Some cars wear their history quietly, and this 1939 Ford Standard 2-Door Coupe is one of them. Offered out of Whidbey Island with a clean title, this prewar Ford has reportedly been stored for roughly 50 years, emerging now as a solid, honest project for someone ready to bring a classic back to life. You can see it here on craigslist, thanks for the tip Tony Primo!
According to the listing, the car shows about 70,000 miles and is powered by a flathead V8, backed by a manual transmission driving the rear wheels. That combination alone places it squarely in the sweet spot for traditional hot rodders and restorers alike. Whether the goal is a faithful restoration, a period-correct cruiser, or the foundation for a traditional build, this Ford offers the right bones to start with.
The seller describes the body and frame as solid, which is often the biggest hurdle with cars that have been off the road for decades. Long-term storage can be a blessing or a curse, but in this case it appears to have preserved the car rather than consumed it. While the condition is listed as “fair,” that’s often exactly where experienced enthusiasts want to begin—untouched enough to assess honestly, without layers of questionable repairs hiding underneath.
Being a Standard model, this coupe represents the more restrained side of Ford’s late-1930s lineup. These cars still carried elegant prewar styling, but without unnecessary excess. The proportions are right, the lines are clean, and the two-door coupe body remains one of the most desirable shapes of the era. It’s no surprise these have long been favorites among builders who appreciate timeless design.
The listing keeps things refreshingly simple. There are no grand claims of recent mechanical work or road readiness—just a straightforward statement that the car has been stored for decades and is ready for its next chapter. That kind of honesty is often what makes a project appealing. There’s no guessing about what’s been done or undone; the next owner can approach it on their own terms.
With its clean title, intact drivetrain, and solid structure, this Ford represents an increasingly rare opportunity to start with a genuine prewar coupe that hasn’t been over-restored, heavily modified, or parted out. Cars like this don’t show up every day, especially ones that have survived quietly for half a century.
Whether you envision it returning to the road as a stock survivor, a traditional flathead-powered hot rod, or something in between, this 1939 Ford Standard Coupe offers a compelling foundation. The real question is simple: how would you bring it back?
First of all it is a 38 Std Coupe, all Coupes have 2-doors, it is not a 2-door coupe. Next the 38 was not a great year for Ford. 38 Fords have just not been the most sought after of 30 era cars. The asking price for this car is way too much to make it a viable candidate for a restoration or a modified car. I know that is not a favorable comment. However, lf you look at the sales history of this year and model it is simply true.
People may not like your comment, but it’s true. All but the most desirable makes and models of cars prior to the mid-1950’s are dropping in price. At this point in time, buying a basket case doesn’t make a lot of sense.
Steve R
.And part of the reason for that “not a great year” was the styling of 1938. I’ve always considered it butt ugly, and one of the worst designs ever. I like the 1939 (I had 2 of them), and the 1936 (had 2 of those also), The 1937 was never to my liking particularly, but it did introduce new designing standards from 1936, and it is important from that standpoint. Then, they ruined things in 1938. My opinion.
Joe Haska’s information is exactly why I subscribe to this site. While there are always dreams of what might have been or could be, honest evaluations by informed collectors such as Joe keep the wheels rolling straight and reality set in. Thanks, Joe!
This is definitely a 1939 Std Coupe — dead give away is the grille and hood side profile (short vents at the rear of the side panels) — Google for pics of the differences
Well, I did search for both 38 & 39, and it most definitely looks like a 38! I sorta remember 39s looking very close to the 40s, back when I built AMT models! 38s have headlights inboard of the fenders, 39 are in the fenders. Plus the 38 sweptback grill.
The thing people need to understand (or seemingly refuse to accept), is that the “old car” market IS changing. Project cars like this are not worth what they were 10-20 years ago. A major reason for that, is the cost of restoration has skyrocketed! Even if you can do the majority of the work yourself, the cost of parts has gone up tremendously. The other factor is that the buyers for these cars are getting older (very few younger guys are into ’30’s-’40’s cars). I’ve been building hot rods for nearly 50 years and a nice clean starter coupe like this would’ve brought maybe $10K…in 1990!!!
’39 standards had ’38 front sheet metal, just as ’40 standards had 39 fronts.
In the late sixties, a young high school kid would drool over one of these, to buy it for maybe $100 and turn it into his personal hot-rod. Those days are long gone especially considering the asking price of this car now, nobody but a collector could afford or would even want it. Personally, I’d buy it to get it functional again but I’d have to look at it first. It’s not that far from me either!
For as much as the asking price is…at least put some effort into it. Pull it outside and take some decent photos.
I agree. Using the pictures provided, I can almost see what the whole car looks like. Or, are they just selling the front half?
And 38 still had mechanical brakes if I recall right. Plus some better pictures are needed.
This is a 1939 standard, as the ad states, that carries over many (not all) of the grille characteristics of the 1938 car, thus should have hydraulic brakes. It is a coupe, so more desirable to some (not all), but not likely to sell at the asking price.
really should have made a better effort to entice buyers by getting out of where it sits and more pics. its C/L they give you 24 pics. i agree with everybody else the price is too high for what it is and needs. at least it’s a flathead v8
Thanks, Steve and Drew for your vote of confidence in my opinion.
I’ll 3rd that.
I was all set thinking get this thing running and safe for the road and then drive it! But reality bites in the first comment. And I hadn’t even looked at the price in the ad yet. Too far away too.
Thanks Joe.
