My first car was a 1953 Pontiac convertible. Neighbor knew I was a car nut and gave it to me. It was ten years old. It had a flathead straight eight which said "Hi compression" on the head. It was something like 7.8 to one compression, about like a lawn mower. It had a four speed Hydramatic transmission and an Indian head on the hood which light up when the headlights were on. It had a power top.
Next I had another freebie car, a 1953 Ford Victoria hardtop. Not the Crown Victoria, just plain Victoria. It was a flathead V-8 with Ford-O-Matic. Then I had a 1951 Ford with a 55 Ford Y-block V-8. All those old cars had six volt electrical systems. I think 1953 was the last year for flatheads except for the Mopar sixes. Detroit went to twelve volt electrical systems around 1954, too.
Back then older cars were cheap. I had a bunch of sub-$200 cars which were good rides. I had a 1957 Studebaker Silver Hawk with the 289 cubic inch Studebaker engine based on the 1949 Cadillac engine. I paid $80 for a 1961 Dodge Lancer. It had a 170 cubic inch slant six and three on the floor from the factory. I put a new clutch in it and flushed out the engine with kerosene to get rid of the sludge. It worked. I sold it to a family friend after the summer of 1964 and he had it ten years later. He said it was the best car they ever had. Those were the days....
