Vehicle Description
No matter what your tastes might be, it's still cheaper to buy
someone else's finished rod and add your own custom touches rather
than starting from scratch. So with that in mind, this neat little
1930 Ford 5-Window coupe starts to make sense: all the important
stuff is done, all you need to do is season to taste!
The five-window body style takes a chop just as well as the later
3-window styles and with the quarter windows, it has a unique look
that works quite well. Fitted with full fenders and hood, it has a
finished look that still suggests performance, especially with
those fat tires. The body has been smoothed and filled, including
the top which lost its fabric insert and gained stylish ribbed
reinforcements, but retains the classic Model A body moldings that
gave the affordable Fords the look of a much more expensive car.
The grille shell is still polished stainless flanked by a set of
King Bee-style headlamps perched on a dropped headlight bar. Other
cool details include shaved bumpers, exhaust ports in the rear
valence, plus the usual mods like the '39 Ford taillights (mounted
on their sides), and a monochromatic look thanks to the fuchsia
paint job.
Simple black upholstery makes for a great contrast against the
bright exterior, and doing it in vinyl gives it a traditional look
that dates back to when this car was new. The door panels are
simple, the headliner is button-tufted, and all the original Model
A door hardware remains in place and brightly polished. The dash
has been reworked and includes white-faced gauges built right in
rather than set into a separate panel. A tilt column wears a fat
three-spoke wheel and the column shifter adds room in the compact
A. There's also a decent AM/FM/CD stereo system for cruising, as
well as an auxiliary power port. While rumble seats were quite
common in 1931, this one has been converted to a trunk, which
offers useful storage for road trips.
With 305 cubic inches, the cackling small block Chevy endows the
little Ford coupe with impressive performance. It offers a very
streetable and pump-gas-friendly compression ratio, an Edelbrock
aluminum intake manifold and a familiar Holley 4-barrel carb. For
reliability, you get a GM HEI ignition system that fires it off
quickly and helps it idle smoothly under almost any conditions. The
exhaust, of course, consists of long-tube headers and Flowmaster
mufflers that shoot straight out the back. A TH350 3-speed
automatic transmission is up for the rigors of sitting in traffic,
and powers a Chevy S-10 rear end with highway-friendly gears
inside. The front suspension is a bit more sophisticated than most
Model As, with a Mustang II independent setup, rack-and-pinion
steering, and disc brakes, all of which works well because it's
hidden under the fenders. Out back there's a traditional 4-link
with coil overs. The look is made complete by 15-inch big-n-little
tires on aluminum wheels.
This isn't a perfect car and isn't priced like one. However, you
can get in and start having fun immediately for not a lot of cash,
then spend a little time making it your own. Call today!