“My days monkey wrenching on cars are over. This old Hudson needs a new home,” claims the seller of this 1954 Hudson Hornet. Unfortunately, I’m down with that sentiment. Father Time has an insidious way of making crawling around under, bending down and over, or just trying to eyeball small details a tough row to hoe as the age odometer continually advances. It’s not all gloom and doom, of course; time marches on, and everyone needs to adjust. Anyway, today’s tip, courtesy of Curvette, is a nice find for more than one reason, so let’s give this old Hornet a proper review. Skagit County, Washington, is where you’ll find it, and it’s available here on craigslist for $9,500.

Hudson and Nash had the urge to merge in 1954, thus creating the new American Motors Corporation. As a result, 1954 marks the end of true Hudson independence, with later models being based on Nash designs. Also gone after ’54 was Hudson’s famous “step-down” design as well as its iconic “Twin-H” powerplant, though the basic 308 CI, in-line six-cylinder engine continued – the times, they were a changin’. The Hornet, available in two or four-door body styles, generated about 24K copies in ’54 – about a 3K unit reduction from the previous year. This example has a faded and well-used look about it, though the seller claims it has only experienced about 100 miles of use in the last twenty-five years. The seller adds, “Always garaged… Great belly pan,” that pan reference is a nod to the step-down floor that resides between the frame rails as opposed to being placed on top. All in all, this car appears to sound with no evidence of rot or crash damage. I’m not sure about the painted-on fender flags. I tried to research what they represent and turned up zilch. They are the same pattern as the Bahamian flag, but the colors are wrong; anyone have an idea?

Famed for its NASCAR performance, this Hudson is powered by a 170 gross HP, “Twin H-Power” dual-carburetor, 308 CI, inline six-cylinder engine paired with a Hydramatic automatic transmission. The seller states, “Engine runs well,” and adds, “…carburetors rebuilt, new master and wheel cylinders, drums turned, new exhaust, new manifold gasket.”

The interior, which appears to be original, is in pretty fair condition. The driver’s side of the front bench seat is stained, and there is some material degradation, but the entire environment is in better shape than I would have guessed. The lack of carpet validates the seller’s claim about the floor pan, and the chrome-enhanced instrument panel is perfectly representative of a car from this era – it’s an attention getter!

OK, this one’s a postwar car, but my thought is that many fifties models that are not either Baby Birds or Tri-Five Chevies will, or already are, suffering the fate of late prewar cars. The market for this ’54 Hudson Hornet? Probably limited, though there are Hudson aficionados who may be attracted to this claimed 96 K-mile example, the Twin H-Power feature is a draw. Anyway, what’s your thought on that matter?