When you take delivery of a 1963 model car with just 32,000 miles on the clock and a boot-load of spare parts its first owner had bought from the dealer almost 46 years ago, you know you’ve got something extremely original.

When it comes to originality, the 1963 Ford Galaxie 500 Sports hardtop coupe belonging to Roy Macdonald and Jan McInnes ticks pretty much every box.

It is a stunning example of a low mileage Galaxie, ferreted out by friends who were tripping around the United States when they heard about the car. Sensing something special, they investigated and were rewarded with a special find — a car that was being sold off as part of a deceased estate.

The car in question was a Sports hardtop coupe, recognisable by its slant-back roofline and convertible-style ribs pressed into its metal roof. The Galaxie had spent a fair bit of its life sitting around, but had clearly been cherished and well looked after during the 46 years since it had left the factory.

Roy’s friends soon had the Ford loaded onto a boat heading for Dunedin and a new life in Aotearoa. When the car was finally landed at Port Chalmers with the help of Steve Curle at Kiwi Shipping, Roy and his partner, Jan, went down for a look.

“Jan just fell in love with it straight away, so I didn’t have to do any talking at all,” Roy explained.

But there was one small matter. Roy and Jan’s friends had actually bought the car for themselves, so getting them to part with it took some persuasion and a bottle of rum. That’s what you call friendship.

Triple-A

With the deal concluded, Roy and Jan became the Galaxie’s new owners and, when he opened the car’s boot, Roy couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw that it was full of spare parts the original owner had bought — including a spare fuel pump, pretty much every rubber hose and belt needed to keep the car running, and even a set of headlight surrounds.

The car’s provenance also extended to all the original papers, along with its factory option sheet from the day it rolled out of Dearborn, plus a bunch of registration tags going right back to when it was purchased from Mahoney O’Dell — a dealer in Visalia, California.

There was even a triple-A Southern California Automobile Club transfer on the back proudly proclaiming: “Member for over 35 years.”

Not surprisingly, especially given the Galaxie’s low mileage, the 6391cc (390ci) big-block V8 was untouched. Indeed, the only thing Roy had to do to the car to get it roadworthy was put on a new set of tyres because the originals had perished in the sidewalls.

The car now sports a nice set of radial whitewalls, which looks fantastic and work very well with the Galaxie. “I did try a different set of wheels, but I went back to the original size as they rode much better,” Roy says.

The only thing Roy has had to do since starting to use the car is to replace the muffler, although he resisted the temptation to fit twin pipes along the way. He enjoys the car’s originality and sees no reason to fiddle with it.

Other nice touches that show the Galaxie’s extensive originality include two genuine Ford exterior mirrors, something Roy says is fairly unusual. “Usually you only get one or perhaps just an after-market mirror,” he says.

Original Classic

The big Galaxie coupe is one of those cars that doesn’t seem to have a bad angle. From whichever direction you approach the car, it looks great — and you can spend a lot of time debating which view is best, although for me the rear-quarter view wins. The low, tapering roofline leads gracefully into that long, slender rear overhang, all finished off beautifully by those iconic circular rear taillights that Ford used to such great effect on its early ’60s designs.

There are nice little touches too, such as the way the radiator grille pattern is repeated in the trim between the rear lights.

Inside the car still has its original white rubber mats with the word Ford stamped into them, an extra that would have been installed by the dealer. The car also has its original dealer number plate surrounds.

Stepping into the interior, the Galaxie features a three-tone blue colour scheme broken by chrome strips and handles. The spacious seats are set off nicely by the narrow pleating where the driver and passengers park themselves.

A massive dash is dominated by a long, imposing speedo, calibrated to 120mph (193kph) and flanked by fuel and temperature gauges with pull-knob switches below. The air conditioning controls, radio and clock are mounted in the centre. There’s no need to cram anything more into this baby.

It is very much a car for travelling and cruising, and Roy and Jan have enjoyed two or three thousand miles-worth of cruising in the big Ford.

American Car Specialist

Fed by a two-barrel carburettor (the XL version had a four-barrel) the 390 has truckloads of easy torque, which it demonstrated by easily dispatching one of Dunedin’s many steep hills during my drive in the car. The three-speed auto handles the load without even blinking, slipping through the ratios with a dismissive ease.

Under the bonnet the engine bay is untouched and original. Such is the space under there that even the big block V8 looks almost lost, with plenty of room either side to the guards and to the front to the radiator and the even more distant grille. There’s plenty of room should Roy ever need to go near the 390.

Repairs are no issue for Roy anyway as he runs his own very successful business, Roy Macdonald Automotive, and has developed an excellent reputation for his work specialising in American cars.

Roy is very much a Ford man, with a particular liking for ’50s and ’60s models — he also owns a stunning, concours condition, 1956 Sunliner convertible in two-tone peach over cream.

Roy has owned a number of Fairlanes over the years, including ’62, ’63 and ’64 models. The ’64 has been turned into a race car which he races very successfully in pre-’65 saloon car racing. He also owns a very nice original ’63 which spent many years as an undertaker’s car.

Roy has no future plans for the Galaxie — other than to keep it as it is. “Even though it came with all those spares, and they are dealer spares not after-market stuff, I will only replace stuff when it needs it. It is just such a neat car the way it is now.”

