Survivor Wagon: 1959 Edsel Villager
The seller of this 1959 Edsel Villager says this car speaks for itself and is all original. Assuming that extends to the photos of it, I’d say this Edsel looks like it’s lived a pretty easy life. This wagon was sent in by a Barn Finds reader who found it here on eBay in Tacoma, Washington. This no reserve auction has received 29 bids, setting the high bid so far at $6,800.
The Edsel was a short-lived brand from the Ford Motor Company that began in 1958 and ended production in 1960. Initially based on Mercury and Ford platforms, by the 2nd model year, they became Ford-based only. This 6-passenger Villager wagon was one of 5,687 built-in 1959. Total Edsel production across all 3 model years was 118,287 – 47,396 of those were from the 1959 model year.
The seller tells us this Edsel is a survivor that they purchased from the son of the original owner. The bright red paint is claimed to be original and still shines. The body and underside are described as solid. The rear bumper looks like it may have been hit a time or two. I’m curious about the origins of the roof rack and its original intended use, but I like the look of it. Wheels are void of covers, but the seller is including some.
The interior is also original. The red and white fabric and painted surfaces perfectly match the exterior. The seats are a little dirty, but in good shape considering their age. There is a small tear on the side of the front bench seat. The dash shines bright and the floor covering looks a little dirty, but again, pretty good considering their age.
There’s little detail on the drivetrain, aside from the “standard V8” mentioned. Assuming it’s original, that would be a 361 cubic-inch engine. A column-shifted automatic transmission sends power to the rear wheels. The seller tells us it “runs and drives, but will need some work to be road safe.”
If you’re a long roof fan like me, I’ll assume this one piques your interest at least a little bit. What’s not to like about an all original, well-preserved 1950s wagon? Even if it is an Edsel. This seems like a good opportunity to not only wax nostalgic but get into a solid, classic wagon.
Auctions Ending Soon
1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1Bid Now17 hours$7,100
2003 Porsche Boxster SBid Now18 hours$6,250
1966 Lincoln ContinentalBid Now20 hours$500
2000 Jaguar XJ8LBid Now4 days$1,250
1977 Datsun 280ZBid Now5 days$275
Comments
I haven’t seen the car so I’m not going to doubt the guy when he says it’s the original paint, but I’m amazed how good it looks after 61 years.
Load up the kids and the dog, and we’re off to Jellystone Park! I love it.
Yogi the bear…and Boo Boo too
Probably the best looking Edsel ever built. Cleaned up the model lines with this year’s product. Only one I ever drove was a friend’s police cruiser. Ugly but pretty fast.
Beautiful and solid, let alone somewhat scarce. I’d lose that roof rack, which isn’t factory anyway. I’d also source a set of Edsel Spinner wheelcovers with white centers–the Edsel Owner’s club is an excellent source to network with other owners & locate needed items. Could not tell if this wagon had AC or power windows as options, but I seriously doubt it anyway. No matter; I’d take this any day of the week regardless! You WILL garner attention at shows. Just be prepared to answer lots of questions by admirers.
William, I am sure many will agree, loose that “canoe-roof rack” and source some reasonable rims and tires and this one is a winner.
William Fox, if you can’t tell if it’s got power windows or not, the window winders might give you a hint.
It seems there is a light but quite extended crack in the windshiels.
Decent looking wagon. I have three daughters, grandchildren and great great grandchildren living in the greater Tacoma area, this would certainly make a nice gift for one of them except they’re all into ultra modern junk. Perhaps my oldest daughter(52 years old) might be a little interested. I think I’ll forward this to her to see if she has any interest.
God bless America
I always like the tail lights on the 58. They made for cool custom jobs on other cars. The front of the 59 was a improvement imo.
Totally agree Vince – much prefer the 58 NON-wagon ‘Gullwing’ Taillight scheme to the 59 Edsel non-wagons. And the 58 Edsel wagon ‘Boomerang’ rear lights are way-cooler than the ones on this 59 wagon.
