Let’s say it’s the late 1950s and you need a car. However, you want a new car, and you only have about $2000 to spend. You shop around and discover, perhaps by watching a Ford TV commercial, that “FORD is the lowest-priced of the low priced three!” Depending on whether the year is 1957 or 1958, let’s see what you got for your money if you wanted “basic transportation”–a full-size, 6-passenger 4-door sedan.
Here’s what actor, singer, and TV cornball Tennessee Ernie Ford has to say (bless his pea pickin’ heart):
“It’s priced lower than the 1957 Custom 300!” Tennessee Ernie conveniently fails to mention that, in the Ford hierarchy of models, the Custom 300 was above the plain Custom in ’57, but is now the lowest-priced model among the ’58s. Confusing, I know. But still, it is a fact that in 1958, the Custom 300 4-door had a base price of $2119, versus $2155 for the comparable Chevrolet Delray, and $2134 for the Plymouth Plaza. So the “lowest price” claim still holds true.
HISTORY OF THE CARS THEMSELVES:
1957:
This 1957 Ford Custom is a splendid example owned by Steve Schmidt of Wyckoff, NJ. According to Steve, the car started life in the midwest, but found its way to the used car lot of Gary-Allen Chevrolet in Englewood, NJ a year later.
It was purchased by Mr. & Mrs. Wellington A. Wilkinson of East Rutherford around February of 1959, and was driven until the husband died in 1970.
The car sat in the garage until the widow decided the garage needed a new roof. She offered the roofer the car in exchange for the roof job. The roofer did some restoration on his new “purchase” but then the car sat for a long time. It was sold to someone else, and it really needed help by this time. It was offered for sale again, and when Steve spotted it, he states that “I felt like I needed to save this car.” Steve bought it in December 2017 and finished the restoration, with the goal of “keeping it as original as possible.”
1958:
This 1958 Custom 300 was purchased new by Louis Galtieri (1899-1996) at B. J. Werner Ford in Garfield, NJ. Mr. Galtieri owned the BeauCraft Accident-Proof Stair Tread Co., and this was a company car. For reasons that remain unknown, he kept this car for many years, and passed it on to his son Joseph Galtieri (1927-2016). Joseph went to Harvard, and there is a Harvard decal on the rear window.
This car is currently owned by Stephen Pellegrino, who like Steve Schmidt, is committed to keeping the car as original as possible.
DRIVING IMPRESSIONS:
Your CC reporter has only driven the ’58, but it is assumed that the driving characteristics of both cars are approximately equal. The engine (started with the aid of a hand choke) gives some roar on acceleration, but is rather quiet at normal cruising speeds. However, the contemporary Chevy 6 cylinder is smoother and quieter than this engine. The Fordomatic transmission normally starts in 2nd, with one upshift to 3rd. Low speed torque is good. “Master Guide” power steering, combined with “new Magic Circle Steering” gives light and easy handling, with almost no lean on fast turns. The combination of easy handling and the mechanical sounding engine give almost a European impression.
The ’57-’58 Fords were considered quite low in profile, but there is still an upright seating position, and you don’t feel as if you are sitting on the floor, unlike the ultra-low slung monsters yet to come. The ride, while not cushiony, gives a satisfying level firmness. Visibility is good, but overhead traffic lights are hard to see because the windshield height is comparatively short. I like the view over the hood, with its power dome and gunsight ornaments on the front fender tops, which actually aid in guiding the car down the road. Overall, this is a really solid, roomy car that is easy to drive and live with day-in and day-out.
As the blue and white ’57 drove out of the parking lot onto the main road, I was struck by how sharp and clean and graceful it looked. The low-priced car buyer of that time still got a solidly built, neat looking car that was full-sized and dignified in every way. In later years, such buyers would be purchasing cynically shrunken, cheesy machines–like the Pinto.
Furthermore, the fact that these two examples survived to the present day is something of a miracle itself. Were it not for the odd set of circumstances that preserved them, these would have been crushed years ago. They were also serious rusters, which did not add to longevity. Ford built 192,775 Customs in 1957 and 340,871 Custom 300s in 1958. If 1% survive, that’s about five thousand cars, and even that seems optimistic. I’m thinking 1/10th of 1%. When was the last time you saw one?
