Finding a 1954 Ford Crestline is not such a big deal, but a Sunliner convertible body style? Now you’re talkin’! It’s not that they are exactly rare, 36K units to be exact, but how often do you encounter one today? Especially an example as clean as this Everett, Washington, domiciled example! Thanks are due to Curvette for sourcing this listing, and it’s available here on craigslist for $15,500.
Ford placed first in the domestic 1954 production race with 1.1 million vehicles. One facet that clearly led to their success was the introduction of the new 239 CI, OHV Y-block V8 engine that finally replaced the tried and true flathead – an engineering marvel when introduced in 1932 that was now looking and acting old, especially when compared to the modern, burgeoning fifties powerplants. And, Ford’s number one competitor (nemesis?), Chevrolet, was still without a V8 engine, and some probably wondered if they’d ever catch up. Top drawer honors went to the Crestline trim level, available in two-door hardtop, sedan, and convertible (sunliner), as well as a four-door sedan and station wagon (Country Squire). Other Ford trim levels included the Customline and Mainline. I could be a chowderhead and just refer to this convertible as being pink (wasn’t everything in the fifties?), but technically, it’s a shade known officially as Cameo Coral. The finish is in fine nick, as are the bumpers and stainless trim. The convertible top shows no indication of the usual foibles that afflict fabric folding roofs, and the seller tells us that the floor and trunk pans are solid. Rounding out all four corners and placing the proper fifties imprimatur are Oldsmobile-style Fiesta wheel covers accompanied by a Continental trunk-mounted spare tire.
Back to that V8 business, the seller tells us that this Sunliner is powered by a 292 CI V8 engine, but it may be a replacement as the previously referenced 130 gross HP 239 CI unit was new for ’54, and the 292 didn’t debut until the 1955 model year. One research source, however, claims that late ’54 production claimed the 292 as an option, so I’ll ask those who are better versed with Ford Y-block engines to chime in here. The seller adds, “The car fires right up and runs and drives great. ” A three-speed manual transmission handles all things gear-related.
So, what goes with a Cameo Coral exterior? How about a Cameo Coral and black vinyl interior – it makes the perfect fifties statement, and it’s all in excellent condition. Perhaps it’s a redo; whatever the case, it doesn’t appear to have experienced a lot of top-down time. The floor covering shows as a large black rubber mat, at least up front, covering carpet, and no worries, as it all looks sharp. The instrument panel is a very simple affair; the instruments are clear and not fogged, and the painted dash surfaces shine. Demerits to be issued? None as far as I can tell.
What’s not to like here? Nothing as near as I can tell. As stated at the outset, a ’54 Ford Sunliner isn’t an everyday find-especially one in this nice a condition. Dare to be different, right?
Trunk “adornment” is correctly called a “Coronado” kit.
Fake cover with recess for the tag. JC Whitney Olds spinners.
Yes, the Coronado kit available on this generation 52-54 Fords, is one of the very few continental kits that is appealing to me. I think they were factory options?
There’s irony for ya’, a convertible in an area that sees, what, 17 sunny days a year? I seem to remember pink was a popular color, especially on Ramblers with the 3 tone paint, one was always pink. It would be 14 years before Mary Kay got her 1st pink Cadillac. Demerits? Yep, here it is, the stick. I know it seems redundant, like the Mustang heater core thing, but look at all the classic cars coming through here. The ’55 Buick, that ’52 Olds(?), Barneys ’54 Ford, the ’61 Lark, or any compact or full classics featured, all have sticks. Why is that? Nobody today wants a stick. It’s as clear as a sunny day in Colorado ( over 300/year). I’m not talking about the Lambos, 454 Chevelles or Shelby stuff, where a stick is expected, but “regular” cars that “regular” people would actually want to drive, it has to be an automatic. Take this cool car, those “Oldsmobile” type spinner wheel covers were the “Magnum 500s” of the 50s, they made any car look good, but I’m telling ya’, if it had an automatic, ( and an automatic choke, for that matter) it would increase the buyers 10( 100?) fold, but you’ll see, in 10( 20?) years, these cars will still be for sale, or forgotten altogether.
I’d have to disagree with you, Howard. Perhaps you don’t want a stick shift, but I review countless comments for everything I write, and commentators often mention that the manual gearbox is a feature they like about the subject vehicle.
No, you don’t want one for an everyday driver (most people anyway), but there’s nothing everyday about a ’54 Ford Sunliner.
