I've never owned one, but I wouldn't mind owning one. I've read a lot about them. They were good cars. A bit ahead of their time in some ways, perhaps, and certainly introduced at the wrong time in terms of the economic situation in the country at the time. Too bad.



Roy Brown Remembered as Father of the Edsel

http://www.oldcarsweekly.com/news/ho...32&rid=3400133

 

They have aged much better than many of the car from 1958. Compared to other FoMoCo products at the time, Edsels are near the top.

 

They have conventional Ford mechanicals so they were pretty dependable cars and mostly simple to service, TeleTouch transmission controls notwithstanding.

That conventionality is what really doomed the Edsel. It was advertised as being something completely new and different when it really wasn't. Couple that with Robert McNamara's known hatred for the E-car program and it's amazing the Edsel ever made it thru three years' production.

But, even though they were at the time a little too "out there" for most Americans' tastes (when GM was fielding bizarreness such as their 58-60 cars, that could be questioned), Edsels have aged well and are no worse styled than other contemporary cars.

As testament to their popularity, an auction I attend regularly had a bunch of Ford promos a few weeks back- from 1949 thru 1972, including two 1958 Edsels. One turquoise/white, one pink/white. Both Edsel promos broke $200, meaning I didn't get one, and bidding was fierce.

What surprised me on that one was how expensive the 49-56 promos were. Apparently they are uncommon in any condition and even with paint damage and warpage all those knocked out close to $100 each.

 

I always thought the Edsels were such cool cars.
They were for sure ahead of their time.
A timeless classic for all time.

 

I agree. I grew up way after they came onto the market and remember hearing about their poor styling and that is why they were discontinued. I saw a couple of them at a car show and thought, wow this is pretty nice!

 

I like them. I think they're cool. I'd like to have one.

BUT I also think they're butt-ugly and am amazed that anyone bought them (or contemporary Dodges and Plymouths) when they were new.

If I recall correctly, they were also the victim of horrible quality-control problems when they were new, with leaks, poorly aligned panels, and parts falling off, which probably didn't contribute to their sales.

- Eric

 

The worst stories I ever heard about them was the ones with the pushbutton shift selector in the middle of the steering wheel. There were several reasons it failed. It did not fit into the product line since Mercury was the midpoint and the economy was in the tank in 1958. No way they were anywhere close to as ugly as a 61 Plymouth. That had to be one of the ugliest cars built until the Pontiac Aztec.

 

I think this is a bit harsh. They certainly were an acquired taste for some people with that horse-collar front end, and that was toned down a bit in later years. But as far as technology and power, Edsels were certainly equal to the competition and often ahead of it.

I did a little research into this once. The '58 Edsel could have been had with two engines. The smaller one was a 361 cubic-inch V-8 putting out 303 hp. That was a larger engine than was available in any Buick, Cadillac, Chrysler Saratoga, Lincoln, or Packard Clipper that year.

The larger engine, a 410-cubic-inch V-8 putting out 345 hp, was larger and more powerful than any other engine in any other car that year. As one example, the most powerful engine in a '58 Olds was the 371 (the only engine available) putting out 312 hp with the J-2 option.


The Edsel featured an in-the-passenger-compartment hood release, something that wasn't really commonplace in cars until a decade or more later.

It had a light on the dash that would light up when the fuel level got low. How long was it before Oldsmobile or anybody else featured that? Now, of course, these are in every car sold.

It had a light that would light up if a door was ajar. It had not only an oil pressure light, it also had an oil level light. (I always wondered why this isn't a feature on cars even today. Rather, we still have the very old-fashioned, kludgy, go under the hood and pull out a dipstick, just like we've been doing since the dawn of the automobile age.)

A tachometer was standard equipment.

It had a warning light in case you put the car in gear while the parking brake was on. Again, this wasn't common in an "everyman" car until years later.

The car featured a three-stage cooling system so that it would warm up faster in cold weather. Under thermostatic control, coolant first circulated only through the cylinder head, then through the block, and finally through the radiator.

The brakes featured the then-new concept of self-adjustment, which occurred when you stepped on the brakes while backing up. Again, this became common later.

In styling, the Edsel forsook tailfins just as the rest of the industry was moving toward them in a big way.


There's more, but this gives a good idea of just what the Edsel really was and what it represented.

 

You do. I don't.

That's why, as I posted earlier on a different thread, subjective beauty is not a great subject for discussion in a forum such as this.

(I also noticed that you don't adress its attractiveness in your long, well thought out response ).

I accept that you don't think they're butt-ugly, but my own opinion remains unchanged.

- Eric

 

No one is asking you to change your opinion. You can have any opinion you want. I just said I think your opinion is harsh, and that's my opinion.


Attractiveness is in the eye of the beholder. I agree. That's why I didn't address it above. There's no point.

 

Was it larger than Mercury's 430 with up to 400 hp?

What about the 300-D's 390 hp?

Even the DeSoto Adventurer put out 345 horses the year before.

 

I'm just going by what it said in the issue of Mechanix Illustrated that year that had a lengthy article on the then-new Edsel.

Actually, I think this issue was dated October or November of 1957 as it was in the magazine just as the '58 models were hitting the showrooms.

 

If I wasn't so swamped with Oldsmobiles, I would have a 1958 Edsel...A Bermuda or a Roundup...Before our town had an ambulance, they used one of the farmer's 'Roundup Wagon' as a really fast substitute!!!

 

Has anybody ever seen an Edsel or even a picture of one on a dragstrip? Just a thought.