Flathead prices back in the day
- Thread starter 1931flathead
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Flathead Fever
Well-known member
50fordcoupeman
Well-known member
Bought my first 50 Ford custom deluxe coupe (original) in '66 for $100 and was much nicer than my present one. I was making about a dollar an hour as I was going to college.
If this was in the era of $1 an hour wages, and with shipping and misc., the total cost was about $80 or two weeks wages. Today, a $15 an hour wage two week's wages will still buy a rebuilt engine.
corvette8n
Well-known member
I remember going into Montgomery Wards Menands NY store in the early '60's and seeing dozens of rebuilt flathead's on display, I was just a kid and had no money but I was in awe.
RalphG
Well-known member
V12Bill
Well-known member
Bought my first car in1950 for $25.00. Solid 2 door with running 4cyl engine. I was 14 and my wages were, cut grass for $1.oo, Shoveled snow for $1.00, In 1962 I was in the Army stationed in Hawaii, and rented an apartment in Waikiki for $105.00 total, with 2 friends. $35. each. Wages then were 3 hots and a cot plus $150.00 a month
modeleh
Senior Member
Please let us all know where we can buy rebuilt flatheads for $1200
bobgc
Member
Bought my first Ford when I was fourteen from a farmer who lived about 4 miles away. It was a 48 coupe and had a damaged right front fender, I paid him 25.00 and he hooked his tractor to the front bumper pulled it out and away I went, happy as a clam. As I think back it was otherwise a real clean beauty but that diden't last long once my brothers and I started running it through the fields around our place. OH what a shame but we sure had fun. I bet we weren't the only ones to have ever done that.
JSeery
Member Emeritus
A figure I have seen for a short-block with stock heads ~$2,500. And that may be a bit old and out of date.
Didn't say 'flathead' rebuilt. Today's equivalent to a flathead then would be a 302 Ford, which you can find for around 1200.
modeleh
Senior Member
Well you’re still using an obsolete engine as an example. The 302 hasn’t been used in a new production vehicle for over 20 years. You aren’t going to get a current model rebuilt engine for two weeks of average wages. Prices of auto parts have increased and continue to increase. Yes maybe there are anomalies that are due to economies of scale like the fact that a reproduction upholstery kit for a 65 Mustang is less than a 58 Edsel, but the fact remains, and I believe the OP’s original point was to show how far our dollar used to go.
Ol' Ron
Well-known member
I've often wondered how this all happened? I understand that over time all money seems to loose it;s value and we blame allot of things for this, but it still doesn't make sense. AS a young lad growing up in Chicago , before the war (WWII) we would go down the alleys "JUNKIN". Looking for returnable milk bottles. along with other things we could sell. The milk bottles were very scares do to the fact they were wort from 3 cents to a nickel and during the depression, that was allot of money. At the end of the day we eould go to a store on the cornor of central and Sunny side (Building is still there) If we made 10 cents, one thin dime we could buy a candy bar and a 12 oz Pepsi and split both. After 85 11/12 I figgered out who is to blame. Congress, why not?? Today a very small Milky way cost 15 cents and is so small?? but them were the good old days, I;m told just think when most kids of today they will live in the 2100's and be telling their stoiies of how it was hard to live on only 100,00 a year.