The moment came five years ago when my wife and I were at about 5,000 feet on the Cherohala Parkway in the Mountains of North Carolina on another of the wonderful Fall Mountain Tours sponsored by the Southern 356 Owner Group. We were in our 1958 Speedster, and this year it was cold, wet, and foggy. She was trying to staunch the flow of water around the side curtains and keep the windshield clear, and I was trying to keep the car ahead of me in sight and avoid careening down the side of the mountain. At that moment, we just might have traded on the spot for a nice warm, dry coupe. And that was pretty much what she said when we finally got off of the mountain and were settled at the hotel, except that being the proper 356 enthusiast-wife, she wanted to buy a coupe, not trade the Speedster.
Back at work on Monday, I checked the 356 Registry list and lo and behold, there was a message from a fellow in Richmond, Virginia wanting to sell his 64 C Coupe. I called to discuss its condition and learned that it was a Virginia car that Weldon Scrogham had owned multiple times. He would sell it to some rich doctor, who would discover that they weren't driving it as much as they planned and then sell it back to Weldon. The last time he owned it, he rebuilt the engine. Except for that and a 1980 repaint in its original slate grey color (red interior), it was an original car in excellent condition. On the phone, Weldon described it as "a three year old car."
That Friday we drove to Richmond, looked at the car on Saturday, and bought it (and an extra set of 5.5" show chromed wheels with 185 tires and lots of miscellaneous parts). We rented a trailer and towed it home on Sunday. This was to be "her" car.
Since then, we've driven it to 356 East Coast Holidays all over and it's never missed a beat. It is a wonderful contrast to our Speedster, which I still prefer as a driving experience, but it's hard to beat the all weather comfort, and low revs, of a Coupe on long trips. The photo was taken under a live oak tree at Magnolia Plantation at the 2002 East Coast Holiday in Charleston.
Jim and Judith Johnston
Auburn, AL
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