Everyone has their favorite year of Ford V8, and mine is the 1936. The one-year-only styling combines the traditional upright grille with a streamlined body to create one of the best-looking cars of the period, no matter the manufacturer. This unusual 2-door coupe with its smooth trunk and ridge-line roof is a neat resto-rod that keeps all the great Ford styling and adds a few custom touches and modern conveniences. If you admire the '36 Ford like... I do, then you'll definitely appreciate the extra mile the builders went on this handsome 5-window coupe. Fortunately, it hasn't been chopped, channeled, or smoothed, leaving all the original steel pretty much as it was when it was new. The gently rounded fenders with their peaked crease through the middle, the ridged creases on the roof, the highly detailed hood vents, and practical yet stylish trunk, it has all been transported intact from 1936. Finished in a shade called Midnight Red, the color is closer to a deep, dark, candy purple that looks super slick and expertly finished, with a high-class air to it, much like a tuxedo. And the accent striping is a nice custom touch, providing just enough contrast to the dark finish. It's not perfect, having been driven 4,574 miles since it was built, but it's still very impressive and the look will never go out of style. Most of the original brightwork made the translation, from the neatly dipped bumpers to the original-style mirrors to the original taillights which now feature modern bulbs and lenses. Up front, there are cool modern bulbs in the original buckets, along with a set of fog lamps with grille covers underneath. The beautiful, bright grille is pure pre-war Blue Oval, giving it an iconic look that's familiar and attention grabbing. Inside, all pretensions of being a stock Ford are long gone, replaced by bucket seats and all the modern features you'd expect. The seats appear to be from a late model, with the back seat and door panels upholstered to match in two-tone leather upholstery. Ford's original dash remains, with the polished instrument panel full of pretty white-faced gauges, and we really like the tachometer in the center, right where the original ashtray (or optional AM radio) might have lived. The A/C vents have been neatly integrated into a custom "36" panel just below the dash, and the way it fits together makes the line between stock and modified very blurry. A leather-wrapped polished steering wheel looks right in the Ford, and it sits atop a matching polished tilt steering column. Other options include power windows and an AM/FM/CD/AUX stereo, and the fully finished trunk is deep enough to handle a weekend's worth of luggage, so don't be afraid to hit the road in this Ford! While the flathead was celebrated for its performance at the time, today you need more horsepower and the best source of that is a 350 cubic inch Chevy V8. Impressively dressed with an Edelbrock 600CFM 4-barrel carburetor and Summit Racing intake manifold, an HEI ignition system, and a custom chrome engine cover with intake horns to keep it interesting. It was built and driven almost 5k miles, so it's totally sorted, a smooth, reliable, powerful travelling companion for the guy who likes to drive his rods. The Chevy is a neat fit in the Ford's engine bay, and all the accessories tuck in tight so the hood fits well. A big aluminum radiator, power steering and brakes, and a late-model Mustang II front clip make it drive like a modern car. The transmission is a 700R4 4-speed automatic transmission with overdrive spinning a Ford 8-inch rear end hanging on fresh shocks and leaf springs, and the custom dual exhaust sounds just right. Competing the illusion is a set of polished chrome Ridler wheels with big-n-little 205/40/17 front and 265/40/20 rear blackwall radials for the perfect stance. Classic good looks never go out of style, making this is a well-sorted rod that's a true pleasure to drive. Call today!
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