I believe the base V8 for a 1958 Wagon was a 292 Y-block, or 332 FE for upper models? 361 FE was optionally available as the top engine for all 59 models (except Ranger?)
The featured wagon seems a good get since if truly original, condition is amazing. Most Edsels weren’t treated very well at all thru the decades…
Wow…talk about rare! Wish I had room for this beauty.
The old car hobby sure is goofy. Here you have a car that has a bunch going for it. Rare and unusual, a wagon, relatively clean, V8, automatic, and “only” $7878 ( going up by single dollars means the end is near) seems like quite a deal. I thought Edsels were really cool.
Now, isn’t that great for those of us in the hobby that don’t have access to piles of $? Searching for alternative models is fun and vehicles like this could possibly offer plenty of vintage car without a massive tag. Could it be the find of the month?
Absolutely this the find of the month. Great car with simple mechanicals. It’s a Ford so parts are available, but it looks different so it is cool!
I made a print of one of these in 2005 for
a customer who really wanted one. I did
his in Velvet Touch Maroon with a Creme
top. He liked it so much that he paid me
double my asking price! Then he comes
back and orders a ’58 Citation 2-door HT
that next week! Come to find out that he
was the first person in Winter Haven to buy an Edsel when they went on sale in
’57. We became close friends after I made the prints for him. Sad to say he
passed away just before I retired in 2009.
Seems that when I saw him, he and his wife always showed up in a nicely kept
old car of some sort. We just finished
our preps for the hurricane coming our
way when I saw this car. It’ll be over
Melbourne sometime Sunday afternoon.
Sis told me that they’re expecting 4-12
inches of rain with it as well as high winds. This’ll be the first one I’ve ridden out in an apartment though.
Be safe Ken. My in-laws are in Merritt Island, and they’ve been through quite a few storms over the years. We’re 5 years now in Tampa, and have seen quite a few in that short time, including Erma.
Thanks BarnFind for featuring this car. I wanted to buy one in high school and pops wouldn’t let me. Exact same car and color. $350. Well you made my wish come true 48 years later. I just won the bid on it. Hopefully it not to far off of what the pics show it to be. I’m looking forward to seeing in in person. Thanks again for featuring it and bringing it my way
Congrats Murray! I hope it does well for you.
There you have it folks, a success story. The car is so unique, how different from the pictures could it be? It’s not like it’s a ’68 GTO with a patched frame. I think you did great, and above all, have fun! I’ve had several “odd” cars over the years, and get ready for a flood of comments. I hope you like talking to people, because the stories are priceless. Big “thumbs up” here,,,
You reached your dream! Congratulations. I hope it exceeds your expectations.
Thank you Bob
Congrats Murray! $8.800 for a UNIQUE Edsel longroof is a very decent price in today’s market. Crossing my fingers for you it’s as good as it looks! 🤞
Thank you. I’m hoping the same but unless it’s a real turd I think I’ll be ok. Let’s hope😀
48 years later?!
Enjoy this one my friend !
Life is too short, you have waited long enough
Wishing you the best of luck and pleasure with you new car…
1st time I ever saw an Edsel wagon.
Closing bid was $8,800. SOLD
Thanks Rex, we will. We rode out Erma at
my MILs house in Winter Haven back in ’17. We were without power for 1 1/2 days on that one. Mom took it like a trooper though. She was wearing one of those heart monitors that needed charging so we plugged it into our generator along with the 2 fridges we had
then. We got through it just fine. I checked with the managment and the young lady told me that our apartment
building is made to withstand a cat 5
storm so we should be okay. Got the Charger filled up and ready in case we
gotta bug out. Got plenty of food, so
I think we’re ready. Congrats on getting the car Murray! Maybe you could give us
a play by play report on how your resto
will be going. Good luck man, you deserve it!
