Posted on Monday 7 April 2008
After being hidden away for decades in a Florida garage, an original Ford concept car designed by the son of Henry Ford, Edsel Bryant Ford, has sold at auction for $1.76 Million. The car is the 1934 Ford Model 40 Speedster and is regarded as one of the Blue Oval’s first ever concept cars.
Edsel was president of Ford from 1925 up until his untimely death in 1943 from cancer, and during that time he was responsible for a number of important models including the original 1932 Ford and a concept car that went on to spawn the first Lincoln Continental, reports Edmunds.
Previously, all Ford models were designed by the carmaker’s engineering department. Edsel is credited with establishing Ford’s first design group back in 1932 and one of the first cars developed by the studio was the Model 40 Speedster.
The car is built on a 1932 Ford chassis and is powered by a 75hp Ford Model 40 V8 engine. The concept previewed a number of styling features that would eventually appear on Ford’s production models including its low faired-in headlights, fully enclosed radiator, streamlined shape and minimal exterior pieces.
wow a ford that i would like to own….would be a hoot to drive too !
a two tonne (i’m guessing here) 75 hp V8 would be fun to drive?
you’d get some really great looks on the strip but lets get something straight; my focus is more fun to drive than that thing could possibly be.
that being said; definitely a late 40’s look from a depression era ford.
So if it’s on a ‘32 chassis why is it a ‘34? It’s even been celebrated as one of the great ’32s recently.