Flat-Black66 (Bowen Stead) has posted many shots from Cuba here, and new ones continue to show up. This one caught my attention, as its wood body looks to have been redone, locally. And lengthened, in the process. For that matter, it may well not have started out as a woody wagon at all. I’ll leave it to you all to decipher this one.
Cohort Sighting: Unidentified Woody Wagon in Havana
– Posted on March 29, 2014
Looks like a Ford. Either a 1938, or a 1939 standard. That’s a lot of rear overhang, though.
I think you are right. 1938 Ford seems to be the closest but it still isn’t quite right. I expect this thing has been altered a batch of times. Thought Willys too and it’s close but Willys has more of a beak.
Perhaps the inscrutable mystery Paul.
Definitely a 38 Deluxe or 39 Standard Ford but the body has been extended and the rear axle changed from original.
Wow, despite its possible home-baked origins that is a really cool woody.
All of those wood panels are really home-made looking. The fenders are the only pieces that actually look original. The hood is shaped right but the louvers on the sides are different from Ford’s original styling. There’s no longer a gas filler on the rear fender. I’ll bet there’s no flathead V8 under the hood either.
Googling photos of late thirties Fords reinforces my view that 1937’s are good-looking, as are the 39 Deluxe and 40 Standard cars, but 1938’s are ugly.
..c’est une ‘oakie-skokmobile’ ..meeh
Looks like the grandparent to the 15 passenger Econoline.
I thought those front wheels were 1937 only ? .
I’m no Ford expert so please advise .
When I was living in Guatemala City in 1977 there were loads of battered old 1930’s & 1940’s American cars . my poor new wife didn’t understand why I wanted to buy them all .
I managed to sneak a 1937 Harley-Davidson EL (61 C.I. KnuckleHead) Moto past here however…..
-Nate
Don’t know the basis for this Cuban special, but it brings to mind the Monart Mercury’s of 1942. A WI dealer, Monart Motors, bought up remaining 1941-42 Mercs -2drs or 4drs – and converted them to wagons for commercial and wartime usage. Monart went belly up and no exact production numbers survive. None likely survive.
It’s certainly 1938 Ford De-Luxe chassis.
’38 Delux, and IMHO, anything but ugly.
http://www.carnut.com/cgi-bin/05/image.pl?/show/05/okc/nat0775.jpg