Chris Glidden’s ’49 Ford Woodie packs modern muscle, comfort and conveniences.
Chris Glidden always wanted to own a Ford Woodie wagon, even when he was into muscle cars and drove a Dodge Challenger convertible and a ‘69 SS-427 Impala. Hooked on the look of a Woodie, his idea of a dream machine would have to incorporate a modern powertrain, suspension/brake upgrades, AC and stereo.
What Chris was really interested in finding was a vintage Ford “donor” wagon that he could use as a base for his dream Woodie. After a multi-year search he found what could best be described as a ’49 Ford “refugee from a junkyard.” Listed for sale on Streetrodding.com, it already had one wheel in the grave! It was located in Arkansas and its floors were rusted out, glass and wood gone and its rear frozen.
“My pal Jim Peters, shop manager at Realistic Auto Restorations in St. Petersburg, FL, thought I was nuts when my skeleton of a wagon arrived at the shop,” said Sarasota Café Racer, Chris Glidden, above. “Realistic had restored two of my other vehicles and I wanted them to turn my dream into a reality.”
It turned out that the wagon wasn’t as bad as they thought. The important body panels and frame were useable and the crew at Realistic felt they enough to start the project. While the donor was at Realistic, Chris sourced some exotic Quilted Maple and Androbia Mahogany woods for the exterior from craftsman Rick Mack, known in the Woodie community for his incredible ’50 Ford wagon.
Chris found his ride’s 2002 GM/Corvette LS1 engine, above, and 4L60E automatic transmission on eBay. Jim Peter’s crew at Realistic came up the 8.8-inch Posi rear with disc brakes from a ’97 Ford Explorer. The Woodie’s rack and pinion steering came from Streetrod Engineering in Lake Havasu, AZ.
Finished in PPG Rolls Royce Dark Cherry, the Woodie rides on “old school” American Racing Torq Thrust mags and sports an outstanding interior trimmed with two-tone Mercedes-Benz leather, above. Juliano’s Rod Shop supplied the custom column and steering wheel. Bob Juliano owns a spectacular ’51 Woodie that has been on the cover of The Rodders Journal.
Other features include ten-way power seats, Vintage Air AC and ten-disc CD player/ AM/FM radio by Custom Auto Sound. Original Ford instruments, including speedometer, were converted to electronic and recalibrated to work with the Corvette engine’s ECM.
Nothing gives Chris Glidden more pleasure than putting on a surfing shirt and cruising beach towns in his Woodie, or breaking bread with the “Car Guys Who Lunch” in Sarasota, FL, above.
Construction from junkyard dog to show stopper took less than two years. Credit goes to Jim Peters and the crew at Realistic, http://www.realisticrestorations.com/