Buying a 30 coupe advise needed

J

JonC

Well-known member
Hi guys, I normally am over on the V8 site trying to restore my 40 P/U. Lately I have been trying to purchase a 30 Deluxe coupe from photos and could use some help from the A guys. When I started the process I was shown excellent pictures of a 15 year old restoration and I sent the check to cover it. The owner (very nice guy) tells me now there are some issues that I should be aware of( hass offered to let me out of the deal). The front fenders have been repaired with rebar to shore up the outside edges, it is not a deluxe because the rear window does not roll down and the kicker is the block has been brazed near the water outlet (I don't know what that means), he said it doesn't leak and runs good but the paint has flaked off that area.

I was in search of a car that I could drive and looked nice for this coming summer, just tool around in and have some fun. The interior shows very nice in the pictures and for a black car looks very straight, I also am told that the cowl repair is starting to bubble. I paid 11K for this and will cost one thou. to have it shipped home. How big of a deal is the brazed block? can good blocks be found? I understand if I put a different block in I would have to have the mains poured. Do you think this is going to be more than I bargin for. I know it's a dumb question but I really wanted a deluxe coupe to drive. Jon
 
JonC said:
Hi guys, I normally am over on the V8 site trying to restore my 40 P/U. Lately I have been trying to purchase a 30 Deluxe coupe from photos and could use some help from the A guys. When I started the process I was shown excellent pictures of a 15 year old restoration and I sent the check to cover it. The owner (very nice guy) tells me now there are some issues that I should be aware of( hass offered to let me out of the deal). The front fenders have been repaired with rebar to shore up the outside edges, it is not a deluxe because the rear window does not roll down and the kicker is the block has been brazed near the water outlet (I don't know what that means), he said it doesn't leak and runs good but the paint has flaked off that area.

I was in search of a car that I could drive and looked nice for this coming summer, just tool around in and have some fun. The interior shows very nice in the pictures and for a black car looks very straight, I also am told that the cowl repair is starting to bubble. I paid 11K for this and will cost one thou. to have it shipped home. How big of a deal is the brazed block? can good blocks be found? I understand if I put a different block in I would have to have the mains poured. Do you think this is going to be more than I bargin for. I know it's a dumb question but I really wanted a deluxe coupe to drive. Jon
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Jon,
The roll down rear window came out during the year in 1931 thus your 1930 deluxe would not have one and a 1931 might or might not have one but it wouldn't define a coupe as being deluxe. The price based on your description plus the fact that you have not seen the car seems high, I think I would keep looking. I think I would do some homework (like reading the judging standards) so when I found one I could evaluate it. An example being that the deluxe couple had cowl lights but they could be ordered as an option on a standard coupe. I would recommend taking a knowledgeable person with you when you go to look at a car, there is a lot of little stuff that adds up. As a final thought ,contact local model A clubs and put an ad in their newsletter.

Charlie Stephens
 
pictures never show squat and to buy a car without checking it out in person or having a knowledgable person look at it is a crap shoot.. sounds to me like it needs a TON of work and for a few thousand more you might be able to find something much nicer and closer to home...now that you have the opportunity i would run
 
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take the refund and keep looking
12k ought to buy you a real nice car in our area-NY, New England etc.
just take your time......................

engine work will put you on the high side.
 
I agree that it might be time to take the refund. Paint doesn't stick well to brazing, especially if all the flux wasn't cleaned off the block. Rebar for a fender patch is a farmer fix that I'd have to have fixed correctly. I wonder how many other little things haven't been discovered yet?

For that price I'd want to inspect the car in person, or at the very least pay someone very knowledgable in Model A's to inspect it. Over the past few years I've seen some nice coupes in that price range, or even a bit less.
 
Hello Jon, I should first admit that I am no expert, but I am in your neck of the woods and I paid about that for a 30 Roadster that was ready to drive with many new parts (paint is old and I plan to try my hand at re-doing that). $11k sounds like a lot to me for what you have described. I found several ready to drive cars within a "round trip" days ride for less when I was looking last year.
 
FWIW:

We all usually have different, but somewhat similar opinions here; & all here honestly try to assist others if they can.

