Big old '48 Crown Imperial
- Thread starter crv
- Start date
The owner lost interest in it many years ago and judging by how the car is presented for sale, I'd say the asking price would be quite negotiable. These C40s are recognized as Full Classics by the Classic Car Club of America, a bit dissapointing to see this particular one languishing in a shed for all those years.
commando1
Old Man with a Hat
Sometimes you can't win in that kind of situation.
People will accuse you of dragging out an old car, cleaning it up, and then selling a polished turd.
Carmine
Old Man with a Hat
FWIW, I think those dashboards are painted metal.
cm23uoc
Old Man with a Hat
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Chrysler enginged Facel Vegas were about the last ones with this Kind of artwork. Then came plastic, while I have to admit, some American cars had plastic Wood Panels that looked better to my uneducated eye than genuine Wood.
pomonamissel
Senior Member
well an a40 blown hemi gasser , not sure whats the full plans for the 4 dr or cab cut off . my 2dr doors are in need of all the hardware n hinges and window stuff . and they are very rare , only 200 2dr seds known of in the world . i've been a gasser fan since i was a kid building model cars . one of my faves was the a40 drag gasser . still in collecting mode for the right pieces , and time n space to get her done n keep her in .
thomasrc
New Member
the windows are in fact hydraulic
thomasrc
New Member
Hey guys - I'm the new kid on the block. I realize this is an old post, tried to follow the link to the seller but not finding much. Does anyone know anything more this car? I have current info but trying to trace back. It ended up on eBay in July 2018, sold in Aromas CA. Any insight/add'l info greatly appreciated! Thank you!
thomasrc
New Member
I'm trying to find out who that owner was back then, any details?
You mean you know where the car is now?
thomasrc
New Member
yes - sure do! I posted this on a different thread: Indeed there was 1 on BAT, I was the high bidder in January & tried to negotiate with the seller off & on since then. He wouldn't budge on price. In all fairness, he put a significant amt. of time & parts into the car, it's running well. I finally picked it up Friday, I could not pass it up - it's quite the ride. Went to Cars & Coffee Saturday AM & people were crawling all over it. This looks like a great place to learn & meet good peeps.
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70bigblockdodge
Old Man with a Hat
Congratulations, enjoy, that is a beautiful car.
thomasrc
New Member
perhaps the CRAZIEST part of all, and a key reason I was intrigued, is the cars history. The car was part of a large collection owned by the Woods family in Portola Valley, CA "near" San Francisco. It was a wealthy family with a spoiled, lazy & rather odd son. The son kept buying cars, about 100 inc. fire engines, taxis, busses, etc. In 1976, the son & 2 friends hijacked a school bus with 26 children ages 5-14 along with the bus driver. There was a national manhunt looking for the trio - all three were captured within days. None of the children were physically harmed and the 3 kidnappers spent over 49 yrs in prison. They were denied parole more than a dozen times, Woods was finally released in 2002 at age 70. I have a significant amount of documentation about the earlier history of the car too, as well as the kidnapping etc. Chowchilla bus kidnapping: Rare photos from one of the largest abductions in U.S. history https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/02/us/chowchilla-kidnapping-escape-cnn-film/index.html Can't make this stuff up....
thomasrc
New Member
the "wood grain" is metal, the grain is painted on - a technique ( I do not know much about) that was the thing at the time. The windows are indeed power windows, hydraulic at that!!
thomasrc
New Member
I realize it's been quite a while. but any chance you can help me identify who that seller was? I bought this car in Jan.
You bought the car, you should know, right?
thomasrc
New Member
that was a post from a couple of yrs ago, that owner, WHO BOUGHT THE CAR IN 2002 & was listing it for sale. I didn't buy this car from him, otherwise, yes I would know.............lol............ hilarious.......
Yep, sure, I'll just start messaging random people until I find the answer for you...
I guess you'll just have to do your own research 
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