This Thursday brought us to Laguna Beach, CA, to check out a '57 President Classic. John's last test drive had him a little leery about taking an owner's word as to whether steering and/or brakes worked, but he gamely hopped in and braved the neighborhood hills (note: they were really, really steep!). Luckily, once we jump-started the car, it ran, turned and stopped as promised.
After the test drive and a thorough once-over, we decided to purchase the car. Extra thanks to StudeDave and StudeRich for their help in making a list of things to check for (Dave even drew us a "map" pinpointing rust trouble spots- very helpful!).
Of course, the car might not be thrilled to be leaving his previous home where he overlooked the beach!
A peek at the interior. Based on some pretty strong evidence, our best guess at this point is the car was originally turquoise and Glendale green.
Another look at the interior. We were excited to discover that the car has six sets of seat belts.
When we got to our hotel it was dark and the staff had up park out along the street. We had a good laugh when we woke up this morning and saw what we had parked next to!
Of course, as Arizonans, no trip to California would be the same without a trip to beach. As long as the President is (it hung off the trailer a bit), we had to pay for three meters along the street! Of course, we had to take George's picture next to the sea. It's always more fun if you can make it look like it's not on the trailer.
We detoured a bit down to San Diego on the way back to meet up with StudeDave. He went over the car with us and answered our many questions. It was great to see a fellow forum member in person and put a face to the name! We even got to see Sweet Pea, his '65 Cruiser. Very cool!
Don't worry...there are plenty of little things to pick apart about the car, as well, but we'll save those tasks for other posts. Right now, we are excited to give George a bath and start getting to know his quirks. Below is the link to the (embarrassing!) video of Tracy driving George for the first time when we got home. (She didn't know that John was taking a video as she drove her first Stude ever...believe it or not, she hasn't even driven the truck yet!)
John and Tracy Smith
Queen Creek Arizona
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