Vintage Rod: 1936 Ford 5-Window Coupe

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In it’s prime, this 1936 Ford five-window coupe hot rod pictured above must have been one of the coolest cars around. With deep-dish aluminum slotted mag wheels, a “Corvette” V-8 and “big-n-little” tires it carried some serious street cred! We’re told the picture above was taken over 30 years ago. Now, after being owned by only two families all its life, the seemingly well-preserved car is up for sale here on craigslist in Santa Barbara, California with an asking price of $16,995. Thanks to Ikey H. for steering us to this vintage find!

We’re not told exactly when the car was first turned into a hot rod, but the seller does state that the current engine was first installed in June of 1966. Wow! The body looks remarkably solid, but strangely the seller provides few details and they “haven’t put in the time to check out the vehicle’s condition.” I think that’s a lot of money to be asking for a car you can’t be bothered to check out further.

 

I’m guessing the color on the bottom of the trunk lid was the color of the completed hot rod, but it looks like the paint has been partially sanded off at some point. I was trying to decide if the body had been chopped or channeled at all and I couldn’t decide. Can any of you tell? If so, it’s pretty subtle.

Using this shot as a gude, it appears that the body is in pretty nice shape; again, take a look before proceeding (which the seller says they will let you do if you send them an email). I wonder if the chrome is just dirty or pitted?

Obviously a custom job, the pleated interior is presumably vinyl. While it was nicely done for the time, it’s starting to show it’s age near the edges of panels. Would you leave it alone or start over?

The dash is another area where the age of the work done to the car is showing. It looks fine from a distance, but if you look at the close-up shots, the paint finish has many cracks and flaws. Again, this becomes a question of preservation of history versus state of appearance. It’s one thing if the car were remaining in the family, or had some great historical significance, but how do you feel about preserving someone else’s history? As a side note, I found out through research that Hawk tachometers from the 60s were well-thought of; even Mario Andretti used them!

The seller states that they are sure the car no longer runs, and since it’s been stored for at least 20 years, whoever ends up with it will have to be careful with their preparation before starting it. Perhaps the selling family knows why it was taken off the road in the first place? There are many questions to be answered about this car – do you think they are worth exploring?

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Comments

  1. Little_Cars

    ” chopped or channeled at all and I couldn’t decide?” Looks like a standard body, dimension-wise. LOL The blue color under the trunk I believe is Wedgewood blue.

    Like 6
  2. mainlymuscle

    The body looks very solid from what can be seen,not just in terms of rust,but dents and dings as well.People forget,dents can gobble up body shop hours just as quickly as rust.Picture of the driver is obviously photo shopped as there is no Marlboro in his hand .

    Like 11
  3. Joe Haska

    It is not chopped or channeled, the color would be Washington Blue, not Wedge wood. From the oldest pics, I would say the cars glory days were about 1970. From pictures, I would guess a 265 or 283 with 39 trans and early rear end a very standard sit up for that era. 36 5-window ,not as desireable as a 3-window, but for its condition, the price is not out of sight. You could get by with TLC and a few tweaks and have a nice driver. I have had many early fords with this drivetrain and they work great, not the latest and the greatest, but fun.

    Like 12
  4. Joe Haska

    It is not chopped or channeled, the color would be Washington Blue, not Wedge wood. From the oldest pics, I would say the cars glory days were about 1970. From pictures, I would guess a 265 or 283 with 39 trans and early rear end, a very standard sit up for that era. 36 5-window ,not as desireable as a 3-window, but for its condition, the price is not out of sight. You could get by with TLC and a few tweaks and have a nice driver. I have had many early fords with this drivetrain and they work great, not the latest and the greatest, but fun.

    Like 2
  5. jerry z

    The price seems worth the investment in buying the car. ’35 and ’36 Fords are the redheaded step child of that decade even though they are good looking cars. It has that late 60’s early 70’s vibe and I like it!

    Like 3
  6. Benjy58

    The color is Washington Blue and the car is nice, it ticks all the buttons. I would see if it turns over by hand. Then add some Marvel Mystery oil and let it sit while I had the gas tank flushed. Then fill the carburetor with gas and let it sit. After all that it’s time to try and start it. If all goes well it should start after that it’s time to pour serious money into it.

    Like 2
  7. Weasel

    I apologize for being on rampage today but here I go:

    The author states that it’s obvious that the interior is vinyl but this website, singlehandedly, proclaims more cars have leather than I think was possible. Why is it that this post is the vinyl post? It could actually be top grain leather as it is custom. A Dodge Dart never had leather from the factory but yet, I read about it here. Do some research journalists.

    Like 1
    • Jamie Palmer Jamie PalmerAuthor

      Weasel…I calls ’em like I sees ’em. Perhaps it is leather, but I looked closely at the pictures. Look at the interior shots where the edges are deteriorating — it looks like vinyl to me. I also suspect that after 20 years of dry storage leather wouldn’t look like that. However, more importantly, I don’t write all the posts here by any means, and I DO do my research (no one is perfect, certainly, and I do make errors, which I acknowledge when pointed out politely) so rather than attacking me specifically, why not do YOUR research and read my other posts first.

      Like 25
      • Weasel

        Attack??? America has gone down a strange back alley road. I think there’s a witty joke about ones skin like leather or vinyl here somewhere. But, I digress. Nothing but duckies and butterflies from Weasel from now on. I’ll comply.

        Jamie, I’m truly sorry for attacking you.

        Now it’s time to go to my essential job at the Jiffy Lube.

        Like 8
      • Jamie Palmer Jamie PalmerAuthor

        Thank you for the apology. And the first thumbs up is from me in case you are wondering about the sincerity.

        I also apologize for the strength of my response.

        Like 5
      • stillrunners

        Naugahyde was a choice as well back when………

        Like 6
      • wizzy

        @Stillrunners. Naugahyde is a brand name and IS vinyl.

        Like 2
  8. Ikeyheyman

    Hard to fake the period hot rod look and get away with it, so buy this and you’ll be one cool cat!

    Like 6
  9. ruxvette

    Vinyl upholstery? Jaime, that is genuine Naugahyde, from the elusive “Naugas” generally found just across our southern border.
    More seriously, that appears to be a gem. True 1960’s hot rod on a budget. Pulled the flattie and put in a 283 (valve covers look ’57-59) bolted to original 3 speed with an Honest Charlie adapter. Maybe an Olds rear end. Slap on some Ansen mags. Boogie south to Tijuana for an upholstery job (save on the back seat area and just cover a deck).
    Very cool, period correct, car.

    Like 23
  10. TortMember

    Looking at this 36 coupe brings me back to the sixties. It is so period correct I would repaint it the same color and though not a fan of the slotted wheels even back tgen I wouldn’t change a thing. Driving it would sure bring back memories for a lot of us old hot rodders.

    Like 7
  11. Chuck

    Y’all can stop arguin and bring nasty now. The item has been deleted by the seller in craigslist

    Like 0
  12. Bob McK

    I would have loved to own this when I was young. Nothing has changed, I would love to own it today!

    Like 1
  13. stillrunners

    Looks like an auto transmission by the look of the shifter….let me look a little better……

    Like 0

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