One of the strongest advantages of the Bring a Trailer website is the community that has grown with the website.  One of the disadvantages is that the community has no way of interacting outside the BaT environment, at least not without jumping through some hoops to figure out a way to contact each other.

One of the things that has been an added benefit to creating the CMC blog has been the ability to continue to build that community without the encumbrances that go along with a site primarily designed to sell cars.  All that to say, the friendships amongst guys I’ve never met face-to-face have been a pleasant surprise.  I mention all that for a little context to go along with the following tale that is 100% true.

A 1959 Ford Fairlane 500 recently appeared on Bring a Trailer that I knew would appeal to one of the regulars at the Grounds for Divorce.  I knew he’d been looking for one, as we had compared notes that his first car was a ’59 Fairlane 500, and mine had been a ’60.  I emailed him to be sure he’d seen it and it was already on his radar, in fact he’d already contacted the owner through BaT.

In the interview with Bring a Trailer for the Ten Questions with Captain My Captain feature they did back in February, one of the questions asked was “Which car do you wish you could get back?”

My answer was, “Probably the one most of us wish for, my very first. It was a 1960 Ford Fairlane 500 with outrageous horizontal fins at the back and a 223-cubic-inch Mileage Maker six under the hood. A three-on-the-tree transmission rounded out the glorious package. The moment I got a job offer after graduating from college, I traded the Fairlane 500 in on a brand new Chevrolet Monte Carlo. Not the single biggest regret of my life, but Top Three.”  There was even a photo posted with the feature of a young, 17 year-old Captain, complete with a full head of hair and bell-bottomed jeans, pictured sitting behind the Corinthian White Fairlane in all of its finned glory, circa 1976 or so.

All that to say, I watched with envy as the ’59 Ford on BaT worked its way through the seven day countdown.  When our buddy from the roundtable was the eventual winner, I emailed congratulations to him immediately and we discussed his plans for its impending arrival on a delivery truck the following week.  I couldn’t have been more excited for him.

Fast forward to the Saturday following that.  I’m enjoying a hot cup of Folgers with Buttercup on the patio, putting the finishing touches on the next three chapters of WHAT DRIVES EILEEN (which just ran), and reading the random comments that had come in that morning from the CMC blog.  That’s when I got an email from the owner of the recently won 1959 Ford.  I assumed it was him telling me his new purchase was on the way, and it was everything he’d been dreaming of.  I was wrong.

There, in the email, was a picture of a 1960 Ford Fairlane 500.  Corinthian White over a blue vinyl interior.  The car had 41,000 miles on it.  Lots of pictures.  “Found this advertised locally.  Thought of you.  It’s 45 minutes from my house.  I can go look at it for you if you want me to.  I know a good bit about 1959 & 1960 Fords, as I’ve owned both.  Just let me know.”

Now bear in mind I’ve been watching Bring a Trailer for years. Years.  In all those years, and maybe 120,000 auctions, there has been exactly one 1960 Ford Fairlane 500 come up for auction.  It was back in 2019 and it had been made into a low-rider.  Not at all what I would have ever wanted, but the only one ever listed.  It sold for $23,700.  Certainly not the car of my youth, nor the price I would pay. All of a sudden, here was one that was bone stock, unmolested, low-mileage, in good shape, and close to someone willing to take a subjective look at it for me.  And it was in the exact same color combination as the one I had.  

I drove that car through high school and college.  It’s the car Buttercup and I dated in.  The one I had when we walked down the aisle to wedded bliss.  All of a sudden, the car of my youth had driven right up the Highway of Fate stopping only to fill up at the Drive-In of Destiny for a burger on the way to fulfilling my auto dreams.  A contact I’d made from Bring a Trailer, who’d become a follower of the blog provided, in one email, what years of watching 120,000 Bring a Trailer auctions had not been able to provide.

Heck yes, I wanted him to look at it.

An hour later, I had made contact with the owner several states away.  An older gentleman who was honest in the car’s evaluation, said he bought the Fairlane from an estate just to get the one he really wanted.  They were offered as a package deal.  He bought the 1960 Ford Fairlane 500 in order to get the 1957 Ford Sunliner convertible he was really after.  The ’60 Ford was for sale.  Other details were discussed.  The car had 41,000 miles, incredibly low for a 64 year-old car.  The interior was in great shape, save for a front seat that had a split on the passenger side.  The rubber mat (carpet was a Galaxie feature, not a Fairlane standard) was in great shape, as were all the door panels. The original dog-dish hubcaps were complete and glorious. The chrome gleamed and was free of flaws.

Outside there was some rust bubbling, but five new tires.  The carburetor had been rebuilt.  The glass was all original and in great condition.  The car had one repaint in the original Corinthian White at some point.  “It’s just a basic, plain old Ford,” the guy said on the phone.  He was as honest in his assessment as he was oblivious to my dreams.  “Have your friend come look at it for you.  He’ll back up what I’m telling you.”  Later that same afternoon, the buddy that had sent me the listing via email was standing next to the Ford sending pictures and videos.

As much as I hadn’t planned on buying a car when I woke up that morning, the whole thing caught me off guard.  I spent the next couple days researching shipping costs, classic car insurance, the value of the car, and discussing with Buttercup the whole idea of an old car in the garage again.  Apparently the gene that controls the attraction to classic cars is much more firmly attached to the Y chromosome.  The X chromosome, not so much.  In the end, Buttercup’s patience is but one of the reasons I married her 45 years ago this May.

Long story longer?  There is a Corinthian White 1960 Ford Fairlane 500 Town Sedan soon to be loaded onto a car hauler and brought to the Lone Star State.  

My contention is that many, if not most of us, who appreciate the old car hobby do so because it helps us reconnect with our youth in ways that few other things are able to.  That’s certainly the motivation that drove our friend at the GFD to purchase the 1959 Ford Fairlane 500 of his youth.  HairlessB29 still has the ’58 MG-A his dad purchased new, and both he and his brother learned to drive in.  We appreciate those tangible connections to the earlier chapters in our lives.  

I have long stated the premise, in fact this entire blog is based on, “Every car is a story”.  An old car helps us remember some of the best stories from our past.  It provides an outlet for some new ones.  I think about Marty Roth getting behind the wheel of his old classic Packard, his bride at his side, and looking for new adventures in an old car with friends he’s toured with for years.  Traveling across the country, taking in all the sites, counting his blessings as immune to the aging process as one can be while behind the wheel.

Am I disappointed I didn’t get to buy the car in an adrenaline-infused bidding war on Bring a Trailer?  Well, sure.  But, on the other hand, there’s something about taking a couple days to make a decision on price instead of in the heat of the last two minutes.  Two minutes is not enough time to convince Buttercup of anything.

So the clone of the car I started out with is headed to Texas.  I’m sure there will be some stories to go along with it.  I’ll keep you posted.