“It won’t be a 100-point restoration,” Davies explained. “We just want to restore it and get back on the track for nostalgia racing. A 100-point resto is for someone else to do down the road. It won’t be us. It won’t be a rotisserie car.”
As for the drivetrain, that part is easy. The 427 ci engine in Davies’s Fairlane was originally pulled out of a Galaxie Lightweight, so it will be returned to its proper place – at least for a little while.
It will also be equipped with a Toploader 4-speed transmission, though that isn’t the transmission it was originally equipped with. Ford outfitted it with an aluminum case T-10 transmission, but the lightweight transmission didn’t hold up to the abuse the cars saw on the quarter-mile.
All of the collected spare parts.
“Everyone took them out and threw them away as soon as Toploaders were available,” Davies explained.
The only parts not included in the sale were the front bucket seats (these Galaxies had an all-red interior), and the aluminum front bumper brackets. According to Charlie Morris, the front bucket seats offer a weight savings of 68 pounds over Ford’s bench seats.
So, Davies and Shanley will be on the hunt for the red interior pieces to complete the build.
As far as the aluminum front bumper brackets, according to Davies, most of the front brackets were destroyed because of towing, while the back ones survived, so there are very few original brackets around.
This Galaxie’s time as a drag car is clearly chronicled through the modifications that remain. The inner fenders have been cut out for aftermarket headers, and remnants of its aftermarket ladder bar system exist (the car originally car used a single bar traction system). On this particular car, the Martins tried running them backwards with no success before turning them around, and finally switching to ladder bars. Holes exist where the driveshaft loop was mounted.
While the pair has their work cut out for them, they can’t drag their feet. They have made a bet with a friend that the car will be done by October of 2020 – and while the winnings aren’t huge (a bottle of their favorite liquor) – there is a lot of pride at stake.
“It’s just for bragging rights,” my father explained. “We’re going to pull the 427 out of the Fairlane to put it in the car just to win the bet.”
As for me, I’ve loved watching my dad find a car with a history that he has a passion for. It’ll be an awesome thing to watch their plans come to fruition, and I can’t wait to be on the line with him at Island Dragway on its maiden pass as the revamped drag car it was born to be.