Barn finds are cool no matter how mundane the vehicle inside is, but things are obviously better when the car in question is rare. This barn located near Tulsa, Oklahoma, is home to a few interesting gems, including a Dodge Wayfarer, a Mopar you're not going to see in the metal very often.
One of Dodge's forgotten nameplates, the Wayfarer was introduced in 1949 as a spiritual successor to the Eight. It remained in production until 1952 and spawned three body styles. The sedan, the Business Coupe, and the roadster/Sportabout were all of the two-door variety.
Powered by a 230-cubic-inch (3.8-liter) straight-six mill the Wayfarer was relatively popular, with almost 220,000 examples sold over four years. But most of them were sedans, with roadsters and coupes leaving the Hamtramck plant in far fewer numbers.
The dark green Business Coupe you're about to see below was built in 1951, when the Wayfarer got a thorough facelift. Dodge didn't keep separate sales records for 1951 models, but we do know that production for 1951 and 1952 totaled 78,404. Only 6,702 of them were Business Coupes, which means less than nine percent. Sportabout roadsters are even rarer, with only 1,002 built in 1951/1952.
Rarity aside, the cool thing about this Business Coupe is that it's all-original, numbers-matching straight-six and all. The car ran three or four years ago, it's titled and tagged, and it should come back to life with a bit of work. And it has one of those really cool (to me) visors atop the windshield.
The barn also includes an Edsel Pacer, a very short-lived car that was only offered in 1958. The Edsel brand itself was actually short-lived, being offered by Ford only from 1956 to 1959.
Slotted above the entry-level Ranger, the Pacer was offered with a 361-cubic-inch (5.9-liter) FE V8. Edsel built almost 21,000 examples split into four body styles. This one appears to be a four-door sedan, of which 7,141 were built.
Edsels don't get as much love as they should nowadays, but I like them, especially for their quirky front-end looks. Just like the Dodge, this one's titled, tagged, and ran when it was parked a few years ago.
If you're into cars from extinct automakers, the barn is also home to an unidentified Kaiser. Based on the bumper and the front blinkers, I'd say it's a 1951 model, but it's hard to tell if it's a Custom, a Deluxe, or a Traveler. But it's definitely a unique-looking car and perhaps even more difficult to find than the Dodge and the Edsel.
All these cars plus the blue 1958 Buick Special are for sale, but you'll learn more about how to get in touch with the owner by watching the video below.
Ask Ciprian about cars and he'll reveal an obsession with classics and an annoyance with modern design cues. Read his articles and you'll understand why his ideal SUV is the 1969 Chevrolet K5 Blazer. Full profile
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