- Plenty of style and taste
- Put a Ford powerplant in a Ford
- Not to radically change the basic lines of the car
A top-shelf award winner
Our California car enthusiast is a longtime Ford fanatic and over the years he's built some award-winning rides along the way. he His car-building technique is to inject a lot of thought and planning into the project, and history has shown that the end result of his automotive ventures incorporates classy-looking and well-performing vehicles. This 1951 Country Squire Ford Woodie was built over a seven year time span, going from a rather ratty-looking $2,000.00 starter car.
Oncethe body was separated from the frame the focus went to the front suspension,where it was decided that the original front rails of the 1951 Ford frame wouldbe cut off and replaced with aftermarket pieces from Fat Man Fabrication. UsingMustang II IFS (Independent Front Suspension) components, which incorporatedthe use of tubular upper and lower A-arms, the new arrangement is a greatupgrade in function plus it adds a modernized appearance as compared to thestock FoMoCo components. To insure precise fitment, the Fat Man frame stubupgrade reproduces the exact axle centerline and radiator support positions,providing that in the end all the stock body components will correctly fit.Along with the mods done up front was the addition of Fat Man 2-inch droppedfront spindles and Pinto rack-and-pinion steering and Carrera chromed coil-overshocks. An 8.8-diameter Ford differential was sourced from a salvage yard,attached via a set of Posies "Super Slide" leaf springs, and Baerdisc brakes are used on all four corners along with F&R adjustable swaybars. This 1951 Ford now has cornering and braking capabilities that theoriginal FoMoCo designers simply could not have imagined all those years ago!
The last of the true "Woodies" from Ford
First and foremost the decision was made at the start to replace the stock flat-head V8 mill with a more modern engine: a 5.0L High Output small block Ford that was salvaged from a late-'80s era Lincoln Mark 7. Some believe that when hot-rodding or customizing a vehicle, such as this classic Woodie, there should be a lot of latitude when choosing a new powerplant, as an example, installing a Chevrolet V8 engine. However, in the case of this car, it wasn't an option. The owner is a firm believer in the "Put a Ford in a Ford" school of thought and would never even think about bolting in a non-FoMoCo engine between the frame rails of his cherished Country Squire!
After the initial inspection of the engine was done a compression test was performed and it all checked out, so the salvage yard replacement mill had been determined to be a solid unit. Since it was a low mileage example of a sound and reliable Ford powerplant, the only things done to the short block itself was the fitting of a new timing set, along with fresh seals and gaskets. The top side of the engine was cleaned and detailed to all its factory glory. A 4-speed a Automatic Over Drive transmission was sourced (from the same Lincoln Mark 7) and mated to the engine.
PPG Midnight Emerald Mica was the chosen color and the paint went on in two stages, base coat/clean coat with lots of color sanding for perfection along the way. Chroming work was performed by the local chrome shop at the time, who did fine work with special attention to the details. The rollingstock consists of 17-inch diameter Billet Specialties "Shadow" wheels. The lowered stance and slight front-down "rake" was carefully planned and gives the car a sleek yet aggressive appearance.
In order to keep the outside as clean as possible, the door handles were not fitted when the wood was attached to the doors, and opening now is done by the way of electric solenoids. In addition, another feature of the woodwork done on the car was the installation of the frame wood being done using all interior bolt attachments, no exterior screws or bolts are used!
Inside the cabin there were numerous modifications and upgrades performed, giving the interior a fresher, more modernized appearance. A center console was designed by the owner and fabricated. The dashboard was filled and smoothed for an enhanced and clean overall appearance. Once completed, the seating and door panels were stitched up in top-quality saddle-tan leather. Other upgrades to the interior include the use of a Ididit tilt steering column, custom fabricated "swing from above" pedals and Billet Specialties six-spoke steering wheel. The stock instruments, speedometer, clock were restored and updated, and power door windows were also added.
The end result of this project was a safe, reliable, well-performing Woodie Wagon that has earned numerous trophies and awards once completed. Everywhere the car is driven it gets positive reaction and while it still retains much of the "classic" Woodie flavor, there are just enough modern enhancements to keep the car contemporary in appearance without having any particular "dated" look to it.
This is a top-shelf award winner, all thanks to hard work, dedication, and passion from a specific game plan from the get-go. This Woodie creation revolved around a clean build with plenty of style and tasteful customization.
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