This 1940 Chevrolet Master Deluxe is in pretty good shape
for its age, and has considerably less structuralrotthan
the young whippersnapper next to it.Isee ahuge number
of Triumph TR7s in US salvage yards. But then that’s
probably not surprising, considering that 88,000 of them
were exported, the lion’ssharecrossing the Atlantic.This 1950 Mercury was one
of ahandful ofrareclassicsI
found at Doug’sAuto Parts of
Marshall, Minnesota.Chrysler only built 17,719 Imperials in 1960, making this New Mexico junkyard
resident quiteararity.Bille das“America’ smost carefully built car,” after
rollin goff the line it would have visited 32 quality control stations, wherea
total of 600 tests would have been performed. One of the morestringent ones
was the water test, whereitwas subjected to the equivalent of 252 inches
per hour of rainfall. It may have passed withflying colours 59 years ago, but it
would beadiffe rent story today with this missingrear window!Oakleaf Old Cars and Crushing of
Hartford,South Dakota, is my kind of
yard–friendly owners, and 15 acres
of cars spanning close to 100 years
to explore. In addition torestoration
projects, it hasahuge selection of
parts vehicles, like this FordRanchero.
The 1958 Rancherowasn’tasales
success, thanks to Ford’sill-fat ed
attempt to copy the Thunderbird’s
styling. The quad headlamps just never
looked right.
AlateThirties Fordisbeingused as an ornament outside a
chain hotel in Blanding, Utah.Since photographingthis Texan 1953
Chevrolet sedan delivery,Iamtold that it has
been purchased. Its new owner apparently
has plans torestore it to its original condition,
which makesarefreshing change,
considering how popular they arewith
customisers.classic-american.com 107