When I came upon this ’65 Fairlane 500 two-door sedan (a rather uncommon model) being hauled off from a storage lot on this flatbed, with its proud new owner standing by, I could well imagine it ending up as a resto-mod, with a giant V8 under the hood. But then we started talking, and it turns out that’s not the case at all.
It’s going to get a proper restoration, back to its original state, including its 200 CID six and all. What a pleasant surprise. It seems that the predictable “hot wheels” phenomena is perhaps experiencing growing fatigue, and originality is becoming more in vogue. Three cheers for that!
And there is hope for humanity after all . . . . .
Nice to finally see cars being restored to their original glory!
This is terrific! A car that many would view only as being a donor for a 460 implant is getting lavished with keeping it the way it was built. I applaud the new owner.
Kudos to the owner 🙂
Hooray…Ive seen a lot of little old lady survivor slant six powered (insert name here )(and rare) get hacked up for re power (I know of a RARE slanty powered Challenger that got hacked for a 440) love the survivors.
More slant 6 Challengers were sold than hemis and 440s.Open a magazine or go to a show today and you only ever see big block bruisers
Nice to see it restored as a 6.My brother had a 62 Fairlane 6 good looking,reliable and not to big or thirsty.I hate to see 6s turned into fake V8s,these are what my Dad called honest cars the sort of car America excelled at making.More vanilla 6 sedans please!
It’s always good to see this happening — I think it’s a growing trend (thank goodness). I’ve got a ’62 Ranchero with an 170-six…and three-on-the-tree. I always get asked if I’m going to put a 289 V8 in it. The answer is NO! Although the trucklet is non obsessively original, at least it’s basically the way it came out of the factory…
There’s a ’64 Fairlane for sale just over the IL border from St. Louis with the stock six. I’m temped to buy it or at least go kick the tires.
It looks quite salvageable from here. Nice period wheels. It’ll make a cool econo-cruiser.
I’d probably rebuild the engine into a 250 though…Clifford headers…
Cool car. Not all old Fords need to be Mustangs. I would just clean it up and cruise it as is but if I were building it, it would have to get a V8.
Cool avatar Lieutenant Dan.
Thanks JB, and yours as well. I love any Firebird that hasn’t been cloned into a Trans Am (and I have a 78 TA)
Just out of curiosity, I wonder if resale values are higher once you stuff a V8 under the hood?
Not to me…
+2 cylinders = 2X value.
Unfortunately, Yes. While I love original cars, you will almost never make an inline-6 car less valuable by putting the 8 in it. Even if it’s a perfect survivor, people want to pay less for it, because it isn’t the 8.
I also believe that there is a good middle ground. One can do a 6 to 8 conversion and not hack it up or go resto-mod with it. You can make a period correct cruiser with a small block and not hurt this car’s looks and increase it’s value. I actually have a period correct 289 block and parts sitting in my garage for this car.
I understand not wanting to invest all that money restoring something like this and only getting to play with 110 wimpy, SAE gross ponies (or whatever it is). I do agree that you can do an engine swap without it coming off cheesy, but what would be even cooler is building the original six. The parts are out there – a little more expensive than Ford V8 stuff, but if it were my car I’d gladly pay the premium. The 200 with bolt-on stuff and a cam won’t be any faster than a very basic 289, but it will be infinitely cooler and just as fun to drive… and I think popping the hood on one of these to reveal a few Webers will draw a lot more oglers than the dime-a-dozen small block.
I don’t know if V8 necessarily = more valuable anymore either, unless it came that way from the factory. Both originality and old inline sixes have become very popular.
Original. Nice. Something to look at that’s not a Mustang or Camaro: even better.
+1
I’ve got a perfectly good-running 250 Chevy six out of my ’72 Ventura, just waiting for a ’63-’65 Nova two-door hardtop or 53 / 54 Bel Air to call its new home. 🙂 .
To me, this car looks like it could be the big brother to an early ’70s Dodge Dart.. AMT used to offer a 3 in 1 kit, and the custom version extended the rear valance to permit a full-width taillight.
Yes, kudos to the owner – but I have to say, the 65 Fairlanes were a puzzle to me – I liked the first generation 62-64s, and the latter 66-67s. The 65s I thought looked a little strange and “frumpy”. I’ve never researched why they went to this one year only body style – I’ll have to do a little checking.
It was a low-budget gambit to squeeze one more year out of an old tooling while
simultaneously attempting to graft the new for ’65 Galaxie-LTD styling cues onto it.
My guess is that they were hoping the all new Galaxie vibe would rub off onto this. It didn’t. I remember in the fall of ’64, my dad brought home a brand new ’65 Galaxie 4-door hardtop, the first of the quiet ones they ballyhooed to the moon. Guess what, they really were. . My skinflint government-employed uncle got a 4 door version of the upper feature in the same Prairie Bronze as my dad’s Galaxie. Even as a 5 year old kid.I knew we had the upper hand.
The same question was pondered here once before:
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-american/curbside-classic-1965-ford-fairlane-sports-coupe-the-failane/
Des anyone know of a Slanty-powered 1966-67 Dodge Charger with a 4 speed I could buy?
no six cylinder Chargers before 1968 and they only came with 3 speeds. 4 speeds came with 383 4 bbls and up.
One of the numerous older brothers of one my elementary school buddies had a 1969 Charger in Hemi Orange with Mangum 500s. Inside, it was a 225 3-on-the-tree radio delete. Even at 13 I knew it was off the wall. Apparently, he had purchased it from an elderly woman, who ordered -it that way brand new.The same guy had earlier somehow procured a 1963 electric-razor front Dart, when they were never available in Canada.
Paul, if you see this owner again, you should refer him to the Fairlane Club of America. I am a member, and it covers all intermediate Ford 1962-1976. There is TONS of info for these early model Fairlanes, especially those who are looking to do concours restorations. These early Fairlanes have quite the following in the club. Although I am more of a fan of the later model Fairlanes and Torinos, that is a sharp looking coupe.
I’d probably ruin it with a late OHC Falcon 6
“…they were hoping the all new Galaxie vibe would rub off onto this. It didn’t…”
Ford would have decided to change the styling before the actual model year commenced. They didn’t suddenly ‘whip up’ the 66 body change upon sales results.
More likely they locked in the ’65, but then saw ’66 drawings and pulled them forward a year to production?
Anyway, neighbors had a nice maroon 2 door and I got a plastic model of it, was one of my favorites, but lost in move to new house.
This was my vehicle, I pulled it out of a guys yard planing on making a street rod, because my 65 fairlane sport coupe is no longer street leagal due to 650 hp of blown alcohol small block goodness. I agree keeping rare cars stock, so I have all the original pieces from my car squirled away in the garge for a day when I become less rambunctious and don’t need a 10:00 second drag car. The white car pictured’s nick name around my house was “swamp thing” I like them in original paint that way the money you save on painting them can go into go fast goodies:)
i have the same RARE model…
https://www.facebook.com/robert.alexander.7311/media_set?set=a.10201046858082521.1073741825.1499922773&type=3
200cid
9” rear end
c-4 cruise-o-matic
missing the original rims….
🙁