1966 Ford Galaxie 500xl convertible 390 V8

1966 Ford Galaxie XL Description

1966 Ford Galaxy 500XL convertible survivor, unrestored car. Purchased new in 1966 at Omera Ford in Denver Colorado, it has lived its whole life in the dry Colorado climate. This car had 52,000 original miles and was a pleasure cruiser for the original owner until her death. The car was always well-maintained and kept inside and only driven in the summer months. The daughter took the car upon her death and parked it in a barn. Approximately seven years ago, the daughter sold the car to the next-door neighbor who rebuilt the original engine and transmission due to oil leaking and apparent oil burning. This person had many other Ford projects and was not that interested in this car. He put less than 500 miles on it in five years. I purchased the car with the intent of completely restoring it including a new paint job. The red paint had faded to almost a powder in some places but with lots of elbow grease and many hours, the old paint was salvaged and shines nicely as seen in the photos. It definitely has patina but it looks good for a 30 or 40 year old paint job. It looks like new paint in the photos but there are touch ups, cracks, scratches and such as would be expected.

In the last year, I have put almost 2500 miles on this car because it has been so reliable and such a pleasure to drive. You can’t go anywhere without people stopping to talk to you, wave, or at least smile. We have taken it high in the Rocky Mountains and performed as expected. It drives straight down the road and is very easy to steer with no pulling or wobbling. The numbers say this car was equipped with a factory 390 4V engine and automatic transmission, all of which it has today. During the rebuild, the original intake and carburetor were replaced with an Eldebrock intake and Holly four barrel carburetor. They also installed hooker headers and a flow master exhaust giving it that Ford big block sound. The only other non-original items I can see is the careful installation of a tachometer and gauges under the dash. These were installed in such a way as to not leave evidence if you wanted to remove.

I rechromed the original bumpers and installed a new carpet kit. The bumpers are beautiful the carpet looks good but does not fit quite as good as original. The area around the speaker was cracked in the dash pad and I installed a new dash cap over the original. This was done in such a way as it could easily be removed and the section of the pad around the speaker could be replaced with original if desired. The dash pad section over the instrument cluster remained in very nice condition and was not damaged during installation of the cap. All glass in good condition and very clear. The wheel lip moldings were restored from minor door dings that have occurred over the 50 years. The upholstery is in very nice condition for its age and is extremely presentable and in very nice condition with no rips or tears. The a.m. radio sounds good with the additional speaker under the back seat grill as well. Underneath the car, the floor plans are solid as the day it was built (I have photos of the floor pans with the carpet out if you desire). The original trunk Matt was dirty due to a couple of rust holes and dust from poor drainage about the size of a quarter. I replaced it by overlaying the original with a new one, so the original is still present and may be able to be cleaned. The small rust holes were at the bottom of the inner fender but appear to be very limited to that section. Somebody at some time repaired these areas but they were not on any of the outside sheet-metal. In full disclosure, it appears to me that a dent was repaired in the rear quarter panel many years ago and the Ford dealer apparently did the repair. However based on all the stamp dates on all the sheet-metal, I believe all metal to be original on this car.A skim coat of bondo was used in some areas but not for rust reasons. The convertible top is white with a glass back window that operates flawlessly. If you’re looking for a car that you can take all of your friends for a ride in and really enjoy the day, this is it.

I have sold tens of thousands of dollars worth of vehicles, motorcycles, and other parts on eBay over the years and haveshipped several vehicles and partsto Europe as well. I have 100% satisfaction rating and try to describe items as well as I can. Please don’t hesitate to ask any questions you have. If your anywhere in the Denver area, by all means, stop by and take it for a test ride.

Update: New battery December 2015