Amusing things that happen in our old Fords

[Brian]

Thought I'd start a thread where people can relate amusing events they've had in their old Fords...

I've owned my 35 for a long time, and had some amusing incidents in it along the way. This is one example, but it wasn't too funny at the time....


A few years back I was driving the old 35 from Wellington up to Auckland and vowed that I'd pick up any hitchikers along the way to give them a bit of the old flattie experience. Anyway, about 1 1/2 hours into the trip I spy this guy with his thumb out so pull up along side. The conversation went sort of like this-
me "Where're goin?"
-I'm going to Auckland
me "jump in"
-I wanna go to Auckland
me "I'm going to Auckland, jump in"
-But I wanna go to Auckland
me" I'm going to Auckland, get in"
-Where are you going?
me- I'm going to Auckland, do you wanna ride or what?, get in

Can you see where this is going? Pity I'm a slow learner, I perseveered and finally got this nerd in my car. And man, did he stink!! I think he'd been on the road for a coupla weeks and hadn't seen a bar of soap in that time!! Anyway,every coupla miles he'd ask "How long till we get there?' or "what's the next town we're coming to?", or "What's the last town we went through?" or "How long till we get there?' or ...I think you get the message by now. This guy was obviously a coupla sandwiches short of a picnic!!

His constant verbal drival was driving me nuts!! And still I put up with him! [Like I said, I'm a slow learner]. At one stage further along, I picked up another hitcher, mainly to give me some respite, the idiot gabbled on non-stop to someone new, unfortunately, the 2nd guy got out shortly after! Then the nerd wanted to drive my car. by this stage we were on the desert road, a high volcanic plateau located in the center of the North Island, so, being the slow learner I am I pulled over and swapped seats. This clown thrashed my car, drove it foot flat to the floor, yelling out "yeehaa- I'm driving a V8, yeehaa, I'm driving a V8" repeatedly. Well after a few miles of this abuse my old car spewed a vast quantity of coolant out the radiator; this signalled the end of his driving, I was starting to get a bit more abusive in my communication with him. I resumed the driving, and limped along until I came to a stream so I could top up the radiator. Mt Ruapehu, an active volcano up on this plateau was going through an active period at this time, the water running in that watercourse reeked of sulphur, great for ally heads of course, but it's all I could get!

Hours later we're getting close to Auckland, and the nerd asks if I'll take him further to Kaitaia, which is another 5 hours north of Auckland. Of course I told him no way, I'd drop him off at a bus terminus. Then he asks me 'Why don't you put a Chev in this?" "What for?" I reply." More power!" is his answer.
Listen here you f******** i*******, this is a FORD V8, it's got you all the way up from Palmy in style and comfort, don't you dare use that 4 letter word in this car or I'll kick your f******* ass right outta here, you f*******!
Shortly after I took an offramp and drove to a bus terminus. "What are we stopping here for?" he asked. I pointed to the bus terminus and said "bus". The nerd leapt out the door, slammed it shut behind himself and disappeared into the night. No thank you, no nothing! Whew!!

[Rudolph]

Did he damage the engine? I would have kicked him out the door in Waiouru.

LOL I never pick up hitchhikers for the main reason they stink, I picked up a guy just out of Hamilton when I was on the way to Wellington in my 1988 Falcon Ute, it was going to be like a 14 hour non stop drive and thought it would be more interesting but he didn't say much just stunk up the cab. He started to complane about the tonneau cover flapping and we had to stop 3 times in 20 mins to fix it, he was going to Taupo but I managed to get rid of him in Cambridge I managed to scare him off by telling him how my ute ran on LPG.

The fun and games are yet to start in a realy old Ford.

[Tom Morookian]

In the grocery parking lot this guy walks up to me and my 36,

With a straight face he says " You must be a cheap SOB, when are you going to buy a new car?"

I took me a second or two but I replied, " I've still got six more payments on this one".

Then we both laughed.

[Talkwrench]

I won't be picking up hitchhikers...certainly not ones that think its normal to have a scrub motor in Ford!

[amodel25]

Putting gas in my '31 Ford sedan one day 30 years ago. An elderly gentleman walked up to the car, looked it over front to back, walked around it a couple of times, never saying a word. After a minute, he looked at me and said "The first piece of a** I ever got in my life was in the back seat of a four door Model "A" Ford and I'll never forget it". He turned and walked away without another word.

[Vic Piano]

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I had a lot of fun in my '48 TuDor Sedan, when I was in High School, but I don't think I'll post the details. When my son was born, in 1974, we brought him home from the hospital in my '53 Ford Convertible. same thing when my daughter was born in 1980.

Over the last 50 years I've had a lot of fun in Flatheads, and I hope to continue enjoying them for a long, long time.

[rockfla]

In 1973, I was 8 and my brother was 9, my dad was towing our 1937 Woodie from Florida to Charlotte NC for the Eastern National meet. Heading north the sky started to look like 'from hell it came" so we pulled off to find shelter. We ended up finding an old abandon market/service station in Grover SC (it looked like whoever owned it just decided to close one day, walked out the door, locked it and never looked back). So we pulled in up under the portico next to the pumps and spent the night in the woodie. Me on the back seat, my brother on the front and my parents slept in our 69 Mrk III. The family that lived next door came over and looked at the car, ended up keeping us company for awhile and even feeding us dinner. Great memory of a great time.

