A VINTAGE car lover has restored a 56-year-old car to pristine condition after finding it rotting in a barn with damage from a falling tree. Jakob Moser knew he struck gold after uncovering the 1961 Ford Country Squire in rural Austria , but a nasty issue under the hood made restoration a huge headache. That's because rats had infested the engine space and created a nest as the classic car sat abandoned in the barn for decades .
The interior of the car was also in shambles, as years of wear and tear left the seats collapsed, rotting and covered in dirt, Auto Evolution reported. The bright red lining was left peeling from the ceilings, and the back framing had completely crumbled under the weight of the falling tree. The drivers seat, meanwhile, was mainly kepts in tact, and the car still had its original radio and gorgeous red steering wheel.
read more in motors On the outside, the car seemed in better shape, and the tree damage was the biggest eyesore. Though it was covered with rust and dirt, you could still see the makings of a once beautiful blue, white, and wood-paneled car. The Country Squire was a staple in America from the 1960s to the 1980s as the boom in childbirths created a need for four-door cars.
It was the birth of the SUV, and Ford had already mastered a two-row seat beauty with a stylish interior and trunk space. Most read in Motors Finding such a rare American beauty all the way in Austria doesn't happen every day, so Moser knew the project was worth the plu.
