I had always assumed that the Fordillacs of hot rodding lore were all built with Cadillac’s groundbreaking OHV V-8 engine, not the Cadillac flathead V-8 engine, which is what appears in this 1949 Ford for sale on Hemmings.com. Then again, it’s not as if Frick and his partners built these as production-line automobiles; they were building custom cars however their customers wanted. Still, this one appears to be much more radical than any typical Fordillac we’ve come across. From the seller’s description:

This is a custom-bodied 1949 Ford with flathead Cadillac engine and accessories. The hood, front fenders and cowl have been brought back some 19 inches, there is no back seat, yet the car remains the same length as a standard 49 Ford. Thought to be built by Bill Frick and Alfred Momo, this car was constructed to satisfy the racing specifications of Mr. Thomas Campbell and an Argentine race driver, Ralph Onunyzia. The car is equipped with Stewart Warner gauges, and Edmunds intake. Mr. Campbell bought out his partner around 1952 and moved the car to his estate, “Louis Mountain,” in Charlottesville Virginia, where the car was seldom driven. Mr. Campbell’s widow, Julia, eventually sold the car in 1973 to The Vintage Car Store in Nyack, NY, where it underwent a partial restoration and color change.

The car eventually found its way to Tampa, Florida, by way of a Rolls-Royce dealership in St. Louis, where it has been garaged for the last 35-plus years. In all this time, it has accumulated less than 9,000 original miles.

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1949 Fordillac for sale on Hemmings.com
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