Hot Rods 58 fords extinct ?

Where are all the 58 Fords ? I dont see them in any amount ,anywhere ,cept NewZealand .

 

i see 4 doors on craigslist every once in a while but 2 doors and wagons are pretty rare it seems

 

I'm more likely to see a 57 Ford than a 58 at car shows and even then it's rare to see a 57 Ford.

 

No wonder you don't see them, They were considered fugly when new and had a terrible reputation as being pure junk. Bill

 

Here you go.
http://orangecounty.craigslist.org/cto/5833654289.html
http://orangecounty.craigslist.org/cto/5819405830.html
I wish I had money for the Skyliner.

 

and
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/cto/5816568443.html
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/nby/cto/5848599275.html
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/nby/cto/5804840943.html
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/nby/cto/5812511501.html
http://modesto.craigslist.org/cto/5822503201.html
http://sacramento.craigslist.org/cto/5777867412.html
http://stockton.craigslist.org/cto/5786258210.html

 

I hardly ever see '58's anywhere. And hard as I look for '57's also, just don't see many of them either. At the Lonestar goodguy's show last month, out of 2700 cars, I saw two '57's other than mine, one '58 and two '59's. I'm very grateful for that. www.jerrysclassiccars.com has some pics of ones that have gone his full restoration route. They are by no means fugly.
Member Guthriesmith from OK posted a pic of a '58 wagon that was in a N. Texas rod run last weekend. Here's a link to that thread...his is post #7
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/a-texas-weekend.1038459/#post-11760970

 

I see them for sale now more than I have seen in past years. In the north east, they were notorious rust buckets for some reason.

 

58 Fords in the north rusted to pieces in about 5 years due to the use of salt to melt the ice. The head lights would fall out of the fenders due to rust.

 

Interesting thread.. being I was born in 1957, I've had this itch for many years to get either a 1957 or 1958 Ford. I wasn't set on a 1957 as I thought the 1958 had a bit more "character" but were nearly the same car (some body panels interchange). I told myself I wanted a 2 door; either a sedan, 2 door wagon or Ranchero. I didn't want the hardtop or convertible or something with a large price.

In August, a 58 Custom 300 sedan builder popped up about 250 miles away for a decent price so I bit. Now trying to round up a few parts for when I get around to building it. It's got a few others in front of it on my list.

 

If I recall, most 1958 Fords rusted out on the dealer's showroom floor.

 

They are hidden with all the 58 Chevys and 58 Plymouths . Bad year for 58 cars .

 

Two reasons: The metal was incredibly thin for the time, and many of them rotted out. Second reason, there was a recession in '58, and there weren't a lot of people buying new cars.

 

A few facts that may contribute to the scarcity of '58 Fords in particular and other '58 models in general. 1957 was the first time since 1937 that Ford outsold Chevrolet. Also, 1955 vehicle sales exceeded 15 million units, an all time record up to that point. Given the large sales volume of 1955 and 1957, many people had late model transportation. 1958 was was the beginning of a Recession that spanned three years ('58/'61). A lot of '58 models were very controversial in their styling.

Combine all those factors and it's not hard to see why '58s are a bit scarce. But in the case of '57 Fords, which I like for the most part, their scarcity is little harder to account for, given their record sales numbers. Perhaps they did deteriorate at a faster rate than usual for cars of that era.

In 1959 Ford again outsold Chevrolet. Given the radical styling of the '59 Chevys, that would seem reasonable. 1958 through 1961 saw some very bizarre auto styling from all the manufacturers. Even the weird cars there were sold had little to offer as long term 'keepers". Between that and the Recession, it's no wonder that are no longer with us.

Ray

 

'58 Fords had a reputation for rusting out quickly.

 

All this^^^^^^^

 

Thin metal on a '58? My '59 Ford is built like a tank, good healthy metal and fortunately zero rust.

But agree on '58 being a bad model year all around. The '58 Chevy all but bombed, many other cars had no appeal to the buyers. The BOP lines were gaudy with chrome that year. I did like the '58 Mercury though.

 

57 mercurys ate them and then died.

 

The old man bought a '58 Fairlane when I was a pup. White 2drht, I remember the gold trim on the side like on Moriarity's 55. He traded it in on a new '60 Galaxy.
One thing the '58s had going for them, best hood Ford ever put out IMO.

 

Had mine a long time, has not and never has had any rust.

 

Like Ray is hinting at, they're fricken ugly. Maybe they look pretty nice these days, compared to what's in dealer showrooms...but in the 60s and 70s when 50s cars were being sent to junkyards and crushed or shredded, a 58 Ford was not so attractive.

There seem to be more 58 Edsels around, than Fords. The Edsels were not only ugly, but they were also a big joke, so hardly anyone wanted to drive them. Seems a sizeable number got parked out back, with not a lot of miles on them, and a few are still sitting there, and being revived today.

Maybe I'm being a history revisionist? I don't know. But a 58 Ford has a face that not even very many mothers would love.

 

Also 1955-59 Mopars had rust issues and 1955-57 Chevys the road salt would get up in the headlight bucket area and eat them up I saw a lot of that in Minnesota and Illinois when I lived there, Dad sold Chevy's in the 50's for Midway Chevrolet in St.Paul undercoating was a dealer option and some people were to cheap to do it and the cars suffered for it.

 

Retractables Count ?????????????????

Gotta admit that I didnt have much love for the 58s till this came into my shop this week. I like this one !

Rare Air Conditioned optioned car

Awaiting authorization on engine/trans and more repairs.

Oldmics

 

The 1958 Ford is pretty much a carry over from 1957, the sheet metal anyway. The recession put a hurt on both Ford and Chevrolet with Ford down around 500,000 units compared to Chevrolet's 300,000.
The 58 Chevrolet's wouldn't exactly win any beauty contests either.

 

the first listing of 58s by Blowby would be a rare one.its from Frisco says Buick Fairlane.I would guess be as its from Frisco that would explain ID confusion

 

Oldmic's post just reminded me how much I liked the '58 honeycomb grill. I'll add it right up there with the hood I mentioned earlier, as another 'good' thing on the unloved '58s.

 

Amen, rmt. I'm a diehard Chevy guy, and I'll say the same thing about every 1958 GM model.

 

I think 1957 was the high water mark with cars in general. Just about everything from the big 3 was perfect that year. I think the ' 58 Impala is the only saving grace for the following year.

 

Ahhhh, the Willys guys bought em up, kept the grille and threw away the rest.