Thread: 1550 some Henry Ford 32 roadsters (and counting....)

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Well, I have books with manufacturing facts on everything built in the USA from 1903 to 1970. But taking in consideration of all of the 32' roadsters that I normally see during the year, I would have to guess it would about 2 million and counting. Damn things are thicker than mosquitos.

It's a wonder that Bill Ford hasn't asked for a royalty fee for each one made after 1932. Would certainly go far in helping out the financially ailing corporation.

Originally Posted by robot

Deuce guesses that 1/2 of the original roadster bodies are left...I think that is too high.....use 1/3 of 12,597 which equals 4,199...say 4000.

By the way, the above guess is how many bodies were built....probably a good percentage are sitting in the garage unfinished.....I know mine is.

mike in tucson

Deuce guessed 1/3 ...
I would guess that a good number of the reproduction bodies ... are just that ... still just bodys ... not finished, and registered Roadsters.



It took me 10 years to put mine Roadster back together ... last time it was apart ... and my 3W is going on 2 years ...





I realize some folks work a LOT faster than I, but a lot don't either ...
Family, work and $$$ all play a big part in getting a 32 on the road. My situation was made more complicated by the fact that I was not using any repro bodies, panels ... or frames ...

I have a real title and a real frame with numbers that match the title....I bought it from a friend in Texas..... when I took it down to the DMV for the out of state title transfer, they have to inspect the VIN...easy enough. I put the frame on the flat bed truck and hauled it to the DMV. The inspector came out and looked at my paperwork and asked "where is the 32 Ford?"
"right there on the truck, sir!"
"you cant drive that!"
"I'm not here to take a driving test, sir"
"it's just a frame"
"that's where the serial number is"
"let me talk to my supervisor"
"OK"

They agreed to give me a title but not a license plate until it is inspected to be roadworthy.

mike in tucson

Ah yes I realized yesterday whenlooking up the production list again that I had looked at one line (roadster) and did not notice the next line read roadster deluxe. So you are right roadsters = 1552 and deluxe = 11045 a total of 12,597.00

And you'd think with this higher number, it would be possible to find an original body somewhere?

I visited Hollywood hotrod's shop and he showed me a roadster that was having his original tub repaired. he said they spent TONS of work/hours to try to restore it. In the end, almost nothing of the original body was left. the owner then decided to scrap this idea and get a brookville body instead and start from scratch (do people actually have that kind of money?????)

Of course I imediately asked for the guy's phone number and asked if he was married LOLOL (oh just kidding you guys!)

About Wescott: They started building roadster 32 bodies in 1974/75. I asked my contact at Wescott and that's what he said.

I believe Brookville is the most exact replica of the original HF body? How much do their bodies run now a days? I will need to make serious decisions about my body down the road... (I meant my roadster's body LOL). Since the current wescott older body is not painted yet and since I will probably end up redoing the interior, then this may not be such a bad time to think about whether I want to restore and keep the old wescott body (who's doors are out of alignment) or spend some more $$ and get a steel body, but if so i want the exact duplicate of the original.

I can afford the body, with some hard work at selling my fancy tropical fish , but what are the pros and cons of a steel body?

I can think that:

1- steel is more durable and will not go out of alignment
2- steel will protect you more in case of a car crash
3- steel adds value to the car

but then I can also think that:

1- steel eventually may rust (I'll probably be dead by then anyways LOL)
2- steel is heavier, so the car will not be as fast. And I like my roadster FAST hehehehe.
3- Gas mileage, which is bad to beghin with, will probably get even worse (what do you mean WORSE? Is that even humanly possible??? )

Please let us not here get into a debate of which is "better", I like both glass and steel. let's just stick to the facts.

Also, how much of a nightmare would it be to swap bodies? Yes I know wiring will have to be disconnected and reconnected etc, but my wiring needs to be organized, tagged and partially redonne anyways, so there again, not such a big stretch... And the timing may be right.

I'v heard that the Brookville bodies need far more work to get right, than Fiberglass bodies, if all your body needs is a door adjustment, just have them adjusted, it will cost way less than getting a new body. for the extra drill hole in the panal for the liscense plate, easiest and simplest way would be to take a small bolt and put it in the hole and tighten it up, you could paint it flat black b4 you put it in.

Randy, just so you know Wescott also makes a version w/o tack strip and no top iron lugs on the B pillar along with several other changes from stock; http://www.wescottsauto.com/32-ford-...roadster-1.htm

That's interesting ...
I know years ago they only offered the closer replicas ... even now the special ones have the lip for the wooden strip ... in their photo ...

I almost never go to their site ... as I am not a buyer ... But I considered buying their 32 3W coupe body ... if I could not ever get one of the 5 or 6 original 32 3W bodies that I knew of. Getting someone to sell was always the problem. I can actually thank Brookville for helping me, in a indirect way, to get the 3W I have. The guy who did own mine sold it because he was afraid the value would go way down when Brookville production started ...

Deuce, you are probably right, because many many people, when I go to car cruise night, think my roadster is all original. When they ask I tell them it is an old Wescott body and they usually comment on how faithful it is to the real thing.

OK, so if I want to have the body worked on, how would I go about finding a rod shop that does fiberglass body work? i did ask Hollywood hotrod and they do not deal with fiberglass "It itches" said the owner with a smile.

I would like to get an idea and a quote to see what it could cost to get the doors back where they should be, and also realign the trunk hinges, which curently are also not truly aligned (trunk is sagging down a bit, causing it to get stuck at the bottom seam, and making it hard to open (I have to puch the bottom "in" with one hand and pull the handle with the other LOL). Also, because the trunk is sagging a bit, the top part is a little further away from the latch then it should be (gap). As a result, if my foot really hits the gas pedal, the sheer acceleration causes the rumble seat trunk to fly open.

What can I say, I'm too fast for my own good LOL. Currenrtly I rigged up a latch that seems to be holding the trunk close, but I am also not being too aggressive with my "take offs" and being a good girl (sigh).

You might try an internet search for the Minnesota DMV and see if they offer a history of registered owners. I got one from CA DMV. It only shows previous owners by name and date but I was able to track some of them down using Google.