Friday, August 10, 2012

Little Old Blue/Time for a New Car

Isn't she pretty? My dad built this little '47 Dodge truck quite a long time ago.  He has quite an amazing talent in restoring old vehicles and has done probably a half dozen or more cars in his lifetime.  The problem though is he doesn't have enough garage space to store them all.  My dad's problem then became a little blessing for us and we were the lucky recipients to have this cute little thing at our house for a few years.  Before the boys went on their missions he wanted his grandsons to get to enjoy driving this a little bit.  Besides, what fun is an old car if it just sits in a garage all the time.  I was a tad nervous about that idea but they promised they would be careful and they most certainly were.   

The white Ford Taurus you see in the garage is my regularly driven car and it has been on its last leg for a long time now.  I just continued to drive it and drive it till it was almost driven into the ground.  My husband was getting pretty insistent on getting me something different to drive while this car could still possibly be sold and because he wanted me to be a little more safe on the road. Plus the heater doesn't work and I was regularly seen driving with a blanket on my lap in the winter.
We had talked a lot about this truck and what to do with it.  The boys weren't driving it anymore and it was collecting dust in the garage and taking up one of our spaces.  This was a little frustrating in the Winter when we had to scrape snow off the car in the mornings.  We had a discussion with my mom and dad on what we should do.  They didn't have room to take it back.  We were ready for our garage back.  We had already tried covering it outside with a car cover and that turned out pretty unsuccessful.  We had cancelled the insurance on it long ago because nobody was driving it anymore and so it just sat here neglected. Mom and dad both said to go ahead and sell it.  This really was such a hard decision because this piece of art and hard work was created by my very talented dad and I felt like as long as we had this we would always have a little piece of him when he's not here anymore.  I was so torn.  After a lot of discussion we came to the decision to go ahead and sell it.  We put it on KSL.com and it didn't take long for a guy from Cedar City to come all the way up with a big trailer and buy it without even seeing it in person, only seeing the photos from KSL.com.  He was so thrilled and checked this truck over for two hours before finally pulling away with it. It was a sad day watching that cute little truck going down the road.  I'm happy that someone else will get to have some pleasure from it and I'm happy about a few fond memories we enjoyed with it as well.  We insisted that my parents keep the money because after all it really is theirs.  They were very kind and shared some of it with us and we were then able to put that towards getting us a more reliable family car. I guess/hope everybody is happy in the end?

7 comments:

wendy said...

I LOVE that little truck. I can imagine it was indeed very difficult to let it go.
But...I bet the guy who bought it will treat it with the loving care it deserves.

Ashley Eliza said...

Aw I loved that truck. so many good memories. Your dad is so talented with all of his beautifully restored cars. They were all so perfect & i always loved hearing him talk about them. How fun that you guys got to use it for several years..

Just wanted to say hello! You are such an inspiration to me with all of your races and running. You are simply amazing, Susette!
Hope you are doing well :)

Clint Moore said...

How did your father build this? It must’ve taken him quite a long time. Was he the only one who built this? He really is a talented person. Anyway, I think he’ll understand your reasons for selling this. I just hope that the new owner of your car will take good care of it. =)

-Clint Moore

Ellsworth Mciltrot said...

Kudos to your dad for restoring that wonderful truck! It looks like a vehicle straight from a movie or TV scene. It is perfectly normal to feel uncertain about selling this awesome truck, since your dad gave his all to bring it back to life. But if it will just deteriorate in the garage, it would be best to put it in the market. I’m positive that the next owner will take good care of this vehicle.

Ernest Houston said...

Wow! It’s just like those vintage cars I see in car shows and vintage movies! I give two thumbs up to your dad for giving this vehicle another life! In fact, it looks like a new ride, straight out of a time machine. You wouldn’t suspect it an old car based on the photos. I definitely dig the color. It’s cool and easy on the eyes.

Carry Demaggio said...

The '47 Dodge truck's classiness still hasn't faded; I'm impressed, Susette. No wonder it didn't take long for it to be sold. That guy must be showing off this beautiful car in the streets of Cedar City by now. I wish you could take a closer shot of that white Ford Taurus - it looks very noble from afar.

Nelson Heimer said...

Man, the guy who bought this from you guys was very very lucky. I mean, where else can he find a classic truck this beautiful for sale? He obviously didn’t have a hard time making the decision. That truck is perfect for vintage car shows!