The idea of using an overdrive gear for fuel economy is such a good one that it’s shocking it didn’t catch on earlier in America, but in the land of cheap gas, powerful engines, and long rear axle ratios, it wasn’t really necessary. In some situations, however, overdrive would come in handy, such as in the wide-open spaces of Wyoming. The seller of this 1962 Galaxie 500 Club Sedan bought it from their sister-in-law in Casper, Wyoming, nine years ago, and it’s for sale on Hagerty Marketplace in Ellensburg, Washington.
The trim tag has been posted so we can narrow this Galaxie down in more detail, starting with the VIN:
- 2: 1962
- P: Twin Cities (Minnesota) Assembly
- 61: Galaxie 500 Two-Door Club Sedan
- W: 292-cubic-inch two-barrel V8
- 112665: This is the unit number, the 12,665th car off the Twin Cities line for 1962
The first row reads as follows:
- 62A: This is just a reiteration of the model, seen above as “61”
- DM: Ming Green lower body, Corinthian White upper body
- 17: Turquoise cloth and vinyl interior trim
- 04K: Scheduled assembly date of October 4, 1961
- 8: 3.89:1 axle ratio
- 2: Three-speed with overdrive transmission
The 292 was the base V8, the old Y-Block in its last full season in Ford cars (it would carry on in trucks a bit longer). This car underwent a “mechanical and cosmetic refurbishment” after the owner picked it up from their sister-in-law, and that included a full engine rebuild. The 292 was a shadow of its earlier self by ’62, rated at only 170 horsepower and 279 lb-ft of torque. As Paul N has pointed out, the 1960-62 292 was detuned for (perhaps) fuel economy, but at least this car’s three-speed with overdrive would redeem its performance to some extent. The transmission itself should be Borg-Warner’s tough T-85 with a 0.70 auxiliary overdrive unit. With the steep 3.89:1 gears out back, that equates to a 2.72:1 overall ratio, which means that the owner could cruise those Wyoming vistas at 80 miles per hour with the engine humming away at something less than 3000 rpm. Nice choice, original buyer.
The interior was redone at the same time as the mechanical bits; although the new upholstery looks very nicely done, it doesn’t match the original patterns in factory sales material, but few at the local car meetup are likely to notice. A funny thing about the sales ad: under the heading of “known imperfections,” the seller points out that the car has a transmission drip and “stained floor mats,” comments that say a lot about the probable honesty of the seller. Also, the car is advertised as having an automatic overdrive transmission, but clearly it does not. If you need more proof, see the clutch pedal in the photo above.
It’s nice to see undercarriage pictures of any old car you’re buying, and the seller has posted several, but they’re dimly lit and taken at shallow angles. Nonetheless, they’re enough to know that rust isn’t an issue.
The Galaxie was treated to new paint and rechromed bumpers during its “refurbishment,” in addition to a brake rebuild and new tires. That was, however, almost ten years ago, so at the very least, the big Ford might be due for a set of new tires. But ongoing maintenance is a fact of life for any old car, and this one seems to have had all the hard work done already. Besides, that overdrive gear is just as useful today as it’s ever been.
Related Reading
The Mystery Of Why The 1960-1962 Ford 292 Y-Block V8 Was Such A Slug Is Finally Solved! (by Paul N)
Antique Store Classic: 1962 Ford Owner’s Manual, Decoding Some Fella’s New Car – Part II (by me)
To my eyes a more attractive car than the same year Chevy.
Briefly featured in the movie “The Birds”.
Driving a three on the tree is something from the old days and you don’t speed shift that transmission! It’s rewarding to have that skill and when the shift linkage is nice and tight to feel those gear changes, it’s sweet! But, then again I am an old guy..
I had an affinity for the ’62 Galaxy as Ford sent sales literature to my family every year since mom had bought a used ’53 Customline. The 406 engine and 4-speed were hot items that year. My brother found the column shifted 3-speed on our car easy to shift quickly and lay a patch of rubber as he hit 2nd gear. I never heard a crunch when he did this but he did eventually blow 2nd gear street racing. As a twelve year old, I tried to dissect the tranny and help it somehow but it was worse by the time I got it back together. I left our next transmission problems to the professionals until I got a Volvo and had better luck.
