Vehicle Description
High-quality older build. Steel body, not fiberglass. Fresh 383
cubic inch Chevy stroker motor with dual quads. Fully finished
interior with bucket seats. Nice paint and bodywork. A cool
traditional rod with big firepower to go with it!This muscular
little chunk of English Ford is a real-deal 1948 Anglia E03, not
one of the many fiberglass replicas running around. It was built
several years ago, but was freshened in the 1990s and more recently
treated to a fresh engine (the previous engine was just a bit too
much). As a result, it shows just over 2900 miles on the build and
the overall attention to detail is pretty impressive. The body is
all steel except for the running boards and rear fenders, which,
for obvious reasons, were re-created in fiberglass. The rest is
just the way it was built after the war with no liberties taken in
the details. There's still a correct 3-opening grille up front,
wonderful fender-mounted marker lights and headlights, and the
vented hood with Anglia script. For a small car, it packs a lot of
visual interest, from the sweeping line that curves off the fenders
and into the doors, as well as the tidy trunk that adds a bit of
practicality without altering the clean shape. The bodywork is in
good order, with doors that close well, good shut lines, and a hood
that doesn't fight with you. There are no obvious signs of rust
repair, and the car has been professionally built with expertly
done tinwork in the wheel tubs and floors. The bright red paint is
devoid of gimmicks or graphics, giving it a timeless look that will
never go out of style. The roof was filled with a steel insert from
a station wagon or van and the bumpers were painted body color. It
really is a handsome car from any angle.Tan tweed reflects its
build date, but it remains in first-rate condition and shows almost
zero wear or evidence of use. That shouldn't be a surprise with
just 2929 miles, but what is surprising is how comprehensively
finished it is. You just don't see many hot rods, particularly cars
with a drag-racing bent, finished to this level. The bucket seats
are firm and comfortable, there are matching tan tweed door panels
and carpets, and even things like the steering column were
appropriately finished. A polished tilt steering column and
leather-wrapped wheel add a little upscale elegance to the Anglia,
and the smoothed and refinished dash includes a full array of VDO
instruments (the tachometer is inop due to the new electronic
ignition system). The roll cage is neatly integrated and not at all
intrusive in the passenger compartment, although the transmission
tunnel does use up a bit of footwell space, so don't wear your work
boots to drive it. A Hurst Quarter Stick shifter manages the TH350
3-speed automatic transmission, making this a surprisingly easy
cruiser on the open road. The rear compartment is fully upholstered
as well, with neat 'Anglia' script embossed on the rear bulkhead
and a fresh chrome fire extinguisher strapped to the cage,
racer-style. Even the headliner is taut, clean, and well-executed.
The trunk is reasonably-sized, but most of it is full of Harwood
fuel cell (no relation), but it's not like you're taking this car
across the country on a family vacation, right?With so little car
to move around, you don't need a radical powerplant to generate
some pretty radical performance. This Anglia frightens passengers
with a 383 cubic inch Chevrolet V8 from Blueprint Engines, which is
a pretty neat fit in the compact engine bay. There's a cam with a
gear drive inside, so it's got a bit of a whine to the idle, there
are 4-bolt mains on the bottom end, and those are aluminum heads to
help build horsepower and save weight. Up top there's a pair of
fresh Holly carburetors on a fabricated sheet metal aluminum intake
manifold. The engine was painted to match the bodywork, then
dressed up with a few chrome and aluminum pieces to make it worth a
look under the hood. There's a giant radiator up front, complete
with a powerful electric fan, and long-tube headers feed a
custom-made dual exhaust system. It starts easily every time, idles
well once it's warmed up (the carburetors do not have chokes), and
doesn't act as fussy in any way at all. It's happy to idle in
traffic, but as I said, with so little car to move around, this
torquey V8 makes for some very entertaining performance.The car is
too small to fit on our lift, so we can't easily show you the
chassis, but it's a beautifully built rectangular tube frame that
was smoothed and painted to match the bodywork. Up front there are
tubular stainless A-arms with coil-over shocks, while out back a
familiar 4-link holds a narrowed and reinforced Ford 9-inch rear
end. Obviously power steering is superfluous, but it does have
rack-and-pinion steering that's just as good in this lightweight
package. It's also equipped with 4-wheel disc brakes as a nod to
the rather substantial performance potential this car represents,
and with 3.73 gears, it's probably not a bad idea to have all that
rubber back there. It shows only minor signs of use since it was
completed and thanks to a comprehensive recent service, it's ready
to enjoy with no worries. It tracks straight on the highway despite
the diminutive wheelbase and giant tires out back, and you'll
probably find that it looks far more radical than it acts.
Beautiful polished Weld wheels are a traditional drag race look,
and they're fitted with a big-n-little combination of 6.00-15 front
and 375/60/15 rear Mickey Thompson tires.For the folks who were
there in the '60s, this car is sure to bring back a lot of great
memories, and today, there aren't many better ways to draw a crowd
than a tiny car with giant tires. It sounds nasty when it's sitting
at idle, and on the street, I bet not many folks would want to give
this proper English Ford a run. This is 20 pounds of horsepower in
a 10-pound bag, so if this kind of lunacy appeals to you, give us a
call, we've got your car.NOTE: This vehicle is titled as a 1948
Ford Anglia.Harwood Motors always recommends and welcomes personal
or professional inspections of any vehicle in our inventory prior
to purchase.
