Hello all! I have a friend,that has a '58 Ford. He is wanting some inspiration. Custom,or hotrodded. You don't see too many of them ,Why?? Anyone have pics?? Thanks, Glenn
Tim [From Haywarden, Iowa] and I took some back roads to BTT50's last year and we found this beauty in some little podunk town in Minnesota somewhere...
here is my dad's 58. he was on the way to the drags 1959! know idea where it's at now, he sold it in the early 60's
I love '58 Fords. I remember growing up a guy in da hood had a straight-axled jacked up one. It was light blue, very cool. Here's some I copied/pasted for my archives. Joel
The 1958 model year was generally ugly to most people and sales were down due to a recession. They've never really caught on with later generations and are usually considered difficult to customize due to their complex lines and shapes. That's basically why you don't see many. That's not to say that you can't make something cool from one now, and it will stand out since there aren't many around.
I think the 58 was the best looking car built that year,I had a 58 fairlane two door hardtop factory 332 interseptor factory duals but with very basic trim,I ran a 460 in it and drove it in the Bay area for sevral years as a daily driver,I loved the hood detail,the dual headlamps,and the roof detail,the four oval taillights were very classy,there were many small details that set them apart from the rest. I'll miss it dearly.
I never thought much of them before, but this one got me excited. I like it with the bar removed from the grille. The side trim seems to be 57 (insert is painted). Is this a 'custom' touch or was it a carryover on some models? Pardon the non-trad wheels .
A 57 front end will bolt right on.Had a frind wreck his 58 convertable he found a 57 front end and made a 57 58 It wasnt too strange looking
Here's one for you... <img src=http://images1.fotki.com/v1/photos/9/9586/47841/DSC00299-vi.jpg> <img src=http://images1.fotki.com/v1/photos/9/9586/47841/DSC00300-vi.jpg> <img src=http://images1.fotki.com/v1/photos/9/9586/47841/DSC00301-vi.jpg> <img src=http://images1.fotki.com/v1/photos/9/9586/47841/DSC00303-vi.jpg> <img src=http://images1.fotki.com/v1/photos/9/9586/47841/DSC00304-vi.jpg> <img src=http://images1.fotki.com/v1/photos/9/9586/47841/DSC00305-vi.jpg> <H6 ALIGN=CENTER> <FONT COLOR=white> SoCalCarCulture.com</FONT> <A HREF="http://www.socalcarculture.com"> <img src=http://images2.fotki.com/v19/photos/9/9586/97290/SoCalCarCulture-vi.gif?1046239871 border="0"> </A></H6>
the license plate should really read "ppasmrf". hehehe. that color scheme is bitchen, I'd lose the multi assortment of dice though..
Yeah, clean it up and it'd look pretty good. I'd also lose the antenne, the phoney lakes pipes, the flags, hula girl, "console" and the "fairlane" emblem in the grille. Might even drop a tenth with the weight savings.
I dig all that extrad junk tho, myself. Gives it a little character perhaps, that's just me. MY buddy has a 2 door '58 Ford as well.. CLEAN car, just needs a new transmission. Amazing... they look 5 times better lowered, I'll tell you. It's got a lot of pontential, that's for sure.
Thanks guys1 I'll show these pics to my friend,and try to get him to post an intro. I really like the tourquise one,at least it does'nt have a connie kit!! Lowering does make a world of diffrence also.Inspiration for sure!. Glenn
Where are they now?? This was the car that established the industry standard for rust! By 1962, all the '58 Fords were worthless webs of vaguely connected holes! I'm talking about Virginia here, not Detroit or Boston, and before the dawn of modern road salt! Our old one might still exist, though--it went off to Spain while there was still enough body left to connect the chunks of Bondo...
[ QUOTE ] Hello all! I have a friend,that has a '58 Ford. He is wanting some inspiration. Custom,or hotrodded. You don't see too many of them ,Why?? Anyone have pics?? Thanks, Glenn [/ QUOTE ] They were always considered ugly. Thats why you dont see many. I can talk, I have a 59, also considered ugly. In fact some folks called the 59 the 'drunk Ford'. Stand a distance behind one and look at the 'face'. The real question is, "What happened to all the Beautiful 57 Ford Fairlane 500s?" They outsold Chevy 3 to 1 that year .
