Really like(read : LOVE) the '38 Chevy Coupes, especially the Oshawa builds.
I just sold the exact same Oshawa car to a Guy in Hagersville (big tire fire there), and have tried hopelessly to kick my own ass for selling it !
Interesting sidebar story. I knew that my '38 had existed somewhere in a garage in Peterborough, Ontario. I saw it years ago when it still had the knee action suspension (worst in the industry at the time), and it still had the old "Stovebolt" in-line 6, seized up tighter than a frog's ass. Had the old manual transmission, and was a true barn find. Had multiple owners, but it stayed covered up in an old garage. I found out who the current owner was, contacted him and asked if it was for sale, and got a one word reply,..."Never !".
Well, about 9 years after that conversation, my phone rang at 2:25 a.m., and A Guy was whispering..."Hey Man, you still want to buy the "38 Chevy ? Put $300.00 bucks in an envelope stuffed in my mailbox, and you can have it, with ownership papers. My Wife has sprung a surprise divorce on me, and I just need to get rid of some stored stuff that she doesn't know about, and never will !" I said that the money would be in his mailbox by 9:00 a.m. After all was said and done, she got the Gold Mine, and he got the shaft. Pretty big court case, none of it in his favour.
Anyways, did a frame off restoration. Frame was sandblasted, 10 coats of vinyl lacquer, 3 coats of vinyl wash sealer to finish. Put in a Mustang 11 suspension, small block engine and 400 Turbo tranny mounts to start. Put in a .060 over 355 small block with all of the tricks installed. One Hell of an engine on the dyno ! Anyways, this is the "Reader's Digest" condensed version of the long story associated with this car. Had the original Bill of Sale in the glove box, sold at Oshawa Motor Sales originally for $976.00, taxes in, out the driveway.
My biggest regret was selling it. I once had a '69 Mustang Fastback, with rear spoiler and louvers on the back window, Competition Red, white guts, Boss 302 with 4 speed and positrac rear axle. Sold it to a local Hillbilly, and 9 days later the front and rear bumpers kissed each other on the wrong side of a large maple tree. Guy got thrown clear, so he was basically O.K., but they had to use two tow trucks to unwrap it from the tree. To boot, he didn't even have insurance, so a total loss for him. Such a waste of a gorgeous car ! Man, if I could just go back in time, I would have done a whole lot of things differently, for sure !
Would love to see your '38 when it is ready for the road ! Keep me in mind please !
Do you have any pictures of your '38? I'd love to see it!
My cousin (in Calgary) has a '69 Mustang Fastback. He's had it since the mid '80s. It was 302/ three-speed (both incorrect for the car) now with date correct 302/4 speed. I'm NOT a Ford guy, but it's a beautiful BLACK car and I'd be proud to call it my own!
Several months since I started this. Sorry for the delay...
We found the frame to be in excellent condition, straight, level and perfectly square. We then began mock up, beginning with the all important ride height. Big surprise, the Mustang II crossmember was previously installed WRONG, so we had to cut it out...
That was big fun. Hours of cuttin' and grinding, beating and swearing, but we were careful and managed to salvage the crossmember.
Everybody has their own way of doing things, but whomever put this together was a butcher and a terrible welder.
So, we have some work to do. The frame is severely compromised and we need to correct the geometry. Oh, and to take a step back, we already had new NOS control arms, ball joints, bushings and strut rods, so we're fully committed to the OEM configuration and this donor crossmember.
Always loved these years of Chevy's and cars in general. Very creative use of 1965 Chevy full size tail lights on that car, i have never seen that before.
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1957 Pontiac Pathfinder Deluxe sedan restored 261 six
1974 Chevrolet Caprice Estate wagon low mileage original 400 V-8