[A bones]

Two incidents come to mind. I have '24 tudor and one day while cruising around the residential back roads I had to stop to give the radiator a drink. While this took place a young lad was watching intently, as I finished he stepped forward and spoke. "One question, where do you get a car like this?" I smiled and explained the world of car collectors. Another time when I visited the local supermarket an octogenarian lady approached, looking in the drivers window, she announced that she had spent a lot of time in a car just like this. I don't recall my response, (friendly of course). She then strode to the passenger side and leaned against the side-back glass and stared at the seat. At this point she became still. Time passed... tick-tock... the dreamy look on her face left no doubt what the back seat meant to her.

[amodel25]

I was stopped at a gas station in Louisianna some years back and I was pouring a quart of oil in my '51 (found out later I had a mechanical fuel/vacuum pump with a hole in the vacuum diaphragm sucking oil). An old guy came up, looked at the car for a second, looked at me and said "yep, it's a Ford all right. If it ain't smokin' or leakin', it's empty".

[50fordbob]

About 10 years ago we were on a US40 national road tour from Indianapolis to Terre Haute, stopping along the way to visit historical sites and a small town festival. A cute little white haired lady with a big smile on her face came up pulling a tottering old man behind her. She looked over my 50 Ford 2dr closely. She said " we had one just like this when we were first married. O the stories we could tell you about the times we had in there while pointing to the back seat but I probably shouldn't." Here husband said no you probably shouldn't. They smiled at each other sweetly and thanked us tor bringing our car.

[Joe Immler]

I was driving through town in my '41 when a guy blew his horn and yelled "better pull over, you have wires sticking out." I pulled over and saw my curb feelers "sticking out."

[38 Ford Pickup]

About 10 years ago me and my wife were out in old Betsy and kinda got a bit Horny and decided to pull down this side road. We had a nice blanket and started to have some fun in the back when all of a sudden along came a OPP officer....... We were startled but he just chuckled and said enjoy your day.

[Rowdy]

Its a good thing the 62 Unibody pickup I had in highschool can't talk. Rod

[B-O-B]

Not going into the details. The 48 convert I had the passenger seat where it would fold back to make a bed. Just remove the cotter pin & pull the seat arm out of the hole & a slight twist & it will fold all the way back. Sure was fine for watching movies @ the DRIVE IN theater. I had a blanket that was always in the car. It came in handy also for the nights that I couldn't make it home.
A high school chum had a 36 sedan with masonite in the rear side windows. Can't even begin to describe what went on back there.

[malpais]

Was driving an old Ford across Nebraska. A tire blew, and before I could get out of traffic, nothing but a little fabric was left on the rim. Put on the spare, and made it into a local repair shop, and asked for a replacement for tire or spare.

An older gentleman in coveralls walked up, looked down at the rim with a few shreds of rubber and fabric on it. Said, "son, guess you got about all the good outta that tire you're gonna get".

Had to smile, thinking "No Sh**".

[Bassman/NZ]

Good thread Brian!

[Brian]

Another time, I knocked off work for the day. Out in the carpark, my boss's late model Holden SS Commadore, with all the bells and whistles, was stuck with a flat battery, much to his chagrin. "Hey Boss, no worries, I'll take the battery outta my '35" say I, and proceed to do so, then removed his flat battery , installed the 35's battery, and hey,hey, his car starts right up.
"But how will you start your car?" he asks.
"With a crankhandle" is my reply.
"What's a crankhandle?" he asked.
I produce my cars crankhandle, insert it through the crank hole it the grill, give it a flick, and my car starts right up!!
He was absolutely godsmacked; never seen anything like it before.
That's whats wrong with the next generation; they've led such sheltered lives!

[Brian]

Years ago I was heading off to a big swap meet in Pukekohe, and as I came down the approach ramp onto the motorway, I saw a nice 37 pickup cruising along the motorway, probably, I thought, heading to the same swap meet. Anyway, I passed him and he disappeared in my rear view mirror.
I got to the swap meet, and immediately focussed on a 32 grill shell that was for sale there [I was collecting bits for a deuce at the time]. Anyway, this guy comes up to me and asks"What have you got in that 35?".
"Oh, just a 21 stud" I replied.
"Strewth", he says, "I've got a 24 stud, and I couldn't catchya!"
As I was in the middle of my first purchase, I completed the deal, turned around to carry on the conversation with the 37 owner, but he'd gone!
Years passed, and we finally met up again, via the Fordbarn.
Now, he is a good buddy of mine, we freely give each other parts and assistance, even though we now live opposite ends of the island.
Incidently, my 35 is no longer capable of beating his 37!
Cheers Kiwitony, and cheers Fordbarn!!

[kiwitony]

Some years back my bendix broke so I used the crank handle for a few weeks to start my 37.Our right hand drive cars are a pain to work on the starter as the steering box is in the way.This worked fine untill I stalled at the lights in Milford,into neutral,handbrake on jump out grab the crankhandle of the back and start the old girl.The crowds on the footpath cheered and clapped,they thought I had put on a great show. Tony.

[my4dv8]

At a lunch stop on our 7 hr ride home we parked our 32 3w and an old boy stops by to have a look and comments to my wife "aren't you missing some parts". quick as a flash she replies " no we have everything we need" . Obviously hadn't seen a highboy 32 3window before,