For some reason, since I was a child a 1940 Ford has always been my “dream car”. My wife and daughters knew this, and through the years I have received ’40 model cars and t-shirts. At some point in around 2010 I was browsing them on eBay, following the auctions, and my wife saw that I was still dreaming of owning one. Much to my surprise, she started following auctions that I was following, and she actually decided that it was time for me to get one. There was one in particular I was following, and she zeroed in on that one, all without my knowledge. She had never bid on anything before, much less a car, but decided what her top offer would be and waited until a few minutes before the end of the auction. The rest is history, she was bidding against two other guys, and she won the car! She called me in, and told me I had a car. I was amazed, and very excited. The owner in Stockton had quite a few collectible vintage cars, and had hoped to open a destination restaurant with a car museum on the top level as an attraction. The city refused to issue the permit, and in an angry moment the owner decided to sell his collection. My good fortune! Next issue was to go see the car and drive it before handing over the cashier’s check. We went to see it, and it was beautiful, but there was an issue with the brakes so I could not drive the car. We agreed that we would return when the brakes were fixed, I would drive it and then hand over the check. When I returned the car was ready for a test drive and all went well, so we paid the man and proceeded to arrange transport get the car home to Granada Hills.

The car is all original, with the flathead and still on a 6 volt system. Since I have owned the car I have improved the running of the car. At some point I discovered the original toolkit in an alcove in the trunk. I also discovered that it had been painted over the original paint, so I had the car stripped and repainted black. As a result of purchasing this car I entered a new phase of my life. It has led me into joining the Valley V-8 Club. I met a great group of guys.

Stanley M.