1941 Ford Convertible Custom Street Rod

What is a street rod? There are many opinions as to what a street rod really is, and there are those that draw hard lines between street rods, hot rods, and customs—but why get bogged down in the semantics? For many years, die-hard street rodders considered any modified car that had removable front and rear fenders part of the street rod class of cars. Later the line was drawn by many in 1948, and by 1949 many cars no longer had rear fenders but rather had rear quarter panels.

However you define the term “street rod,” there is little doubt the vast majority of the great rides that fall in this class are Fords. Why? The primary reason is that during the 20s and 30s there were just more Fords made, and when paired with the powerful and iconic Ford Flathead V8 engine, they were the car of choice for many. One great example of these early Ford Street Rods is Mike Rick’s 1941 Ford Convertible, and we were lucky enough to catch up with Mike at a recent car show and take a close look at this creamy smooth Ford.

Street rods tend to change with the times as different styling trends become popular, and while Mike’s car is a fairly recent build by many standards, it still sports some of the styling cues present in cars built in the early 2000s, yet this great ride still pays homage to the early customs with nosed and decked trim and Frenched lights including early Lincoln taillights. But the body modifications don’t end there. The front and rear bumpers have been removed and replaced with smooth roll pans.

But don’t be fooled! This car is made to be driven, as Mr. Rick is quick to point out. Powered by a small block Chevrolet engine and Turbo 350 transmission, this ride is ready for many miles of trouble-free driving, while the Mustang II front suspension gets this great car down into the weeds. Of course a car like this has air conditioning, power windows, power top, and power trunk too. If you haven’t seen Mike’s 1941 Ford Convertible at a car show yet, you likely will and be certain to take a close look before he hits the road again.