]

Your favourite car(s)

I seem to have hijacked the Flying Boots thread, with my comment about someone's mention of an MG. So I thought I'd start a new thread about cars. I know there's a 'Display your car' thread, but this is more in the spirit of the 'What's your favourite aircraft' thread. First, the pics:

My first car was a hand-me-down Old English White with a red interior 1966 MGB that my mom got new. By the time I got it the paint was oxydised and the interior was largely faded to pink. I eventually painted it orange and had a black interior put in. (Hey, I was a kid!) Two other MGBs followed, both '77s. One was maroon, and the other was sort of a 'Harvest Gold'. The latter had overdrive. After some other cars, I decided I wanted an MGB again. And I decided it would look like my first one. The restoration was an expensive nightmare. I didn't have a garage, and I had to have the restoration done. Only the guys doing it were amateurs. I'd rather not get into it. It was finally finished off by a pro. Everything is new or rebuilt, and it has overdrive. More pics.

The red car in the photos is a 1963 Triumph Herald 1200 Convertible. I bought it when I wanted a convertible, and was still waiting on the MG. My first memory of being in a car was of being in dad's red Herald convertible. I love the tailfins. Archbury says it's 'spiffy' -- and it is! Slow, but spiffy. Since I got the MG, the poor Herald hasn't been run. It hasn't been started in three years. (If anyone wants it, I'll take $3,500 for it.)

So back to the spirit of the thread. Is the Mk.I MGB my favourite classic car? Well, it has its points. The styling is great. The handling is great. The nostalgia factor, since one was my first car, is through the roof. But I have to say the 'best' car I had was my white 1979 Porsche 911SC coupé. I love old MGBs, but I can't resist a 911.

So how about you? What's your favourite car?

 

[David Conwill]

Hmm, somehow Broad Arrow's post being added to this one removed my subscription. Anybody else in the same boat?

-Dave

 

[scotrace]

All subscriptions were lost in the upgrade.
-scotrace