Yup '39's the one... Mine was "up-graded" in the '60's with '40 DeLuxe hood, grille, side trim and one (?) front fender. I'd swap for '39 parts any day!
Back when I was in High School, everyone wanted a 40 Deluxe coupe. This was in 1962 and 39's weren't that popular. I was a poor kid working in my Dad's Shell station after School from 4 till 10PM. 40 Fords were out of my price range at $500. plus. I was driving my Dad's 1943 Ford GPW to School and work with no top, came December and it was rainy and cold, I was desperate for a closed car. Wood shop second period I looked out the window and there parked on the street was a shinny black 1939 Ford Deluxe sedan, with a for sale sigh in the window, $125. cash it read. I found the owner and the deal was made. Drove to work in the rain in a nice warm Ford. Then I did what everyone else did at that time, installed 40 sealed beams, put a 40 Deluxe grille and hood on me sedan. Fast forward to 2021, me and the sedan are still united, now we have 39 headlights, grille, and hood. How the worm has turned in popularity for 39's, I still love them both.
The OP's car was definitely built with the word "Moonshine" in mind. It looks like it came from the Southeast, and it's a thing of beauty! I usually prefer '40's, but this '39 deluxe is fiiiine!
It just doesn't get any better than a '40 Ford Coupe!! Hell, I'd trade a gonad for one at the drop of a hat... maybe TWO gonads!
This should be a good group to put this question to. I just picked up a '39 Mercury 4 door. It has aftermarket headlights that I'm lukewarm on and would like to change to '39 style but with 12v sealed beams. Any advice other than a high tech kit that is many hundreds of dollars? Thanks, Dave
Reviewing the mistakes of my life, it's OK the way things went. Except twice passing up the opportunity, twice, to obtain one of those beauties.
The Jalopy Journal
