1949 Chrysler Windsor

[GlennCraven]

Oh well heck. Now this happens.

 

 

I'm searching far and wide (within a five- or six-state region) for a parts car for that '55 DeSoto Firedome, just in case I decide on it. Looking for a grille, really, because those are so pricey.

 

And I find this 1955 Fireflite in undeniably better condition, albeit also minus engine and trans. The Firedome does have a few things this car lacks, like good taillight lenses, better-functioning door handles, etc., which might suggest a two-to-make-one idea.

 

The tragic story behind this Avon blue Fireflight: Until a month or so ago it was tagged and running on what presumably was its original 291 V8. This seller -- who owns a speed shop -- bought it just for the vintage Hemi. His wife, who showed the car because her husband was away, said his $1,500 asking price for the body is very open to negotiation because otherwise he's just gonna drag it to the crusher. (I presume they're smart enough to pull the grille first, but who knows?)

 

The wife said, "He's always wanted an engine like that."

 

I asked what he intended to do with it.

 

"Probably put it in a Metro," she said, waving toward the rows of old Nash Metropolitans in various states of restorable- to parts-car status nearby. The guy has about 20 of them. "He does stuff like that."

 

He also works on some nice-looking muscle cars of the 1960s, like a client's 1969 GTO and another customer's 1964 El Camino nearby. And from his website he's built a Batmobile-like thing, too.

 

I should have taken a picture of a slip of paper she pulled from the Fireflite's glovebox. She said it was what they got "from the last owner," who may have been a short-term owner of a car otherwise owned by a single family for a very long time. I'm sure the slip from the Oklahoma DMV said "Actual purchase price: $400."

 

I dunno if that's what this guy bought it for, or if the person who sold it to him got it from an older person, an estate, whatever, for $400 and flipped it to the mechanic. I figure he couldn't have paid much for the car, though, or he wouldn't be separating the engine from a mostly unmolested original car (I think that's all-original paint, for example), and he wouldn't be so quick to just crush what's left.

 

Anyway, here's the link to my album for this 1955 Fireflite.

 

I'm super-tempted to try landing both DeSotos for $1,000 or less, using the black/green car for original parts to build the Fireflite in the short term, but rodding (or restoring) the Firedome in the distant future and not just plundering it and casting it away. It's body wouldn't donate much to the Fireflite except a bit of chrome, stainless and plastic. The rolling shell would likely remain very intact.

 

Yet I'm also still stoked about the 1949 Windsor. The good news is, none of them seem to be going anywhere anytime soon. I'm officially the only person to look at these two DeSotos in over a month of both being for sale.

 

Again, thoughts from you weary onlookers are welcome.

Edited June 19, 2013 by GlennCraven

[Young Ed]

Stop pondering and buy that blue desoto!

[Plymouthy Adams]

either fish or cut bait...lol

[Don Coatney]

Why did you not offer crusher price on the blue desoto on the spot?  What more could you be looking for?

[Plymouthy Adams]

am waiting for the "found my car" commitment thread

[_shel_ny]

That DeSoto would have followed me home

[GlennCraven]

Stop pondering and buy that blue desoto!

 

That's basically what my girlfriend said. She's not fond of the two-DeSoto option, though if I can find $300 to $400 worth of swappable parts off the second car it would be worth the price.

 

 

either fish or cut bait...lol

 

She sort of said that, too. Actually, what she said is that from her experience I have a tendency to ponder things too much and should really just commit.

 

Wonder what she means by that ... 

 

 

Why did you not offer crusher price on the blue desoto on the spot?  What more could you be looking for?

 

I really thought about it and probably should have. I don't have a trailer, so I'd have to scrounge one for anything I need to collect, but I could have made a deal and come back for it. And again, probably should have tried with the wife (potential "boss") and not the husband.

 

My girlfriend suggested offering more than scrap price -- essentially grille price plus metal price, which would still be a good discount off the asking price. That's probably the most the seller can expect to get without fooling with the car too much in parting it out; sell the grille on eBay and drag the rest to the scrapyard. (Though I don't know why he wouldn't part it out slowly, because he apparently strips and ships parts off those Metropolitans all the time and he seemed to have room to shove this DeSoto out of the driveway and let it sit behind the shop.)

 

I'm going to see about getting a trailer today and call back to make an offer somewhere in the middle. Maybe say, "If I show up with $600 and a trailer would I leave with a DeSoto?"

 

Then still seriously consider getting the other one for parts/future.

 

Also, in background here are job negotiations and decisions. The girlfriend is interviewing in several places because her current position is only guaranteed through September. So I might need to start looking for work in a place she's going, and I don't know what that place is just yet.

 

Or, I have a person who has tried to hire me away from this town since January (and a great place to move into there with a big metal shop!), but I think I scared him with my salary demand. If not that, I have a potentially better offer to stay here in town and switch careers, which would then cause my girlfriend to probably set her career path aside for a little while and stay in the area. If that happens, I'd like to make an offer on a country house very near town that has sat on the MLS for a good while (tough real estate market here) and has an even bigger shop.