[ QUOTE ] I never thought much of them before, but this one got me excited. I like it with the bar removed from the grille. The side trim seems to be 57 (insert is painted). Is this a 'custom' touch or was it a carryover on some models? Pardon the non-trad wheels . [/ QUOTE ] Oddly, the 58 Ranchero has 57 sidetrim/rear end/tailites.
Need parts?!? I've been buyin up those cars for years. Had a 58 Custom 300 w/ a hi-po 390, t-10 4 speed, and 4:11 posi, but it wouldn't outrun my ol ladys Lightning pickup so I traded it for a 59 2 door Ranch Wagon w/ a 312 and a fenton two four setup, but I broke the motor so I sold it too. Still got a 58 Fairlane, dechromed, lowered, white interior. Cut up a 58 2 door hardtop to convert a 57 2 door sedan into a chopped hardtop, still got it, chopped 2 inches. Got a 58 2 door Ranch Wagon for parts. Had a 59 Ranchero ex drag car up till about three weeks ago when a tree fell across the back of it. Had a 58 Fairlane with the factory air suspension at one time. I've got some leftovers if ya need em!
I'll ask hubnut. I think the guy needs a left front fender.BTW,its a 4 door.Still got the rebuilt 292. thanks, Glenn
[ QUOTE ] Need parts?!? I've been buyin up those cars for years. Had a 58 Custom 300 w/ a hi-po 390, t-10 4 speed, and 4:11 posi, but it wouldn't outrun my ol ladys Lightning pickup so I traded it for a 59 2 door Ranch Wagon w/ a 312 and a fenton two four setup, but I broke the motor so I sold it too. Still got a 58 Fairlane, dechromed, lowered, white interior. Cut up a 58 2 door hardtop to convert a 57 2 door sedan into a chopped hardtop, still got it, chopped 2 inches. Got a 58 2 door Ranch Wagon for parts. Had a 59 Ranchero ex drag car up till about three weeks ago when a tree fell across the back of it. Had a 58 Fairlane with the factory air suspension at one time. I've got some leftovers if ya need em! [/ QUOTE ] I need parts...check your e-mail! Hey show a pic of the chopped 57!
A buddy of mine just picked up a decent 58 4 door Fairlane to use for parts. He claims it's a 352 car w/ a cruiseomatic, but I haven't seen it yet. He only gave three hundred bucks for it though and it's complete. My cousin has a little custom 300 2 door sedan he has been claiming that he's gonna build into a real street terror for the past several years, but I doubt it'll ever happen. Hey Cool57, I didn't see anything in my mailbox, hit me back. I'll have to get ya some picks of the chopped 57. We wanted to do something different, so we used the 58 top which is ribbed front to back, and knocked two inches out of it, then WAM! John D'Agostinos' shows up at Oakland (bastard)! After that we kinda lost interest, so it's sitting under a pine tree behind my best friends shop.
'58 Ford!.....that was my first car! Powder blue Custom 300 with six cylinder and three on the tree. Paid $65 for it in 1970. Got curious one day and starting poking around with a screwdriver (kinda like a dentist poking with his sharp pick looking for soft cavities in your mouth). Once I got going, I couldnt stop and by the time I'd finished, I had close to 100 holes of varying sizes and shapes all over the car. Bruce was right....they rusted badly in the midwest or anywhere else where salt was used on the roads. I got busy with the bondo and patched and filled all the holes. Replaced the rocker panels with new replacements and more or less hand made new lower quarter panels. Drove the car with the multi-splotched primer spots thru the winter. The front seat mounts were rusted out in the front so the seat tended to rock....especially when I let the clutch out quickly (which I did a lot when I was 17). The next summer I found a wrecked '57 Ford and swapped the 292 V8 from it into my '58. Added new dual exhaust, a Hurst Syncro-Lok shifter and I was in hog heaven! I managed to get the whole car in one color of primer, but that's as far as the body work got. Sold the car to my kid brother shortly after that. All my car pals were driving tri-5 Chevies, so I was the lone Ford car. They were kind enough to keep the kidding to a minimum. The local salvage yards used to have 57-59 Fords lined up at cheap prices, but they all went to the big scrap heap in the sky by the early 1970's. The 1958 Ford was definitely a different looking car, but I will always have a soft spot for them. Some day I'll find a nice solid 58 Custom and bring it home....
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