Gene Winfield's 1933 Ford

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In 1955 Gene Winfield bought himself a 1933 Ford shop truck. Gene kept the stock flathead engine that was in the car. Gene began the build by chopping the roof 4 inches. Gene cut below the rear window, so the glass would remain stock height. Further he removed the fillet between the windshield and the cowl. This placed the windshield frame right on the cowl, giving all of the windows the same height.

Up front Gene modified the car with a 1932 Ford passenger car grille. He also hand formed stainless-steel radiator aprons. Both front and rear bumpers were handmade out of 1/2 inch by 3/4 solid steel bar stock. He laid the material flat, and rolled it around in an oval shape. Up front he put a bullet in the center of each bumper. In the rear he made a solid roll pan.

Along the inside edge of the running boards, Gene ran two sets of exhaust pipes. The pipes ended in front of the bobbed rear fenders. It was only the lower pipe that carried the exhaust. On the bed, Gene installed bed rails and a sign showing the company logo.

The car was fit with 15 inch Chrysler Kelsey-Hayes rims with adjustable spokes. The center of the wheels were machined to fit Chrysler hubcaps.

Once finished, Gene painted the car white pearl, before he fogged the edges with green. The first version of the car was done around 1957. But the car was going through many changes in the following years.

In 1960 Gene installed taillights from a 1960 Chevrolet Corvair on each of the rear bumper ovals.

Instead of hauling parts, Gene used the shop truck as a show truck. After showing the car at the Oakland Roadster Show, Gene sold it to a guy from Vallejo, California. The truck was last seen in the San Jose area.

Magazine Features

Car Speed and Style June 1960

Sources

The Legendary Custom Cars And Hot Rods of Gene Winfield