 

I can trust that one DeSoto seller (the Firedome) isn't going to scrap his car, but not that this guy won't. Parting the strong original Hemi away from a solid old car suggests he has no sentiment toward the vehicle and probably wouldn't hesitate to crush it. ... I'm pretty certain the Windsor owner won't scrap that old thing, either; he'll hold onto it until it sells.

 

So -- dream outcome here -- whether I end up staying in town or going to the job that has been recruiting me, I could have shop space to store multiple vehicles. Two DeSotos would be no problem. And frankly if that Windsor sits much longer I'd be back for it, especially if my paycheck improves as much as it might.

 

Now to quickly figure out which friend or acquaintance has his trailer available in the next couple of days.

Edited June 19, 2013 by GlennCraven

[GlennCraven]

And the eBay '55 DeSoto grille went for $406.99.

[Don Coatney]

Get a triple A membership and they will tow both cars home for free as long as they are less than a hundred miles from home

[GlennCraven]

Get a triple A membership and they will tow both cars home for free as long as they are less than a hundred miles from home

 

Wow, really? Even in a situation like this? ... I never thought of that.

 

Used to have AAA, but it's been years.

[JerseyHarold]

Get a triple A membership and they will tow both cars home for free as long as they are less than a hundred miles from home

In my experience, AAA won't tow if the vehicle isn't registered.  Of course, you can get a temporary tag for it and see if that works.

[GlennCraven]

I suppose it can't be registered if it isn't running to pass an inspection, but that's a good idea for the future.

[Plymouthy Adams]

future..you got to get it in order to have a future...time to get off the pot man...commit yourself and put on your shop panties and get with it...lol

[GlennCraven]

OK, this isn't the new "commitment thread" Tim was seeking, in part because I'm perhaps only half-committed to the whole shebang. But in the past (quiet on the message board) week I have certainly made one commitment.

 

I bought the 1949 Windsor Club Coupe that was here in town.

 

I've periodically driven past the house to be sure it was still there. I did so last week on my way to an area salvage yard that is having a huge auction July 13. (Seriously huge with some very old cars, many Mopars, but really all makes of the 1940s-60s.)

 

Anyway, I drove past the house and the Windsor was gone. I had an "Oh, crap!" moment where the full realization hit me that of the two projects the one I would rather not live without was the little gray coupe.

 

I grabbed the cell phone and called the seller. I told him I'd just driven past his house on the way to the salvage yard and noticed the Windsor was gone. Had he finally sold it?

 

"No," he said. "It was just in the way so I moved it to a storage building on the far side of the property. (So he could set up an above-ground pool under the carport. Ha!) ... Why? Were you still interested."

 

Well, yeah, I admitted. I was just trying to be sure it was the project for me and see what I felt I could offer.

 

"What do you think you can go?" he asked.

 

"I could go $1,000," I said; his asking price had been $1,500.

 

He was game. So I paid him and got the title. He actually said the car is welcome to stay in his storage building until I finalize whether I'm staying here in town or moving to a new job. He'll get out of it the things that don't go with the car (its interior became "storage" for toys and other stuff) and put back in it the car-things he'd removed, like the back seat.

 

"It can stay six months or more if you need it to," he said. "It ain't in my way anymore and it's dry and safe in there."

 

Meanwhile, I'm in a bit of a conundrum because I still want the DeSoto pair even though I cracked and bought the Windsor.

 

Unfortunately, the Oklahoma speed shop that has the really solid 1955 Fireflite has started typing "THIS CAR WILL BE CRUSHED" in its Craigslist ad and I talked to the guy this weekend and I think he's serious. He started out at $1,500, came down to $1,200 in the ad and now says his bottom-dollar price is $1,000 firm.

 

He got the 291 Hemi out of it and though he says he's "not a bad guy out to destroy an old car," says he can sell the grille "for $700 or $800 at any swap meet" and can sell some small parts, dash parts, stainless, etc., for a few hundred more, then crush the rest, so why take less than $1,000? I think he may be a couple-hundred high on the grille because it has two dented teeth, but on the whole he's not far from wrong. I'd hate to see it crushed, but I could see myself becoming the guy who tries to do the right thing and gets swamped with projects, parts and rust-pets in the process!

 

If I hadn't sprung on the Windsor but had just realized it had gone into storage (hiding it a bit from other potential buyers) I'd probably already be down there in Oklahoma giving this guy the $1,000 for the Fireflite and soon buying the 1955 Firedome from its seller as a parts car and future project for a couple-hundred bucks. The Fireflite needs the Firedome's rear bumper and taillight lenses, two door handles and maybe another minor part or two that could merit the $300 or so I figure it'll cost to get the second car.

 

If somebody else wants to save the DeSotos, they're easily found on Tulsa Craigslist. The Firedome is in Tulsa and the Fireflite is in Claremore, about 45 minutes up the turnpike to the northeast.

