Fun Barn find

[Bubba1]

Actually I've known about this car for many years, its a 1931 Model A, has been sitting inside a rickety barn since 1958. Car is totally complete. The tires actually still hold air. It was just moved to a nicer barn. It's the first time she's seen daylight in over 50 years. Officially it's still one owner car, now owned by the grandson, who is a close family friend. I'm not sure what he plans to do with her. He also owns an old Hudson, which runs. Thought Id share some fun pictures...

















Sorry, no K&N filter. Cold air intake?, well, when the temperature gets cold enough, you could call it that... .

[snwbrdr435]

That thing is awesome I want one.

[Jesda]

WHOA!! Would love to see progress pics

[Solar_Runner]

The first thing that I thought of was a nice fedora and Thompson sub machine gun....

[Bubba1]

WHOA!! Would love to see progress pics

Yeah, me too, but he hasn't decided if he's gonna restore it.

[MellowZ32]

this thread made me smile!

nice palate cleanser after reading nala's train wreck.

[LongBeachCoupe]

Thats rusty gold man!

[Gaijin]

WOW that is awesome

[nissangirl74]

[s0m3th1ngAZ]

Thats rusty gold man!

Rust? That's patina! Clean it up, get it running, and leave it. Barn finds are increasing in value by the truckload for the simple fact that they are so original.I mean a bugatti that sat at the bottom of a lake for 70 years made close to 250k...

[Jesda]

It would be kind of awesome to get it running, clean it a little bit, and drive it around as is... daily!

[troskinatior]

Rat Rod

JK

[PoorManQ45]

Awesome find!

I mean a bugatti that sat at the bottom of a lake for 70 years made close to 250k...

It's in better shape then this:

[AZhitman]

DO WANT.

And scorched is 100% right - Get it mechanically sound, clean it up, and DRIVE it.

Hell, I'd rock that thing to work on Fridays.

[Travisty]

DO WANT.

And scorched is 100% right - Get it mechanically sound, clean it up, and DRIVE it.

Hell, I'd rock that thing to work on Fridays.

+1!Driving it with a top hat is mandatory though.

[sldewyz]

+1!Driving it with a top hat is mandatory though.

so true. id rock it all the time with it as it sat (assuming it ran fine) all i would do is throw some new white walls on it and call it a day.

the simplicity of the engine bay is almost the sexiest thing about it.

[Jesda]

A KITTY!!!!!!

Its amazing how well the Model A design has aged. The relationship between body height and greenhouse area look sufficiently modern. Same goes for the hood length and shape. Its eight decades old, but it still looks clean and smooth. It doesn't look like a modified horse carriage the way the Model T does. It looks like a proper car.

[dusred]

Clean her up and lets get sommore pics!

The thing should be worth a fortune.

What is the story behind it? Who would buy a car, use it for a while, and then park it for 5 decades?. . . is it up for re-possession? Hope the bank isn't still in business.

[dusred]

Oh, and get your p**** out of the car. It will only cause a bad smell and tear up the interior.

[MinisterofDOOM]

That's really cool. There appears to be a cat living in it.

Thats rusty gold man!

Gold can't rust. Rust is ferrous oxide. Gold is not iron. Gold tarnishes when oxidized.

He also owns an old Hudson, which runs.

A few months ago I was passed by a beautifully restored Hornet on the highway. Definitely a neat sight.

[Jesda]

Clean her up and lets get sommore pics!

The thing should be worth a fortune.

What is the story behind it? Who would buy a car, use it for a while, and then park it for 5 decades?. . . is it up for re-possession? Hope the bank isn't still in business.

I can totally see that happening. Someone sells their car on a show like Pawn Stars, then some jerkoff at Citibank finds some obscure record showing that a bank that Citibank bought that that bank bought that that bank bought that that bank bought that that bank bought that that bank bought went bust in 1935 and was in the process of repossessing it before their building caught fire and the paperwork was lost.

[dusred]

[LongBeachCoupe]

Does it have the thermostat from the front emblem thingie?

[Bubba1]

Clean her up and lets get sommore pics!

The thing should be worth a fortune.

What is the story behind it? Who would buy a car, use it for a while, and then park it for 5 decades?. . . is it up for re-possession? Hope the bank isn't still in business.

There's really not much to the story. My friend owns the farm, recently given to him by his retired father, who was a local college professor in addition to owning farms. I believe the Model A was purchased new by his grandfather who gave it to my friends father upon retirement, a notorious pack rat. My friends father has since retired and it now belongs to my friend. It was driven into that little barn in 1958, put on jacks and stored properly.

It should fire up without too much hassle. It's got maybe 25K miles on it. The cat is one of his more social barn cats, but the car was closed up so no animals had access to the interior. In hindsight, they should have put a cover on it. The little storage shed has been slowly deteriorating over the last 50 years (accelerated by the heavy snow this winter), so he decided to move her to one of the other barns before it collapsed.

I've thought a few times about taking it off his hands and restoring it, but my wife has no interest in my having more cars. It really is an elegant simple vehicle. You just don't find many cars that look that nice from every angle.

I don't think my friend's planning to do anything with her in the near future. I might talk more seriously with him about it when I retire and get out of the racing stuff.

As far as value, Model A's are popular and plentiful so it's not highly valuable, which adds to their appeal.

Convertibles tend to be more coveted than the 4 door sedans. But you can get a fixed up presentable running model A for about $15K these days.

[Bubba1]

Does it have the thermostat from the front emblem thingie?

He might have it somewhere, but it doesnt appear to be on it now. His barns are pretty full of old stuff..

[AZhitman]

I've thought a few times about taking it off his hands and restoring it, but my wife has no interest in my having more cars. It really is an elegant simple vehicle. You just don't find many cars that look that nice from every angle.

I don't think my friend's planning to do anything with her in the near future. I might talk more seriously with him about it when I retire and get out of the racing stuff.

Don't wait - You'll regret it.

Get it and store it if you must. Besides, you're almost retirement age anyway.

[Bubba1]

Don't wait - You'll regret it.

Get it and store it if you must. Besides, you're almost retirement age anyway.

[fiznowler]

That thing is awesome and looks to be in pretty good shape. My cousin had one of those giant old hudson sedans. I swear you could seat 4 people side by side comfortably in the back they are so wide. I always wanted to see him restore it but he sold it when he moved to Cali.

[Bubba1]

That thing is awesome and looks to be in pretty good shape. My cousin had one of those giant old hudson sedans. I swear you could seat 4 people side by side comfortably in the back they are so wide. I always wanted to see him restore it but he sold it when he moved to Cali.

I agree. those big ol' Hudsons are very cool cars. My friend's is a 4 door sedan with suicide doors. I'll have to snap a couple of pics of it next time I visit his farm.

[LongBeachCoupe]

Suicide doors are an instant WIN in my book