New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

Hello everybody. I'm Jason and I just bought a 52 Customline coupe flathead V8 automatic this past weekend. I haven't had a classic in 25+ years so this is like relearning everything to me but it's going to be a fun little car.


It's a super clean car, minimal rust but needs minor stuff I know of right off the bat. I need to convert to 12V and also get the horn to work. I haven't found any horn parts for the steering wheel just yet so any help on this is greatly appreciated.

Plans are to lower the front, Salt Flat wheels, 3 deuce setup and new heads. I see Edelbrock out there but not much for Offenhauser to be honest.

Only decent pic I have for now so bear with me. Any advice you all can suggest for quality parts is greatly appreciated.

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

Welcome. I like the car!

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

Welcome aboard, you should be able to find what you need for your car from people on the Barn.

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

congrats on your new purchase, you just got a double whammy ,your now a old Ford guy and a Barner ,doesn’t get any better than this , there great cars to enjoy ,and someone took good care of yours ,welcome aboard

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

Thanks for the welcoming y'all, I appreciate and looking forward to learning all about this car and how to personalize it.

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

Ditto ! I like it too & welcome to The Ford Barn . If you don't find the info you need here , it probably does not exist! - F F

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

That's a nice looking car. I very much prefer coupes over the corresponding year tudor sedans. I will make a couple of comments about your proposed engine mods. First of all, to get the maximum effect from adding a set of aftermarket heads, you shouldn't just bolt them on and go. Ideally, you should do a little preliminary measuring and machining to optimize the quench and compression. (There are a myriad of threads both here and on the H.A.M.B. on how to do this.) While "3 Deuces" look cool and give you braggin' rights, they are not the optimum solution for a daily-driven car. A small four barrel and corresponding manifold or a larger 2-barrel carb on a bored Mercury manifold will provide superior driveability and minimum problems. You probably already know that the stock distributor will not work well with just about any change in carburetion you make as the advance schemes are incompatible, so it will have to be replaced. Also, while headers or at least dual exhausts don't really add much to the performance of the engine, they are almost mandatory for the looks and sound.

Aftermarket heads seem to be problematic these days. I have heard rumors of delivery problems with both Offenhauser and Edelbrock and quality control problems with Navarro and Edelbrock. On top of that, prices seem to be skyrocketing. Perhaps keeping your eyes open for a used set some place. If you do find them, they should be carefully inspected to make sure they aren't damaged or milled beyond a reasonable limit. I have had good luck with used Edmunds heads lately.

Good luck with your car; I'm sure you'll have a lotta fun.

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

Oh yeah, one last thing I may have overlooked. I don't know anything about the automatic transmissions on this era car, but most automatics have a connection between the carburetor linkage and the transmission. If there is one on this car, be careful to preserve it and it's function, as not doing so can be detrimental to driveability and transmission life. If there is none, you're home free.

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

I had a '54 business coupe with the short roof body style like yours.
Mine had NO back seat, just a platform to hold the salesman's wares.
I removed the platform (still have it in storage) and put in a back seat.
Have lots a fun fixing it up to your liking. ;)





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Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

Welcome, nice looking car !

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

Welcome to the Barn!

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

Welcome!! Terrific looking car! You might think about also joining the HAMB (jalopyjournal.com). There are lots of modified Fords on that forum, as well as hot rod parts.

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

I restored a ‘53 Ranch Wagon a while ago. A great supplier of lots of parts you might need is Concourse Parts. Quality and service were very good.

Good luck. That’s a neat business coupe

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

Welcome. Since you now own a nice looking '52 coupe you might want to consider purchasing the Early Ford V-8 Club's 1952-'53 book. It's a two volume set and will help you learn all about your "new" car. You can buy it on -line at ; www.earlyfordv8.org.

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

Here is what he is referring to.

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

Welcome

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

nice to have another flatmotor hitting the road again.

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

Welcome!! like your car!

Re: New guy intro - 1952 Customline
 

This is only the second yr for that transmission, and yes he linkage is critical. Also the cast iron cases are not available- All parts are generally used and mixed up. I went thru 3 cores to find a good rebuildable trans. Caution here. Building a motor in front of that trans might be a problem. I kept mine stock. Newc