1971 Ford Galaxie 500 2 Door Hardtop V8 400-2v 6.6L Only 52,032 Miles!
Make: | Ford |
Model: | Galaxie |
SubModel: | Galaxie 500 |
Type: | Coupe |
Trim: | 2 Door Hardtop |
Year: | 1971 |
Mileage: | 52,040 |
VIN: | 1P58S112740 |
Color: | Copper |
Engine: | 400 V8-2v 6.6L |
Cylinders: | 8 |
Fuel: | Gasoline |
Transmission: | Automatic |
Drive type: | RWD |
Interior color: | Copper |
Drive side: | Right-hand drive |
Vehicle Title: | Clear |
Item location: | Denver, Colorado, United States |
Extras |
Air Conditioning Cassette Player |
Listed by |
Private seller |
Description of 1971 Ford Galaxie 2 Door Hardtop |
Here it is, the 1971 Ford Galaxie 500!
"Take a quiet break in the 1971 Ford"
This car is absolutely gorgeous! Conveniently located in Denver, Colorado, she has been completely de-oxidized, polished and set with two coats of wax, she is ready to get in an immediately drive! Glides on down the road, the Fords of this era were designed to block outside noise and reduce passengers feeling the road at all. When I drove it, I didn't even notice the divots they put along the roads to alert drivers you're drifting over the edge, it's that noise suppressant!! 18 feet long, and 6.6 feet wide, weighing about 3,734 pounds, with it's original Ford factory paint, she's a big American made car! Interestingly, Ford had assembly plants in Australia and Brazil cranking these out, as such it's very sought after in those countries. This particular front style existed only from 1971 to 1972, with a redesign in 73'. Curious design note, there is no passenger side mirror! Why they did that is a mystery to me. Smoothest ride you can get, and at 47 years old that's not bad. The great thing about this car is how rare it is, this was a car for everyday people, chances are if you grew up around this time, you knew someone who had this. This wasn't a flashy car, this was a car in the background, sure, everyone saves a Cadillac, but so few of these cars remain it makes it a rare treat! These cars were originally everywhere on the road, then suddenly nowhere to be seen. The great majority of these vehicles lived their lives, were used and tossed in junkyards, smashed and made in to washing machines, that's what makes these so incredibly hard to find. Ford boasted these as workhorses, reliable solid cars that became taxicabs and police interceptors. In fact, the 71' Ford Galaxie Police Interceptor is so rare, there is only one listed on the internet! The best part about this car, it's the ONLY 71' on eBay! I mean, Burt Reynolds drove this car in White Lightning, come on!!! May the Gator rest in peace :(.
This car has a fascinating history; from the VIN (1P58S112740) the car was assembled at the Twin Cities Ford Assembly Plant (closed in 2011 after 86 years), shipped by rail to Cheyenne, Wyoming to the Walton Motor Company - a Ford dealership on the corner of 19th Street and Pioneer Avenue (closed in 1975 after 54 years), and purchased November 5th, 1970 by a Mrs. Beverly A. Sherr. It would appear that old Grandma Beverly opted for some extra features at the time, upgrading from the standard Ford 351cu. in. engine to a 400cu. in., and going to have Air Conditioning in the car as well, though it seems she did not opt for the dashboard clock :). Grandma Beverly drives the car for 31,000 miles, up until 1978. The original Wyoming Vehicle Inspection sticker is still on the driver's side, January 1977 to 1978 being the last inspection. It would appear that Grandma Beverly is done with the Ford, "It's too powerful" was her quote. She parks it, leaves it in her garage, and pretty much forgets about it.
30 years later... 2008 rolls around, a man named Harlan DeBoer (still have his contact​ info) buys it and puts a lot into this baby to make it beautiful again (I have the photos), puts new tires, a new electronic ignition on car, rebuilt the carburetor, a new heater core, distributor, new radiator cap, spark plug wires all at around 33,000 miles and transmission fluid and filter changed at about 45,000 miles. All these updates allow him to get 10-15 MPG. He drives the car for 20,000 more miles, uses it as his daily driver from Saratoga, Wyoming to Rawlings, Wyoming (about 84 miles total there and back each day). Then, he stops using the car, lets it sit in his front yard (51,465.1 miles).
Enter, me (current owner) - I speak with Harlan and make the 3 hour and 40 minute drive from Denver to Saratoga to buy the car on 6/30, it's pretty sun baked, but I've put in a lot of time to make this a beautiful car again! I put in almost 4 bottles of Turtle Wax De-oxidizer, then the Turtle Wax Polish treatment, then 2 coats of NuFinish wax, you can see yourself in this car!!! I also polished all the chrome and the Ford Motor Company hubcaps, as well as work on the interior plastic dashboard​ and plastic in the front. The car has a recent Big O oil change, additionally​ I took it to a mechanic and had him put a brand new Autolite carburetor and fuel pump in! I also bought a custom fitted deluxe max cover car cover from CarCovers.com, a $200 value, with cover lock and wind protection! Just washed and always sitting underneath it's cover, this car is ready to go, with all receipts!!! I only drove it 575 miles!
