Car News

You can only have a car original once. This 1967 Mustang fastback lives by that credo.

By Rob Staple

The Ghost 67 Fastback Mustang survivor

You can only be original once is the phrase you have probably heard a million times. Now what’s the important thing behind that phrase is the fact that factory original cars, cars that are still the way they rolled off the factory assembly line when they were born, are quite rare.

The fastback in ’67 itself is not rare, they made 71,000 of those cars, thousands of them still survive and it’s not hard to find one, now finding one that is a true survivor that is substantially the way it came from the factory and has not been restored… Now that’s a rare thing!

Finding one of those that is also a GT model that’s something even much rarer, it would be a fraction of the entire population of those cars made and still surviving. We have one right here, it is a 1967 mustang fastback factory GT and it’s substantially the way it came from the factory, it’s un-restored and well preserved. When you look at the paint it tells the story. The interior, engine bay, trunk and the undercarriage appear to be direct from the factory. You can see that patina that only comes with the earned decades of use. Preserved cars are becoming all the more popular these days and are finally getting the attention they deserve.

It’s had a little paint work mostly to spruce up the interior. The headliner and carpet are completely original, and the engine bay is presented much like it was when it left the factory as is the trunk and the undercarriage. It’s been very well preserved, there’s been no attempt to restore this car. It remains in fantastic condition for a 55-year-old Mustang.

This particular ’67 Fastback GT is distinct in many ways, very rare to find a C code 289 cid 2-barrel carburetor GT with a three-speed manual. This was the only year you could order a GT with these options, making it a super rare, super special car.

I’m the second owner. The car was manufactured in Dearborn, Michigan, but the Ghost spent most of its life in Wichita, Kansas. Originally owned by decorated Korean War Veteran, Chief Master Sergeant Donald Dean Neal. It was preserved after his passing in 2007. The original owner drove from Kansas to South Dakota which would explain the uniform paint wear. The car was purchased from Michael Chance at Myrod.com who only sells cars of the highest quality. It was found by a bird-dog of his that finds the rarest cars. The car will be preserved in its current condition with only minor cosmetic attention for preservation purposes. 

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Old Cars features a reader’s ’57 Chevy four-door that has been by its owner’s side since 1963.

Joe Griffiths still has the ’57 Chevy that his grandpa gave him way back in 1963.

“This car was given to me by my grandpa in early 1963. I was stationed at Great Lakes Naval station in Illinois awaiting orders to report to Camp Pendleton California. After receiving my orders I drove the car to California and would drive up to L.A. on the weekends were I would show it off cruising Hollywood boulevard with some of my buddies from the base. After a couple of months I meet my wife to be and we dated driving around going to the beach and just enjoying each other’s company. We still drive around in it today after 60 years of marriage. So this car has a special place in our hearts as well as our two children and grand children.”

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Old Cars features a reader’s barn find to beautiful 1939 Diamond T 406 truck.

Gary Unverzagt’s impressive ‘barn find” to beauty queen 1939 Diamond T 406 truck.

Gary added this about his Diamond T…

“It was a barn find, out of West Virginia. It was in pretty rusty condition. I am a retired firefighter and work on old vehicles in my shop about 40 to 45 hours a week. I do all the work myself for the exception of final paint and upholstery. The Diamond T was a frame-off, nut and bolt restoration. I rebuilt the motor, transmission and rear and there were a lot of missing parts that were unable to be gotten and had to be made in my shop. I designed and built the wooden body with no previous wood experience. Because it only goes 40 miles per hour top speed and 10 miles per gallon, I have to trailer going on far away shows.

The original diamond t truck stoped being built in the sixties. Diamond T trucks were bought out by Rio in the sixties. Not to build, but to put them out of business. In their time they were the Cadillac of trucks, headliners and clocks.

 I am currently working on a 1949 diamond T with all the modern conveniences.”

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Old Cars features a reader’s 1942 Hudson Traveler Business coupe.

Warren Henderson finally found the Hudson of his dreams.