To add to the great advice given thus far, here is my humble opinion offered in a rural type parable response:

"Never hire a certified FDA approved chicken plucker to go to a dentist's "Going-Out-of-Business-Sale" to evaluate & purchase an expensive used dental chair, a used dental x-ray machine, complete with many used dental instruments, drills, & bits."

In your particular case, rather than looking at photos etc., please try to find, at a bare minimum, "one" competent, experienced Model A "owner/restorer", who is familiar with current Model A car parts prices, engine re-build prices, & paint job cost to give his honest opinion on ......... in the end, who will be the screw & who will be the screw driver.

Hope this helps.
 
First, before putting any money down, make sure of the ownership, a legal title to the vichicle, verified serial number on the frame same as title, and don't do any work on the car till you have it in your name, make sure the no modern engine installed, if so the chances are engine year is what the car will be registered as, especially in calif
 
Leave it, man. The price is too high with the problems described, and foretell of other problems yet unfound. 30 coupes are not a rare car, nor, for that matter, are Model A's in general. Keep shopping, and go with a knowledgeable Model A guy to look at the car.
 
I disagree with the price is too high guys IF you plan to keep it. If you plan to flip it it is really too high.

As for specifics,

Is the brazed area leaking? If not don't worry until it does, the A engines are non pressurized. Even if it does leak, JB weld has worked for years on cracked blocks. A rebuild will run you about 4k.
 
In trying to maintain your interest in Model A's, I "had" a similar Model A deal where the Model A owner had an "asking" price, and after visiting with him, & asking about repair "issues" I saw, he was honest enough to relate other "issues" that he had observed; hence, by the time I left his place, he had cut 2/3's off of his asking price.

However, after going through a Model A parts catalog to create a list of what was needed, & speaking to a body repairman who had restored several vintage vehicles, the restoration estimate would have far exceeded his asking price, which is often possible & often witnessed in all sorts of restoration.

On a "positive" note, suggest maybe calling the two large National Model A Club Organizations to inquire about their classified ads ....... plus check the two Model A Forum ads to see what is available ......... and even add your name to the Model A "Wanted" ads.

Again on a positive note, there are still lots of honest people out there ....... we only hear about the crooks because their crimes is what sells newspapers & keeps people glued to the TV ....... just remember that there are not enough trees on our planet to make enough paper to report all of the good human deeds done every day.

Don't give up.
 
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Thanks for all the replys, I wish I could post some pictures because the car is beautiful with a gloss black paint and almost perfect interior. I have looked around and although there may be deals it seems most A's I see advertised are in the 17 to 20K range for restored cars, they may not be getting that price but I don't know.

I should walk away but I see engines and rolling frames available from all the guys that are buying restored cars and making hot rods out of them, that's a shame but maybe good for me. Whatever car I buy I plan on keeping the rest of my life as the A is maybe the last affordable classic car at least in my price range, besides they are one of the best looking Fords ever made. Again thanks for all the advise. not sure what to do yet as you all know sometimes it is more about emotion than fact. Thank everyone Jon
 
Jon, don't buy the car unless you look at it first. And look at the others advertised for the higher prices. Then you will be able to see why they are better and be able to recognize the flaws in the one you can get for 11K. Bring another Model A owner with you. Repeat, look at it before you buy it.

I have purchased several Model A's from photos. Every one was a mistake. The one we have now looked great in photos and in person too and we paid less than 10K. Then that "little noise" in the engine began to get on my nerves so I had an expert look at it. Long story short, My new engine cost $4000. That adds up to 14K. 'Nuff said.
 
I agree with the others that advise not buying by just checking out the pictures. Here is what my 29 tudor looked like in its pictures (see picture 1). Nice uh? Well I'll have to refinish the car and rebuild the front end end before it is right.

On a positive note a 1930 Coupe was my first and favorite model A. It looked like this when I got it (see picture 2), and like this when I was done (see picture 3). So whatever car you get I am sure you will make it beautiful.

BTW I payed $200 for my 1930 coupe. Of course that was in the 1970s!
 

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IMHO the most expensive car in the end is the cheap one that needs a few things done. Best to decide exactly the condition of car you want, find one, and don't spend money on fixing(easier said than done).
 
Shop around. Most guys don't marry the first pretty girl they see, and there are good reasons for that. Same with buying a car.
 
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