Hot Rods Passing a long time ride along

Hello,

Of the hot rods, drag race car and cruisers we owned, this one was for both my wife and me. We bought the 327 powered 1940 Ford sedan delivery together, as we needed a hot rod with room for all of our photo equipment and paraphernalia. Plus, the back was big enough to camp out for a week or so for 20 somethings if we had to do it. The last thing was lockable storage, so when we went inside a restaurant for dinner, we did not have to worry about something going missing from the bed of the El Camino.

It took many months repair, replacing tons of parts and suspension parts to make it safe enough to drive anytime, anywhere. From something as simple as my wife driving it to her friend’s house for a visit or going shopping at the local outdoor mall. By the time we got it sorted out, it was a daily driver for both of us. Of course, being the gentleman that I am, she always came first. The 327 powered sedan delivery, the Red El Camino or the funky Corvair Coupe were the choices.

We know which one was always sitting outside in the salt air and weather conditions. The idea of a jump in any time and take off was our thing. It was very reliable and gave us plenty of happy moments. My wife even liked it when others would make the “roll down the window and let’s talk… move…” But, she just moved on down the road. A girl with long hair, sunglasses and driving a cool sedan delivery was grounds for those shenanigans. We all laughed at that. It even happened when I was a passenger and not the driver. HA!

Jnaki

So, when we sold it to another young couple just starting their hot rod adventures, it was a sad day indeed. But, it made us happy that a young couple will be enjoying what we did for the last 6 years of getting a project car and making it safe for anyone to drive. A new addition came to the family and it was difficult to use the sedan delivery as a family car. A station wagon with windows all around and an actual back seat with a certified car seat for our son was the important thing.

Reading about all different solutions we have settled our last cool hot rod adventure. So, for the next 18-30 years, we were three in our family. Many years later, this 56 Chevy station wagon/sedan delivery may look funny, but it serves its intended purpose. A cool body style, perhaps not for everyone, but at the time, it would have satisfied our needs.

It has the thing that was the biggest problem with all sedan deliveries, a small outside mirror just does not show who or what is coming up on that passenger rear quarter blind spot. So, with this invention by the GM factory does its job.

So, now, which daily driver goes, so this super clean,1956 Chevy sedan delivery/station wagon will fit into our small 2 car garage? It has 5 spoke mags to boot, too. Cost? Minimal for such a cool hot rod…

Now, if it only had a very cold A/C unit, that would be a direct buy. If such a sedan delivery was available back then, when we sold the 327 powered 40 ford sedan delivery, we probably would still have it today. It is large enough for long coastal cruising, campground availability accommodations, fits a child car seat in the back seat, and the smallish 6'8 inch surfboard would fit nicely inside without the need for wind noise racks up on top. YRMV

 

I still have my first car I bought at 16, now 32 years later. While it's a 64, it's more muscle car than rod or custom so I don't post much about it here. I don't see ever letting that one go. Aside from that, I've had many others over the years, some I regret selling, others I was glad to see leave.

Devin

 

I wanted my 34 since I was 10 years old and it will never leave me till I check out....There is a couple of my old cars I would like to have back but they were never as important to me as my 34....

 

If you are selling something you may be on the fence about selling, then sell to someone out of state or country, or at least another town.

If your buyer loves your ride like you had it, and doesn't change a thing like the guy I sold my last model a to, then its nice seeing someone just enjoy it and respect the work and your vision. But I also am of the mind if I buy a car I am going to make it mine so I cant cast stones, thankfully my vision doesn't include huge wheels and dingle balls and flaming hamsters wheels.

There are a few in my list that I wish I had the room to hold on to, but I am low on space and high on wants. And every one has paved way to where I am today so I cant complain and focus on the past.

Note: don't buy the same kind car you had 20 years ago expecting the experience to be the same. It wont be.

 

That is so cool... my dads first car in '57 was an '50 Olds fleetline

 

1940 Ford Sedan Delivery Flathead 1960-65 5 Years

Hello,

For me, it is not the length of time owned for any hot rod, but what you did with it during the time of ownership. My brother and I were in the recovery portion of our lives. The whole world stopped in August 1960. Now, it is/was a new direction to recover and move on with our lives. I was still interested in drag racing, had the 58 Impala with a C&O Stick Hydro and it still had a future.

