1951 Ford Custom for sale $29,900

This lovely 1951 Ford Custom Deluxe sedan is one of the best there is. Itandrsquo;s a multiple Dearborn Award winner, which is arguably the highest honor a V8 Ford can receive. It not only means itandrsquo;s pretty, as is the case with many club awards, but that itandrsquo;s correct and functional, as the Dearborn process takes hours of intense scrutiny by a team of knowledgeable judges. Owning a Dearborn car means youandrsquo;ve got one of the best. The restoration is several years old and since it was retired from active competition, itandrsquo;s been driven about 10,000 miles, so itandrsquo;s no longer perfect, but itandrsquo;s very, very nice. The dark blue paint is the carandrsquo;s original color, called Culver Blue, and itandrsquo;s dark enough that it sometimes is mistaken for black. This was a super straight original car before the restoration, and it was completely disassembled, the body was stripped to bare metal, and it was completely rebuilt from there. The clean shoebox styling remains elegant and modern, but a few well-chosen pieces of trim accentuate this high-end look. All the chrome and stainless trim on this Custom Deluxe sedan has been restored and remains in top-notch condition and to be honest, weandrsquo;d have a hard time finding something to point at as a flaw. Itandrsquo;s also nicely accessorized with fog lamps, a very sleek-looking windshield visor, spotlight, and fender skirts, along with optional back-up lamps built into the body. This Ford is anything but basic.

The gray cloth interior is quite correct, and if you donandrsquo;t feel compelled to slide behind the wheel of this comfortable-looking Ford, then maybe cars arenandrsquo;t your thing. Everything works, all the gauges, the clock ticks away reliably, and even the AM radio pulls in stations loud and clear. Of note, the cigarette lighter knob has been re-tasked as a switch for the electric fuel pump, which is a clever update that works rather well. In familiar Ford tradition, the front seat passengers get durable rubber mats, while rear seat passengers get gray carpets that offer a slightly plusher feel. Youandrsquo;ll note the column shifter and only two pedals on the floor, because this car carries the first-year Ford-O-Matic automatic transmission, and it works surprisingly well, adding to the carandrsquo;s polished feel. And for road trips, thereandrsquo;s a massive trunk fitted with a proper rubber mat and full-sized spare thatandrsquo;s never been used.

The engine is familiar, a 239 cubic inch flathead V8. If youandrsquo;ve never driven one thatandrsquo;s properly sorted, this one will be a revelation for you: once itandrsquo;s running, you canandrsquo;t feel it. Thereandrsquo;s a nice mechanical whirring sound from somewhere far up front and a meaty V8 burble from the single tailpipe, but from behind the wheel, without revving the engine, youandrsquo;ll think itandrsquo;s stalled. Thatandrsquo;s how the great ones run. This one is nicely detailed in proper Ford Copper engine paint, which extends to the intake manifold and air cleaner, which is how they were delivered new. The only notable modification is a 6-volt alternator, which powers up the battery more quickly than a generator would, and itandrsquo;s easy to reverse if you want to go back to 100% original. It starts quickly by using the electric fuel pump to prime it, and thanks to a recent and extensive fuel system service, that includes a re-lined tank, fresh lines, rebuilt mechanical pump, and a rebuilt carburetor, it runs superbly. Itandrsquo;s most recent outing was a trip to the Ford National Meet in Atlanta, Georgia a few years ago, a trip it made on its own, not on a trailer, cruising at 65 MPH for more than 3000 miles. Thatandrsquo;s the sign of a great car!

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