Once a car becomes a hot rod it represents one person’s personal take on what a stripped-down, fast car should look like. Modified cars normally don’t attract collectors, except that now car collectors seek out significant hot rods from the genre’s past. And these old Fords can go for big, big money. But these are Rusty Monday hot rods. Let’s see what the ravages of time have done to them.

For whatever reason, these Rusty Monday hot rod gems have been relegated to obscurity, or are outright abandoned. A number of them look like they could be brought back to their former glory. Let’s hope the love and effort expended into them was not done in vain.

1932 Chopped Ford Vicky

It may look like an abandoned old Ford sedan, but this is a Victoria body. A Victoria body that has had its top chopped several inches. And it looks like a sweet chop. It has also been channeled over the frame unless it ended up this way because the body supports are rusted away. We don’t think so. As far gone as this looks like the 1932 Ford is the Holy Grail of hot rod hunting. So there is a ton of aftermarket stuff available including complete bodies in steel. Not Vicky bodies, but the roadster, 3-window, and 5-window coupe bodies that are being reproduced should be able to supply whatever this once-majestic hot rod needs. 

1932 Ford 5-Window Coupe

Unlike the Vicky, this Rusty Monday coupe looks too far gone to be brought back. This is a 1932 5-window coupe body that has been cludged onto a VW chassis. It looks like fiberglass matte was laid over the top to cover the opening that all Ford closed car tops had until 1937. Tooling capabilities of the time couldn’t stamp out a complete top. So a hole was left that got covered in fabric and chicken wire. If you have a coupe body in your back 40 this is an example of what not to do to it.

T-Bucket Hot Rod #1

Many a Model T roadster body was repurposed into a T-bucket or as some called them a “fad-T.” This one looks like it got the body, cowl lights, headlights, and radiator shell from a real-deal Model T roadster. It also got an overhead Olds V8 for a power-to-weight ratio that should have been scary. This is a relic of the late-1950s or early-1960s that should have been coveted and protected. It is unfortunate that it was not. In its day this should have been quite a high school hot rod.  

T-Bucket Hot Rod #2

This looks like the previous T-Bucket but it is a completely different hot rod. This one is of the fiberglass variety. They must have made a million of these bodies. It is definitely home-brewed. The frame is a work of art or disaster depending on how you look at it. Most all T-buckets have the body sitting on top of parallel rails. These rails have been stepped down for the body. Why? Some kind of overhead engine is up front and out back is a Model A rear end. Don’t dump the clutch with that weak third member!

1930 Model A Coupe 

Here’s another hot rod that in its day must have been quite the car. It is a 1930 Model A Ford coupe with a 1932 Ford grille shell-a typical conversion. It’s running a 59AB flathead with “two-twos.” That means two, two-barrel carburetors. It’s also sporting Ford F-100 truck steering, tube shocks, and tube headers. This was not a cheap build. All-in-all this was a stout coupe in its day. It wouldn’t take much to bring this Rusty Monday relic back however from the look of it this hasn’t seen any pavement in many decades.