1951 FORD VICTORIA – ”TRICKI VICKI”

Mike Simington and Debbie Barnett Simington

This copper and black ’51 Victoria was built by Tim and Carrie Strange at Strange Motion Rod and Customs. The ”TRICKI VICKI”, named by one of the 4 rod and custom magazines that she appears in, runs on a .30 over 460 w a c-6 trans and 2500 stall converter. The frame has been highly modified with over 150 ft of 1 inch round tubing. Scotts Independent Suspension and Mustang II spindles with rack and pinion steering. The rear end is a polished Winters. The wheels are Colorado Customs made for this build. This Vicki has been featured at SEMA and a couple Goodguys car shows as well as being in 4 publications. Tim and Carrie were presented with the prestigious INNOVATION AWARD while this car was on display at the SEMA show. As I understand it Carrie, who did all the work on the black and caramel interior, is the first female with her name on the trophy.

The Tricki Vicki has been sold 2 times at the Barrett -Jackson Auction. The first time she was purchased by the Sanderson Ford family, and has been a part of the museum for several years. When the Ford Dealership decided to sell, they went back to Barrett- Jackson in January of 2024. I was not able to bid on this ‘shoebox’ at the time but when I saw what it went for, I knew I needed to inquire about it. After the sale I walked around the Vicki for quite a while, looking at it as close as one can at an auction. I was impressed and before I walked away, I dropped a business card in the seat with my number on it and a note that said “if you wanna sell this car give me a call”. 5 weeks later I got a call from Andrew Distad from Freedom Autosport’s asking if I was still interested in buying the car.

Andrew has a great collection of cars and I am very happy to have gotten to know him. The Tricki Vicki is not my favorite car in the barn, but every time I fire her up and take her to a show, she creeps just a little closer to being my go-to ride.

– Mike Simington