According to an interesting story provided by the seller, this 1940 Ford Tudor used to run moonshine in Tennessee back in the day. At one point it ended up in Connecticut where the original Ford flathead engine was replaced with a short-block Chevy V8, but neither motor is in the mix today. From a garage in Milford, Connecticut, this Ford (likely a “business coupe”) will need a complete restoration and the seller believes it’s solid enough to justify the work and expense. From a listing here on craigslist, you can trailer it home for $4,500. Thanks for the cool tip, Henry Reining!

Sources indicate that more than 98,500 Ford coupes (aka Tudor) were built in 1940, of which two-thirds were business coupes. They were sold primarily to traveling salespeople who traded a back seat for additional storage space for all their wares (Fuller Brush and the like – remember them?).

From what can tell, this Ford has been off the road for more than 60 years. It was brought in for service to a shop in Bridgeport in the late 1950s where the garage owner noted a large steel tank in the back with hoses, vents, and a large pipe with a ball valve – said to be a sign of a moonshine runner.

This Ford is a roller, having likely not moved on its own for decades. Though a lot of primer is present (and green paint under that), the seller says the body is solid and the interior is complete yet needs work to be viable again. A transmission will go with the sale, but there’s no indication it’s original to the Ford (a “3-on-the-tree” manual). As the auto has been sitting for so long, the title went missing. It’s being sold by the widow of the former owner (could he be the driver that outran the law with some illegal hooch in tow?).