1947 Ford Woodie Wagon / Specs, Photos, Styling Details

Ford Motor Company produced the first woodie wagon in 1929 with it’s Model A. The woodie was quite popular and it’s style lasted about a quarter of a century. The 1947 Ford Super Deluxe Woodie Wagon featured here is a great example of the beauty automakers could add to a vehicle by using finished wood trim. This eight passenger Woodie Wagon is a true classic Ford. From 1929 up to 1951 Ford Motor Company sold the most popular woodie station wagons during those years.

ford woodie wagon photos

1947 Ford Super Deluxe Woodie Wagon

Henry Ford was so confident that the woodie concept would endure he bought hundreds of thousands of acres of woods in the western part of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.

By 1940, complete wood bodies were being built at Iron Mountain, Michigan and shipped to the Ford assembly plants where they were put on chassis. The vehicle’s body framework was typically maple, birch, mahogany or gum wood panels.

The first woodies were wagons and utility depot hacks. These were vehicles that were used at the time to transport passengers typically to and from railroad stations and hotels. These replaced the wooden horse drawn wagons. It’s a fact that during the first few decades of the twentieth century, the bodies of motorized depot hacks were essentially the same as those made for horse carriages except to lengthen them to fit over truck wheels. While the very first generation of wooden depot hacks were not enclosed, it didn’t take long for automakers and coach builders to build totally enclosed bodies.

1947 ford super deluxe woodie wagonBuilding Cars and Trucks Working with Wood

While we look at the styling beauty of classic restored woodie wagons, it’s interesting to understand what it takes to build and maintain such an impressive upscale vehicle.

Wood was nothing new to transportation since horse drawn carriages were mainly made of wood. Many people involved in the new motor car industry were previously involved in the carriage building business. Stamped metal was expensive and wood could fill the need early on.

Building a woodie motor vehicle would often take well over one hundred pieces of wood and the building process would be quite time consuming. It was a very labor intensive model to build. The extra costs of production of course would have to be passed on to the buyer. On the other hand, the woodie buyer would have to pay attention to maintenance. Unlike metal, wood can warp and rot over time if not cared for.

The popularity of wood panels on motor vehicles began to wane during the last few years of the 1940’s and into the early 50’s. It became evident to car buyers that maintaining wood and maintaining steel were two different things. A varnished wood panel should receive a regular cleaning and waxing. You want to make certain that the varnish covers well over all pores in the wood. The care of steel obviously being much easier and less expensive to care for.

1947 Ford Woodie Wagon Specifications

Two engines were available for the 1947 Ford Super Deluxe Woodie Wagon. These were a 226 cubic inch straight six and a 239 cubic inch V-8. Horsepower delivered was 90 and 100 respectively.

ford woodie wagon picsGear boxes were three speed manuals.

Brakes were four wheel hydraulic drums.

Dimensions include a 114.0 inch wheelbase, 196.2 inch overall length, width 73.3 inches.

Ford Motor Company 1947 vehicle production totaled 429,670 units. Out of that number Ford built 4,910 Woodie Wagons.

New car price for the 1947 Ford Super Deluxe Woodie Wagon was $3,500.

See related Auto Museum Online Articles on the links below…

1936 Ford Woodie Wagon

1914 Ford Model T Depot Hack

Reference material for this article includes…Famous Ford Woodies: America’s Favorite Station Wagons, 1929-51 by Lorin Sorensen…The Wood…the Cars…the People: 30 Years of the National Woodie ClubFord Motor Company Archives.

 Ford Woodie Wagon Collector Cars

47 woodie wagon specsAs mentioned before, Ford invested heavily in producing their popular woodie wagons, For many years they were very popular with upscale families who could afford their price tag.

Numbers built were never but a very small percentage of an automaker’s total production making woodies relatively rare today. These low numbers were mostly due to the vehicles price and the fact that there was less profit per car for the automaker.

The featured vehicle in this article is one of the finest example you’ll come across. This particular 1947 Ford Woodie Super Deluxe sold at auction for well over $100,000.

We find current asking prices for 1947 Ford Woodie Wagons to range from about $50,000 to $75,000. There are a lot of variables to these prices including the condition of the wood panels, originality, restoration, mileage, etc.

