1957 Ford Thunderbird Covertible W 3sp Od In Vg Codition on 2040-cars

Offered here is a 1957 Ford Thunderbird Convertible in VG Condition. This was my grandfathers car. He bought it new in 1957. There is a Wilmington newspaper under the mat in the trunk dated Nov. 8, 1957. He probably put that in there the day that he got the car. My mom said that he bought it late in the model year, so the paper date would make sense. She also told me that another person had purchased the car earlier that year, but had returned it after a few weeks because it was too small. That's when my grandfather bought it. I can't confirm this story though. I purchased the car form his estate when he died in 1975. I've had the car 38 years. He told me that it had 250000 miles on it but I really can't confirm this number. It sounds high. I've driven it 24000 miles since I got it. The car has current DE inspection and this is the original tag. I've done a number of things over the years to keep it going. I installed a new 3 core radiator (I think I still have the old one), new shocks, brake shoes and wheel cylinders, spark plugs, carb gaskets, new stainless steel mufflers and pipes and I rebuilt the starter motor. I bought a hard top for it, but I never really liked it, it made the car look really black. I sold that a couple of years ago. The rag top is much classier IMO. The top on it now was on it when I got it. It's shot. I believe that my grandfather may have had some repairs done on the front suspension. It's pretty tight with no shimmies. A few years after I got the car, I had it up to 100 mph. It walked right up there with ease, no vibs or shimmies. The engine is in great condition, no knocks, taps or smoke. The rear main is leaking though and the clutch is original so it's weak and soaked with oil. Needs to be replaced. Oil pressure is 35 hot idle, 45 running. The rear is perfect but the trans moans when you let off the gas in 1st gear. It doesn't pop out though, so I think it needs some minor attention. 2nd and 3rd are good, synchronizers are still pretty good too. The OD unit is stuck in low. This worked fine until a couple of years ago. I let the car sit so much, 2 years at a time sometimes, I think that the OD has just gotten stuck and needs to be freed up to work. The OD is like a 4th gear, really takes you up to cruising speed quickly . I've taken pics of the rusted areas on the car. The fender wells by the engine on both sides are rusted near the top. I wouldn't remove them though, just get a good body man to weld in a couple of small panels and blend them in . The air tubes under the fenders are also rusted. I believe that you can get new ones to put in from one of the T-Bird books. The rockers are solid inside and out on both sides, but the floor supports just in front of the rear wheels have some rust out. Again, this is minor work that a good body man can make like new pretty easily. Both doors, door bottoms, all of the flooring, the trunk deck and tire well are solid. The back half of the car was repainted when I was in high school. My mom told me that a dump truck had run into my grandfather at a red light in town. It broke both of the tail lights and rims. I also remember a small rust hole about the size of a quarter on each rocker right in front of the rear wheel. I think that my grandfather had all of this corrected with the re-paint. I've looked inside of the trunk to see for any repairs. There's no wrinkle or crinkles anywhere from the hit, it looks all original so think that it just broke the lights.  That's all that I can think of. Come out and take a look. I'm sure that you'll like it. The car is complete and essentially original. It's a fun ride and can really be made nice for a little bit of money.

Steve 610-470-4754