But, as my brother got better in the healing process, he wanted to venture out to see what he had been missing. The weekly trips to the doctor’s office turned into all day events as we drove all over So Cal after seeing the doctor and the treatments. He was healing, but it just seemed to take forever.

Almost a year later, he was ok with trying out surfing again. The doctor said the recovery would soothe the body. So, we went surfing. It did soothe the mind and body. So, we ventured out farther and had to take the 58 Impala as our source of beach surf transportation.

The Impala did make it easy to transport two longboards with the rear seatback out. But, it was the idea of a high powered sedan arriving at the surf spots with two guys going surfing. At first it was ok. Then, the next several times, we were getting the comments of being “Inland Hodads” arriving in a custom cruising car.

When we went out to surf, that toned down the “talking” as our skill out performed most of those in the water. So, it also helped that my brother was wearing a pair of Everlast Boxing Trunks and that, along with his scars put most people off. We knew that would not last long, but we began to search for another station wagon or surf appropriate hot rod.

Jnaki

So, for solving the problem with a “surf-centric” form of transportation, I found a Flathead powered 1940 Ford Sedan Delivery which at the time was a one-of-a-kind build. There were no sedan deliveries at the surf spots and no sedan deliveries in the hot rod/cruising world in So Cal. It fit perfectly in the individual character/persona I was trying to create. Something that would stand out to give the aura of a hot rod, yet a reliable surf transportation and worthy road trip vehicle.

It instantly brought me some credibility in both realms, hot rods and surfing. In hot rods, it was the “slowest” hot rod to show up at the local hot rod drive-in parking lot scene. (since the original build from my friend had a 348 Chevy motor in it before he sold it to me…) Some even chuckled when they barely heard the motor idling to the parking spaces.

Everyone knew of my background in early drag racing and hot rod building, as much as we did. They also knew of the black 1958 Impala that could stave off just about any car in our region at the late night Cherry Avenue Drags location. So, there were no worries about having a fast car and drag racing in coastal So Cal.

So, now, it was a different kind of adulation and when we went to the ever popular surf movies all over the auditoriums of So Cal, it stood out as a spectacle of a hot rod/surf vehicle. Since it was one of a kind, everyone stared as we pulled up to the parking spots and entrance to the shows.

Note: It was part of my goal to get noticed and pick up some sponsorships from surf shops and surf industry companies. I was good enough in my skills to garner some mention from the shops. But, my goal was to travel and showcase surfing as a viable lifestyle. Clothes, vehicles, athleticism, and public relations, all rolled into a well mannered teen-20 something So Cal surfer. Ha!

By the time things were heading in the different direction than I had envisioned, I knew the sedan delivery would not be up to the longest drives in its history of up and down the coastlines of So Cal. (Going to college in Northern California and the countless trips back and forth to So Cal on holidays and vacations...) So, I sold the Flathead sedan delivery to a surf shop owner who had been a constant pain, as he always wanted to buy the sedan delivery for his shop. Ever since he saw me driving and surfing at the HB Pier, he was ready to give me money for the cool "surf" vehicle.

So, it was disheartening to sell the Flathead that had given me plenty of high school teenage adventures and experiences. There was not a surf spot on the So Cal coastline that we did not explore and surf to our heart’s content. The sedan delivery made the journeys fun and exciting times for a teenager trying to get a handle on what was to come next. But, we had to part ways to make the next move in our lives.

So, during the almost 2 years in Northern California college hours and surf sessions, it was time to get back to our roots in the So Cal scene. The odd thing was, my grades improved and now I was on the graduating track, the instant I enrolled in the final college studies in Long Beach.

