1958 Ford Other

BOOKMOBILE Minivan/Van

8

Automatic

P50C8E35489

Clear

FEEL FREE TO MAKE AN OFFER AT ANYTIME. I AM HAPPY TO TALK VIA PHONE IF YOU PREFER. I CAN ALSO HELP PRICE AND SETUP NATIONAL OR INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING. THANKS. VINTAGE 1958 FORD BOOKMOBILE WITH V8 AND AUTO TRANSMISSION! If your looking to restore a slice of americana, you've found your project. This is a 1958 aluminum bodie bookmobile. Bookmobiles came into use originally to provide books to rural areas that had no libraries or book access. The bookmobiles were especially popular with children, and it was any exciting day when the bookmobile came. Especially before the advent of television, children were excited about reading and it was a special event when the mobile library showed up. Eventually bookmobiles were also used to provide book access to retirement communities and other groups who have difficulty getting to libraries. They were also popular in areas in the south that were segregated. Many libraries were white only, and the black people in those areas had bookmobiles as their only way to access books. This vehicle was the bookmobile for the Spokane Washington library and the lettering is still on the side but painted over. It's clearly visible though in person but may not be seen in the pictures. This van was built by novelty carriage works, also located in Spokane Washington. These classic bookmobiles do not come up for sale often, especially as original as this. It's basically all original with the exception of the roofrack and grey paint. Almost the entire body is aluminum, therefore there is very very little rust in the truck. These are very cool trucks and have unique art deco styling. This would be great to restore to original but these step van/trucks are also becoming very popular with rodders and make great rolling advertisement vehicles, mobile stores, food trucks, or mobile studios. There is plenty of room in the back for living quarters, cooking equipment, speed parts, t-shirt shop, tattoo parlor, massage parlor, screening room or? It would be perfect to sell vintage magazines, comic books, or car books at car shows. I'm sure it would be cool to use it again as a bookmobile or to for a stationary or mobile vintage bookstore. There are many possibilities. This bookmobile has a very solid body and runs great! Here are all the details. THERE ARE MANY PICS IN THE PHOTOBUCKET LINK ALSO. DRIVETRAIN The ford van runs great. The engine is a V8 and it has a three-speed automatic transmission. I'm not sure on the size of the engine, but it most likely a 332 that was only used in trucks, stepvans, and buses. The motor runs great. The bookmobile is not running and driving now, I just poured gas in the carburetor and it started right up. I primed it and started it up a few times and it has no knocks or ticks and isn't a smoker. I was surprised at how good it runs because I know it sat for many years and I'm sure it needs new plugs, plug wires and the other usual tuneup stuff. NO water in the oil and the oil level was full when I bought it. This has an automatic transmission. Previous owner told me that it ran and drove fine when parked. I have not had it running long enough to see if the transmission works but the previous owner was an older gentleman who was as legit as they come. The tires are not in great shape but as many of you know, tires this size are truck tires and designed to hold much more weight than an aluminum van. They are probably usable for in-town type driving but I wouldn't take them across country. Wheels are "bud" type five hole and sizes are available in 19.5, 17.5 and probably others. I think these are 19.5's but I'll be double checking that. Not sure if the brakes work. I'm sure the truck will need the usual tuneup stuff and fluid flushing. I may get a chance to check the transmission before the auction is over and I will add the info on here. The truck has multiple lighting options you can see in the pics. I believe some of the overhead lights are 12v, and some are 110v. You can see the switches in the pictures to switch between power options. Bus type front and rear doors work. They operate from the inside like a schoolbus. They open from the outside with a key. Side storage doors are included and pictured. Front outside folding steps work but the "step" part on the rear one needs repaired. This actually used to have a propane heater to keep it warm in the colder months. Heater is gone, tank and propane tubing is still there. BODY For a '58 van, the body is in exceptional condition. The majority of it is aluminum and the van has very little rust. The bars over the doors and windows are just bolted in and will be easy to remove. The only thing that really looks like rust is on the aluminum panelling by the rear wheels. It has a small spot on each side that looks like maybe rocks damaged it a bit and then it just pitted away a little bit. Nothing major and an easy fix. The body for the most part, is very very straight and very rust free, as you can see in the pics. No visible bondo. It's all flat glass. The floor is plywood over framing, which most of these vans were. The plywood floor needs a little work, but is good for the most part. I've replaced boat floors before and it's fairly easy and basically the same thing. The driver seat in this swivels to sit at the desk. Passenger seat included also and folds forward or removes easily. INTERIOR Interior is pretty basic. Drivers seat is usable, passenger needs recovered. Desk is restorable. Interior shelving, etc. need paint and detail work but nothing major. PHOTOBUCKET LINK: http://s942.photobucket.com/albums/ad267/tutheck5/BOOKMOBILE/ OVERALL This is a great classic bookmobile to restore back to original or have one of the most unique vehicles at the car show. Either way, they get lots of attention and have enough room to to almost anything. Make a custom motorhome to pull your show or race car? This van is located at a storage facility a few miles north of Spokane. There is plenty of room for a large truck to get in to load it. I do not live in Spokane but can possibly meet you but if not, I will notify the storage owners when you or the shipper are coming to get it. This vehicle is sold as-is. I take a lot of time to get all the details and it is unlikely that I missed anything or made a mistake. Look at the pictures well and ask questions if your unsure about anything. Thanks. Powered by eBay Turbo Lister The free listing tool. List your items fast and easy and manage your active items. On Oct-28-12 at 04:02:31 PDT, seller added the following information: I've had some people write me to say that the motor is most likely a y-block 292, not an industrial 332. The 292 is correct for the era and probably the original engine. Also, it could possibly be a two-speed auto and not a three speed but I'm not positive on that and won't be able to check for sure until after the auction. The trailer is not included. I know most of you could figure that out on your own but I did have someone email me to ask that.