I can’t tell about my last old car without first mentioning my first old cars. None of my family, friends, or neighbors owned or cared about old cars. Yet, early on, I bought and read every ‘little book’ hotrod type car magazine I could get my hands on. They fit well in the open pages of my math, English, and other school books.   My dream was to own a Model A coupe and later a 1940 Ford coupe. The Model A came only months after we married as a project that took years. Like a fool, I sold the 1931 A coupe before I finished it. Our third child was already growing up and riding her trike down the sidewalk along the cul-de-sac near our next larger home with a much bigger garage. She came running home saying "the neighbor said he will sell you his old Ford for $25 daddy!" The first time I saw that metallic green 1939 Ford coupe I made it clear to the young couple who’d just moved down the block, I want that car! They both worked at the factory where I worked and the ’39 Ford was his driver.  Right off,  his young wife made it clear that John needs to get rid of that old clunker and buy a decent car of his own, like she did. They both worked different shifts in different parts of town. Personally I’d gotten another wife! 😆 Well, that old Ford coupe was a 1939, but in my mind, even better than a 1940 Ford coupe. Regularly I’d mention to John that I’d like to buy his old Ford. I'd assumed the price was $2500. I beat my daughter back down the block, didn't argue about the price, and finally had my '40, .. 😄 .. '39 Ford coupe. My two dream cars became a reality! It was disappointing to find it had a small block Chevy and Powerglide. Those dual red cherry bombs made it sound like a Flathead Ford. Minor detail, as I'd just buy a Flathead and build my dream Ford machine. I already had a SHARP aluminum dual 2-barrel intake and had my eyes on a pair of  SHARP heads. Nearly 50 years later and that little 2 barrel 307 and Powerglide is still in the '39 Ford! I’d find out  that ’39 Ford once had a hot 454 and dual quads. It was a drag race car until the owner needed money. The 454 was swapped into a 70’s Malibu and the nearly new 307 dropped into the 1939 Ford to sell it. The chrome fuel block is still on the firewall. Of course, this story is about my LAST old car. My wife and I dreamed of someday owning a red 1931 Ford convertible, a tudor phaeton to Ford people. Family, money, work and play made me forget about another Model A. I did own and drive several Model A sedans over the years. The times we brought it up about a phaeton, the cost, location, and rarity made our dream seem unlikely.   Tri-five Chevys and other vehicles seemed to follow me home and there was no room or time for a Model A. I could probably be talked into writing a short shoebox Chevy story or two. Those also involved my wife. It was great having a loving wife who also loved old cars.   Fast forward to getting old and re-retiring from sunny central Florida back to wonderful central Illinois. My wife’s health and short term  memory were getting worse, yet she often talked of another Model A Ford. Being much older, I realized I can’t get out and under an old car to do the constant adjusting, oiling, and greasing needed on a Model A. Yet, in the spring of 2020, with the help of my oldest son, I began checking Facething and local ads for a decent Model A Ford driver, any body style, any color, not far from home, and affordable. Something to get my wife and I out of the house and something to satisfy that 50 to 60 year old dream. Smarter than I used to be, 🤣 I decided I need a Model A with a few modern updates like hydraulic brakes, 12V, and a little engine that will keep up with today’s traffic. Amazingly there seemed to be millions, well hundreds, of rebuilt, reworked, even modified Model A’s of every shape and color with updated Model A engines for sale.   As before, a ready to drive Model A phaeton at an affordable price was not to be found. So, I nearly recently bought a Shay. Yes, even way back in the late 70’s we’d looked at the, then new, Shay replicas with Pinto running gear. Not bad yet not a real Model A Ford. A Florida company, I believe Glassic, also made replica Model A’s. A club member in Florida had one of those and it passed as a Model A roadster to many.   I set my goal at an affordable price for a road ready respectable looking Model A sedan within a 250 mile circle. There were dozens within 100 miles or less. Not the Phaeton or Victoria I’d dreamed of. But using common sense, tudor and fordor models of the 1930-31 variety within an hour’s drive from home seemed better suited for two old people in central Illinois. Tudor, Fordor, and stuff like that is Ford talk. I mostly spell korectlee, except when I don’t. Keep reading. The story evolves slowly. After all, this dream began before most of  you were born. My oldest son, already a gray haired old man,  and his six year old daughter stop over every Tuesday for taco Tuesday and every Friday for pizza Friday. Something we’ve done for several years. Something they keep on doing even after my wife had passed on Sept 6th from complications of a broken hip. Someone raised our kids right. Yes, all four of my adult kids kept me interested in Dollie’s dream Model A to take my mind off her loss. It hasn’t made me stop thinking about her, the many car events, and projects we worked on all our lives together. But it has kept me from going insane. 