Oh the joys of untangling the shift linkage of a 3 on the tree. Born in 53 I too experienced many of these trannys and loved to drive them.
Oh yes! I’m a ’57, and soon learned just what part of the linkage needed wiggling to unjam it. And why Dad’s Falcon needed a clutch about every year…
Agreed. I had a “Tree on the Tree” in a 1978 Ford F100 “Ranger” (300 6) I had back in 1997. I struck me a little odd, as I felt it was too “new” to have manual column shift. It always seemed like something one found in “old Cars”. Old being 40s-50s.
My father had a 76 Chevy Pickup (str 6) (painted w a brush) w / tree on the tree back in 85. That Chevy, while definitely not new at the time, ALSO seemed ‘too new’ for that type of shifting.
I guess I was accustomed to (modern-ish) manuals being “on the floor” , and anything on the column was an auto.
I still fine the concept so interesting. I mean all that linkage seems SO MUCH easier to have it coming out of the transmission, into the Cabin. BOOM. Shifter/transmission (comparatively).
Was the upside down clutch pedal pad mentioned in the sales ad? I would have to take $25 off the asking price for that.
Harsh, but fair! 🙂
I have long been amazed at how few offered the OD transmission. The OD gear and the shorter rear end gearing that usually went with it is a solid win-win for me. By the early 60s, you seldom came across OD in something other than a Ford or a Studebaker.
IIRC my uncle bought a new 1964 Rambler American with overdrive.
Such a nice and unusual Ford. Thought I owned (was given by parents) a ’63 as my first car, I’ve always preferred the more subtle taillights of the ’62 and ’64, compared to the huge oversized things on the ’63. That said the ’63 had the best front end, simple, clean and modern, one that seemed to have inspired some other cars that followed it, domestic and foreign.
Having crossed Wyoming, Kansas and Nebraska many times in a car traveling 85-90, that overdrive would have been a godsend. You fall asleep and anything under 80 in those vast spaces.
My wife knew a doctor in Eastern Montana that serviced a large part of that part of the state. He owned a new ’79 Olds 98 and said he typically drove at 100 mph between his office in Sidney and his other in Wolf Point and never got a ticket, all the cops knew him.
Just yesterday CC’s dman was in town and we drove to Junction City in my OD-equipped ’66 F100 to try to get a 1948 Farmall Cub running that belongs to my son Ted’s GF’s grandparents. We rolled along at 60-65 mph with the 240 six loafing at 1900 rpm. And I showed him how I shift without the clutch thanks to the clutch-effect of the OD’s freewheeling.
Unfortunately we did not get the little Cub running. It has not run in over 20 years, and my final guess is the carb is badly gummed up, or worse, so I took it off and will be cleaning it today.
Also, the car is advertised as having an automatic overdrive transmission, but clearly it does not.
The reality is that not many, even car guys, know what a planetary overdrive is. It’s becoming a highly archaic device.
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/the-joys-of-overdrive-the-planetary-kind-not-interstellar-or-otherwise/
Overdrive units are still sold by Gearvendors. My buddy had one installed in his Lincoln MkV. It operates just like a six speed automatic transmission.
It is also finicky to get it to work right, but that is a difference story altogether.
Put on a not-so-loud dual exhaust system. Change to blackwall tires. Atlas Bucron’s in the rear.
These are one of my favorite early ’60’s Fords. I found this cute ad.
I’m sure that there’s something that I don’t understand about auxiliary overdrive. I can’t see how it is better than a 4-speed with a 1:1 4th and a numerically lower final drive. I’m not sure about this Ford, but some overdrive-equipped transmissions allow you to use 2/OD, which would turn a 3-speed into a 5-speed, but I’m not sure that the low-revving, torquey engines of the day really needed 5 gears, nor how many drivers used 2/OD regularly.
I’ve owned several Volvos with 4+OD transmissions, which used the same Laycock overdrive as many British cars of the era. The general consensus is that adding the auxiliary overdrive was simply cheaper than developing a true 5-speed gearbox, not that it was inherently better.
I had a ’75 MGB with overdrive – the o/d worked on 3rd and 4th.
It’s not intrinsically better, but you’d need a four speed with a much wider spread of gear ratios than were ever made. Four speeds were created and strictly for improved performance.