JO
Hi J O, it’s okay, I don’t mind disagreement, shows we’re using our noggin’ for something. For the umpteenth time, I KNOW WE HERE LIKE TO SHIFT GEARS, IT’S WHY WE’RE HERE, sorry for shouting, I’m frustrated I can’t get my point across. Denial is huge here, and naturally, we are going to hear from all the “shifty” characters that still like to or are able to still shift gears, but we, as a group, represent a very small minority and the masses of the future will not want a manually shifted car. Again, time after time, we see cars like this, be a wonderful car for someone, except nobody in the future will want a stick. The stick shift cars for sale here outnumber the automatics 10 to 1. Why do you think that is? The older folks are dying off, and the “survivors” can’t use the car. I realize this cuts into what many of us hold dear, but most people I know, don’t want to or physically can’t push a clutch in, and since older stick shift cars appeal mainly to the elderly, Father Time will prove my point. Sorry if it’s not what you want to hear, but I’ve given up on this society long ago, far as things I held dear, right about when the computer came out.
I also realize I need a new hobby, and that sucks, as I’m trying to hold on to what I held dear visiting this site, but sure seems futile.
Quick follow up, Jim, like I say, of course you are going to get positive comments on shifting, please remember, nobody hath shifted more gears than me,,,or another truck driver( salute), case in point, at the Walmart the other day, oh, it was busy that day, raking it in with a combine, sitting in the parking lot, in my faded paint 30+ year old Jeep waiting on a neighbor, looking around, son of a gun, I literally had the oldest, rattiest looking vehicle in the lot. I all but guarantee my Jeep was the only stick in the lot, including the Walmart semi ’round back. Okay, a Jeep kind of fits in with all the new Rubicons, but one ( minor) reason I got rid of the “old” pickup, is here, with everything new, driving an old faded pickup, I must be a low life, and low lives DO drive old beat up trucks. Many can’t tell the difference. Also, age certainly plays a factor, I am surrounded by elderly folks, that literally couldn’t move their right arm high enough to shift a column shift.
At this time, I’d like to thank you and all the writers for all you do, “don’t shoot the piano player”,,,thanks again, Jim
Thx Howard!
JO
Howard, the reason that is in such good shape is that it WAS only used on sunny days!!
Nice car WITH A MANUAL TRANSMISSION! Whoohooo!
Hmmmm, a couple of observations. I teach a Model A class. I get students of all ages all who know how to drive a stick and love it. They just need to learn the art of double clutching. And… young folks learn to drive a manual if for no other reason then so they can rent a car in Europe, a small and less expensive car.
Cool car, great writeup!
A model A class?
Those people who don’t want to or can’t drive a car with a clutch don’t want this car period. A slushomatic would have little bearing on that. That’s another dead horse tho that I and others beat on here repeatedly. Model A era cars are already dropping, 40s-50s are too. Used V twin motorcycles are half what they were 3 years ago and still not selling. Big motor homes are another. Why? All the folks that wanted that stuff (us old farts/boomers) and drove the market are dead or dying.
love this car mostly because it’s 3 on the tree if it was a automatic wouldn’t be interested in it I was 9 years old in 1954 2 of my family members bought new Fords both 3 on the tree not many people in 54 liked automatic trans
Apart from the Thunderbird, the 292 wasn’t offered until late in the ’55 — not ’54 — model year and then only as the special-order P code police/law enforcement engine. It didn’t become a regular production option until ’56. So a 292 in a ’54 would be an engine swap.
That’s what I thought. Thx.
JO
Update: 1955-ford.com shows the P Code 292 as an option in ’55 Fairlanes and wagons but notes that few were installed. Which would fit with a late introduction. It also says it was offered late in the model year in the police package (Interceptor), another indication it was a late offering for ’55. I erred, however, in characterizing it as police-only — it clearly wasn’t but does seem rare in a ’55 — and apologize for the error.
I think I remember a 272 in 1955
In person the color is less pink and more salmon. There is a killer pristine version of this car but with every available factory option on it including electric windows all the way around. It shows up regularly at Wachaw, NC cars and coffee. In person it is stunning.
On the new kids and shifting topic, my second son is 29 and two years ago he asked me to teach him how to row the gears. He bought a one year old Mustang Mach1 with the 6 speed and track pak. Absolutely loves it and does at least one competitive driving school a year at the Carolina Speedway. Serious young drivers like to shift.
