Description Mildly customised with shaved door handles and Frenched headlights; Mercury 255Ci Flathead V8; Chevy 5-speed manual; Maverick 8" rear end; 12v conversion; driven 90 miles to the sale Ford’s first all-new post-war model, the sensational ‘Forty-Niner’ was first shown to the public at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York in June 1948, entering the showrooms the following year.

The first Ford without running boards and separate wheelarches, it looked radically modern and was quickly dubbed the ‘Shoebox’ due to its smooth, slab-sided styling.

Two engines were available, a 226Ci straight-six (3.7-litre) or a 239Ci Flathead V8 (3.9-litre) and it could be had as a saloon, a coupe, a convertible or a station wagon.

Blessed with coil spring independent front suspension, the Shoebox was like nothing else on the market and more than a million were sold in the first 18 months, the model remaining in production until 1951.

The sleek looks and V8 engine were particularly appreciated ...