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Some classics arrive with a story attached. This 1946 Ford Super Deluxe Station Wagon, currently up for auction on Hagerty Marketplace, comes with seven decades of one family's history, a Cornell University parking pass from 1952, and a WWII-era gas ration sticker still clinging to the glass.
Ford slowly resumed passenger car production in 1946 as the industry recovered from the war, carrying over much of the prewar 1942 design with a new grille and restyled hood. Woodie wagons were a familiar sight by then, built either as economical alternatives that used less steel or as upscale family haulers. The Super Deluxe remains one of the most recognized examples of the breed, with wood-paneled bodywork, a vinyl-covered roof, and a spare tire mounted to the split tailgate.
A Family Car for Seventy Years
This wagon was bought by the family in the early 1950s and first served as transportation while the owner attended Cornell University. It stayed in that family until the present sale, driven regularly through New York, New Jersey, Vermont, and Rhode Island through at least 1990. Early service records haven't survived, but Esso service stickers on the driver's inner A-pillar tell part of the tale: the engine was replaced at 90,000 miles, and another service was logged at 99,518 miles on May 17, 1967.
After the longtime owner passed away, his heirs commissioned a mechanical refurbishment, completed intermittently between 2023 and 2026 by Ragtops & Roadsters of Perkasie, Pennsylvania, and Apache Automotive Restorations and Customs of Bristol, Rhode Island. The directive was clear: mechanical function and preservation rather than cosmetic refinishing.
Ready to Drive, Patina Intact
That approach is what makes this Woody special. The body and interior are original and unrestored, and they wear their decades of use honestly. The work went where it counts: a replaced wiring harness, new exhaust and hangers, fresh fluids, new front wheel bearings and seals, serviced shifter linkage, a replacement battery, new tires, new spring shackles and bushings, replacement front shocks, and a fresh set of distributor points, cap, and plug wires. The cooling, ignition, and braking systems were all serviced as well. The electrical system was converted to negative ground, and the gauge cluster was reconditioned to match.
Under the hood sits the 239-cubic-inch flathead V8, paired with a three-speed manual on the column. The wagon is finished in maroon over a brown interior, shows 350 miles TMU on the odometer, and is offered with the refurbishment records and a clean Pennsylvania title.
The seller, LBI-Limited, told prospective bidders in the listing comments that the car starts easily, runs strong with no smoke or unwanted noises, idles smoothly, shifts well, and stops without issue. The wipers and lights work, though the heater hasn't been tried. A cold start and driving video was promised in the days after the question was asked. One commenter summed up the mood nicely, praising the retained patina alongside the refreshed mechanicals.
The Auction
As of this writing, the high bid stands at $6,450 after 18 bids, with the auction ending Wednesday, October 7, at 2:05 PM EDT. The car is located in Philadelphia, and the seller invites interested buyers to arrange an inspection. As always, bidders should do their own due diligence before placing a bid.
For anyone who wants a genuine woodie with real history, rather than an over-restored showpiece, this one checks a lot of boxes. It's a rare chance to put a family's 70-year-old story in your own garage, and to keep adding chapters to it.
Family-owned time capsules have a way of finding their audience. We saw it with this 53-year family-owned 1966 Ford Mustang GT coupe and if flathead power is more your speed, check out this no-reserve Ford T-Bucket hiding a stroked flathead V8.
Photo credit: Hagerty Marketplace.
