There's no better month than July for owning a convertible. And there's nothing better than a cruise with the top down on a warm summer night. What better way to experience this than with a convertible like this month's feature car. Randy Bilton is the proud owner of this 1969 Parisienne convertible. What makes Randy's Parisienne so unique is the option list (or that thereof). Randy tells us the rest:

The story of this car is like a two-branch creek that flows together to create a river

My grandfathers house had an attached garage added on. When you entered the breezeway the parking area was elevated above the walkway floor.

When I first saw that new 1969 Grande Parisienne, I was 4.

Because of the elevation, that car towered above me with my face reflecting in the stainless-steel hubcaps. I was not allowed on the parking area but of course, I had to look.

That car would become my fathers car in 76 then in 1983 I begged him to not scrap it and let me fix it up. The hours were long but I had nothing to do anyways so a year later a heavily patched freshly painted first car hit the road.

While it looked good, it was too worn out. I did dive it on and off for 4 years.

In 1987, I landed a new job with Ford of Canada at St Thomas where my dad worked.

When my 90 days were up I bought a brand new 87 Thunderbird and 10 hour shifts meant I had no time for anything else. The Grande Parisienne went to be stored behind a body shop in a field and forgotten. The next spring the property was to be developed so body shop helped me sell the car and that was end of the car as I knew it.

Back to 1969, In Toronto.

A Lions Club decided to do a fund raiser. My guess is that they ordered something that would to appeal to almost everyone.   A 1969 Red Parisienne Convertible!

They must have worked with the dealer to keep the costs down and for all we know, Old Mill may have donated the car completely.

The result is a convertible with only two options, floor mats and white walls.

Without thinking much about it, A lady buys a 50-cent ticket on the car and wins.

When I bought the car, the family told me she was a real fireball and would surprise people as she was not 5 feet tall. 

This might explain why this car may have had been upgraded to power steering and brakes right from new. I could see her marching the car back to the dealer and demanding her free car be drive-able for her.

She had a cottage in Port Colborne Ontario where in the basement was the garage and that is where the car lived most of its life. 

This is where I met the car.

In 2012 my brothers neighbour told him of the estate sale to clear the cottage and he went to get two lamps. When he found out about the car he called me immediately.

At the same time, Canadian Poncho Members were pondering the upcoming auction.

http://canadianponcho.activeboard.com/mobile.spark?p=topic&topic=51324663

Ford St Thomas had Closed and I had just found out I has heading to Ford Oakville.

With a secure job I could fall in love again.

With long work hours and commuting there hasnt been much time for the car.

Now lets flash ahead to today and the future of me and this car.

I cant believe I have owned this car for almost 5 years.

I have met some great people here at Canadian Poncho and I am marveled at the help that is available from this group of experts.

There is going to be a change with me and this car and I thank Todd for the chance to tell you about this major news.

Now,

After 30 years with Ford of Canada, I have chosen to take the early retirement package and spend more time with my wife, daughter and of course my cars.

I will still need to work but just not 150 kms from home!

I want to take this time to thank Ford for not turning its back on workers in the London area.

It was hard to believe 10 years ago but anyone who stayed with Ford got to, or will get to finish there.

I met some good people at Oakville but St Thomas had more Car Guys

Back to the car.

The car looks great in pictures but you dont see the bubbles or the scratches

The 2006 body job included the fusion of the drivers fender to the rocker panel and there is a serious paint/primer fault on the drivers door.

This car will be slowly disassembled this fall and sent to a local body shop to correct some of the issues sometime in 2018.

As much as I love the colour, I feel it should be put back to the original red.

I have decided to leave the engine bay and the trunk original, imperfections included.

The car will hopefully debut  on its 50th birthday in March of 2019