Maybe this is obvious to you guys but it's been a head-scratcher for all my buddies.
In the pictures my '62 is the red one with a new white valance. While prepping I noticed that the center section curves up and in. It must be factory; it's not a hack job roll.
However I've never seen another car with it - they all go straight across the bottom as you see on the white and yellow cars. All the guys I know say the same thing. Tonite I googled and googled and came up with only one car that has that same curve; the one on the rotisserie.
You guys ever seen this before?
Oooo, I want one! I can't contribute anything worthwhile regarding the heritage of that valance, but I really wish mine was like that.
I've got a bad habit of placing a thick rubber block under the forward lip of the sumpguard (where it's bolted to the front of the subframe) and lifting for jackstand placement. Well, about 2 months ago, the rubber block crumpled the lip as it drew up the face of the sumpguard into position.
It looks like the bottom lip on yours gives a small amount of extra clearance to the gearbox/front subframe, possibly to accommodate the factory tool jacking block.
Hmm...yeah I suppose it could be something as simple as that, just that it's a nicely rolled radius, i would expect a crease or something.
Again that blue car on the spit sort of appears to have the same thing otherwise I can't find it anywhere else...
Sure is cool though...
If I'm lucky enough to get to the garage next week, I should have my camera with me (need to take a picture of armycook's repro rally plate), so I'll snap a picture of my creased valance lip. It's nasty, and I should bend it back again before it rusts.
Looks to me like it went over a parking curb and flattened it out, that caused the center to bow upwards.....I've also never seen one in a factory picture that looks like that.