Volume XLIX, Issue 6 Edsel Owners Club Inc. November 2016 T HE B IG E In Memory of Carroll “Higgie” Higdem INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Carroll Higdem 1 Memorial President’s 2 Letter New Edsel part 3 September 2, 1942 - September 27, 2016 announcment By Jeannine Phipps A Red Edsel that 4 Carroll “Higgie” Higdem was born in a log cabin in Trail, MN. When he was 9 months old his the Reds Loved father drowned on a fishing trip. At age 7, he went to live with his grandmother who raised him. In 1963 he met his future wife, Kathye. Higgie and Kathye were married on July 24, 1965, and Club News and 5 in 1970 bought their home in Bloomington, MN, where they continued to live. In 1974 their interesting history daughter Trina was born and in 1978 their daughter Tanya completed the family. Higgie always tidbit had a strong love of family which always included many pets over the years. Higgie’s interest in automobiles was always foremost in his life. He was a perfectionist and James Koch Edsel 6 refused to turn out any project less than perfect. If he couldn’t find a part while restoring a car, Collection he would make it. He single-handedly restored several award-winning cars over the years. He was a member of the Edsel Owners Club since 1972, serving as their head judge since 1990. Calendar of Events 7 Every August, Higgie and Kathye would load up their motor home and head out across the U.S. and welcome new and Canada with their dogs for the Annual Convention of the Edsel Owners Club. This was their members only vacation and the one activity eagerly planned each year. He had many friends in the Edsel Owners Club. Green Line Edsel 8-9 Action Ads He served in the National Guard during the Vietnam War for seven years, although he would never talk about it. Most people who met Higgie will remember his wonderful sense of humor, his kind nature, and About The Edsel 10 his amazing knowledge of automobiles. In spite of the fact that he grew up without a father Owners Club and his mother refused to further care for him, he grew up to be the funny, compassionate, incredibly talented man we all knew and loved. He will be immensely missed by all. The Big E Page 2 Greetings Friends and Edsel Owners, It saddens me to start off my president's message by saying that our friend and long-time Edsel member Carroll (Higgie) Higdem passed away on September 27, 2016. He was a special and a dear friend to us all. A eulogy of Higgie is presented on the cover of this newsletter. I know that along with myself and all our E.O.C. members, we send our deepest condolences to Kathye and her family over this tremendous loss. Time has passed quickly this year and it is hard to believe that we are rapidly approaching the Holiday Season. Here in my part of California, our weather is pretty moderate all year long. A few rain storms are always expected, but the temperatures rarely drop below the 50s. We do need the rain, as California is still in a serious drought situation. Fortunately, we almost never really tuck our cars away for the winter months. Depending on our usual climate for this time of the year, it’s not uncommon to put the top down for a leisurely drive even in November and December. However, for those of you who live in the colder winter climates, it might be prudent to take the necessary precautions to safe guard your treasured vehicle. Regarding some other important news for us all: I recently joined an interesting Facebook page called the "Edsel Restoration and Preservation Group." It is a great way to stay in touch with other Edsel owners and friends of the Edsel. New and valuable information regarding the preservation and restoration of our great cars is always at hand. These are dedicated Edsel owners sharing their ideas, photos, and latest stories to all people who join this group. Log onto the site, check it out, and see for yourself what they have to offer. Above all, Robert and I want to wish you all a very happy and safe Holiday Season with blessings from us both. Michael Cowles From the President’s Desk! Volume XLIX, Issue 6 Page 3 New Reproduction of a much-needed Edsel Part NOW Available! Above: two brand-new turn signal levers created by Randy Lincoln. The upper one is for the small series and the lower one is for the big series. A couple of months ago, an eBay auction offered an original turn signal lever for a ‘58 Corsair - Citation. When the auction ended, this nearly impossible-to-find part was bid up to $214.00! Not only that, the lever was not even in mint condition - it had some issues, such as chipping and cracking on the plastic tip. This turn signal lever is often found to be in poor condition in original, unrestored Edsels, especially if the car has been parked out- side for a period of time. On the small-series Ranger, Pacer, and wagons, they are grey in color and the plastic tip is often cracked, crumbling, and sometimes missing entirely. On the big-series Corsair and Citations, these levers are chrome with an ivory plastic tip and they tend to deteriorate even worse than the grey ones in the small-series Edsels. Many restorable Edsels have been passed up by prospective buyers when they notice the plastic part on the turn signal levers to be missing or in rough condition because they know how difficult the search will be for a replacement lever. Fortunately, this part is now being reproduced, with many thanks to Randy Lincoln of Wisconsin. Randy is a highly skilled machinist, and using his lathe, has made a faithful and affordable reproduction turn signal lever for all of us who need them for our Edsels. He has be able to reproduce both types of turn signal levers, the grey ones for the small-series 58s and the chrome/ivory ones for the big-series 58s. The levers are $75 each, plus $6.80 shipping in the U.S. in a flat-rate box. Shipping to European countries is $33.95. If you wish to inquire about these reproduction turn signal levers, please contact Randy by phone 608-438-6469 or by e-mail: [email protected]. These levers are also available on eBay with a buy-it-now at $85 each if you would rather go that route. Right: an original and a reproduction grey lever side-by-side for comparison. On the left is an original, cracking lever from a ‘58 Ranger and on the right, a new reproduction lever. The Big E Page 4 B9UR731197, THE RED EDSEL THAT THE REDS LOVED Part One - By Phil Skinner In the first decade of the post-WWII world, two super-powers seemed to rise above the rest of the world. Under Joseph Stalin, and later Nikita Khrushchev, the Soviet Union, a collection of independent states located in Eastern Europe, and the United States of America, seemed to rule the world. These two super-powers each had their own claims to superiority. The USSR had military might, ruled with an iron fist. The USA was the model of capitalism, and one of its biggest industries centered on automobiles. Both had nuclear arsenals enough to destroy the entire world two or three times over. In July 1959, as an effort to ease tensions between the two powers, plans were made for the American National Exposition, just to show citizens of the USSR what those in the USA had access to. Those lucky enough to get tickets were treated to pure decadence. Russia had television, but those from the USA had a knob to change channels! All sorts of appliances were on display. Toasters, mix- ers, colorful ovens, and spacious refrigerators were favorites among the ladies. In Moscow, you could get any appliance you wanted in any finish you desired, as long as all you desired was a cast-iron skillet in which to cook moose and squirrel. But the most talked-about exhibition was a display of American automobiles showing off beautiful chrome-laden models from Chevrolet to Dodge, Ford to Buick, all in their glorious multi-tone paint jobs with gobs of reflective chrome and stainless steel. So many models to choose from each with bright colors and attractive body styles that dazzled the Soviet citizens, who mostly rode a bus while only the elite could own a car. Even then it was a limited choice between a Volga or a Pobeda. One of the stars of this show was a shiny new 1959 Edsel Corsair convertible. Finished in two-tone President Red with a Snow White insert and black soft top, it was fitted with the base 332 cid “Express V8,” Mile-O-Matic transmission, AM radio, Dial-Temp air- conditioning, heater, and more. This convertible was designated an export car from the factory, so a couple of extra items were add- ed, such as heavy duty springs, front and rear, and a 200-KPH speedometer. Below left: This is B9UR731197, the Edsel that almost caused an International incident in Moscow, Russia (photo by Phil Skinner) Above right: a detail shot of the 200 KPH export-only speedometer found on the Moscow car. (photo by Phil Skinner) To say the Exhibition was a media win would be an understatement.