(Article and photos copyright Auto Museum Online)

 

1965 Pontiac Grand Prix / Photos, Specs, Styling Details

Featured here is a 1965 Pontiac Grand Prix, one of the highly popular classic automobiles from the power packed 1960’s. The Grand Prix packs a lot of power which is something Pontiac has always been noted for.

65 pontiac grand prix specs

1965 Pontiac Grand Prix

The Pontiac Grand Prix, which was introduced with the 1962 model, was based on the Catalina model. The Grand Prix was a sportier looking Catalina with a luxurious interior.

The first generation Grand Prix ran from 1962 through the 1968 model year. First generation models were full size vehicles and became mid sized starting with the second to the fifth generation for the sedan and to the sixth generation for the coupe.

1965 Pontiac Grand Prix Styling

Both the 1965 and 1966 Grand Prix (few changes from 65 to 66) are noted for it’s flowing appearance, kicked up rear fenders and quad headlights. The 1964 models had much more straight lined styling. Interiors were also restyled with an all new instrument panel. The 1965 Pontiac Grand Prix was also a weightier car with a longer wheelbase and the 65 models in general used chrome sparingly which you can readily see with our featured model. You will also note that the 65 model used plenty of sheet metal.

Another thing the second generation had going for it was it’s power. Engines for the 1965 Grand Prix included a 389 and 421 cubic inch V-8 with varying configurations and horsepower output.

Pontiac Tri-Power

On select models from 1957 through 1966 General Motors offered  Pontiac’s Tri-Power induction system. This turned out to be a popular addition to the muscle car era that included a factory triple-carburetor system. These were three Rochester two-barrel carburetors. This was offered on 347, 370, 389, and 421 cubic inch engines.

Rather than having a fuel injection system which was considered pricey, GM added carburetors to beef up performance. Hot rodders had been doing this for some time and Pontiac decided to do the same. The entire Tri-Power addition cost about $100. Performance was similar to the fuel injection set up but cost much less.

Three carburetors under the hood packed plenty of punch and gave Pontiac a great marketing advantage in an era of muscle cars.

1965 Pontiac Grand Prix Specifications

Engines offered with the 1965 Pontiac Grand Prix included a 389 and 421 cubic inch V-8. There were several performance configurations offered as mentioned above. These included a 389 four barrel and a 389 Tri-Power engine. Also, a 421 with a four barrel carburetor, a 421 with Tri-Power and a 421 HO Tri-Power that delivered 375 HP. The HO stood for “high output”. Horsepower for the 1965 Pontiac V-8’s ranged from 256 to 375 HP.

pontiac grand prix Available transmissions included three and four speed manuals along with a three speed Hydra-Matic automatic.

Dimensions include a 121.0 inch wheelbase, 214.6 inch outside overall length, 79.6 inch width and 53.9 inch height. Curb weight 4,680 lbs.

1965 Pontiac Grand Prix production stood at 57,881 vehicles. Grand Prix models with automatic transmissions accounted for only 4 percent of that total. Total Pontiac production for the 1965 model year was 802,000 vehicles.

Related Auto Museum Online articles are found on the links below…

1966 Chevy Impala Hardtop

1964 Pontiac GTO

Reference material for this article includes..The Life and Death of Pontiac by Tony and Michele Hamer…Grand Prix : Pontiac’s Luxury Performance Car by Don Keefe…Pontiac: The Performance Years by Martyn L. Schorr…Pontiac Registry.

1965 Pontiac Grand Prix Collector Car

Mid 1960’s automobiles for the most part make great collectible cars and the Pontiac Grand Prix is certainly one of them. The 1965 Pontiac Grand Prix came on the scene looking bigger and bolder. The top performance model was the 421 HO with three two-barrel carburetors. Although this was the top Grand Prix engine for 1965, the other available engines as mentioned before are no laggards.

1965 grand prix photosThe Pontiac Grand Prix is known to be a mixture of luxury and power. Competitors in this field would have included the Ford Toronado, Thunderbird and Buick Riviera. Collectors today would be looking for a well equipped model with plenty of power.

Current pricing for the 1965 Grand Prix is moderate and can be an affordable start to one’s classic car collection. The asking price range is wide reflecting the car’s overall condition, mileage, originality, degree of restoration and engine.  The range may be a high of over $30,000 with the average asking price between $16,500 and $21,000. These include examples in good to excellent condition. Project models would be under $7,000-$10,000.

(Article and photos copyright Auto Museum Online)