Sadly, Harlan was a big guy so his entering and exiting the driver's side has split the sun baked upholstery a bit, and the front passenger side isn't looking it's best either... However! The seats in the back are essentially untouched, Harlan told me as far as he knows, no one ever sat back there when he had the car. There is cracking on the plastic dashboard and some discoloration, this is due to it being stored outside in Wyoming winters and summers, expanding and contracting plastic is often a common complaint for vehicles of this era. Although, that is easily remedied by a dashboard cover! The drivers side square wood paneling is cracking at top, though thankfully​ I found some replacement pieces! There is a slight bubble in the back passenger left side cardboard in the interior, and I found a replacement piece for that too! Other then that, the cars interior is a beautiful warm bronze to match the exterior, color keyed by Ford. The original AM radio was switched out by Grandma Beverly, who installed a KRACO "Dashmaster" (company still around) 8-track player radio and KRACO 275f surround sound speakers in the back, she cleverly routed speaker wire underneath the door panels and side of the rear passenger seats to give the illusion of them being there already. She also put in next to that, a General Electric CB radio! Harlan took out the CB radio, but it is in the trunk! Sadly, the speaker wire is pretty cheap and chewed up, the left speaker was working, but it's given up. This is entirely due to poor wiring, obviously done by an amateur, not someone working at Car Toys. Car Toys quoted me at $105 to get that back in order, however I believe you could do it yourself, your choice. The best part of the radio is that I have two conversion pieces to allow you to play an iPod with! An 8-track to Cassette adapter, then a Cassette to MP3 adapter, all while keeping the original radio! The air conditioning does not blow cold... Because it needs some of that sweet, sweet 1995 banned substance Freon R12, and luckily I have acquired 3, THREE!! 12oz. cans of it!! If you know what you are doing, you can recharge it yourself, if not, you could take it to a mechanic or get the system changed to Freon 134a, your choice! The car is in my opinion excellent, and everyone I've ever spoken with about it is always surprised at how good of condition it is, however this car is being sold entirely as is and I am completely unsure of what else will really need to be done, most likely an alignment and new tires (due to age). I can provide a Big O estimate of what else will need to be done. It is as is condition, and any shipping will have to be arranged by you, but I will be happy to do what it takes to get this beautiful car to you.
The features:
- 100% Rust Free car!!!!
- Clean Colorado Title, ready to sell! Title in hand and ready to be yours!
- Passed Colorado Emissions testing and Verification of VIN 8/18/18!!
- Original Ford factory "Medium Brown Poly" paint with color-keyed matching interior!
- 52,040.5 original miles!
- Original blue Ford 400cu. in. V8-2v 6.6L engine, "Power by Ford" stamped on the side
- Brand new Autolite carburetor with sticker "Quality Manufactured 3-16-17"!
- 1.25 inch whitewall tires, tire size: 225/75 15R
- Original Ford Motor Company stamped 'dog dish' stye hubcaps - Comes with The ARMORED BAR Steering Wheel lock in yellow to protect against car thieves! Has two sets of keys in unique 4 prong shape to prevent lockpicking!
- All 4 Original General Electric glass headlights and all original Ford factory plastic reflecting lights!
- Unique upside-down​ fuel gauge (20 gallon tank!) and left foot push button to activate highbeams! Also features a latch open hood, no lock! Comes with original foam engine insulation in hood! - Hidden wiper blades with 3 speedincrementsfor rain and snow! - Features drivers side ashtray, passenger side ashtray and additionally features a built in ashtray in the bench for the passengers in the back! - All power options 100% functional, including: headlights, highbeams, turn signals, emergency flashers, radio, reverse and break lights, interior overhead courtesy light, under dashboard light, trunk light, window wiper blades and dashboard lights for night driving, - No signs or smells of smoking in the car or pets! - 18.2 cu. ft. trunk, this thing is huge!!
- Locking gas cap to protect against fuel thieves!
- Original Walton Motor Company metal dealership decal, left side of trunk
- Original Wyoming Vehicle Inspection sticker marked January 1977 to 1978, drivers side
- Original KRACO "Dashmaster" 8-track player radio plus 2 KRACO 275f rear surround sound speakers in back.
