1958 Ford Ranchero on 2040-cars

Year:1958 Mileage:120000 Color: White & Black /
Red

Location:

North Hollywood, California, United States

Advertising:

Transmission:Automatic
Vehicle Title:Clear
Engine:292 V8
Fuel Type:Gasoline
For Sale By:Owner

Year: 1958
Interior Color: Red
Make: Ford
Number of Cylinders: 8
Model: Ranchero
Trim: Custom 300
Power Options: Power Brakes, Power Steering
Drive Type: RWD
Mileage: 120,000
Exterior Color: White & Black

Condition: Used: A vehicle is considered used if it has been registered and issued a title. Used vehicles have had at least one previous owner. The condition of the exterior, interior and engine can vary depending on the vehicle's history. See the seller's listing for full details and description of any imperfections. ...

I've owned this Ranchero for 26 years, but sadly, I need the parking space. She's not perfect--and keep in mind that photos tend to make things look better than they really are--but she's very pretty. Carpet, headliner, and paint redone about 15 years ago in the correct colors. Automatic (three-speed Ford O Matic), 292 V8, "Master Guide" Power Steering, "Swift Sure" Power Brakes. New stuff: tires, brakes, water pump, thermostat, ignition switch, belts & hoses, exhaust system, spark plugs & wires, carburetor, and some other bits and whatnot. The ignition is a Pertronix unit, which is really sweet since there are no points worries and it's hidden so it looks 'correct'... but the original parts--including the ballast resistor--are still with the car. The original carb comes with this sale too; it's a Holley 4-barrel, but I just couldn't get it running right. Wrong jets, maybe? Anyway, there's a brand-new same-type Holley on the car and it purrs like the proverbial kitten.

Virtually all the little doo-dads operate: radio, wipers, fresh air vents, heater, lighting, turn signals, horn, all gauges except the speedometer and clock. The speedo cable is hooked up, and you can hand-spin the speedometer and get a reading, so the gauge itself seems to be fine. Maybe a bad cable or drive gear? ...so the listed odometer reading is approximate. The under-dash accessory gauges seen the photos work too. Engine starts and runs very well, with no smoke or oil use. Transmission shifts great, although with a solid 'thunk' into 3rd, as it's done since I've owned it. Plenty of power, nice on the freeway. Very sturdy tow-ball at the rear, which I've used occasionally throughout the years.

The wheels aren't original--they should be standard stamped steel with hubcaps--but these were on the car when I bought it. One photo here shows the car with the original-style tires and wheels, which don't come with the car; I swapped those from another '58 Ford for a recent Tom Hanks movie shoot ("Saving Mr. Banks", due out in December). I'm not sure the red-and-white seat vinyl is original to this model, but its sturdy construction feels very 'factory', and the seat cushion is a bit flat, so it's either original or a very old re-do. And the seats exactly match the material on the door panels, so who knows? At some point this Ranchero had a CB-style screw-on antenna mast on the roof. The screw mount is still there, and I do have a stubby 1-foot antenna that screws on just for looks.

Understandably, THE question everyone asks is about rust. I snapped some photos of the underside, including all eight main body mounts, and those shots can be seen here:

Underside Photos

In case I've screwed up that link, you can copy-and-paste this address into your browser: http://www.rightafterthis.com/onlinesale3.html

As you'll see, not perfect, but decent. It is a California car, after all. These vehicles are essentially Ford two-door station wagons with the rear roofs removed, and an old-time Ranchero guru recently stated to me his opinion that water drainage issues below the truck bed weren't initially addressed very well. He mentioned a problem area behind the cab, in the "sub-floor", where there are two square drop-down sections in the sheet metal, probably intended as rear-seat passenger footwells in the station wagons (they serve no purpose on Rancheros, since there's a cargo bed above them). At some point long before I owned this car, it looks as if new metal was place in those wells. After all these years I didn't even realize anything had even been touched under there, so I can't vouch for the professionalism of the repair.

Facts 'n figures: this Ranchero was built in San Jose, CA on October 17, 1957. It was the 388th '58 Ford to come down that assembly line, so it was manufactured quite early in the run. Perhaps that's why it's always had a black-knob 1957 turn signal stalk, rather than the white-knob 1958 version.

What's wrong with this vehicle? It's starting to show the typical bits of rust in two spots: above the headlights (see photo), where dirt tended to collect inside the fenders on most '50s cars... and at the bottom of the tailgate, which is apparently common with Rancheros, as owners forgot to keep the drain holes clear. The old paint is a bit checked in spots, especially along the center valley atop the passenger fender. The bumpers are straight and shine up nicely, but the chrome is definitely not perfect. Some of the interior chrome is a bit pitted, particularly the horn ring and vent window handles, although still pretty nice for a driver. The accelerator pedal isn't correct. The gold anodizing along the sides is pretty dull but complete and undamaged. A lot of the weatherstripping is typical for desert cars: very brittle and cracked from exposure to the sun. Windshield and rear window gaskets seem to be good though. Several decades ago somebody installed a patch panel between the bed and the cab; it's certainly not a professional repair but at least it's symmetrical and isn't real obvious. The steering wheel finish is quite worn, but miraculously, no big cracks. The "Ranchero" scripts near the tailfins are ten-year-old reproductions are aren't really as precise and crisply-cast as the originals were; perhaps newer repros are manufactured better. Also, just barely visible in a photo is at least one of two tears in the seat, one of which is about two inches long, where the passenger's butt sits. The other is where the seat cushion and back portion meet, near the driver's door (also about an inch or so). The radio could use a tuneup; it works, but not all stations come in as strongly as they should.

