My wife and I drove to SoCal from our home in San Jose, CA on Saturday. Went through some unanticipated snow 101.

While passing through a small town south of Salinas, we came up on a '51 Panel sitting by the side of the road. It looked to be in good condition. Couldn't pull over to take any pictures.

Then a few hours later, while passing through Paso Robles, my wife noticed another panel truck sitting on the side of the road. This time I was able to pull over to take a few pictures and talk to the owner.




Only good parts left on it are the running boards and rear doors. The front fenders are rusted out at the bottom, but in restorable condition. The flathead V8 is stuck. The owner wanted $2k. I told him politely that he's smoking crack. I told him that the truck is worth $500 at the most. I offered him cash on the spot. He obviously didn't take and said that someone will buy it for $2k. He's not in the hots to sell it. He has a large property and it's not taking up much room. I took his info and will try him again in a few months.

Then saw this beauty being towed near Tarzana.



Lastly, to sweeten the day, when we stopped for gas around Paso Robles, I took one of those "free ad" papers and found an ad for a '53 6 cylinder engine for sale. I talked to the seller and it's out of a '53 station wagon. Look for another post about it as I have questions.

Ilya

 

$500 tops. I am always amazed at what some people think their relics are worth. If he thinks it worth $2K he should eBay it and see what he gets. That is the only way I think the guy could get even close to that number.

I have been watching a '48 F-5 rot into the ground for over five years. The only good thing on it is the SS grill trim, which is flawless. The rest of the truck is a total rot bucket, cab rotted through above the windshield, doors rusted away and fall when you open them, the flat six engine has been sitting for years without an air cleaner or spark plugs, radiator has a fist sized hole..... You get the idea. I asked the guy if he was interested in selling it. He told me he was told it was worth $1500 or more. Like Ilya, I offered him a more reasonable price of $50. The last time I talked to him, last year, he said he and a couple of friends were going to rstore it. I am sure it will be sitting there for another five years.

Oh well, it is his truck but......

 

The Panel has been sitting on his property for about 30 years. It's that last vehicle from his dad's collection (mind you this guy is pushing 60 years old). It was used as storage for the past 30 years. It doesn't even have a stock rear end. He and his sons just put something in the rear to make the truck rolling. After I gave him my offer, he said that he doesn't want to give it away. It'll probably still be sitting there for a long time.

The reason why I offered $500 is because the rear doors were in a good condition and would be easy to restore. Bob, you know how hard it is to find good doors. The running boards were straight and not rusted out. Both upper fenders were rusted out at the bottom. The left fender showed signs of rust through near the lower fender. Both lowever fenders have rusted areas near the frame rails. The other good part on the truck is the grill guard.

I have info on the other Panel truck that I saw on the way there. I'm going to give the guy a call.

I also looked at another '51 about a year or so ago where the seller wanted $1k. I'm going to dig up his number and call him to see if he still has it.

Ilya

 

Ilya,

You could always go for this one on uPay, Item#4621731650



Starting bid is $300



It does have the SS windshield trim.

I suppose you're going to tell me it's too far to go for this gem!