1950 Ford Custom Convertible

- California Car, Bought New in Huntington Beach
- All Known Ownership History
- 50k Original Miles
- One Repaint
- All Stock
- 239ci Flathead V8
- Museum Quality yet Ready for a Road Trip

(Please note: If you happen to be viewing this 1950 Ford Custom Convertible on a site other than GarageKeptMotors.com, it's possible that you've only seen some of our many photographs of this vehicle due to third-party website limitations. To be sure you access all the more than 160 photographs, including a short startup-and-walk-around video, please go to our main website: GarageKeptMotors.)

“…the 1949-51 cars established a clean, modern look that set a pattern for many Fords to come.” - New York Times, September 1999

The 1949-50 Fords are often referred to as “the car that saved Ford.” By the end of World War II, Ford Motor Company was in dire financial straits. The company had fallen well behind General Motors. With the war ending and the civilian economy ramping up, and returning servicemen eager to buy the newest automobiles coming from Detroit, these cars would determine Ford's future.

Henry Ford II and his new management team from outside the company oversaw the development of the '49 Ford that broke with many outdated company design and manufacturing traditions. Its launch saw showrooms flooded with ready buyers. As the New York Times put it, the model: “...was sleek and daring by the standards of the day; it set benchmarks for styling and packaging, and it proved to be a hit with a car-buying public that was hungry for anything new….”

Offered here is an exceptional 1950 Ford Custom convertible in dark red over black-and-red upholstery under a black fabric convertible top. The car is impressive on every measure, literally a museum-quality presentation that's mechanically sound and perfectly at home on the road. It is 100% stock with a single repaint. The car's entire history, beginning with its first owner in Huntington Beach, California, is known and documented. (The car still wears its California black license plate in front.) The convertible has traveled just under 51,000 miles in its 71-year life, less than 750 miles per-year on average.

The exterior dark-red paint is uniformly glossy and free of any sign of damage from the elements. The over-used car-dealer accolade, “showroom new,” is an apt description here. The paint enhances the flowing, curvaceous lines of the body. The chrome details that make these post-war models so appealing (versus later models when chrome became overpowering) is all in exceptional condition. From the model-defining grille with its “8” identifier, across the bumpers front and rear, delicate window trim, body-side accent, restrained tail light surrounds, and the exposed hinges on the trunk, all the chrome shines flawlessly. The tri-color Ford hood and deck-lid emblems are perfect, as are the simple “Custom” ­badges. Standard body-color painted wheels--with Ford-embossed chrome hubcaps and trim rings--wear wide whitewall tires. The car's black (with red piping) fabric top shows no flaws and fits perfectly.

Inside, the simple black-and red upholstery perfectly complements the exterior color scheme. Door trim is a combination of body-color metal at the top, with an art deco red-over-black treatment duplicating the seat upholstery below. Fine chrome accents complete the look. The body-color-painted dashboard (in the same pristine condition as the car's exterior) features two round instruments, the driver-focused speedometer and a smaller analog clock in the center. Below the clock, the radio continues the car's deco design aesthetic. A Ford-badged steering wheel, itself a piece of automotive-design artwork, faces the driver, with a column-mounted 3-speed manual transmission shifter. Other simple controls are laid out horizontally across the dash, with the chrome parking-brake lever and heater controls below. Black carpeting covers the cabin floors with rubber mats for added protection. Every surface in the car's interior has been superbly maintained. The same holds true for the car's trunk which includes the original spare wheel (in proper body-color) and tire.

Under the hood is the car's original 239 cubic-inch flathead Ford V8 engine wearing its correct gold engine-block paint. The large oil-bath air cleaner crowns the engine, while the exposed sparkplugs showcase the flathead design. (Be sure to sample the engine note in the accompanying startup-and- walkaround video.) The entire engine bay is properly clean with wiring and engine-cooling hoses properly mounted. Identifying body imprints and the original serial-number tag are in place. Viewed from below, the car's chassis is complete with no sign of rust issues, as befits a California car. The full-length dual exhaust is directly routed, exiting in the rear. There is absolutely no sign of damage beneath the car.

The car's original owner's manual is included in the sale.

While the more than 160 high-definition photographs of this perfectly presented '50 Ford convertible, taken from every angle, including from underneath, faithfully represent its museum-quality condition, a vehicle this special deserves to be inspected up-close. For that reason, we encourage in-person visits to our Grand Rapids, Michigan showroom. We ask only that an advance appointment be arranged by phone or email. Our showroom is not open to the public, so your appointment helps ensure you have our full attention during your visit. We are also happy to answer questions by phone or email.

Over its long life, this beautiful Ford convertible has no doubt delighted, not only its owners, but every pedestrian whose head turned to watch it pass by. The next owner of this exceptional Ford will experience those same sorts of admiring glances wherever this piece of American automobile history rolls. Every single trip—whether a fall-color tour or a cars-and-coffee gathering—will be a memory in the making.