The doors align and close properly and I've never found any collision damage anywhere. Like the rest of the vehicle, the engine history before I bought it is a blank, but I strongly suspect it's never been apart. Heck, some of that road grime dates back to when I first saw it! I've had it apart just enough to replace the intake manifold gaskets as part of freshening the cooling system, which meant removing the intake manifold, rocker covers, and valley cover. So new gaskets on those parts too. A word on that: the cooling system came into question when the gauge started indicating things were running warm, but after a full going-through of the system, it turned out that the gauge (or sending unit) was inaccurate. A handheld laser temperature gauge shows everything to be fine. In fact, the engine might run a little too cool for some engine experts, but too cool is just fine for me in these desert temperatures.

Can it haul stuff? The last really heavy thing I transported with the Ranchero was an FE-series Ford engine/transmission to and from the rebuild shop. That's a lot of weight, and the engine actually shifted en route when a couple cheap tiedown ratchets broke. The Ranchero handled it just fine, although it was an eye-opener to have that much weight shift while at speed on the freeway. The interior floors appear to be in great shape too, with no 'give' or weak spots that I can find. Have they been repaired? I really don't know, and I'm reluctant to pull up the old carpeting/sound deadener at this point. Hopefully the underside photos will help here too. The spare is stowed behind the passenger seat, and in that area the carpeting has suffered from things being tossed back there that weren't completely clean.

I bought this Ranchero here in Southern California in 1987, and I've got lots of receipts on maintenance and parts purchases since then.

BTW, what's the "Custom 300" designation in the ebay listing? Ebay requires a Trim description when listing a vehicle, which is then automatically added to the main heading. Custom 300 was Ford's passenger car designation for the upscale stainless/gold anodizing trim scheme. Base-model Rancheros received a little less of the flashy stuff.

This vehicle is also advertised locally, so first come, first served.

Ford Ranchero for Sale

Auto Services in California

Z Best Body & Paint ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Automobile Body Repairing & Painting, Automobile Restoration-Antique & Classic

Address: 18560 Pasadena St, Murrieta

Phone: (951) 471-5530

Woodman & Oxnard 76 ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Automobile Parts & Supplies, Auto Oil & Lube

Address: 6003 Woodman Ave, Canoga-Park

Phone: (818) 908-0877

Windshield Repair Pro ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Windshield Repair

Address: Lathrop

Phone: (209) 505-5999

Wholesale Tube Bending ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Automobile Parts & Supplies, Mufflers & Exhaust Systems

Address: 13510 Pomerado Rd, Cardiff

Phone: (858) 748-4300

Whitney Auto Service ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Automobile Parts & Supplies, Auto Oil & Lube

Address: 14550 Delano St, Chatsworth

Phone: (818) 785-8678

Wheel Enhancement ★★★★★

Automobile Parts & Supplies, Wheels, Automobile Accessories

Address: 5901 Blackwelder St, South-Gate

Phone: (310) 836-8908

Auto blog

2014 Ford Fiesta ST

Tue, 15 Oct 2013

I'm not overly inclined to professional jealousy, as a rule. Sure, I go a bit green around the eyes when Ramsey draws the 911 GT3 trip to Weissach, Harley is tapped-in to drive a completely stunning Porsche 911 by Singer, or, you know, Drew Phillips gets to shoot a Lamborghini Veneno in the middle of a desert like some sort of sheik. I hate you guys...
Honestly though, one of the new car events that dug me the most, was when our Steven J. Ewing got to fling the Ford Fiesta ST around some hot corner of Europe. What goes around comes around, I suppose, as Mr. Ewing himself espoused an envious nature of the Focus ST trip that came before.
The good news in all this covetous intra-office behavior? All the cars mentioned, and specifically the Fiesta ST, are just wonderful to drive. I can say that with more confidence than ever now, having joined Ford for a good bit of Fiesta-flinging myself. In my case, the locale was slightly more pedestrian (Michigan not Portugal), and the car in question was the five-door version of the Fiesta ST that we get here in The States, as opposed to the three-door number they get across the pond.

New UAW boss Williams talks tough, vows 'no more concessions'

Sun, 08 Jun 2014

Dennis Williams, the newly elected president of the UAW, had some tough words for American automakers in his inauguration speech at the 2014 UAW Convention, striking down the possibility of any additional concessions from the 400,000-strong union.
"No more concessions. We are tired of it. Enough is enough," Williams said during his speech. UAW employees have not received a raise in nearly 10 years, according to Reuters.
Considering the recent strong results for Ford, Chrysler and General Motors, the union's demands are likely to carry a bit more weight in next year's negotiations. And considering Williams' tough stance, we could be in for some fireworks once negotiations commence.

Old vs. new debate gets new life with $25,000 Fiesta ST vs. E46 M3 showdown

Fri, 10 Jan 2014

You know who you are. There's probably a few of you reading; the ones that say, "Why would I spend $27,000 on a new Mazda MX-5 when I could get a used Chevrolet Corvette with more power." Yes, we're talking to you, used car proponents. While it is a fair argument, it's not like used cars don't come with drawbacks of their own, though.
In an attempt to put this new-versus-used argument to bed once and for all, Matt Farah of the The Smoking Tire has picked up a pair of $25,000 cars - a used, but lightly modified, 2003 BMW M3 and a 2013 Ford Fiesta ST. Naturally, there's a comparison.
Farah, as he's wont to do, does get into the nitty gritty of what each car is like to drive, and discusses the merits of used and new-car shopping. But as he rightly points out while testing the M3, "So, it is a good car. But like any used car, it really does depend on the individual car."