But, after coming home from college, I went surfing in Huntington Beach and the old flathead sedan delivery was sitting in front of the Main Street surf shop in all of its glory. (including the owner telling anyone around him, how he built the sedan delivery… ha.. BS walks and talks… )

Now, I was driving a 1965 Red El Camino that started a different era. The whole local daily surf trips, including the long distance cruising up/down the California coastline to Northern California and beyond, expanded our horizons like no other time for us. YRMV

 

Hello,

El Caminos arrived on the scene in the fall of 1958. They were the best thing on the market for 1959 new cars. It was a car plus an open truck bed in the back. They were the best looking truck we had seen from the factory, the Chevy Cameo Carrier not in the same category. With all of the performance extras one could order, it was a dream for some. 335 hp, 4 speed, Positraction, great design and long distance travel in mind in all sorts of adventures. Sleeping in the big bed while camping, hauling stuff around, going fast cruising and racing, all in one package that not only looked good, but was a one of a kind vehicle.

It was too bad that I did not have my license as yet, although I had plenty of dreams of a red or black one being my first car for school. Although my brother put a “nix” on the idea, since he had just bought a new 280 hp 58 Impala a year+ earlier. In reality, he did not want me to have a faster car than he did. And, the 335 hp, 4 speed was one powerful combination.

When I first looked at a 1964 El Camino of our next door neighbor, I was impressed. I had been in the market for something new, after selling my Flathead 1940 Ford Sedan Delivery to a guy who owned a surf shop in downtown Huntington Beach. The sedan delivery had taken me all over So Cal coastlines for some great surfing adventures. But time was marching on and knew I was ready for a new phase in my own life.

College away from home, almost a half the state away from where we grew up. In Northern California 400 plus miles and a good 6+ hours on the road, depending on traffic +/_... Our mom did not want me to drive the “rickety” sedan delivery so far away, although, it had gone 1000+ miles all over So Cal highways along the coast, for our earlier surf adventures and camping.

So, her idea of a safe car for long distance travel was a big 4 door sedan. Ha! That was for the birds in our neighborhood and teen activity. So, adding my new found activity, desert motorcycle racing along with my brother’s motorcycle, we had the next choice already lined up. A new 1964-65 El Camino. Now, I was alright with that decision and proceeded to sit down to special order a new 396 c.i. motor, a 4 speed, Positraction and bucket seats for this new car/truck order. The latest stuff from the GM factory.

Jnaki

I was turned down by every dealer in Long Beach. Despite the disappointment at not getting what I really wanted in the dealer’s showroom ordering office, I was extremely happy to have a dual purpose El Camino for our next adventures. A year later, after my friend and I traveled to the desert races many times, he had bought a 1966 El Camino off of the dealer’s showroom. It had all of the things I wanted a year earlier. 396 c.i. 4 speed, Positraction, A/C and bucket seats. What was the factory thinking in 1965?

Our El Camino lasted for 125k miles all over So Cal and our forays up the coast many times over the years. The primary look for many of the road trips was fog. Starting with thick fog along the coast and sporadic fog in every community and city we stayed during our long road trips

The memory is not foggy as it stands out as clear as a sunny So Cal day. But, it was a sad day when a young 20 something guy came to our house to buy the red El Camino. When I took off the clear plastic seat covers, the young guy commented that it was a brand new seat and rug interior. We took good care of it over those 125k miles.

In one month, the guy had painted the El Camino a dark blue and had a tow hitch on the back. He was a local sailor and surfer located in Dana Point. We did not see the El Camino towing a sailboat, but the day we saw it BLUE, it was foggy... wouldn't you know...! Sorry to see a friend go, but it was time to move on in our complicated lives. YRMV

 

I sold my first ever (OT) Hot rod when I lived down south of England, I spent a good 5 years building it. I've since moved to Scotland and the car has followed me up!!!

It's had two owners since being up here and the latest guy has absolutely butchered it worst bit is he keeps messaging me on social media and coming to meets I go to so I cant even ignore it.

 

I regret selling most of them,especially my '32 pickup & my '40 sedan,I sold it long before I ever heard of the hamb, I have had a couple of guys offer me stupid money for my '32 sedan but I have had it so long it's like one of my kids.

I would like to build another roadster some day and selling the sedan would certainly help finance the build but I still love my old beater and I'm just not ready to do that. HRP

 

Similar situation Dan, I really wanted a Fleetline sedan forever. The opportunity came up to get one that I knew a little about. So the coupe had to go. The silver lining is that the guy that has it now positively loves it. I’m still sorting the sedan. Snowman ⛄️