As those of us in the northeast prepare for a tough winter, it seemed appropriate to write about a vehicle engineered to withstand the roughest of climates and terrains. I’ve seen this strange 1930 Ford Model A floating around the internet for a while (we even did a small article on it here several years ago), and I feel it belongs in a category of automobiles that is almost like a purgatory for the genuinely rare and exceptional. It was transformed into a high-riding mail truck to navigate the harsh terrain of rural Montana, and it now proudly displays its practical charm. Will it ever find a buyer? Check it out here on eBay in Bozeman, Montana, with bidding at..
I will give the seller credit for apparently going overboard in his investigation of this homemade postal car. He has absolutely exhausted every aspect of this vehicle’s history, but there is still room for more information about what the automobile will require to compensate for many years of hard work delivering mail to rural addresses. The cabin appears to have some cosmetic faults; the top does not fold down, and the braking system is, at best, out of date. The engine is not original, but as the vendor points out, Model As were not built to match numbers when their initial aim was to provide basic, inexpensive, and long-lasting transportation.
Around here, the most unusual mail carrier vehicle is a right-hand-drive Subaru Legacy waggon. Many of these have been phased out and are now found at local scrapyards. For a while, I was quite interested in the Subaru scene and pondered obtaining one of these forgotten mail vehicles to extract the dashboard from for use in a true RHD discourse. While it never happened, those junked Subarus piled up some huge mileage, which made me admire mail couriers even more. I can’t fathom what it would be like to deliver mail in a top-heavy and cumbersome vehicle like this 1930 Ford, but the original design appears to have been effective in getting mail to rural villages.
When I glance out my window, the wind is swirling snow into deep drifts, and plough trucks are straining to keep up with the relentless downpour of flakes. I’m due to get two shipments from the Postal Service tomorrow, but I don’t expect them to arrive. Perhaps if they had this infant Big Foot, coupled to a desirable 1930 Ford Model A convertible body, they’d consider driving out to my house to deliver my packages. I know if I had access to a vehicle like this, I’d find any excuse to drive it in Mother Nature’s worst. Would you do the same, or is this former mail delivery van going on display in an exhibit?
