1937 Ford Woodie Restomod - Jay Leno's Garage

Hot Rods & Hobbies' Scott Bonowski takes Jay for a ride in the woodie he restored for Eric Johnson.

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1937 Ford Woodie Restomod - Jay Leno's Garage

Jay Leno's Garage

[richardrodahaffer]

My dear Grandfather was in the hardwood lumber and veneer business and he had a 1942 Packard 120 woody wagon.
It had factory A/C and the radio was in a narrow Walnut cabinet that was mounted over the transmission tunnel in front of the rear seats.
I was born in 1946 and was fascinated by that car and when PaPa died in 1961 I pled with my Dad to claim the Packard but it didn’t happen.
I’ll always remember the spare tires were mounted in the running boards ahead of the front doors and were adorned with chrome strips that spelled out sor conditioned in script font!
Just think …. 80 years ago automotive “bling” was made of wood …. African Mahogany plywood for the flat panels and White Ash lumber for framing.
Such memories for a pre-teen boy!!

[mschnur]

Great builds, and I love how those two Fords are Ford powered. Just so natural.

[kennethcoffey]

Thanks for the post....beautiful woodies. In 1961 at 16 years of age, I bought a beautiful original 46 Ford Woodie for $400.00. Many beach guys had woodies in San Diego, and I was one of the characters who loved them and abused them....out with the third seat to make room for the surf board. When it came time to fix a thrown rod, bad trans or some other mechanical problem, owners would take their vehicle to North Beach in Ocean Beach San Diego, and set them on fire, abandon, and have the city remove what was remaining. I never condoned the burning and consequently was never involved, but when mine was giving me trouble, I traded it for a 750 Norton Scrambler motorcycle. I'd like to have all the woodies that were left in the sand pit at North Beach. Even in the day, it hurt me to see our wooden cars destroyed. They were bulky, noisy, geared low, required constant wood attention...basically a pain, but I loved them then and have two now....a 1948, and 1951 Ford. Beautiful.

[k.a.davison]

Wonderful segment. Beautiful restoration. Great builder that I would call an artisan and an owner that seems like the guy you would like to have as a neighbor. You know this is the kind of car that could make you jealous of the owner. Me, I'm glad that there are guys out there and can afford to restore such a car, and do . . . better than when new on the showroom floor, I'm sure . . . so we who can't can vicariously enjoy the ownership that we can never have. Certainly triggers childhood memories. Thank you Jay. As always, top notch. Oh, and thank you Mr. Johnson for preserving an icon of a bygone age. Again, a wonderful segment.

[adamtrombino]

My dad had a 39. He got it from his great uncle in the late 50s when he was in highschool. He installed a 47 Mercury flathead with 3 dueces on an Offy intake and upgraded full synchro 3 speed. He drove it until he was drafted in early 65. While he was stationed in Europe, my grandfather sold the car w/o him knowing of it, because it was sitting in his driveway, and it was 'in the way'. There is just 1 surviving picture of it.. Neat to see that people are still painstakingly restoring these cars.

[skeeterbug]

You always put a grin on our faces. To see them driven is a thrill for all viewers. You have taken us all on many adventures that we would have missed.

[riverwildcat]

Restomod is the penultimate combination of past glory and modern power, safety, and reliability. The '37 Woodie is a rare and worthy car resurrected to new and greater life; a life that will go forward for many centuries - or more. Future generations will savor more than we do the fine art and beauty of the automobile in all its splendid forms. 
Loved the yacht-like woodwork.
Bravo Scott, Jay, and Eric for making this happen.

[b_altmann]

The paint and those white wall tyres 😍 The way he describes it, it is like a driving piece of fine furniture 😊

[sjbobkins]

Those are truly beautiful, the 30-40s had some incredible designs, especially in the two seat sedans and with the great woodie wagons. Love the fenders and paint jobs

[elosogonzalez]

As many beautiful days California has, I'm suprised Jay doesn't have a "Woodie" in his garage. Beautiful automobile!😊

[automagdon]

The wood joinery is not "Tongue & Grove" as Jay said but rather what is known as "Finger Jointed".
More importantly is the beauty of these cars.  Like works of art in some cases.  Very nicely done.

[youdontknow]

The work these restores do on these cars amazes me, I salute you all.

[u.s.militia]

I love the green one. It’s absolutely beautiful.

[jameshunt]

I really like the way Jay Leno features other owners cars as well as his own. He definitely showcases all the cars in their best lite.

[balinwire]

I had a 1940 Ford wagon and it was parked daily in front of my stereo shop in Burbank called Electronic Sunshine between 1972 - 1975. What a fun woody and I had a 327 vette motor and power glide. I think Jay actually stopped by before he was famous to show me a car he bought from the Recycler. I sold it for two grand in a pinch. I still have the matching 1939 GMC carryall, three seats and windows like a woody but a lot less wood, just the window frames and tailgate are wood. I paid fifteen dollars for the GMC carryall off a guy who lived near S.Victory Blvd. it may have been So-Cal speed shop truck in the fifties. It has a Studebaker overdrive and a big radiator for running in the desert. Even these carryalls are super expensive now. At least they don't squeak. There were all kinds of panels, pickups and vintage cars around the shop and on Van Nuys Blvd. on Wed night back then. I had a forty coupe with a Hemi I sold for three hundred as I had no parking spots. Wish I had kept the woody buy fifty thousand for wood is worth it but expensive, True story,  did buy these hacks for three hundred and less back then especially if the owner was getting drafted to Viet Nam.and had to sell quick.

[jeremythompson]

Both woodies are beautiful. I love how they were kept mostly stock looking but with a modern drivetrain, suspension, and brakes. That 48 Chrysler T&C with the Viper V10 is one of the coolest hot rods I've ever seen

[jamesmcnauliv]

My Dad and I built a 40 Ford coupe deluxe. Our first frame off build. We kept the body completely straight! Boxed the frame for anti-twist. 350 Chevy (sorry) Turbocharged WITH Nitrous! Kenne Bell switch pitch transmission! Electronically controlled vs vacuum as designed. Drives like a normal 2300 stall tranny until you flip the switch and the vains in the converter go to 3000 grab! Which means NO turbo lag! 9” Ford rear end. Drive all day in the summer with no overheating! Put the 4:11 gears in the back with Drag Slicks, hit the Nitrous button and it did 13.04 @ 110 with wheel spin at Bandimere Speedway at over a mile above sea level. 4 page article in Street Rodder magazine entitled “Happy Fathers Day”!

[gregrowell]

Love these videos. From a Bugatti to a teenager's pride and joy Mustang----Jay appreciates them all regardless of $ value. Love of the automobile.

[whammond]

"Uniquely California experience"?? Jay! We've got woodies coming out the wazoo here in Michigan!! You forget we were the capital of wooden boat building!! So woodie cars are greatly loved here!! And there are a lot!! One of my favorites locally was a '53 Buick wagon woodie!! Yes, you do have to care for them but just like a boat, if cared for properly, will last a lifetime!

[chikitabowow]

Personally i love restomods, you get the best of both worlds