It's a "Two-Fer" today. One for "Work and Family" and one for "Fun and Play".
FRANKLIN MINT produced the forever iconic 1949 FORD "WOODY" WAGON and 1949 FORD CUSTOM CONVERTIBLE.
No matter how old I get or how many of these history making Ford's I see at car shows, I never get tired of seeing them. And even as popular as they were in the day, they are becoming rarer and rarer at old car shows. But when there is one at a show, there are always hoards of guys surrounding them, and the stories and memories are running rampant.
If you are age 60 and over, it was normal to see '49 Ford's in your neighborhood and on the highways growing up. Usually the Woody Wagon more than the Convertible, but they were present.
Franklin Mint was producing some really fine models at this time and these two are proof of their efforts. They would later give us several "repaints" of the Custom Convertible, all of which were equally as nice. I have them all.
I always loved the convertibles and hardtops, but it was always fun to get the lower-end models too. Having the Woody Wagon and the Convertible is the best of both worlds.
Nice write up George. Your are so right about rarely seeing these shoe box Fords at shows today. A friend has an all original 51 four door sedan which is in near perfect condition except for the paint on the the tops of the front fenders and hood being thin from polishing over the years. I absolutely love the car because of it's originality...it also has the Fordamatic transmission which was the first year for that option. Great nostalgia George. I too have all of these Fords from both FM and DM.
The Ford that saved Ford. Our family car before the '53 Mercury was a gray '49 Ford coupe like this. I don't remember it but saw it in a number of family photos.
I just lost a friend (98 years old) who said he was working for Ford on the '49 Ford design before WWII broke out! Have no reason to doubt it! I think the '46 to '48 was just a redesign of the '41 and '42 so they could be first having new cars to sell after the war ended-
The Ford that saved Ford. Our family car before the '53 Mercury was a gray '49 Ford coupe like this. I don't remember it but saw it in a number of family photos.
You need to get (if you don't have it) Danbury Mint's beautiful '49 FORD.
I just lost a friend (98 years old) who said he was working for Ford on the '49 Ford design before WWII broke out! Have no reason to doubt it! I think the '46 to '48 was just a redesign of the '41 and '42 so they could be first having new cars to sell after the war ended-
The 1949 FORD was introduced at the Waldorf Hotel in New York City on June 10, 1948. The public showing took place in dealers showrooms throughout the country on June 18, 1948.
It was quite a change, with a slab-sided body to a new front suspension. Gone was the familiar transverse leaf springs so common to Ford through the years. In its place were the "Hydra coil" springs. The system was centered around airplane-type shock absorbers that were mounted within the coil springs. The rear had extra long longitudinal springs that were complemented also by the airplane shock absorbers.
Two engines were available: the Six which developed 95 horsepower at 3500 rpm and the V-8 that offered 100 horsepower at 3800 rpm. A new cooling system and intake manifold, redesigned combustion chamber, and improved ventilating system were among the other improvements Ford perfected for their 1949 models.
Ford's model year run totaled 1,118,762 cars coming off the assembly line.
Nice post George. I have always been a big fan of the '49 Ford. A great design and so different from what was offered from other manufacturers and a complete change from Ford's previous cars.
I had a great uncle that had a 49 or 50 Ford Tudor Sedan, the only time I saw it was in his garage where it had sat for many years after his retirement. I was very young when he passed, I don't know what happened to the car after that.
Very informative, thanks George. A long time fan of '49 Fords. I have three on display.
Thank you John. About 30 years ago, long before computers, I used to put FACTS on cars on Index Cards. Eventually I had thousands of them. Just in the last few months I've dug them out and have been using them.
I've since created File Folders for each brand (i.e. Chevy, Ford, Olds, etc.) and I have magazine articles in them. Those with my Index Cards have become a valuable source for me to share information.
