When did the 32 become so special?

1973, when the movie American Graffiti came out!
At least for me, always wanted a 32 five window like John Milner's.
Only with a flathead in it. :)
 

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sidevalve8ba said:
In my opinion all the Fords from 1932 through 1940 were special. Special from day one.
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Now that I can agree with!!!! And the 46 thru 48s were not to shabby ether. If you look at the Ford styling along side other makes of the same time period the lines are very similar, BUT the Ford lines always seem to flow better to my eye.
 
The 1932 Ford was special from the day Henry Ford shut down the production of the Model A Ford. It's popularity has never waned since that day.
 
I think it was the timeless styling of the curves and body lines in just the right place. The fact that the cute little car had the rumble of the Ford V8. It was all set up to be a race car since it already had the V8 and any of the later model Flatheads could be easily dropped in using even junk yard parts!
 
The thing I find interesting is that all the individual parts are beautiful in themselves. The fenders, the grill, the dash,the bumpers, all of the parts. The 57 Chevy is widely sought after and admired. Put the parts on the floor and they are really ugly. The 32 tail light stand is really a complex beautiful part. I can't imagine the time it took to do the tooling for them. I heard there is some formula for proportion that the 32 grill fits. There is probably a formula for the curves of the fenders also. They just look right. I finished painting a set of fenders black. I just kept turning them a watching the reflections. The curves in the fenders are beyond perfect.
 
The 1933-34 Roadster has long been considered to be the best looking Ford, ever built.
It is much prettier than the 1932 Roadster. The '32 looks like an "A" Model.
MIKE :) (mikeburch)
 
While technically correct for the full calendar year, Ford outsold Chevrolet and Plymouth in every month following the introduction of the '32 models on March 31. In other words, when it was available for sale, it was #1 in sales in the U.S. for the duration of 1932. Unlike the '32s, the '33 and '34 Fords were not #1 in U.S. sales during the periods they were available for sale which were basically twelve months compared to nine months for '32s.
 
This is an interesting thread. I agree with much of what has been written.

The 32 Ford was rather conservative in styling and understated. Look at a 32 Chevy for comparison. The design is very clean and maybe more aerodynamic. 32 grille shells were put on Model A hot rods.

I agree that Ford styling was much better than the competition. My personal favorites are 33-34 and 39, but all are pretty good but for one year that I won't mention because it will start an argument for sure.

How many of us fueled our interest in old cars by building the AMT model kits back in the 60s? They were all Fords. I had the 36, the 39/40, the Model A, the 34 truck, the Model T, the 49 and the 32. Other brands came later, but the earliest and most popular were the Fords, as I recall.
 
About the '32 grill: In 1950 or so an uncle built a home made tractor using an A engine, AA trans and International truck 2 speed rear end. It was about the size of an 8 or 9N Ford tractor, but would out pull one. He couldn't afford a new tractor at the time, but finished this home built off with a '32 grill! He still has this tractor, complete with original '32 grill!
 
blucar said:
The mystic surrounding the '32 Fords is very hard to explain. Kind of like a mans preference to women.
The '32 Ford was not that popular in '32, Chevy and Plymouth actually out sold it. It has been written that Ford dealers left Ford in droves in favor of the Plymouth, because Ford was having a lot of trouble supplying vehicles to their dealers, and when they did supply the vehicles they experienced a lot of trouble with them.
Ford had made a huge mistake in the late twenties, they had not invested any effort in product development, being content to ride on the laurels of the Model T..
The '32 did have some big features over the Model A, reputedly the styling was patterned after the Lincoln. And of course the V8 engine proved to be a real winner once the problems were ironed out.
I never cared that much for the '32 or the '34, never had a desire to have either. The '40 actually leaves me quite cold. Because I have a '36, which I have had for over 61 years, it could be assumed that I like the '36 Ford, not so, I bought the car to save it from the wrecking yard. The original owner had bought a new '52 Ford, he had planned on sending the '36 to a wrecking yard, felt the mechanical brakes were unsafe in "modern traffic".. The car had 52k on it.. I kept the car because it never let me down in over 94K..
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Same car you still have? Excellent! I would say the minute one was wrecked and the drivetrain stuffed under a model A, preferably a roadster.
 
If you notice, it was the grill that did it. All the guys running the lakes kept the A body but ran the deuce grill.
 
mhsprecher said:
...but all are pretty good but for one year that I won't mention because it will start an argument for sure...
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You got something to say, say it out loud!

My personal favorite design happened to be the first in-house Ford design. E.T.Gregorie and staff, for the win. It unfortunately came at a bad time.
 
They just have that look that's iconic. I like the 33 & 34's as well and think they are beautiful but the 32 has the best front end. Art Deco styling at its best, clean, simple and timeless.
 
When they reached the showroom floor. "First of the factory V8s mate" as outlined earlier, bonnie and clyde liked them as getaway cars. Later they were the race car of choice, then they appeared in a movie or something and popularity soared, which put extra fan base tax on the few that had not rusted away or been crashed.
Hence why reproduction 32 bodies became a viable product.

Personally the 34 looks better.
 
It was popular with us hot rodders in the early 50's I think because it was #1 a Ford, #2 it had rounded corners, #3 it had a frame capable of handling a pumped 59AB engine. My '31 A with '47 X member and engine supported a '32 grill shell and I always wished it didn't have that visor over the windshield. But then the beautiful flowing lines of the '34 stole my heart.
 
carguybill said:
It was popular with us hot rodders in the early 50's I think because it was #1 a Ford, #2 it had rounded corners, #3 it had a frame capable of handling a pumped 59AB engine. My '31 A with '47 X member and engine supported a '32 grill shell and I always wished it didn't have that visor over the windshield. But then the beautiful flowing lines of the '34 stole my heart.
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That's pretty much it EXCEPT the frame. Back in the 40's we liked the wide finished looking 32 frame with the little flare along the bottom. I built one when I was 16. Stepped the frame before the rear wheels, 2" dropped front axle, 24 stud engine, "A" roadster body and the 32 grill and shell with the radiator cap hole leaded in. I think I have a picture and story from the front page of the local news paper when the cops were going 95 MPH and couldn't catch me. Big trouble. G.M.
 
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