Don’t you mean Waxhaw NC?
Yes, fat fingers.
I don’t think I could live with this color but it’s a nice example for not a lot of money.
Is that an Overdrive label on the trunk?
I have a 54 Country Sedan and that should be a 239 with the overdrive. The OD is a game changer on the freeway here in CA.
Growing up in southern california in the 60s and 70s, I had a 54, 4 door with a 3 on the tree and a 6 cyl engine. I did get one ticket for speeding on the freeway where the police officer asked me how I could drive it that fast. lol. There was another kid at my school who had a 54 2 door and a v8 with the overdrive. His had a better rumble and was faster.
I have a 54 Country Sedan and I see the emblem but don’t see the OD handle which should be to the right of the steering wheel. Almost looks like another E brake handle. And this would have come with a one year, 239 Y block.
Sorry for the double post
just checked and yes overdrive sign
I thought there was an overdrive emblem on the trunk. My Dad, and others his age, were usually suspicious of an automatic’s durability. This sure is a beautiful ’50’s Ford.
Very nice car! Looks like a good deal to me. Now if I could convince myself that I like the color…😬
Stick shift, no problem. Cameo Coral in and out, problem.
Howard- with all due respect, you seem to be confusing “getting your point across”, with everyone agreeing with you. Less people want a stick than an automatic. Got it. The majority of drivers today want nothing to do with a ‘54 anything. I still like what I like-as do you.
No point in being frustrated, it hurts only you.
I’d rather have a manual transmission rather than the automatics of that time. Love the vert and 1954 was the first year for a Y block V8 over the old flathead. And my wife is giving me that “Oh NO, not another car” look!!
I have the first year Fordomatic transmission taking up space in my garage, in case anyone wants it along with the aluminum converter. The transmission is cast iron and very heavy, too heavy for me even 30 years ago. Does anyone want it to rebuild? Supposed low milage from a 1951 woody wagon that belonged to a Vermont doctor. It’s here in Philadelphia. Make an offer. I have lots of other flat head Ford motor accessories and some truck body parts. Need to clear the hoard.
Most people like old cars because of the old car’s idiosyncrasies. Most of these idiosyncrasies are inconvenient by todays standards, and, yes, that includes manual transmissions, but that is part of the attraction. There is nothing convenient or practical about owning an old car. If you want power everything, a/c, cruise control, automatic transmission, etc., then buy a new car.
Going a little further, this is part of the reason, I don’t understand some of these very high end builds of an old car where the only thing that remains of the original car is a basic outline of the original body, with everything else (drivetrain, imterior, suspension, etc.) being changed. Again, why not just buy a new vehicle? I try to be open minded about such things, and I do appreciate the talent and engineering that is involved with these builds but I still don’t understand the appeal. Admittedly, though, I am stuck in the past.
That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
End of rant.
In my dotage (I’m 75), I’m increasingly dwelling on how time-wrought changes have shaped society’s thinking. Things we once accepted as unremarkable and necessary, like manual transmissions, are now considered by many as “inconvenient.” Smart phones are another example. Before the internet and today’s online culture, the thought of our being continually connected electronically to others, to our work, to our preferred entertainment and news sources wouldn’t have occurred except, perhaps, to computer geeks. Now, however, virtually everyone is staring into a smart phone or clutching one. Indeed, for most of us, to be without a phone would be unthinkable.
I make these observations about societal change as someone who’s lived long. Younger folks can’t fully appreciate those changes because they haven’t experienced them. For example, I can’t appreciate what it meant to have to crank start an engine, yet many in my grandparents’ generation stoically performed that rather unpleasant task daily. If you were born, say, after 1970, you might erroneously assume that all new cars, regardless of make or model, were equipped with radios and heaters. Or you might wonder why someone would prefer manual transmissions over automatics, the latter being ubiquitous and so much more “convenient” to drive. You’d wonder because you’ve no experience, no frame of reference to draw upon that would inform you of how life proceeded in the decades before you were born.
Admittedly, most vehicle-related changes have brought improvements in comfort. But some of us appreciate that old vehicles are like time machines in that they transport us back to a day when designers and engineers created vehicles that emphasized function over form, utility over excess, and simplicity over complexity.
Simplicity over complexity. Amen.