 

Otherwise I'm going to call this speed-shop guy back. He said he'd sit on the Fireflite a month or so if he knew he'd get the $1,000 he wants. I'll probably tell him that if he gets to that strip-and-crush breaking point without finding another buyer, call me and I'll take it.

 

I don't know where I'm going or where I'll put it in the meantime, but if it's doomed otherwise, I'll take it.

Edited July 1, 2013 by GlennCraven

[frankieflathead]

I do. That's a straight desirable car with air-conditioning that would make somebody a nice daily driver.

 

Not as nice as the same car with the slant 6 in my opinion,but I am a huge slant 6 fan.

 

My plate for many years.....

 

[GlennCraven]

OK, quick update that I shared earlier this week with some fellas in chat.

 

The seller of the blue '55 DeSoto agreed not to part and crush the car during the month of July. But I had to put myself on the hook for buying it Aug. 1 if it doesn't sell to somebody else.

 

It's a very solid car and I know where you can get a '55 Firedome for some needed parts -- rear bumper some door handles and taillight lenses for sure -- and the two cars could be picked up within about an hour of one another in Oklahoma. ... Sorry, no Hemi and only one grille between them. 

[GlennCraven]

I'm off the hook for the '55 DeSoto Fireflite. The blue car sold Sunday evening, I hope to a good home.

 

Also yesterday evening, I made a deal -- pending payment and pickup within the next month -- to buy a pair of running Mopar small blocks for $150 total. The seller has been trying to unload that 1969 Plymouth Valiant 273 2-barrel with under 100k original miles for a couple of months, and recently started trying to unload a 1980 Dodge pickup 318. At one point he was down to listing each for $100 and having deals fall through on the 318 (people who only realized after the fact what shipping costs) and nobody interested in the 273 at all.

 

I told him I'd give him the $100 for the 318 if he'd throw the 273 in for $50. It took asking twice, but I think we're in agreement. ... The engines are north of Kansas City and I'll either pick them up in two weeks or four weeks as I have family events up that way July 19 and Aug. 11.

 

Obviously I don't need two engines and the 318 would be the preferred choice of most for its potential. But as I've noted in the thread, I have a soft spot for that 273 in a retro hot rod project. I figure this way if one of the two doesn't run as well as he says they do, at least maybe the other one is sound and I can drop it in and get this car to driver status sooner rather than later, while I work on its many other needs. Then I can save up some money and undertake my first-ever rebuild on the other engine either for the next project down the road or to swap out in the Windsor as the first one might be tired enough to replace by then.

 

Now to find a good deal on a decent 904 automatic and get all of these items under the same garage roof.

[GlennCraven]

Well, the seller of the 273 and 318 is yet to follow through on our agreement and post the engines as "buy it now" items so I can pay now and collect them next weekend. I've emailed him a couple of times to say I'm ready to pay, with no response.

 

(Sigh)

 

Meanwhile, the built 360 and 727 the local salvage dealer offered me for $800 installed about six weeks ago was in his large car and part auction today, minus carb, air cleaner and fan. (I posted pics of all the vehicles on-site in the eBay and external links forum earlier this week.)

 

After he tried several higher entry points without success, I stepped up at an opener of $200 and eventually bought this engine and transmission for $325 -- or $375.05 after Kansas sales tax and 8 percent buyer's premium.

 

Now the question becomes: How well does the 727 fit in a 1949 Chrysler Windsor transmission tunnel? I've read that a 904 will "fit like a glove," but how much of a shoehorn will I need for the 727?

 

[martybose]

Since both the transmissions are for small blocks, the bellhousing will be the same size, and the 727 gearcase is only slightly larger than a 904.

 

Marty

[Plymouthy Adams]

I have a 727 mounted to a 360 police interceptor in the 52 Club coupe with no issues on clearance..shifter set up and kickdown linkage will probably be more engaging of your skills than the actual placement of the tranny in the tunnel..you can always look to Randy Bouchillion of N. Chas SC for the cable kick down as he sells these, (good fellow by the way, have known him for years), of course with a bit of your own fabrication you can adapt a very common found cable from the wrecking yard into your build..also later model shift cables and levers also retrofit...just do some looking about...Mopar is easy to inter-fit things if you have an open mind and a few minutes to poke about in the wrecking yards..

[wayfarer]

Nice score on the package!

 

The 727 is only slightly bulkier than the 904 so fitment is usually a non-issue.

You definitely need the trans kick down linkage. The trans will die without it.  The oem linkage is easy to adjust, just about any FSM between 1962 and 1992 has the details. As well, you can get the needed linkage from any car/truck with an A-LA engine. The B-RB powered cars will have very different intake manifold brackets, and, the A-LA brackets are slightly different between 2-bbl and 4-bbl.

As noted, there are some aftermarket cable kits that can be had, your preference, your dollars.

[GlennCraven]

Thanks guys. Good to know the 727 will be fine.