Thanks everyone for your well wishes. I’m hoping it is nice enough to keep as original as possible. I spoke to the seller and he assured me that going through the brakes and putting a muffler back on is about all it needs as a driver. That’s what I’m thinking for a bit. Maybe add a couple long board surf boards just for fun on those racks. Also has that dent on the pass rear quarter. Supposedly zero rust through anywhere on the car. I’ll know when the transporter drops it off next week. My biggest issue is if I sell my 1975 AMC Pacer with a factory stick shift and 66k miles. Hmmmm
Nix on the surf boards, Murray. Your Edsel isn’t a “woody”.
Unless you want to hammer some 2X4’s on the sides. LOL!!
Seriously, congrats….
Keep us updated on your wagon.
https://images.search.yahoo.com/search/images;_ylt=AwrE19zjxyZfx5MAPgFXNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTEyODk4MmhiBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDQzA2NzJfMQRzZWMDc2M-?p=Picture+of+a+woody+with+surfboards&fr=uh-mail-web
BTW… Back in ’75, I was dating a gal, who purchased a new ’75 Pacer. I felt the world was watching.
Funny thing…. I was working at Universal Studios at the time.
Every so often, a car carrier would drive on the lot, with a load of cars that were completely covered. Turns out they were shooting TV ads, in the back lot.
I drove back to see them & I was surprised at the radical style of these Pacers. The novelty wore off real fast.
Keep the pacer, you obviously have a taste for quirky cars and these 2 are definitely up there !
Hey Murray, Look what I found, today…. LOL!!!!
Now THIS is the real deal.
Do you have room for one more??
https://barnfinds.com/original-wood-1950-ford-woody-station-wagon/?utm_campaign=Newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Newsletter+(Daily)
Claudio. You pegged me right. The goofier and stranger they are the more I like them. I just might keep both.
Stan. Not sure about the 2x4s but maybe I should nail the surf boards on the sides of the car instead. LOL. All seriousness I think you are right about no boards. I can’t wait to see it when it arrives. Take care 👍
Thanks buddy. What’s the ETA? Let us know how it looks.
Stan. Should be here next week. Check out the 59 yellow Edsel wagon on E Bay. Now that’s a sick pup. I almost want to add this one as well. I just hate someone else’s work as you never know what’s hiding under that shiny paint.
Murray, I posted this history, of Pontiacs, on that ’64 GTO swamp thing Barn Finds, I thought was interesting.
https://journal.classiccars.com/2020/08/03/top-10-favorite-pontiacs-the-chief-the-bandit-and-the-goat/
I’m sure you’ll be taking pics, of your new Family truckster, When it comes in, I’d love to see what;s under the hood.
Please, email me some pics. [email protected]
You got it
BTW…. Scroll down to the video of Ronny & the Daytonas.
There’s also a Smoky promo video, too.
When I worked at Universal, I drove the Bandit Trans Am, on the first Smoky movie.
Hey,
that’s my Edsel now! Wow, what a cool find this is 🫶🏻
I searched google for a few random pics last night, and saw a red Villager with a bend rear bumper, and thought, „…wait a minute….?“
I‘m a 33 y/o boy from northwestern Germany with a passion for American Classics. I‘m currently restoring this ’59 Villager. It’s a lot of work, but it will be a headturner when roadworthy, yes, the paint is original, the white stripes were repainted, but not good, I peeled the paint off, and the original white came through.
It’s a 332 with no power steering, no power windows, no power brakes, no A/C, but radio and a 2-sp trans. Engine is shot, carbon buildup over and over. Rust only some small holes in the rear rockers.
And yes, it had a massive crack in the front windshield. Had! New glass and rubber was installed a few weeks ago, costed a little fortune over here.
Rear bumper was bend, it’s pretty straight again, I pulled with a ratchet strap, dent wizard incoming, for the bend side panel.
And yes, the roof rack was still in the car when I got it, maybe I will mount it to haul a surfboard when cruising on a Friday night.
Best regards
Rainer aka The Chrome-Daddy
Hi
Is the car relocated to germany or you are relocated to u.s.?