I was just looking at progress pictures of AULIZ‘s 1940 Ford Panel truck from his recent posts. (Many don’t realize that if it has a single rear door it’s a ‘Delivery’, two rear doors it’s ‘Panel’ truck.) It’s coming along great, and his pictures reminds me of how much I love these ’40-41 panel and delivery models in particular, for a few reasons:

1. They are cool. Its not trying to be an uber-slammed, badass flame-throwing kustom sled. It doesn’t need to. Nothing says ‘Official SCTA support vehicle’ like a vintage panel. Panels & Delivery’s are sort of like the oversized shop dog of the vehicular world- Loyal, outgoing, ready to help.

2. They are practical. Haul all your crap, tow your race car behind, sleep in the back. Its like a pickup truck, but with a permanent camper shell gracefully welded into the design. What more could you want? Striping your speed shop or business name on those big side panels is just an added bonus.

3. They look great. Ford finally got back to aligned the styling of their passenger cars and commercial vehicles in 1940, so no matter which vehicle you bought that year, they all had a very similar front clip- Which looked fantastic. You don’t have to chop one to look the part- Just lower it, de-chrome a bit here and there, and set it up with the proper wheels and tires. Done.

You don’t need my pictures- Lets see yours!