406 V8 w/ Tri-Power! 4 Spd Manual, Factory A/C, Solid Paint & Interior, Nice!

Price: - Item location: Fort Worth, Texas, United States
Description:

1963 Ford Galaxie 500

Let's not dance around the issue: if this 1963 Ford Galaxie 500 were an Impala, it would cost twice as much. Yet this freshly restored Galaxie offers equally handsome looks, full-sized comfort, and a thumping 406 V8 under the hood matted to a 4-speed - all beautifully restored to give it the look of luxury with the heart of a muscle car.
The first thing you notice about this big Galaxie is that wonderful all-of-a-piece look that only cars that have been well maintained for decades can offer. Look at how the light works on it, showing off the soft gloss of the fresh Matte Black paint, bringing out the details and drawing the eye along its smooth flanks. Matte Black is obviously not this car's original shade of color, yet it looks wonderfully vintage, and laying down matte black (called Hotrod Black in many circles) over a large expanse of sheetmetal like this isn't easy, as it lends itself to 'tiger-striping' pretty easily, but the very fact that you won't find any of that here is further proof that the car is laser-straight underneath, and the finish was laid down by pros. It's all in very good condition overall and shows the work of guys who cared about what they were doing, and on a Galaxie, that's a lot of real estate to manage. Of course, a quality paint job is nothing without the details being right, and all the original Ford trim remains in place with a lot of shiny details that still look good despite being more than five decades old. And nothing says speed and performance like those twin jet-like taillights out back.
Neatly restored in beautiful red vinyl, the fresh interior is pure 1960s style and performance. The door tag says the interior was originally turquoise, so it's safe to assume that everything that's now red was either replaced or restored, and it's all fresh with very little signs of use to be found on the bench seats, door panels, headliner, and carpets. The factory instrument panel covers the basics of speed and fuel level, and it's nice to see that they kept it the way the factory built it instead of adding gauges under the dash, although the addition of a SunPro tachometer to the steering column is an unobtrusive, and welcome, addition. There's a big, white cue ball knob for the Hurst 4-speed shifter and there's really nothing cooler than a full-sized car with a shift-it-yourself transmission. The original AM radio is still in the dash, and yes, it unbelievably still works, while the under-dash A/C unit is factory-spec and still works too! These two working options alone add plenty of credence to the claim that the miles on the odometer are in fact original to the car. The trunk is basic and factory-stock, and it's obvious that there are no nasty surprises waiting for you under the original mat.
In a big car, you need big power, and the non-numbers matching 406 cubic inch V8 High-Performance engine in this Galaxie doesn't disappoint. Nicely detailed, it's every bit the NASCAR-bred brawler that you'd expect. With a fat torque curve and a willingness to rev thanks to the 3 2-barrel carbs on top, the powerful 406 makes this car feel 500 pounds smaller. Sporty finned valve covers and a matching air cleaner give it a racy look, and once again, there weren't many liberties taken here; even the expansion tank is still in place atop the radiator. It's quite clean throughout, with only the surface scale on the exhaust manifolds detracting from a very nice overall presentation. A vintage dual exhaust system gives the 406 a basso-profundo voice that will make your hair stand up, and even with manual steering and brakes, it still feels lively on the road thanks to that 4-speed manual transmission. 15-inch alloy wheels and white-letter radials give it a high-performance look that's not over the top, with plenty of rubber left to grip the asphalt.
A great old-school performance car with big horsepower swagger, this cool Galaxie can still play hard with the younger kids. And with a believed-actual 55,556 miles on the clock, it's got quite the pedigree, too. Call today!