Car Of The Day: October 26, 2012

Hot Wheels 40's Woodie (Ford)

This example is from juantoo3's collection.

A woodie is a car body style, especially a station wagon, where the rear bodywork is constructed of wood framework with infill panels of wood or painted metal.

After the demise of actual wood construction, manufacturers used simulated woodgrain sheet vinyl—sometimes augmented with three-dimensional, simulated framework—to recall wood construction. In 2008, wood construction was evoked abstractly on the Ford Flex with a series of side and rear horizontal grooves.

As a variant of body-on-frame construction, the woodie originated from the early (pre mid-1930s) practice of manufacturing the passenger compartment portion of a vehicle in hardwood. Woodies were popular in the United States and were produced as variants of sedans and convertibles as well as station wagons, from basic to luxury. They were typically manufactured as third-party conversions of regular vehicles—some by large, reputable coachbuilding firms and others by local carpenters and craftsmen for individual customers. They could be austere vehicles, with side curtains in lieu of roll-up windows (e.g., the 1932 Ford)—and sold in limited numbers (e.g., Ford sold 1654 woodie wagons). Eventually, bodies constructed entirely in steel supplanted wood construction—for reasons of strength, cost and durability.

For more information check here: Woodie

This one is a special edition set car made for the Wild Wave playset.  The neon colors reflect the Cal Custom era of the late 80s, and until recently this was the only version to carry surfboards.