Beautiful car. I had a 54 Victoria 2 door hardtop many decades ago. It was loaded with options like all electric widows, electric seat, automatic transmission etc. it was 2 tone green. I only had it a short time when it threw a rod out the left bank of the block. I bought a replacement engine from a wrecking yard. They said it came out of T-bird that had been hit by a train. They told me it was a 312 cu. Inch T-bird special. Well anyway it fit right in where the 239 had been.
Just old memories.
God Bless America
312 was a great engine had to be from a 56 or 57 tbird base was 225hp and yes was a drop in fit on the 54
It’s easy for me to drive a stick when its on the floor, but when it’s on the column, nope. I drove a 1960 Chevy Biscayne with one on the column once. Never again!
column very easy to drive actually easier than 3 on the floor put hand on top of shift in1st press down and up to 2nd st down to 3rd
Three on the tree in my 60 BelAir back in the 80’s was easy peasy Dale. Maybe your shift linkage set up was off?
The only problem I ever had with a 3spd on the tree was a pin slipping out of the linkage on an entry to the LIE once. Fortunately I was young and limber then cause I had no problem slipping under the car by the side of the road to fix it. Try that with modern hardware.
I have really enjoyed the various viewpoints expressed here today and in the past on rowing your own. I personally prefer manual transmissions in cars like this. Three on the tree may seem mysterious to younger drivers but a quick tutorial is all that is needed for anyone who already knows how to operate a clutch. Years ago when my son was looking for his first car he specifically wanted a manual. I was two thumbs up on his decision. An afternoon of practice and he was on his way. Plenty of young people his age know how to drive a manual and enjoy them. Shifting gears is fun. But for the daily slog in traffic make mine an automatic. All that said I understand where Howard is coming from. New cars with manual transmissions are thin on the ground these days. And every year that passes less manufacturers are making them. We all know the reasons for this. I’m still a “young” old guy and I can depress the performance clutch in my son’s modified BMW no problem. My old ‘52 Plymouth is a piece of cake. I guess I’ll enjoy being shifty for as long as I can. This Ford is a nice ride and I would love to own it. But reality dictates otherwise. GLWTS.
Love a manually shifted car.
Of my 2 cars the favored driver is the 2012 Fiat 500 pop with a 5spd. With that transmission it is basically a go-cart and, for this 65 yr old, driven as such. Keeps a big fat smile on face every time I drive it.
On the other hand I’d love to swap a 5spd into my wagon, but it’s a 94 mercedes and … well it’s a mercedes.
Almost forgot, nice Ford. I’d love a 54, but I lean towards a plain jane Mainline. Never been a convert fan.
My first car was “three on the tree’ and for thirty years we always had at least one stick shift vehicle, sometimes two. Neuropathy has taken its toll, to the point that I have hand controls to be able to drive at all Seniors may just have to go ‘shiftless.”
Phil, Many people (like me) love the older cars because they are different. Different body styles, different types, (station wagon, convertibles, etc.) But still appreciate the power, handling and fuel economy that you can get with newer “under the hood/body mechanicals.” Nowadays you can literally dial in the horsepower v/s fuel economy and can make the car REALLY handle to boot. You can’t get the looks and nostalgia with a newer car and you can’t get a dialed in fast/handler with an older car. And with many of the newer cars. Reprogramming is sometimes limiting. I’ve said this before here, I like different. I would rather see an older car slightly lowered upgraded wheels, tires, suspension and brakes with a straight 6 cylinder supercharged engine than even an early Camaro with an LS engine. No imagination there. I really enjoy looking at rat rods for the ingenuity used. (Although I still love a good paint job.) I want to see an early AMC Hornet, lowered, tires and wheels that FILL the fender wells and a 4.9 liter straight 6 with a bank of side draft carbs or a super charger.
Ok, I have managed to bore everyone with my weird tastes.
Yeah Wayne. You’re right. Everybody has different tastes and I shouldn’t fault them for that. Upon some self examination I too am guilty of straying from what I was preaching. I like original cars, but I am more of a hotrodder, so I am guilty of engine changes and other things in the name of speed and I have an obsession with American Torque Thrust wheels. I think they look good on anything. So to each his own. There’s nothing wrong with that. But I do have to say… real hotrods have three pedals.
Phil, as long as the torque thrusts are dark center, I agree!
My ’55 Chev convert in high school had those wheels and aI have always preferred them ever since.
You’re right. Dark Centers are the only way to go. Also, i agree with you on the LS craze. Great engines, but seeing them in everything has gotten real boring.