Destiny's '57 Tbird

[YellowRose]

My new Tbird club members, Gary & Carolyn, were looking for their dream car, a Red/White '57 Babybird with Auto tranny, AC, red or white interior, and all the bells and whistles. For the last few weeks, he and I have been tracking down all these Tbirds on the internet and either coming up with ones that were not up to snuff, had the wrong color, tranny, didn't have an AC unit, or was way out of the ballpark on the asking price. Finally, I started checking within the VTCI clubs and suddenly found this jewel of a '57 Tbird that was being offered for sale at a reasonable price. This Tbird had been through a recent frame off, complete restoration process by a company that specializes in doing that. The previous owner had the wherewithal to restore it to and beyond it's original glory. It has a few extra things on it, in the way of an aftermarket AC unit that runs ice cold, an electric fan, modern radio and other goodies. It is everything they were looking for and then some. The paint and chrome is to die for! They also got all the documentation on it and a lot of books and magazines.

This Tbird happened to be in Kansas, in the backyard (almost!) of Rod Wake, the VTCI President. In fact, Rod did the last oil change on it and knows this VTCI Tbird inside and out. He highly recommended it to me and Gary, telling us much about it. We thought it had been taken off the market because the son was thinking about keeping it after his Dad had passed away. But when I asked them if it was available for sale, they decided to do so. They are pleased that it will stay in a VTCI club. I put them and Gary and Carolyn together. They made a trip to see it on Thursday and it is everything they dreamed of having and more. So after driving it and checking it out, and meeting with Rod, they bought it on Friday. It is in the process of being shipped on Monday and will be here on Wednesday. They can hardly wait, and in the meantime, they are busy having it insured, and get it registered, and licensed. Hopefully, they will be able to drive it to our Show & Shine car show next Saturday! Here are some pix, which really do not do justice to the car because I had to downsize them to post them. It is drop dead gorgeous!

[Dan Leavens]

That 57 baby bird sure looks great and glad that they were able to locate one of their dreams and will soon be cruisin in her.

Ray you commitment not only to our site but also to other members is unparalleled and does not go unnoticed. We are extremely grateful that you are part of our squarebird family.

[YellowRose]

Destiny's '57 Tbird

Thank you, Dano. This was quite the experience for me also. Gary and Carolyn are extremely pleased with this find. I am glad that I thought about checking with VTCI members to see who might have one for sale. This Tbird was first advertised for sale back in May in the Kansas newsletter and the VTCI Scoop. It has been listed every month since and is still in the current September/October issue on Page 67. However, shortly after it was listed, the family made a decision not to sell it, but to keep it in the family with the Son taking care of it. When I approached them about selling it to friends here, I just knew that high quality of a Tbird would be long gone, but it was not. They made a decision to sell it, and I put Gary and Carolyn in touch with them and the rest is history! I learned a lot about Babybirds, in doing so, saw a lot of them for sale, and finally found the one they were looking for. Gary tells me that he does not know how he would have gotten through all this, not knowing a thing about finding one, checking it out, buying it, insuring it, transferring it into their name, etc.. I gave him a lot of information I learned from this Forum. I was able to put him in touch with a member of the Little Bird club here, who is an insurance agent, specializing in insuring classic cars, my '59 included, and other club members also. He was able to save him some money on that. So it was an exciting experience for both of us, and one we learned a lot from.

[YellowRose]

Destiny's '57 Tbird

A Texas Tbird Comes Back Home To Texas! Yesterday, we were expecting the delivery of Gary & Carolyn's beautiful '57 Babybird. However, the driver was running late, having to drop off/pick up cars along the way to us. They have a policy not to off load a car after dark because of the difficulty of doing the inspection of the vehicle. The company that was used is Rebel Yell in the DFW area. They did a terrific job of handling the transport of this Tbird! It was Hard Shipped here in an enclosure inside the truck, on top so nothing could leak on it. It was a bit smaller than some of the huge trucks that are used, holding 4-5 cars.

The driver called when he was about 20 minutes or so out, and Gary called me and I headed across town in the early morning traffic. Of course, I promptly got into a stop and go traffic situation. By the time I got there, the Tbird was sitting regally in the driveway! The inspection had been completed, with no damage at all indicated on the car, and the driver was getting ready to move on. I took a lot of pix, and showed Gary how to update the Tbird Registry, which he did. It is RN# 33052. John has not updated it yet, but he will. BTW, a check of the Data Plate confirms the Data Information and just as I thought everything is correct except for that XE that someone put in the Registry. That was a typo, as it is an XH on the plate, just as it should be. The 620139P confirms that it is the 0139th car assigned to the Houston District Sales Office and it was a regular P=Production car. It is a VE=Flame Red/White Top Tbird, but my camera seems to make it look darker than it actually is, for some reason.

After I left, Gary had the car inspected and got his form for that, and then went through the process of having it titled here, and got his registration sticker and temporary paper license plate. He and Carolyn plan on having it at our Car Show this Saturday! He said the AC is ICE COLD, just as he likes it.

So now they can start enjoying their Dream Car, which he has named Destiny, hence his screen name. Here are some pix I took of it this morning.

[Dan Leavens]

Ray love it when a plan comes together especially when Gary and Carolyn can now attend the show on Saturday. Good stuff

Gary and Carolyn, I am sure you will enjoy Destiny.

[Joe Johnston]

Can't go wrong with a red 57!! (wish mine had AC!)

[Dan Leavens]

Gary how did the car show go yesterday with Destiny

[Guest]

Maiden Voyage

Gary how did the car show go yesterday with Destiny

We took her out on Loop 410 Saturday morning in route to the car show. What a rush! I have waited 58 years (I was five when the '57's came out) for that moment and was not disappointed. A dream come true. Could not have done it without Ray Clark tracking her down up in Wichita, Kansas.

[Guest]

Gary how did the car show go yesterday with Destiny

Our first car show, with a CAR TO SHOW! I like that feeling.

[Joe Johnston]

That is what its all about!!!

ENJOY!!!!

[Dan Leavens]

Gary as the saying goes " Patience is a virtue " and apparently you have arrived and enjoying the cruise

What a rush! I have waited 58 years