My newest and oldest project.

[fyrffytr1]

I am partial to Pontiacs so when I was told about one out in the country I just had to go look for it. Well, not only did I look for it, I found it and bought it. I will go get it in a week or so as soon as I get haul a 51 parts car to the salvage yard. This one is a 39 4-dr sedan with rear "suicide" doors. It looks rough but the body is actually in good shape with just one bad dent in the rear fender. It had a later re-paint which didn't hold and is flaking off.
Here are some pictures as it sits under the pole barn.

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Minelab PRO-FIND 35 Waterproof Pinpointer Metal Detector for Experts with Tone ID & Adjustable Sensitivity - Grab it through Amazon!

[old digger]

Looks like a really good project car, and several years of work ahead for you. Good Luck!

 

[vpnavy]

Neat!

 

[tamrock]

What a great acquisition. My dad was a lover of Pontiacs. I still can recall his 1963 Dark Blue Grand Prix, A 1966 Green Catalina and Gold with a white vinyl top 1971 Bonneville. Only Pontiac I ever had was a 1973 Blue Lemans Sport Coupe. Cool looking car, but what pooch, with all that smog control crap on it.

 

[Tpmetal]

Killer find, cant wait to see how you restore it.

 

[RGINN]

Man, I know you'll do somethin with that. Ya know, you should show a pic and explain 'suicide doors'. That's been pretty much forgotten and younger folks probably have no clue. All of us old farts know exactly what you're talkin about.

 

[fyrffytr1]

Man, I know you'll do somethin with that. Ya know, you should show a pic and explain 'suicide doors'. That's been pretty much forgotten and younger folks probably have no clue. All of us old farts know exactly what you're talkin about.

When I get the car home I will do just that.

 

[fyrffytr1]

Well, I finally got the car home today but haven't had a chance to look it over closely. Here's some pictures of the doors. The rear doors were called suicide doors for a few reasons. Here is an explanation of the term:
Suicide doors were common on cars manufactured in the first half of the 20th century. The nickname is mainly due to the design's propensity to seriously injure anyone exiting or entering the offside of the car if the door is hit by a passing vehicle. Also, in the era before seat belts, the accidental opening of such doors meant that there was a greater risk of falling out of the vehicle compared to front-hinged doors, where airflow pushed the doors closed rather than opening them further.