$400 was good money back then, especially if you bought it as shown. I bought a running driving 40 cpe in 63, in primer, stock interior, 52 flattie for $125
D6AF9F31-3705-49B9-979E-21104D7A8B5F by enloe posted Aug 16, 2019 at 11:28 PM . EDA043BF-EC9D-4570-B51C-104439F997AE by enloe posted Aug 16, 2019 at 11:26 PM Dad bought this car in 76
I can't believe it has been 30 years. . . Dragged this out of a dirt driveway in Malden, Mass. $800.00 bought a crispy Belair 2dr sedan Every day I smile as I pull up to the house, I love my Chevy.
I’ll jump in. I’ve only had this for 20 years and my father had it for 23 years before that and he was the second owner. The original owner was a large bank here in Australia ( now gone) that my father worked for. My grandfather used to occasionally drive the GM of that bank around in this car and also used to clean it in the banks own service garage when it was not in use. My Dad bought it cause he knew it history and when it came home my Dad was so proud of it. He would tell admirers that it was as clean underneath as it was on top due to my grandfather. Where I grew up everyone had Holdens, Fords and Chryslers and Chev were not that common. When the 61 came home we actually still had a 54 Belair sedan that Dad eventually sold off to help pay for the 61. I’ve gone on for too long in this post but I do get a bit emotional when I think of the times we had with this car. Thanks for reading. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Great thread. Fun reading the stories and history from all you long-timers. I believe you're the smart ones. Me? I had a '39 Ford Deluxe coupe that came home with me in 1975. Sold it. Big mistake. I've talked to the present owner and he affirms it's not for sale. Guess he thinks it's a "keeper" too!
Sold my OT '71 Camaro after 43 years a few years back. Been driving my "new" project, the Austin gasser I built for a decade now. My other '39 Chev coupe just got on the road mid summer, so pretty new still.
My Dad bought this '40 for me in the spring of 1968 for $50. It was found sitting beside a chicken house with the hood off and the engine full of water and rust. It had already been converted to the later model 49-53 Flathead. We got a used engine out of an uncle's '52 Ford. I did a little body work and then painted another coat of black lacquer of several old coats of old paint. The interior was trash so I stripped everything out but the seats. I drove the '40 as my daily driver from the spring of 1970 until 1982. Over the next 3 years I rebuilt the whole car and painted it in Ford red lacquer. It is still that way today but the paint is really showing its age. The photo below was taken 52 years later.
66+ years ... the "HEMI 32" coupe as purchased in 1954 In 1954, my father bought a 1932 Ford Model B Standard Coupe (less its 4-banger engine) from the original owner for $40 ... threw away the fenders, hood, bumpers, etc. … channeled it 6" in front, 8+" in rear ... put a 1953 Chrysler (331ci) HEMI in it [hence the "HEMI 32" moniker] ... and later he chopped it 2.5". In 1975, we put the 1958 Chrysler Imperial (392ci) HEMI and the 1969 Dodge HEMI torque-flite (with B&M manual shift valve body) that it still runs today. Sadly, in 1990, cancer claimed my father's life. In 1991, his ashes were scattered over the Bonneville salt flats during the Speed Week event. That same year, Pat @pgan Ganahl & (the late) Gray Baskerville did an article on my father & his coupe. The article was entitled "COUPE-TINUUM" and appeared in the December 1991 issue of ROD & Custom magazine ... it got most of the story correct ... just a few inaccuracies and some typo's (our family name is misspelled). On my 32nd birthday, I became the caretaker of the "HEMI 32" coupe ... the car will forever remain in the family ... I plan to pass it onto my son on his 32nd birthday! For a complete pictorial history of the "HEMI 32" coupe, click HERE.
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