Joe Tully's 1931 Ford Model A Coupe

1931 Ford Model A Coupe owned and built by Joe Tully of Dixon, Illinois. In November of 2021, Joe's son, Dave, told Sondre Kvipt of Kustomrama that his dad was an auto mechanic all his life and that he was a member of the Blackhawk Rod & Custom club when he owned the coupe.

A photo of Joe next to a hot rodded 1932 Ford. Dating back to the early 1950s, the photo was taken in front of the house he grew up in, and it might have been his first car prior to the Model A. Photo courtesy of Dave Tully.

A construction photo of Joe's coupe. The top was chopped 4 inches. The body was channeled an additional 4 inches, and the frame was kicked up 8 inches. Photo courtesy of Dave Tully.

Another construction photo of the car. Photo courtesy of Dave Tully.

Photo courtesy of Dave Tully.

Photo courtesy of Dave Tully.

Photo courtesy of Dave Tully.

Joe representing the Blackhawk Rod & Custom at an indoor car show. Photo courtesy of Dave Tully.

Joe installed custom made nerf bars on the coupe. The front nerf bar was created with the word "JOE." Photo courtesy of Dave Tully.

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In 1956 Joe raced the coupe at The World Series of Drag Racing in Lawrence, Illinois. His number at the event was GB111. Photo courtesy of Dave Tully.

A photo of Joe's Coupe at The World Series of Drag Racing in Lawrence, Illinois appeared in Rodding and Re-styling February 1957.

A photo of Joe's coupe taken around 1962. Painted a deep blue, chromed hubcaps and wide whitewall tires wrapped up the sharp-looking coupe. Photo courtesy of Dave Tully.

A profile shot of Joe's coupe. In November of 2021, Joe's son, Dave, told Sondre Kvipt of Kustomrama that his dad was an auto mechanic all his life. Photo courtesy of Dave Tully.

Photo courtesy of Dave Tully.

The stock taillights were replaced by 1950 Pontiac units. A custom nerf bar was also made and installed in the rear of the car. Photo courtesy of Dave Tully.

Joe was a member of the Blackhawk Rod & Custom club when he owned the coupe. Photo courtesy of Dave Tully.

Painted blue, Joe's coupe ran a matching custom blue and white upholstery. Photo courtesy of Dave Tully.

Could this be the remains of the Joe Tully Coupe? In 2022 Robert Jackson bought this chopped and channeled 1931 Ford Model A Coupe from Brighton, Michigan. "Funny thing is that it has remnants of metallic blue paint with some yellow on top of it," he told Sondre Kvipt in June of 2022, indicating that it could maybe be the remains of the lost Tully Coupe. "There's not much paint on it. By the looks of it, someone started sanding the paint off and tried some metal work, then lost interest in it. If you look, the passenger side cowl is notched out for headers, possibly for a small block Chevy." Robert doesn't believe the cowl is original to the car. "The paint and patina don't match the rest of the car." The guy he bought it from had passed away in 2021, and his son-in-law was cleaning up the estate. "All he knew was that it came out of Detroit, Michigan somewhere." The family didn't know how long the guy had owned it, but they believed he had owned it for twenty years or so. Please get in touch with Kustomrama at mail@kustomrama.com if you recognize the coupe that Robert purchased in Brighton, Michigan, and if you can help us fill in some of the blanks in its history. Photo courtesy of Robert Jackson.

Yellow over blue paint on Robert Jackson's 1931 Ford Model A Coupe. Photo courtesy of Robert Jackson.

Lost and Found - 1931 Ford

1931 Ford Model A Coupe owned and built by Joe Tully of Dixon, Illinois. In November of 2021, Joe's son, Dave, told Sondre Kvipt of Kustomrama that his dad was an auto mechanic all his life and that he was a member of the Blackhawk Rod & Custom club when he owned the coupe.

Chopped and Channeled

Joe's coupe was chopped 4 inches. The body was channeled an additional 4 inches, and the frame was kicked up 8 inches for a lowslung appearance. It ran a 1932 Ford grille and a louvered hood. Joe dressed it up with 1950 Pontiac taillight lenses and custom-made nerf bars front and back. The front nerf bar was created with the word "JOE." Painted blue, it ran a matching custom blue and white upholstery. It was powered by a 286 cubic inches Flathead V-8 engine from a 1948 Ford, and it ran a dual carb set up. Chromed hubcaps and wide whitewall tires wrapped up the style.

Drag Racing

In 1956 Joe raced the coupe at The World Series of Drag Racing in Lawrence, Illinois. His number at the event was GB111.

Sold

Joe sold the coupe around 1962, and according to Dave, it was his last hot rod. "He would have been about 27 and with a young growing family when he sold it. He used to say that as a younger guy, he cut up a number of Model A's though." Dave believes his dad was 14 when he bought his first hot rod.

Where is it Now?

Dave was about two years old when his dad sold the coupe. Joe passed away in 1989, and Dave is now looking for whatever happened to the hot rod. " I believe it came through his shop again around 1970, so the guy who bought it must have been relatively local to Northern Illinois. I remember seeing it in the shop as a kid, but I think the color was different, maybe yellow, and it may have had an SBC instead of the flathead. I can't be sure." Please get in touch with Kustomrama at mail@kustomrama.com if you have any info to share about the old Tully Coupe.

Magazine Featured and Appearances

Rodding and Re-styling February 1957