- Original General Electric CB radio (in trunk)
- 8-Track to CassetteAdapter, Cassette to MP3Adapter - Comes with Grandma Beverly's private selection of8-tracks plus 24 8-track carrying case! 30 8-tracks in all plus 2 Head Cleaning 8-tracks! The Rolling Stones - Some Girls, The Rolling Stones - Big Hits, The Carpenters - The Singles 1969-1973, Diana Ross & The Supremes - Anthology Vol. I and Vol. II, Nat King Cole - Unforgettable, Sister Sledge - We Are Family, Top Ten Disco Vol. I, The Village People - Go West, The Village People - Nacho Man, John Denver - Greatest Hits, John Denver - Poems, Prayers and Promises, The Temptations - Greatest Hits Vol. II, The Greatest 64 Motown Original Hits Tape 1, Paint Your Wagon - Music from the Soundtrack, Sly & The Family Stone - Greatest Hits, Elvis - Golden Hits Vol. I, The Rascals - Greatest Hits Time Piece, Santana - Greatest Hits, Saturday Night Fever - Original Movie Soundtrack, Steppen Wolf, Simon & Garfunkel - Bridge Over Troubled Water, 2001: A SpaceOdyssey- Original Movie Soundtrack, 101 Strings - The Sound of Henry Manchini, 101 Strings - Million Seller Movie Themes Latin Style, 101 Strings - Play Million Seller Hits Composed by Jim Webb and Burt Bacharach, The Living Strings - Mellow Moods For The '70s, The Mamas & The Papas - The Papas & The Mamas, Johnny Cash - I Walk The Line, Elton John - Goodbye Yellow Brick Road!
- Original paperwork from Grandma Beverly: her Ford Warranty Facts Booklet, warranty owners card with metal VIN plate, the 1971 Ford Passenger Car Care and Operation booklet, and the 1971 Ford Operating Features fold-out and an actual Polaroid photo of Grandma Beverly found in dashboard, wow!
- Original color-keyed bronze Ford crown embroidered rubber passengers floor mat
- Get this, the original spare tire from 1970 is still in the trunk!! While humorous, I WOULD NOT recommend driving on it. Considering the tire is 47 years old, it still appears to hold air! You can see for yourself. Original car jack is present plus 2 tire irons.
- Comes with 3 sets of keys! First set is the original, Ignition, Trunk, Fuel, second set are copies I got done at ACE Hardware, I ordered original blanks so all say Ford and "Family of Fine Cars", third set is just Ignition and Trunk, to put in a wallet as backup keys in case you lock yourself out!
- $200 CarCover.com fitted car over, plus lock and steel cable, plus CarCover Gust Strap Protector
- One pair of Quik Grip Tire Chains for snow, just in case!
- 3 (three) full unopened cans of original IG-LO DuPont Freon R12, from 1993, the banned stuff!!
- Some extras! I went to the junkyard and got some replacement pieces, like the door lock chrome plastic pieces, various small light bulbs, 3 large glass replacement headlights, all taken from a 1974 Ford, some extra wiper blades, jumper cables, extra long funnel and Harlan's Wyoming plates
- Best part about this car, the low insurance you pay! For me, I got classic insurance and paid only $120 for the year, you can't beat that.
- If residing in Colorado the car can be registered as a Collector Vehicle! Meaning that you pay for plate registration only once in 5 years!! An excellent deal, saves money in the long run, and you get awesome Collector Plates! Yeah! Check with your state to see what sweet deals your state has on owning this beauty!
Hopefully I listed everything, if not please ask! I have so many more pictures, so if you want more of anything I can take them or show you! Feel free to call or text me anytime - (303) 250-9810. And to those looking from out of state and internationally Denver is a wonderful visit! The car is just 30 minutes ride from Denver International Airport and I am always available to show during the day and evenings because I work overnight shifts! Consider taking a trip to Colorado to check out this rare beauty! You aren't just buying a car, you're buying a piece of history, an experience! Telling the story of this car is always fun! The main reason why I'm selling this car is due to needing money for a wedding, I had intended to keep this car forever because I found all the replacement pieces but... Life happens! And remember​, "Ford gives you better ideas"
The specifications of the 1971 Ford Galaxie 500
https​://www.automobile-catalog.com/make/ford_usa/full-size_ford_8gen/full-size_ford_8gen_galaxie_500_2-door_hardtop/1971.html
The Wikipedia article about the Ford Galaxie, the 4th generation
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Galaxie
Here are some cool video links to the 1971 Ford :)
Bert Reynolds car chase in White Lightning
https://youtu.be/a5L0iLZnCzA
Ford Galaxie Commercial Quiet plus Durability
https://youtu.be/bKm5DHzXAtk
Ford Galaxie Commercial Steel Sides
https://youtu.be/6zLsfZFJOdY
Ford LTD Commercial
https://youtu.be/kI7H0NdLS3Y
The only 1971 Ford Galaxie 500 Police Interceptor on the internet
https://barnfinds.com/1971-ford-galaxie-500-p-code-429-interceptor/
Finally, the Ford advertising campaign that was happening in 1971
http://oldcarbrochures.org/index.php/NA/Ford/1971_Ford |