Chrysler and Ford did eventually turn their 4-speeds into 3 + OD 4-speeds, but by turning the third gear into an OD ratio and keeping 4th direct. In theory they could have done that in the ’60s but it was just cheaper to keep selling the existing 3 speeds with OD than retool to turn a 4-speed into a 3+OD unit, or change the ratios on all the first 3 gears to create the same effect.
Overdrive dates back to 1934, and if you read my post on it, it wasn’t just to reduce engine rpm at higher speeds. It also allowed “automatic” shifting between 2 D and 2 OD, which was very handy in around-town driving. In fact, OD was always teamed up with a lower (higher numerical) rear axle so as to make 2nd gear starts on level ground. That meant that women could tool around town without any shifting at all. This was a key selling point.
Yes, the OD units shift into 2 OD above a pre-set minimum speed when the gas pedal is momentarily released. My unit is set up to shift manually, and yes, I have five very well spaced gears, which in a 6 cylinder truck when hauling a load is very helpful, but not so much so in a V8 sedan.
Couldn’t load that one here’s another image.
I have always found overdrive units intriguing. That is probably because I have never seen one. On hilly Vancouver Island I assume they never sold because of our lack of straight, level roads. Like Aaron said in the article, gas was cheap in the 1960s and most drivers wouldn’t care to pay the upfront costs.
I can see an Alberta or Saskatchewan farmer buying an overdrive to go with the six and three on the tree.
By this time, they were very rare even in the states. Only 3.1 percent of 1962 full-size Fords had overdrive, even though close to 20 percent were stick-shift.
Old friend used to say: “A Four on the Floor, and a Fifth under the seat”.
🙂
I get what the author meant, but Ford did call this “automatic overdrive” when new. When the switch was engaged, the overdrive unit kicked in and out automatically.
Yes, but it’s not helpful to list a manual+OD car as a “automatic” in a sale listing. It appears that was either an error or the seller has thought better of it, as the Hagerty listing has now been updated to clarify that it’s a 3-speed manual + OD transmission.
That old Ford would certainly stand out in todaze plethora of tortured surfaces and blah WGB (WhiteGrayBlack) that passes for “COLOR”! I rode from Wisconsin down to the Redstone Arsenal with 2 other young Marines in a ’61 Ford, but it was Red/White and had an automatic Transmission. I don’t remember their names after all these years, but we were all from Wisconsin. The most memorable part of the trip was being in a deluge going past the Chicago area…and the wiper motor FAILED!! We pulled over, unlaced our boots, tied the laces together and to the wiper blades. I became the wiper “motor” as we continued on our way; do believe my “speed” fell as the miles rolled by! Fortunately that was the only rain during our trip! 🙂 DFO
While growing up, a neighbor ordered a brand new ’62 Ford Galaxie 2 dr hardtop with a 352, 3 speed with O/D. Black with a red interior. In the first year, two accidents convinced him the car was bad luck and he traded it off for a ’63 Fairlane Hardtop, 260/automatic.His next stick was 9 years later, a ’71 Torino GT, 351C/4 speed.
Yep ;
These were indeed fine cars, kinda old tech but solidly engineered and built .
After my 1962 Country Sedan Station Wagon in my teens I stumbled across an unwanted 1962 Galaxy in this style but with the ?223? i6 engine, it was from Arizona and original beige paint and dealer added AC .
I got it running but sadly before I titled it to me it developed a faint rod knock, I gave the over drive tranny to my then very young buddy down the street to put into his dad’s ’58 F100 truck I bought a few years later .
When new these over drives didn’t allow operation in second gear but those who lived near hills discovered one could by pass the 2nd gear lockout and climb hills easily and speedily in second gear over drive =8-) .
The over drive units included a sprag clutch like in your starter gear’s Bendix, just taking your foot off the gas allowed it to coast along disconnected from the engine, this of course meant you could smoothly shift from second to third gear .
The down side was : this who failed to pay attention sometimes found themselves going down a steep hill at increasing speed and the brakes fading away .
Over drives go back to the 1920’s that I know of, google Columbia or Ruckstell .
This is a really nice car but I’d want to look closer underneath and also ensure all the many Bowden cables that operate the heat, fresh air vents and so on , are not rusted stuck .
It’s not a huge thing to free them up just time and labor consuming like most jobs when done properly .
-Nate