Many things in John Buckner’s life have changed since he was a little boy working on his parents’ farm. He still remembers driving the plow at spring while their old horse Buddy dutifully pulled it along, and the countless hours spent sweating away in the fields in the autumn heat. Forty years later, John, now in his early fifties, owns the farm and is married to his loving wife of twenty-five years, Debrah. Buddy and all the other horses are long gone and have since been replaced by machines. Hard work and careful investment (and a little bit of luck, he had to admit) has turned his humble farm into a small-scale industry. As a result, him and Debrah have climbed from being poor peasants to being pillars of the community.
One thing that hasn’t changed in many years is their car. John’s 1931 Ford Model A pickup truck has served them well over the years, but now it is on it’s last legs. Not only is it falling to bits, but the ever-expanding network of high-speed motorways has left it unable to keep up with traffic, so a replacement is due very soon.
John wants another truck, that’s already decided, but he wants something a bit more comfortable and well-equipped than what Chevrolet and Ford are currently offering. Debrah on the other hand wants to go visit friends and family in the city, and wants something that’s stylish and easy to drive.
The Judging
The cars will be judged on the following criteria:
More Important
Utility
Comfort
Drivability
Styling
Reliability
Less Important
Practicality
Purchase price
Service costs
Safety
Fuel economy
Offroad
Not Important
Sportiness
Prestige
Restrictions
Trim year: 1959
Model and engine year may be older for lore reasons
Drums are the only option at the time. There’s usually no reason to overly restrict CSR and get a bunch of cookie cutter cars.
It’s up to the host to decide what is and isn’t realistic and bin cars based on those choices, while the participants are the ones that should be doing some research to avoid getting binned if they don’t know the setting of the round. Makes it easier to find a winner when people make unrealistic design/engineering choices.
I ask for the restrictions or clarifications because there’s such a wide opinion of what’s acceptable and what’s not, and if I’m going to spend a bunch of time on another CSR, only to get binned because the OP didn’t specify they didn’t want something very specific, well then what’s the point? I mean, you could run 17" rims in 1959 which is totally bunk, but it’ll improve your drivability scores so…what am I supposed to do, be period correct or go for scores? I just want to better gauge what this OP wants.
Short answer: do whatever you think gives the best results.
I’m not going to be too hard on realism, because ‘realism’ isn’t the same as ‘good design’. For example, cross-ply tires were common on american cars until the 1970s, even though radials are better at literally everything (except cost and load capacity).
I wish there was a better body style available for this challenge, all the ones we have now for 1959 have a sub 100 inch wheelbase, and the one that is big enough doesn’t do it for me… not a lot like actual trucks in '59
Huge Sale at Steele Ardent-Townsend, Iowa’s Number One Dealership!
Come on down for super sale pricing on all 1959 Ardent and Townsend models. You won’t find a better car, a better price, or a better company to do business with. Easy factory financing available.
Rock Bottom Pricing on the Following NEW Cars
'59 Ardent Wren 100 - $914 cash or $20 per month
'59 Ardent 410 Custom Coupe - $1589 cash or $35 per month
'59 Ardent Midnight 310 Custom (Auto) - $1599 cash or $36 per month
'59 Townsend T100 (Auto) - $2059 cash or $36 per month
'59 Townsend T5 Templar Conv. (Loaded) - $2789 cash or $49 per month
All financing subject to credit approval, 8.9% Annual Percentage Rate. 30% down payment required. Tax and registration must be paid at time of purchase. 36 monthly payments on Ardents, 48 monthly payments on Townsends. Prepayment penalty of 10% applied to loans paid off more than 45 days before loan maturation date. All advertised specials are one only. See sales manager for details.
Submitted trim: T100 Automatic, in Enchanted Blue. AUD$ 11225
The PU/ET limits for this round seem quite liberal even for a late-50s truck. So far, I can’t decide if I want to go with a cheaper I6 or a more powerful V8.
I found price to be the upper limit, the PU/ET didn’t come into play much at all. I went with the inline-6 because memories. I had a 1965 Ford F100 in high school with the 300 cubic inch (4.9L) straight six and a three on the tree. I pretty much learned to drive in that truck, and that motor was unbreakable. The 300-6 is used in industrial equipment, like old chuck n duck wood chippers, and they still run today. I run around in a truck with a big V8 now (7.4L) but straight sixes are really the king of durability…plus they’re smooth as warm butter.
