At $9,900, Is This 1948 Ford Super De Luxe Police Cruiser An Arresting Deal?

Today's Nice Price or No Dice Super Deluxe Tudor represents the last Ford model with significant influence from Henry himself. Outfitted in police car livery—including a siren—this older restoration looks solid. Is its price, however, a solid bargain?

Jonathan Swift, the Irish essayist and writer, best known for his satirical work Gulliver's Travels, wrote under several sardonic pseudonyms during his career. These names, such as Isaac Bickerstaff, esq., and Lemuel Gulliver, afforded Swift the ability to critique society without direct repercussions.

In what is an astounding coincidence, the 1991 Suzuki Swift GT-I convertible we looked at last Friday also went by several other names for a time. Those included: GEO Metro, Pontiac Firefly, Holden Barina, and Chevy Sprint. What is it with Swifts and pseudonyms? Unfortunately for its seller, our Swift didn't prove nearly as beloved as the classic works of St Patrick's Cathedral's most famous cleric. A $4,500 asking price wasn't doing the car any favors in light of the numerous niggling issues that were documented in the ad, leading to the Swift quickly falling in a 66% "No Dice" loss.

Henry Ford, the founder of his namesake automotive empire and patriarch of his family, passed peacefully in his sleep at his home, the Fair Lane Estate in Dearborn, Michigan, on April 7, 1947, at age 83. At the time of his death, Ford was lauded as a pioneer in the automotive industry for adopting the assembly line for production, and creating a car for the masses—the Model T. His legacy, however, was clouded by brutal labor relations, some questionable political views, and a frustrating reluctance to read and respond to market trends. This latter foible put the Ford Motor Company on the brink of bankruptcy near the end of the Great Depression, and it was only military contracts (Ford built nearly everything from Jeeps to B-24 Liberators) during WWII, pressed by Henry's son Edsel, that kept the company afloat during the conflict.

Conditions were bleak after the war, as Ford needed time to shift production to peacetime output and develop new models for a car-hungry post-war market. The first of those new models was the 1948 F-1 pickup. That was followed in 1949 with a brand-new, almost entirely clean-sheet car, dubbed the "ShoeBox Ford" by many for its low, blended fender and body design. Henry Ford, prior to his passing, was offered the opportunity to see the '49 Ford's design, but in his declining state, he was not able to provide input on the car or veto any aspect.

That preamble is necessary to understand the place in Ford's history held by today's 1948 Ford 89A Super DeLuxe Tudor sedan. This is the final model year of a design that debuted back in 1941. Sales were halted during the war from 1943 to 1945, so while this car was built nearly a decade later, with few changes from that debut design, the actual model run was only four years. This design was a substantial improvement over the preceding Ford line of the late 1930s, as it used Mercury's larger, sturdier X-frame chassis. The model is also noteworthy for introducing (over Henry's protests) a straight six engine, the company's first since 1906.

This model, being a De Luxe sports Ford's legendary flathead V8, here in 239 cubic-inch displacement and making around 100 (gross) horsepower. That's matched to a three-speed manual transmission with "three-on-the-tree" column shift. Braking is by way of drums at each corner. This is a two-door sedan bodystyle, and should that look familiar to any of you Swedes out there, it's because Volvo evidently cribbed heavily from the Ford's design for the post-war PV444.

This De Luxe looks to be wearing an older restoration. The police car blue and white paint scheme appears solid in most places, but there are some obvious chips in the paint on the fenders and some surface rust on the door bottoms and jambs. This is not a REAL police cruiser, as the official-looking star reads "Keystone Constable," harkening back to silent-era film comedies. A set of wide whitewall tires that are yellowing like a pensioner's beard is another indication that this Ford might need some sprucing.

Craigslist

On the plus side, the chrome (and there's a lot of it) appears to be in great condition. So too is the interior, with clean vinyl upholstery and a cool Art Deco dashboard featuring a period-correct AM radio. The broad benches, flat floor, and column shifter make this a three-by-three six-seater. Just don't go getting all grab-handy looking for the seatbelts, as, in another nod to originality, this car has none that are apparent. The ad tells us that the title is clean, but shares absolutely nothing else about the car, not even the mileage. In fact, the offering dealer goes so far as to say there is no guarantee of the accuracy of the actual odometer reading.  

By their nature, old cars tend to have greater values due to the economics of simple supply and demand. Attrition tends to exacerbate that. That makes this classic old Ford an intriguing opportunity at its $9,900 asking price. What we all need to determine is whether the car's faux cop car clothes and some age-related issues with its restoration, make that number even further out of the seller's reach.

What's your take on this De Luxe at that amount of dollars? Does that feel like a fair deal to get into the classic car game with something that will stand out? Or do the cons outweigh the pros on this last of the line Ford?

You decide!

Nice Price or No Dice:

Omaha, Nebraska, Craigslist, or go here if the ad disappears.

H/T to Steven Lowe for the hookup!

Help me out with Nice Price or No Dice. Contact me at robemslie@gmail.com and send a fixed-price tip. Remember to include your commenter handle.