🙄   Things were getting serious. I ordered a 20’X20’ metal carport and extra 20' metal panels. My kids built it in front of the small 20’X20’ wood framed garage. A 20’X100’ black top drive way was laid down over the weed covered gravel. My plan was to move one of my older classics to the carport and put whatever Model A I bought inside the garage. I got the Model A before the carport was finished so it was parked on the cement and covered breezeway between the house and garage temporarily. I’ve always needed a large pole barn but made do with large garages everyplace but now. Probably a good thing. The more room I had the more cars and parts I’d buy!   It was taco Tuesday evening, Nov 17. Son Gene asked me if I ever found mine and mom’s red 1931 Model A convertible on line. Of course my same old answer was NO! For some reason I clicked Facething Model A’s for sale that evening, Nov 17th.  Right there at the top of the list was OUR red 1931 Model A phaeton for sale. The price was way too high and it was way outta my circle, at 400 miles north east. Yet it was a once in a lifetime chance to make our dream come true. We were the first to call/text. We looked at the ad, my son texted the man, he called me, we talked, I said yes. I had no idea how I was gonna get the money, a trailer, or a way to go get the Model A and haul it nearly 400 miles back before the weather turned nasty. The forecast was for high winds and storms all weekend. Still, I said YES and we’d be there Saturday afternoon! Remember this was Tuesday evening. What was I thinking? My son called my son-in-law and he offered his few day old red shiny ¾ ton 2021 Chevy truck and flat bed trailer. No way was I gonna borrow a new truck and pull a heavy duty commercial flatbed 400 miles each way on interstate highways to get an old car! Who did raise these kids? We took my son’s recently bought 24’ Chevy powered class C motorhome and the trailer! He  and granddaughter Izzy forced me to travel in high winds, gusts up to 50MPH+ , to buy grandma’s old red car. Because of the weather report and knowing it wasn’t gonna get any better until spring, I went to the bank on Wednesday, Nov 18th.  Son and granddaughter slept in our driveway Wednesday night in the RV. Thursday at 6AM we pointed east then north to near Lansing, Michigan from the Peoria, Illinois area. We had no food or water. Gene had winterized his motorhome weeks earlier. I grabbed bottled water, chips, and a bag of cookies. We had to keep a six year old alive and happy! Amazingly that heavy flatbed sorta held the mini motorhome solid on the highways. We went halfway  by going east on narrow little-traveled county roads then north. To make up for lost time we returned on the toll road, among a million big rigs driving 99 MPH in those 50 MPH winds in Chicago traffic. Many were honkin their horns, wavin, and grinnin. Kinda like a truckin song, we were movin on! We did pay our $39 toll! Let those truckers  roll! What should have been six hours each way took from 6AM till 10:30 PM. We made quick fuel and food stops,  spent under an hour wheelin and dealin for a car I’d dreamed of for most of my life. I did talk him down $500 but I’d given $1000 more just from the little we saw and drove it. There were no pictures of the undercarriage or engine. I’d known it had a Falcon 260, a Tremec 4-speed, and modified Model A rear with torque tube, and Model A suspension. As a plus, it has 46-48 Ford hydraulic brakes and regular tube shocks. The only other changes up front is a Ford F-1 steering box, column, and ’52-1953 F-1 steering wheel. The little V-8 engine is all black with an old small round black oil bath air cleaner with modern element. It kinda looks stock to the unknowing. At least it’s a Ford in a Ford.   Just guessing and not yet checking part numbers, I’m thinking it’s a 1964-65 Falcon 260. After all, Mustangs went from a 260 to a 289 in early 1965. We put it up on jack stands and covered it up before actually checking things closely. I didn’t buy it for the engine. The clutch pedal and my left knee don't get along! I’m pretty sure that the Tremec is a 5 speed. The car was built in Florida some time around 20-25 years ago for another old man. He died and it ended up with relatives in northern Michigan. I bought it from a muscle car nut in central Michigan. A nice guy who didn’t know much about the car either. One of those quick buy and sell car guys.   Found our dream car the evening of Nov 17th. It was up on jack stands, covered, under my breezeway, late on Nov 19th. Dumped Sta-Bil in the gas tank, hooked up the firewall mounted trickle charger, flipped off the electric fuel pump. We’d put on the new, never used, side curtains and put the matching cover on the rear trunk. It’s too cold and I’m not about to crawl under it right now to check build dates. If  I never drive it at least I made our dream come true. Sadly my wife, Dollie, is not here to enjoy her dream. Granddaughter and I named the Model A MissDollie, in memory of  Dollie. Granddaughter Izzy skipped a day of Kindergarten to help grandpa buy a car for grandma. She got extra points at school on Friday by taking some photos and telling about grandma’s  Model A. Now all the kids and the teacher want a ride in grandma’s old red car! The cycle goes on! I suppose the moral of this story is never give up on your dreams. Movin MissDollie Our 60 year Dream   Headed Home       ... View more