Edsel was slotted into the Ford corporate hierarchy between Mercury and Lincoln. In fact, you'll see the MEL abbreviation used for FoMoCo big blocks into the latter half of the Sixties, years after the E was gone.
It turned out that there wasn't enough space between a high-end Merc and the cheapest Lincoln to support a whole-ass automobile brand.
The original lineup for 1958 had four models: The high-end Citation and Corsair riding on 124" wheelbases, and the cheaper 118"-wheelbase Pacer and Ranger.
The Ranger was the most basic model in the Edsel catalog. Even things like a windshield washer or seatbelts were extra cost options, although a cigarette lighter was standard. it was the 1950s, after all.
The Snow White '58 Ranger four-door sedan would have had only one powerplant available, the E-400 pushrod V-8, a 361 cubic inch version of Ford's FE-series big block. With a four-barrel carburetor and a 10.5:1 compression ratio, it made 303 gross horsepower at 4600rpm. Ranger buyers got a three-speed manual for nothing, or could pay for a three speed slushbox with a standard column shifter. For a bit more money, they could opt for the Teletouch pushbutton gear selector in the steering wheel hub.
When Motor Trend tested a 1958 Ranger four-door hardtop with the automatic transmission, they recorded a zero-to-sixty time of 10.1 seconds. Base price for the bare-bones Ranger pillared sedan was $2,592 in 1958 dollars, which comes to something like $29,300 in current dollars. Seatbelts cost $22.50 ($254) extra and were only for the front seats.
This one was photographed in Pryor, Oklahoma in April of 2026 using an Olympus PEN E-P5 and an M. Zuiko Digital 12-45mm f/4 PRO zoom lens.
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