1958 Edsel Citation Convertible

The Ford Motor Company introduced the Edsel on 'E-Day' - September 4th of 1957. The new company was named after Henry Ford's son, Edsel, and was hailed as an entirely new car designed to appeal to 'upscale tastes with mid-range budgets'. They were equipped with new innovative features including the Push-button Teletouch transmission, rolling dome speedometer, and warning lights for things like oil level, parking brake engagement, and engine temperature. Although they were a new car that offered new technology, they shared much with existing Ford products and were produced in existing Ford factories. The production lifespan of the Edsel was brief, ending a few years later in 1960.

Designer Roy Brown was called upon to design a car that was unmistakably different from the Mercury and Ford cousins. The new car featured boomerang-shaped taillights and a unique 'horse collar' vertical grille.

For 1958, just 63,107 examples were sold, a far cry from the 200,000 projected. Ford dropped the larger Citation and Corsair lines and implemented more conservative styling, however, only 44,891 examples were sold. In 1960, the controversial horse collar grille was abandoned. Unfortunately, this was not enough to stimulate sales. On November 19th, 1959, the last of just 110,847 Edsels rolled off the production line. Ultimately, this failed experiment cost the Ford Motor Company an estimated $350 million.

For the 1958 model year, the Edsel was available in four models, the Citation, Corsair, Pacer, and Ranger. The Pacer and Ranger were based on the smaller Ford platform. The Citation and Corsair models were based on the larger Mercury platform. The Citation was the top-of-the-line model and available in both two-door and four-door hardtops as well as a two-door convertible. Power was from Edsel's E-475 V-8 engine which displaced 410 cubic inches and rated at 345 horsepower.

This Edsel Citation Convertible is one of just 930 examples produced. On August 27, 1957, the Citation Convertible rolled off the production line, finished in Powder Blue paint and a white and gold vinyl interior. It had a Teletouch automatic transmission and matted to an overhead valve V8 engine fitted with a single four-barrel carburetor. Drum brakes were placed at all four corners. The car was later changed to its current color combination before being acquired by the current caretaker in 1996.

By Daniel Vaughan | Feb 2015