Ron, his wife Marjo and their son Matthew live in Poortvliet near the Belgian border. Over these many years, we have formed a lasting friendship and have visited with each other many times. Often the occasion is the Chrysler Nationals in Carlisle, PA, but Ron and Marjo are seasoned travelers and love visiting the United States, and we get together whenever their trips bring them near Philadelphia.
“Chrissie” – Ron’s ’59 Sport Fury – is a spectacular red with white hardtop, as shown here. And here is a retelling of how Ron came to own the car, from issue 297 of The Bulletin (Jul/Aug 2009).
I asked Marjo to come and have a look, and when she came to the computer she said “WOW! Let’s call this guy and make an appointment with him so we can look at the car.” She picked up the phone and called the seller. He wasn’t amused since it was Sunday and only 9 am, but he wanted us to come right away. Suddenly she was feeling a lot better! She was ready within minutes; however, Matthew decided not to come because we would always go look at cars, but never buy one. After a two hour drive we got there and when the owner opened the garage door we both knew we had found our car. We talked with him for a while and he took us for a drive on the boulevard. I asked Marjo what she thought - her reply was: “Can we take it home right away?” We made the deal within a minute!
Ron continually improved the car over the years, and in 2008, Chrissie received a major overhaul – the removal and replacement of rusted panels, and a completely new paint job. You can review the prodigious effort here.
In June of 2016, things took a turn for the worst when Chrissie developed some engine trouble. Sidelined for now, the 318 has been rebuilt and is back in the car. You can track the progress for yourself here.
What follows here are pics and vids from days gone by, preserved here as Showcase memorabilia. Many new pix are to be added, I am sure!