Racing in Mind

But it was the Galaxie sports coupe, with its fastback roof, that was to become Ford’s headline act, especially when it came to performance and racing.

Easily distinguishable from the two-door hardtop by its convertible-style ribs pressed into the steel, the new design was reported to be 28 per cent more aerodynamic, ideal for doing battle on NASCAR’s high speed ovals.

The range-topping 500XL coupe came with standard equipment that would pretty much qualify for deluxe on the rest of the range. Contoured deluxe seat upholstery, extensive carpeting, courtesy lights and full wheel covers added to the sense that this model was that bit more special.

Engine options started with a modest 122kW, 4261cc V8, but this model was sold much more often with the 390ci V8 which had 224, 254 and 280kW (300, 340 and 375bhp) options.

Initially, the largest offering was 6653cc (406ci), but later that year Ford also introduced the 6997cc (427ci) high-performance engine with a four barrel offering putting out 306kW/410bhp and a dual four-barrel version turning out a monstrous 317kW/425bhp available only with a four-on-the-floor manual gearbox.

With racing in mind Ford also produced the R-Code lightweight version, tipping the scales at 1509kg, compared to the standard XL’s 1711kg. With 650Nm of torque to go along with the 317kW it could turn a standing quarter in 14.95 at 96mph (154kph) and complete the 0-60mph dash in 6.9 seconds.

Like most American cars of the time, the range of options for the Galaxie was extensive. Buyers could choose from a list that included a swing away steering wheel, power front seat, power windows, power steering, power brakes, padded dash and visors, backup lights, deluxe wheel covers, spotlight mirrors and select aire conditioner.

Although that range of options would have been attractive and even tempting to most buyers, Ford knew there was one way to sell a car on Monday — and that was to win on Sunday.

Not surprisingly, Ford wasted no time in trying to get the most out of its massive 427 wrapped inside the new, more aerodynamic sports coupe model.

Put in the hands of legendary race car builder Holman & Moody, and then run in NASCAR by the equally legendary Woods Brothers racing team, it had a winner. The car was able to lap Daytona at a 267kph/166mph average, hitting 290kph at times.

It wasn’t just about raw speed either, because engineers and drivers found they could make the big car handle. In fact the Galaxie had the distinction of taking out NASCAR’s first ever 500-mile road race at Riverside in California with the great Dan Gurney at the wheel.

Gurney went on to win three of the Riverside races in a row, and then added a fourth in 1968. So dominant was he, some jokingly renamed the event the Gurney 500.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Atlantic Jack Sears thundered into the British saloon car scene, breaking Jaguar’s stranglehold and heralding a whole new and exciting chapter in that form of racing as well as NASCAR. Ford had a winner.

A Ford for the ’60s

By the time the ’60s arrived, Ford had decided on producing a new car for a new decade. Gone were the fins of the ’50s, replaced by a simpler, sleeker design, perfect for the huge canvas presented by the Galaxie.

Described as the ‘full-sized Ford’, the 3022mm wheelbase gave plenty of scope for whatever the customer wanted in between — be it fordor, wagon, convertible or coupe, the long, elegant, uncluttered lines of the ’63 Galaxy showed what could be achieved.

That year Dearborn was offering nearly 50 models and variants with 13 different station wagons alone. They started with the ‘compact’ Falcon in its various guises with the Fairlane, which most New Zealanders think of as a big car, actually providing a mid-sized range of models. The Galaxie, however, dwarfed them all.

Standing outside Roy’s business with his 500 parked alongside a Fairlane and an XP Falcon — looking extremely compact by comparison — really brought it home. It is simply bigger in every direction, except up, which accentuates its long, lean lines.

Ford’s Galaxie line-up began with the basic sedan which could be bought with a number of engine options, ranging from the Mileage Maker Six Cylinder (available on all models except the range-topping 500XL), a 4261cc (260ci) V8, 5768cc (352ci) Thunderbird V8 and the 390 as fitted to our feature car.

Transmission options for the main models included the Synchro Smooth manual column shift, the Fordomatic Drive auto, and the Cruise-O-Matic three-speed auto.

Then there was the Galaxie 500, which was a step up from the basic model. Offered in sedans, hardtops (including our feature coupe) and convertible guises, they featured a full length upper and lower body side mouldings and a higher specification interior trim package.

1963 Ford Galaxie 500 Sports Hardtop Coupe – Specifications

Engine        V8
Capacity        6391cc (390ci)
Bore/stroke        103mm x 96mm
Valves        ohv, pushrod
Max power        224kW (300bhp)
Fuel system        Two-barrel downdraught
Transmission    Three-speed auto
Body/chassis    Steel unitary construction
Brakes         Drum front and rear
Front suspension    Independent by coil springs, wishbones
Rear suspension    Live axle with semi-elliptic leaf springs
Steering        Recirculating ball

Dimensions:

O/all length        5334mm
Width        2019mm
Height        127mm
Wheelbase        3035mm
Track F/R        1562/1530mm
Kerb weight        1678kg (approx)

Words: Mark Wright Photos: Sean Craig

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