A Legacy of Car Lust; The clean lines of the 1949 ford inspired generations-now the ford forty-nine wants to carry it forward.

When AutoWeek's editors sequestered themselves in a room at the North American International Auto Show, the purpose was clear, if difficult: Identify from the near 700 vehicles displayed those that could win our four editors' choice awards. Of course, that included our best of the best. ``Which single car out there is the one you'll remember five years from now? Which one steals your heart? Which will we name Best in Show?''

Among editors too young to remember Kukla, Gomer or Mr. Ed, the choices came from all over the map. So the old guys (the tenured guys) put up their candidate and it won. And there was nary an argument-only nods of assent-from the younger set. It's hard to argue with the breathtaking Ford Forty-Nine.

The Forty-Nine is not so much a concept or show car as it is a dream car. You remember those: Dream cars weren't about showing off advanced technology or hinting at the next family wagon. They were conjured and imagined as artifacts to buoy optimism, fire up hope and... dreams. Dream cars of the 1950s and '60s were wild, space-age and futuristic, and left our collective jaws agape.

They did something else, too, something whose legacy continues today. Dream cars and their sensuous, fantastic images lighted fuses in the hearts of more than one designer. Dream cars acted as magnetic North to a generation of artists, engineers, designers, modelers and executives who sought to satisfy their professional urges within the car world.

To the professional and sentimental eye, the Forty-Nine pays homage to that original '49 Ford, a seminal car in Ford and American automotive design history. The original's integrated body and fenders (slab-sided, they say), independent front suspension and rear quarter-windows that opened made it unique and optimistic.

``The inspiration for the Forty-Nine concept comes from the passion and excitement of the original, combined with the imagination of people across America who customized the car and turned it into what they thought a really great car should be,'' says J Mays, Ford Motor Co. vice president of design. ``The concept melds together many of the custom car designs from the 1950s as well as elegant cues and shapes from some of the great Italian designs, such as Ghia.''

It was June 1948 when the '49 Ford was introduced in New York City-and it became a blockbuster hit, even in Broadway terms. The first new, postwar Ford design, it tallied 1.3 million orders before it was available at dealers.