As you rightly point out, Dave, the ’39 Standard is a lesser carry-over from the ’38 Deluxe (the ’38 Standard is a warmed-over ’37, an entirely different body). Ford continued this trend — of using a down-trimmed version of the previous year’s Deluxe as the current year’s Standard, right through 1940. But this one isn’t entirely unmodified. That steering wheel, for example, is later (possibly 1942-’48?), and the Standard never had a horn ring. The 1938 Deluxe had a banjo steering wheel with a horn ring, I know. The dashboard here is just like that in the ’38 Deluxe. Most of these Standards had one tail-light, and a windshield wiper only on the driver’s side. But this one has two, like a Deluxe. We aren’t shown this car’s rear, so we don’t know if it has one tail-lamp, or two. What would concern me, if it were running, is, if this one has the small 60 hp flathead. Remember those? My mother’s cousin, who was a school-teacher, drove a 1940 Ford Standard for 21 years. The front resembled a ’39 Deluxe, but the ’40 Standard did have the new chevron-style tail lamps of 1940 (just one of them on the left rear fender, in her case). But her ’40 Standard had that little economy 60 hp flathead — and it could barely get out of its own way! In 1961, having driven the black Ford ever since 1940, she traded it in for a new light blue Volkswagen (no radio, of course!). Cousin Betty had plenty of money — she simply stressed frugality into a personal art-form and lived a “minimalist” life — in Greenwich, Connecticut, of all places! As to my personal opinion: I consider the 1938 Ford Deluxe — either the Fordor sedan or the Woody station wagon — to be one of the most beautiful high points in the late 1930s art deco automobilia (be sure to include the 1939 Buick with that). The 1939 Ford ruined that noble ’38 nose! And I DESPISE COUPES!!! But I would drive a 1938 Ford Deluxe or a 1939 Buick Century, either one in sedan form, for their looks alone, with swelling pride! — but NO COUPES, PLEASE!
Nice enough, but one could have that solid survivor turn key 38 Mercury on Hemmings for $20k! A better value in my book, unless you’re going to rod it…
The ‘39 STD pretty much incorporated all the improvements over the ‘38 Deluxe. The engine was definitely a 24 Stud, something that morphed into being during the ‘38 campaign.
A ‘39 generator is actually a little hard to come by. First year for a 2-brush version with a full regulator, but the fan still mounted on the armature shaft. It seems to me that the ‘39 Deluxe mounted the fan on the crankshaft.
Yes, I would love to have a project like this. It would be close to bone stock but that’s me…
I can’t tell by the pictures but is this a 60HP V8?
This definitely isn’t a ‘38 Standard. I like the ‘38 standard, much like the ‘37 with a slightly different grill and hood sides. This could be the 38 Deluxe or 39 Standard.
Brian T: This definitely is a 1939 Standard — you are correct. And you are also correct in that the 1938 Standard is basically a thinly disguised 1937, with the 1937 body. Ford had an entirely new body for 1938 (used in the Deluxe only), and that new body continued through 1939 and 1940, in both their Deluxe and Standard models. This is not the 1938 Deluxe (although it has essentially the same dashboard, a bit less brightly trimmed). The grille was slightly modified (down-graded in my opinion) from the 1938 Deluxe, as you can see, if you compare the two. I was around for these cars, so I remember the year-to-year changes and model distinctions. Admittedly, I am less secure in my knowledge of cars after about 1962 — I had too many other things to keep track of, by then. But my memory does play tricks on me sometimes. I know what a 1941 DeSoto looks like. But I also recollect a 1941 DeSoto which appeared to be a fancier version based on the 1941 Plymouth. Am I remembering a dream from years ago? Was there a Canadian DeSoto based on the U.S. Plymouth but upscale from it? Does anyone remember this? That “heart”-shaped grille is the feature I remember, but with more elegant accents around it on the DeSoto, than on the Plymouth. I seem also to remember a 1940 DeSoto that resembled the 1940 Plymouth (much like the 1941, but without the grille “enclosed” on its sides). Am I “losing it” in my old age?
To Brian T: This definitely is a 1939 Standard — you are correct. And you are also correct in that the 1938 Standard is basically a thinly disguised 1937, with the 1937 body. Ford had an entirely new body for 1938 (used in the Deluxe only), and that new body continued through 1939 and 1940, in both their Deluxe and Standard models. This is not the 1938 Deluxe (although it has essentially the same dashboard, a bit less brightly trimmed). The grille was slightly modified (down-graded in my opinion) from the 1938 Deluxe, as you can see, if you compare the two. I was around for these cars, so I remember the year-to-year changes and model distinctions. Admittedly, I am less secure in my knowledge of cars after about 1962 — I had too many other things to keep track of, by then. But my memory does play tricks on me sometimes. I know what a 1941 DeSoto looks like. But I also recollect a 1941 DeSoto which appeared to be a fancier version based on the 1941 Plymouth. Am I remembering a dream from years ago? Was there a Canadian DeSoto based on the U.S. Plymouth but upscale from it? Does anyone remember this? That “heart”-shaped grille is the feature I remember, but with more elegant accents around it on the DeSoto, as well as more trim at the tail-lights, than on the Plymouth. I seem also to remember a 1940 DeSoto that resembled the 1940 Plymouth (much like the 1941, but without the grille “enclosed” on its sides). Am I “losing it” in my old age?
I would love to have it.
But; the price is way to high.
For where it is; the cost of transport is beyond what it is worth.
One would be better off making it operational where it sits and drive it home.
No Semis taking that ferry.
I did that with a 46 Chevy panel in 11.
I packed my wives car with all the tools and supplies, drove it home 2 hours away.
As I went through it, the guy asked; Are you buying it?
I wouldn’t be doing this if I hadn’t planned on it.
I got the cash!
We were all happy.
I left Harry stock and original as purchased.