Note: a rerun of an older post.
A guy I knew in high school graduated and celebrated his new job at the local grain elevator with what was then the fastest car in our little Illinois town: a ’57 light blue Custom 2-dr. In those days, you could specify any engine with any model. His was marked ‘Police Interceptor’ on the dash; research now tells me it was 312 cid supercharged with 300 hp. I don’t remember the transmission, but it was probably the 3-speed, the only manual available at the time.
Of course, he managed to total it out within the year and before Bonnie (the hot waitress at the Big Rock Truck Stop) would consent to marriage, he had to buy something more practical. As I recall, they ended up with a used Olds station wagon.
Dad had a ’57 wagon in that same blue with white, while our Uncle Dick had a ’58 Country Sedan in gray & white (both had the gold foil stripe), and my best friend Scott’s family who lived across the street had a white ’58 Country Squire. While I liked our ’57 Country Sedan, I liked the ’58s even better, they looked fancier all around, had the new quad headlights that were all the rage that year, and I preferred the ’58’s dash with white instruments. And both of their ’58s had red interiors that made them look really sharp!
Scott’s family also had a ’60 T-bird in dark metallic green with light green leather seats, an absolutely gorgeous car, and boy was I jealous of that one!
What a nice looking car .
The 1957 Ford looked lighter than the bulkier 1958 .
It’s been a long time since I drove one but recall they were nice drivers if slow .
-Nate
Oh boy. I’ve got to get that new building up on the back acre, love them both!
The new ‘57’s had already been in the showrooms for a few months when I was born, but if I had been a car buyer on a budget, looking for basic transportation, I would have probably bought a VW. On the other hand, when I did buy my first car in1975 it was certainly not a Pinto. I waited A year before getting my own “shrunken, cheesy” machine, a Vega. But 70 years later these Fords look pretty nice.
I just think that the 57 was much better looking than the 58.
Maybe 10 years ago Revell came out with a nice ’57 Custom. I outfitted this one with an “E” code twin 4 barrel 312. Three on the tree as well. The “F” code would bring you the Paxton supercharger which did quite well in NASCAR until banned.
My father owned a ’58 Fairlane 500 4-door sedan and it was the car he owned when I was born. He readily admitted that both the previous ’57 and subsequent ’59 Fords were better looking. It was a leftover ’58 model that he bought late in 1958 after the ’59 models had been introduced, so he got a deal on it.
My dad bought a 1958 Ford at an auction which was a former Ohio Highway Patrol car. It had the “Thunderbird engine” and the driver’s side spotlight. Bored 11-year-old boys had fun with that spotlight at night….
Great commercial featuring Tennessee Ernie Ford advertising the Ford. He was a big hit on TV in the fifties. He had a powerful deep voice. He finished every show with a hymn. The producers refused to let that happen and Tennessee Ernie said that he would not have a show without the hymn. Americans of that era appreciated the hymn at the end of the show. Does anyone remember him saying “pink biscuit hooks?” His song “Sixteen Tons” is the truth told in song and worth your listening if you are not familiar with his truth about the strife of miners. Love the cars, too. One of my teachers has a 1957 Custom 300 Fordor. I rode in it.
Ford hit the sweet spot during these years. As for me, I love a 1958 Mercury. As to looks, I’m not a fan of the headlight bezel style of the ‘57. The 1958 & 1959 Ford products were squared up and modern 3 box designs. The Mercury and Edsel even more so! Sorry about those MEL engines however. Couldn’t deliver what they promised.
The 57 and 58 Mércury’s were beautiful. Push button transmission, thermometer style speedometers. The layout of the whole car was the best in the 1950’s.
Remembering the New Jersey Inspection sticker on the 1957 Ford. The style of that sticker began in the mid-sixties. They were always mounted on the passenger side of the vehicle. The ruling was changed in the 1980’s that the inspection sticker would be mounted on the driver’s side making it easier for police officers to see if the inspection stickers were up to date and not expired. The color of the inspection stickers were changed year to year from blue, green and yellow on a rotating basis. The red sticker in shape of a stop sign meant the vehicle failed inspection