Hot Rods It’s Getting Warm, Let’s See Those Convertibles

Perry Mason drove a '59 Retractable, and his PI, Paul Drake drove a '59 and then a '60 Thunderbird.

 

I wish I had my drop top running.... It got up too 73ish degrees today in Motown..... At the tail end of February.... The coldest month of the year....

 

Hello,

A year of so ago, around the end of winter and beginning of warmer weather in So Cal, there were a flurry of convertibles cruising on those ever present sunny days. “The warmth of the sun…” from the Beach Boys song goes a long way for interpretation.

Yesterday is/was a nice day and clear as usual with a view all the way to Catalina and the mountains covered with snow. but, then the clouds moved in and it was the tail end of the last system to hit the west coast. But, when anyone was outside, if one stopped in traffic, the "warmth of the sun" would be like a bright, sunny day in the Summer.

My wife saw an older Cadillac convertible sitting on the cross street location, ready to cross before us at the intersection. So, my trusty old digital camera comes out ready for some action. The steering wheel for a supportive brace was perfect and we did not have to move forward or worry about traffic. We were stopped for a red light, ready to turn and follow the Cadillac convertible toward the coastline direction.

It was an older couple dressed for a day at the beach. Both wearing the requisite billed caps for sun protection. It was a sunny day, a little chilly in the pre spring warmer days, but still chilly. For us old folks, it was still sweatshirt hoodie weather, until you get into the direct sunlight by the oceanfront. Then it becomes T-Shirt weather here in So Cal.

Jnaki

Direct from the J NAKI You Tube channel archives :

 

Beautiful car. Do you ever attend Spring Fling or Fall Fling with it in Van Nuys?

 

hard to 'convert' this..

 

1953 Plymouth Cranbrook Patio Cream Yellow


Hello,

Quite a while ago, my wife took this photo out of our front windshield as we were moving down a street, heading for the ocean. It was one car we had not seen locally for quite some time. Perhaps it was a So Cal local, but, not in our coastal touring area. But, at least my wife was fast enough to spot the convertible and get her Iphone camera ready, as I approached the traffic.

It was for us, a rare image as we see plenty of Buick Skylark convertibles and 60s Chevy convertibles. But, a Plymouth? Not a sedan, but a convertible for daily driving. So Cal is a mecca for the top down convertible driving. Add in some tall skinny palm trees that do nothing for shade, but just stand there soaking up their own sun, swaying to the strong winds over the past history of the So Cal area.

Convertible driving is usually a “girl thing,” as we knew of plenty of our teenage friends driving their mom’s convertible or in the movies we see, the requisite blond girl with the hair blowing back in a top down convertible of various makes in the So Cal history. Our dad was a staunch supporter of “no convertibles” as they were easily broken into and the cloth top usually flapped in the wind at freeway speeds. He was a daily Long Beach to Los Angeles freeway driver from the time the 710 or Long Beach Freeway was installed and put to good use.

Jnaki

But, my mom and brother knew when not to bring up a topic of a cool convertible in our family discussions. Ha! We did not like convertibles, as we saw plenty of roll over photos in our driver’s education classes. As far as the Skylark, it was the set of shiny wire wheels that made the car and that was what made an impression on our young teenage minds.

So, what happened to the Pale Yellow Plymouth convertible?

It was spotted farther up the coast by a friend and then an advertisement came out as the convertible was for sale.

“This 1953 Plymouth Cranbrook convertible was acquired by the seller two years ago, reportedly from its previous owner of 27 years. A refurbishment in yellow with a tan soft top over a matching interior occurred during that time, and power comes from a 217ci flathead straight-six mated to a three-speed manual transmission with overdrive. This Cranbrook is offered with partial service records, period literature, a top boot, and a clean California title in the seller’s name.”

“The seller states that the car was repainted in its current pale yellow during a body-off refurbishment under previous ownership in 1991. Features include chrome bumpers with overrider bars as well as a tan soft top, which is shown in its raised and lowered positions. A matching top boot is included in the sale.”

“Steel wheels wear chrome faux wire covers and are mounted with Coker American Classic wide-whitewall tires. The car is equipped with unassisted steering and brakes.”
Huntington Beach access road for photos… near PCH.
“The interior features bench seats upholstered in tan and yellow with matching carpets and door panels. The painted steel dash contains an AM radio as well as amperage, oil pressure, and temperature gauges. The five-digit odometer shows approximately 56k miles, which the seller claims to be accurate based on service records and statements from the previous owner.”

“The 217ci flathead straight-six was rebuilt by Paul Pfaff Enterprises of Huntington Beach in 1992 and is mated to a three-speed column-shifted manual transmission with overdrive. The seller states that the most recent service consisted of an oil change and fluid service. The car is reportedly driven regularly.”

“Service records, period literature, and other documents are included in the sale.” YRMV



"Objects in the road through your window... may look outstanding..." YRMV Besides, it is going to be 84 degrees today. Yesterday it was 80 in coastal So Cal.

 

Nor-Cal

 

my 47 merc

 

Hopefully I’ll have this one out soon and working on it this fall/winter