Hi everybody! I was grateful to find your forum, because I have a pretty special 59 to sell. I want to make sure it goes to somebody who will really appreciate it.
The story is this: My great-uncle lived in Vermillion, Ohio, for decades and owned a diner, among other jobs. He was somewhat eccentric himself, but his wife, Yvonne, especially so. She was a bit of a hoarder, collecting coins, memorabilia, and all kinds of things. I heard when she died that there was quite a job in cleaning out their house.
He was also a Mopar man all his life. When he died in 2005, he had a 1980s-era red Dodge Ram and a Chrysler Concorde. To my knowledge, he never drove anything else. So when an eccentric guy wants to make his even more eccentric wife happy … he buys her convertibles, apparently, because in my family are two of them.
The first is mine: a 1959 Plymouth Sport Fury convertible, and this is the one for sale. It is nearly all original and runs great. The car is in storage in Iowa; I live in Minneapolis, MN. I just drove it two weeks ago and, short of having to charge the battery a little, it fired right up. Fact is, I live in the city and can’t keep the car with me (it wouldn’t even fit in my tiny driveway, much less my Model T-era garage), and it drives me nuts knowing it’s just sitting there not being enjoyed. This car needs to be owned by somebody who can drive it in parades, around town and even on trips. That’s why I’m selling it. It has documentation in the glove box on pretty much everything the old man did to it, right down to the bill of sale from 1961 when he bought it used and receipts from when he had the seats re-upholstered decades ago. There are no body issues I’m aware of and very little rust.
The second car the old man had is owned by my uncle and not for sale: a 1950 Dodge Wayfarer Sportabout roadster with about 23,000 original miles. It’s a real peach, too, but it’s currently my uncle’s baby.
Photos are here: https://59plymouth.tumblr.com/. Check it out and let me know if you’re interested. I’d love to chat with any interested parties about the car and all I know about it. Even if you just have ideas to help me sell it, I’d love to hear them. Thanks in advance to everybody on the forum - this is a great resource for a great car.
Check out the link above for photos; my email address is on there. Otherwise write me at jasonwalker262@gmail.com.
Jason,neat car and you should have no problems in moving it on to someone else who would appreciate it too! Is there some ball park dollar amount you are looking for to whet some Forum members interest in for this gem?
If so, give us some idea what you are looking for.
Thanks for sharing the story of your Uncles car and the pictures of it on that link you provided.
I’ve thought pretty hard about pricing this car. Since there are relatively few for sale out there, it’s hard to figure out what mine is worth. I don’t want to give anybody a raw deal.
On the top end, I saw a convertible that was immaculate and completely restored for $78,000. Of course, mine isn’t anywhere near that in terms of shape. I did some searching and found some other 59s for sale – sedans, hardtops, convertibles – and tried to land on a price that reflects the relative shape, rarity and low mileage of mine. What I came up with was in the $38,000 range. If that’s out of line, please let me know. But it seems like it’s in the ballpark.
Also: This car is being stored in rural Iowa; I live in Minneapolis, MN. But my in-laws live where it’s being stored, and therefore anybody interested in the car can do so at any time. My father-in-law is a car buff and has a great old Dodge snub-nosed pickup that I’m infatuated with (it’s his farm truck, but I love it anyway) as well as two older BMWs. His brother lives in Denver and is a car nut involved in that local scene.
Jason, You never know who might fall in love with this car, the range of 20K to 30K is good but You might find someone between the 30 to 38K who has to own this car.
At least it helps people to know what you are looking for in dollars. I am going to let a friend here in Denver know about this car. Who know, he might get in touch with you and work something out.
Is your Father-in-laws brother here in Denver a Mopar guy or one of those lesser Ford or Chevy guys? LOL
I found the codes from the plate above the master cylinder. They are: M293 and 100507.
The VIN is M293100507.
Had a couple guys go down and look at the car this weekend. They drove it and in the end weren’t buyers, but they did comment on the car having very little rust and still possessing all its trim. I was glad to have the positive feedback.
This car was build in Evansville and was the 507th Sport Fury build there.
Earliest build Sport Fury I’ve got in my VIN list.
Options I see on the car are bumper wings and the mirror matic rear view mirror.
Car also has been repainted sometime and it’s missing the front valance.
Great to know! I have the front valance, it’s just not on the car. I’d make sure to get it to a buyer. I also have an art print of a '59, an old ad for one and a maintenance guide. I need to collect all this ephemera I’ve collected so a buyer can have it.
How can you tell it’s been repainted? A guy I talked to said he thinks that because it’s missing the side mirrors and radio antenna that possibly it had a front-fender accident when it was new and it was fixed and repainted before my great-uncle bought it. Does this affect the value?
Good! The front valance is a very hard to find part. This will make the car complete.
I can see that it’s been repainted as the part between the grille and bumper is mint green.
This should be argent (grey) just like the front valance.
There is also overspray on the inner fender, hood bumpers and hood hinges. The overspray can be seen in more places like the plate that is behind the brake booster and some grommets in the firewall. My best bet is that the whole car has been repainted in it’s lifetime so it doesn’t have to be because of an accident.
You can see it here:
The drivers side mirror and the mirror on the top of the windshield are after market.
I didn’t even noticed the antenna.
Mirrors on the front fenders were an option.
The fact the car has been repainted is not a bad thing and does not affect the value.
Other options:
Torqueflite 3 speed automatic
Heater
Windshield washers
Hello Jason,
The tail lenses are supposed to be mounted concavely, not convexly (is that a word??), so yes, if you can remove the bezel screws, the lenses can be turned right-side out.
Another point about the low serial number of this car, it does not have lower rocker stainless mouldings which became standard equipment on Sport Furys in mid-October 1958, which goes along with Matthew’s observeration of the low number. It was likely built in September or early October 1958. Some earlier ones did have them as optional equipment but it is a way to spot an early production Sport Fury.
I realize they could have been removed and the holes filled but that’s probably not the case here.
Ha! I wonder if the taillights were installed incorrectly at the factory? Otherwise, who would do such a funny thing?
That’s really great info about the manufacture date. How interesting. Knowing the car was actually built in 1958 is pretty cool.
Unlikely a factory error. Most likely either accidentally or deliberately done later on. The general concensus is that the car has had a face-lift sometime in its past, paint over-spray being one indicator. The shop may have removed the taillights to paint the body, and maybe some apprentice was told to disassemble the pods for cleaning, and he put them back together wrong. Another little mystery, which makes old cars so interesting!
Hi everybody. I still have the car and thought I should give an update.
I drove it last weekend and it was running great. We had to replace the battery and the generator as it was having some trouble staying charged, but now it fires right up. I almost got to drive the car in a parade, too, but we missed the registration deadline! Oh, well.
I had to look and update the actual mileage of the car, and it’s right around 33,000. So my original post was a little high. Also, I had a potential buyer ask for some more photos of specific spots in the car, including the trunk floor and the exhaust, so if anybody wants to see them, email me at jasonwalker262@gmail.com. The exhaust is relatively new; I believe my dad had it replaced in the mid- to late-90s. Also there’s the shiny new gas tank.
I was looking through the receipts from through the years, and I think I figured out something. The car was owned by my great-aunt, who died right around 1989-90. Then I noticed that most of the major work receipts – new upholstery, new top, etc - came right around 1991-92. I am wondering if my great-uncle decided to fix it up “in her memory,” perhaps. I dunno … but that might give us some insight as to why the car wasn’t driven very much.
Jason
Hi everybody. The car is still for sale. I have been a little lax in my role as seller all summer, but just letting you all know it’s still around. And I did have a new battery and generator installed recently, so it’s running great.
Jason
