This heavily modified 1936 Ford was a winner at the VFW Car Show in Collinsville, Illinois.

The handsome-looking ’36 Ford Tudor sedan you see on this page is owned by Darlene Hickman. Does that name ring a bell? If so, it may be because I did a story about her husband Jack’s 1960 Chevrolet on May 3, 2020. I hadn’t seen Jack or Darlene since I wrote that story. They came up to my TKCS-STL booth at the recent VFW Car Show in Collinsville, Illinois. Jack asked if I remembered him because I did that story on his Bel Air and of course I did remember him at that point. He informed me that Darlene now had a toy of her own, directing my attention to the car seen here. I had to go take a look at it and when I did, I was amazed to find, well, I was going to say mild custom, but it was far from that!

If you saw Darlene’s Tudor coming toward you, you might think it’s just another early Ford in good shape. But a closer look reveals how different, and special, this car really is.

The first thing you notice is the low stance. The lowered chassis was built on a TCI frame by a since-closed shop in Arizona. The bright chrome wheels are highlighted by “baby moon” hubcaps — a very nice touch. Next you might notice that the doors have no handles. That’s because this custom Ford has an automatic key-fob system for opening the doors. In other words, the door handles have been “shaved.” Darlene pointed out the extra room in what seems, from the outside, to be a very small trunk. That’s because whoever did the custom work on the car moved the back seat forward 6 inches to provide more room in the trunk for folding chairs, coolers, car detailing products and such. The once exterior trunk-mounted spare tire is now in the trunk instead of on it, resulting in a much cleaner look from the rear.

Moving inside, you find a totally customized interior with a full set of modern but vintage-style gauges by Classic Instruments. There is an up-to-date sound system mounted in-dash and yes, vintage air conditioning with vents that look like they belong there.

Powering this handsome sedan is a modern 6.0 liter, LS Chevrolet V-8 driving a Ford L6 automatic transmission. At the tail end is a 9-inch Ford rear-end. Darlene said the finished car was painted in midnight blue pearl, a Chrysler hue.

When it rolled off the showroom floor in 1936, this Ford Tudor sold for a whopping $520. Based on the Consumer Price Index Inflation Calculator, that equals $11,260 in today’s dollars. That goes to show one thing … the 1936 Ford was a bargain back in its day!

Darlene was looking for a car from the 1930s because she liked the styles from that era. She and Jack went to check out the inventory at Gateway Classic Cars in O’Fallon, Illinois, and found one ’36 Ford there, but it did not fit her needs. The one you see on this page was located at the Gateway Classic Cars dealership in Chicago. The pair flew up to Chicago and drove this beauty back home to Fairview Heights. And the rest, as they say, is history.

FIN MAN FACTOID: In the year 1936 a loaf of white bread was 8 cents, a seven-piece mahogany bedroom set was $200, a broom was 29 cents and a newspaper would set you back 2 cents!

UPCOMING EVENT: Don’t miss the Archway Oldsmobile Club’s Fun Day Car Show at the National Museum of Transportation on Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. The Fin Man will be there with the TKCS-STL booth and the latest member of the Fin Man Posse, Matthew. Roy will be there, weather permitting.

Dead or alive? The prolific American actor Troy Donahue?

Answer: On Aug. 30, 2001, Donahue suffered a heart attack and was admitted to St. John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, California. He died three days later on Sept. 2 at the age of 65. 

Auto reviews, driving trends and up-to-date news about life on the road.

Bruce Kunz is a freelance automotive writer. He is a regular contributor for Brand Ave. Studios.

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This heavily modified 1936 Ford was a winner at the VFW Car Show in Collinsville, Illinois.

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