I assume you're referring to the last two pictures. The first two are of different cars, one of them mine.
Yes, you're right. The magazines called them "wheel wells" back in the day, and I've never broken the habit.
Here's some history on the Eddie Duhon 39 Ford. I know Sam And Brian Parker, and saw the car after they restored it. It's nice. Eddie Duhon’s ‘39 Ford I saw Eddie Duhon’s 1939 Ford four door convertible at one of the first legal drag races in Eugene, Oregon in the summer of 1951. It had black paint, with areas of gray primer, and the top was loose and flapped in the wind. It probably did not have hub caps. The back bumper was missing, and the car had to be pushed in reverse. The grill was missing, as was the hood, and that big flathead was revealed to the world. It had Evans heads and triple manifold, even a magneto--serious stuff in the early 'Fifties. I was terribly excited to be at a real drag race, and much that happened is still vivid in my mind nearly 60 years later. I remember that the car was pushed backward by another car, and the engine caught, roared to life; smoke rose from the engine and Eddie Duhon, looking like a dashing film star with wavy hair and a thin black mustache, revved it, put it in gear and drove to the line. There was that flapping canvas top, engine noise, and as the flag was dropped there was the sound of spinning tires and smoke as the big car left the line and quickly covered the quarter. That year Duhon took first place in the sedan class. I next saw the '39 a few months later, in March, 1952, when the Ramblers, Duhon's club, and the Road Angels, my club, put on a car show to promote the newly-formed Columbia Timing Association (CTA). Duhon amazed everyone when he drove in a totally rebuilt '39. In a few months he'd built a new engine, had Cliff White build a new padded top and a red and white rolled and pleated interior, painted the car black, did a lot of chrome plating, put on new bumpers and a Packard grill. It was no surprise when the car won the Sweepstakes trophy. What is surprising is that the car was never in another car show nor in a magazine. In 1958 Duhon was driving to California and the '39 was involved in a serious accident; the entire front end was demolished and there was frame damage. For the next 35 years the car sat. Much of that time it was owned by Ray Foster, and we can thank him for saving the car. But the guy who really saved it was Sam Parker, who had known Duhon in the 1950s and had helped him put an Olds engine in the car in 1958. Sam had tried to buy the car for years, and, on the chance that he might someday get it, had bought things that would be needed to restore it, things like a Packard grill, a 1950 Ford Crestliner steering wheel, yards of old style canvas for the top, etc. Sam, and his son, Bryan, did a ground. up restoration, taking pains to make the car identical to the way it had appeared in 1952. When it was done, Eddie Duhon came to Oregon to look at the car he had not seen for nearly 40 years and he gave the job his approval. Copyright 2008, Albert Drake and Flat Out Press.
This photo was taken in about 1954 or 1955 at a drag racing event in Mansfield Louisiana and was in the photo album of Bill Collins of Dallas. A few of the other cars racing were from north Texas.
Here's a chopped 40 coupe. It has the filled and peaked hood that came off of my convertible. This 40 was chopped in 1948 .
Wow a whole thread devoted to how to ruin a 40 Ford. Just like the 36 Ford it's almost impossible to improve the classic timeless lines as Ford designed them. This thread does a good job of proving that and also that it's obvious why many customizers were never great car designers.
Everyone has a right to there own opinion...then why would you even click on to a thread that clearly says "Customized '40 Fords" if you prefer unaltered one's? You would want the one for '40 Fords with unaltered original classic timeless lines as designed by the first design chief Eugene Gregorie not Ford. But then again thats the only way some get attention is when there sniveling. Sent from my SM-T387V using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Never saw the need to customize 40 Fords. They are one of the best Henry ever made. Stock body, nice paint, lowered and with nice wheels and tires is all they need. I really like the way olscrounger builds his 40 Ford coupes. No chops or canted head lights.
Because I love 40 Fords and it pains me to see them screwed up in any ill conceived attempts to “improve “or restyle them. As far as your correction goes on the designer , I think you’re confused I didn’t say that Ford himself designed the 40. When I said Ford I was referring to the company, who the designer was obviously employed by. Absolutely if I could I’d buy one of his builds or have him build me one since my next ride may be purchased rather than built by me like I’m doing with my RPU.
Just to let you know there is nothing wrong with your opinion on the cars....I guess maybe I should of included some lol's or something, it just seamed odd to dive into something with as strong of a negative view of a subject that clearly was titled customized 40 fords and said nothing against those that preferred original unaltered body lines...I just figure if its not your thing then just move on...but thats my opinion. And just to let you know I am more on your side anyways, not that I dislike customized 39/40 Fords..its just if I was to build one myself it would be more like some of these examples. And my ultimate favorite is a 39 /40 Mercury/Ford Phaeton. Also the information that I have is that Eugene Gregorie was the first design chief for Ford and was responsible for designing, along with Edsel Ford, the 39/40 models 01A and models 02A Ford and Mercury. He also designed the 49 Mercury that actually was to come out as a Ford in 1947. And that turned out to be his last design for Ford. Ok ...moving on. Sent from my SM-T387V using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
As the OP of this thread, perhaps I should make some stuff clear: I absolutely agree with those who say, "The '40 Ford doesn't need any help". That's the reason I didn't buy one until I was 68 years old. They are great looking cars just as they came from the factory. The one exception, in my judgement, is the '40 convertible with its clumsy looking top. I took on my project with the primary purpose of improving the top, and I think I did so by copying what Ford did on their own cars just a little while later. Once the top was decided, it seemed that some other, minor, proportional changes would be in order (slimming the body down, moving the front wheels forward). To date, nearly everyone who has seen the car has been complimentary, and I've frequently heard "That's how Ford should have made it in the first place." Nobody has yet said "I like the stock convertible better."
The Jalopy Journal