“Back in 1956 when I was fifteen, my older brother Paul was in the Navy, stationed at Brunswick Naval Air Station, Brunswick, Maine. He asked dad to find him his first car. What dad found was the most beautiful car I had ever seen. Now I had seen plenty of great cars before in my young life. My dad had owned a 1932 Nash Lafayette big six, four door sedan, then a ‘38 Dodge four door sedan, a ‘40 Buick Special four door sedan, a 1953 Pontiac station wagon and now his first ever new 1956 Pontiac Station Wagon; I have two brothers and two sisters, requiring big cars to fit us all in. My uncle George owned a 1934 Hudson Terraplane coupe, that I can still see in my mind’s eye, Aunt Ann and him pulling up in front of our house and getting out those suicide front doors. What dad found was a 1940 Hudson sedan, in beautiful black paint, that shined like a mirror, I love the body on those cars, especially the back (no humpback, like the ’38 Dodge). The interior was every bit as nice as any living room I had ever seen, and the back seat was more comfortable than any couch I ever sat on. This was a low mileage car and dad got it for a good price, the only problem with the car was it needed a new oil bath cork clutch, which meant dropping the drive tube and pulling the transmission to get at it. Oh, did I forget to say that I was no mechanic, I was working alone, and this was the first car I was going to work on. My “garage” was an open field across the road from our house. My lift would be the Hudson’s bumper jack and my jack stands were stones from a nearby stone wall (Hey! I was 15 remember). So, with no knowledge “don’t ask me how I managed to accomplish this”, because even to this day I do not know. Somehow using a Motor’s Auto Repair Manual, working afternoons after high school, I managed to get the transmission out, install the new clutch and get the car back together running like new. I can say that only because my brother Paul never had a complaint about how it ran.

Ever since that day I have always wanted a vintage 1940s Hudson car, and after over 35 years in the classic car hobby, I finally bought one, the car of my dreams a 1942 Hudson Six Traveler two-doo, 3-passenger coupe. I find the ‘42s better looking than even the 1940s, with their new grille and side trim. 

In 1942 Hudson made several positive changes and upgrades. Sheet metal “spats” on the lower body now covered the running boards and new wider front and rear fenders, the doors were now curved to minimize their prominence. If you are into driving 1930s and ’40s cars, Hudson was a technical leader of that era and drove very well. Braking, often a complaint of vintage car owners, is not an issue with Hudson’s Double-Safe system, a longstanding tradition of retaining a backup mechanical system linked to the brake pedal, in the event of a hydraulic failure. Wagner Electric invented a dual-cylinder brake system in 1960. This system has a dual master cylinder separating front and rear hydraulic lines. If one line developed a leak, the other line could still work. Double-Safe is especially welcome in vehicles with single-reservoir master cylinders, as all Hudson’s were.

My ’42 Hudson Six Traveler (I believe it was built around the end of October or early November in 1941), is a matching numbers (VIN#, engine# and frame#) and has all its trim pieces chrome plated or bright medal, something that they did not carry through for the remainder of the model year. The six-cylinder Hudson was by far the most often chosen engine option for the 1942, of which only 40,661 were produced. Any 1942 model car is quite rare, but the blackout models are even more rare. Only 5,396 1942 Hudson’s were built, during the war. The “blackout models”, also sometimes referred to as “victory models”, were the cars built on and after January 1, 1942. My Hudson looks and drives the exact same way as the day it left the dealership. Showing a recent total restoration, unfortunately the dealership did not have any documentation as to when or who had done the work. My 1942 Hudson 20T business coupe road test, starting from a stop 1st, 2nd, 3rd gear shifts, speed bumps, steep grade and flat road, just like driving on old Route 66. 

Check out the video of the drive

I hope you enjoy my 1942 Hudson story as much as I enjoy owning and driving it.

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Old Cars features a reader’s award-winning 1957 Plymouth Belvedere convertible.

John Paxos’ Belvedere is a sharp award-winning convertible. 

John can give you the 4-1-1 on his sweet Plymouth…

” This car was found in Texas in 2000. The car had off-frame restoration that was completed in 2007. It received AACA First Junior, and Senior awards and was selected AACA National Award Winner in 2019. The car is powered by the V-800 Fury engine with two four-barrel carbs, 3/4 race cam and 290 horsepower.”

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If you like stories like these and other classic car features, check out Old Cars magazine. CLICK HERE to subscribe.

Have you ever wondered what your classic ride is worth? Old Cars has you covered with the Old Cars Report Price Guide. We are your source for unbiased and real-world pricing. Subscribe today and find out what your car is really worth! CLICK HERE to subscribe.

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