Clyde Walther's 1940 Ford

A photo of Clyde with the Ford taken circa 1953. It had already been customized when he bought it, and in 2020 Clyde's brother Garret told Sondre Kvipt of Kustomrama that they never found out who customized it. "Back then Dick Bertolucci in Sacramento was doing custom work. And Barris started in Sacramento. But we do not really know who did the customizing." Photo courtesy of Garreth Walther.

A photo of Clyde with the Ford from the 1954 Stockton, College yearbook. "My brother Clyde is the dude on the left." The auto shop classes are to the right in the photo.

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1940 Ford Convertible owned by Clyde Walther of Stockton, California. Clyde bought the car off a used car lot in Stockton about 1953. It had already been customized when he bought it, and in 2020 Clyde's brother Garret told Sondre Kvipt of Kustomrama that they never found out who customized it. "Back then Dick Bertolucci in Sacramento was doing custom work. And Barris started in Sacramento. But we do not really know who did the customizing."

Baby blue

The Ford was baby blue when Clyde bought it. "A light blue, non-metallic color quite popular in the '50s," Garret added. It had been dressed up with a padded top, dual spotlights, and a Buick grille. It ran a 3-speed column shift, and a Flathead Ford engine, "that my brother modified with Edelbrock heads and dual intake." Clyde also bored the engine to 3/5-16 with a stock stroke, installed a Winfield SU-1A 3/4 race camshaft, adjustable valve lifters, a remote beehive oil filter, and a Lincoln V-12 dual distributor that he converted to V-8. The flywheel was lightened and the transmission received Lincoln Zephyr gears.

Head turner

Clyde gave the car a dark blue paint job while he owned it. "One unusual item," Garret recalled, "it had hydraulic lifts for the hood and trunk lids, because the trim and latches were removed. So the car had to be running to open the engine and trunk compartments." Clyde graduated high school in 1954, and according to his brother it was truly a head-turner on the streets of Stockton in the 1950s.

Sold to a used car lot in Stockton

Clyde sold the Ford to a used car lot in Stockton in 1956, in order to buy a used 55 Chev hardtop. "That is what we did back in those days, we made quick decisions about buying or selling our cars." Clyde turned 84 in 2020, and he was living in Manteca, California, just a few miles south of Stockton.