IML: Another Northern 1960

["Donn Reese" <DReese@xxxxxxxx>]

> Another of my long-winded stories....
> 
> We spent the past weekend with family in Fairbanks and I resisted the urge to take another look at the 1964 LeBaron and 1966 Crown that I know are at a local salvage yard and in restorable condition.
> 
> However, on the way back to Anchorage we stopped at a small town (Nenana - where Pres Harding drove the golden spike in 1923 signifying the completion of the Alaska Railroad) to look at an Imperial I spied from the highway.  I'd seen this car on previous trips but never stopped.  The owner, John, turned out to be a mechanic who kept a very clean and well apointed shop....he was also very friendly and eager to tell me about his car.
> 
> It's a white 1960 4dr Crown with factory A/C and swivel seats.  He said it was purchased new in Fairbanks by a guy who worked at the Clear Radar station some miles south of Nenana.  It spent nine years travelling between those three cities....until one winter day he tried to start it at 50 degrees below zero (normal for the winter there).  Somehow the enging blew, I didn't get the details on that.  In any event it sat until 1995 when John spied it and convinced the original owner to sell it to him.  John had already restored a few older trucks, I saw two GMC's and a Ford, very nice work.
> 
> He rebuilt the engine and basically restored the entire car, new paint, interior, chrome, brakes, steering....all the normal stuff.  It's in beautiful condition and was great to see what mine might look like some day.
> 
> John said he's getting close to retiring and that he and his wife will be driving the Imperial out over the highway "back East" in a month or so, where further restoration will be done.  I got the impression they will be spending at least part of their time there if not moving completely.  He didn't mention where "back East" he meant but he had a Virginia accent....maybe someone from the club will see a "new" Imperial in their area in the coming months.
> 
> I don't think he's an internet user and new nothing about the IML but I took a few pictures and maybe they can get posted.
> 
> One great consequence of meeting John was that through some mixup with a supplier, he ended up with a spare headliner for a 4-door, already assembled and ready to install.  He sold it to me for a very resonable price.  It's not the light blue that mine was but will compliment my colors - at least for a few years when I can get a "correct" color.  After all the other trials my car has put me through this summer, it was nice to get a break.
> 
> Donn Reese
> 1960 Custom 4dr HDTP


-----------------  http://www.imperialclub.com  -----------------
This message was sent to you by the Imperial Mailing List. Please
reply to mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx and your response will be
shared with everyone. Private messages (and attachments) for the
Administrators should be sent to webmaster@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
To UN-SUBSCRIBE, go to http://imperialclub.com/unsubscribe.htm