1963 Ford Galaxie V8 Fastback Coupe

Among the many collaborators, individuals, and companies who contributed to Ford's successful Total Performance of the 1960s was the Dearborn Steel Tubing Company (DST). They began as a manufacturer of dual exhaust and other tuning parts for V-8 Fords, eventually becoming Ford's supplier for numerous performance features in the company's police cruisers. During the 1960s, they became Ford's favored builder of show cars and the famed lightweight Thunderbolt drag racers. Their work included the Mustang I and II, the 'shorty' Mustang III, and the Thunderbird Italien.

Jim 'Hammer' Mason was the aftermarket performance products manager at DST, and when he decided to go racing himself, Ford sent him this particular Galaxie 500. The history of this Galaxie 500 began years earlier, as it had been one of the early, essentially hand-built 'pilot line' vehicles and thus does not have a serial number. It was used to test assembly line processes, and was the car used in Ford sales brochures for the model.

Using his connections and resources, Mason collaborated directly with Donnell 'Pop' Sullivan, one of Ford's chief engineers going back to the days of the V-8's development. Among the engineering upgrades was a 'batwing' air cleaner that gathered and compressed air at the car's cowl, essentially supercharging induction, boosting the car's speed.

The exterior of the Ford Galaxie 500 was finished in red, white, and blue livery, with the roof in a blue metalflake that sparkled in the sun's light. Major sponsorship was sourced from Kosin's Auto Parts of Inkster, Michigan, reflected in its amusing original livery as the 'Blanket Order Special.' Later sponsors included Buddy Bar Casting, the company.

Competition
Mason's Galaxie competed in the Modified/Sportsman races at Daytona on four occasions with his driver being Bill France Sr's great friend Curtis Turne. Wearing raced number 87, Turner overtook everyone on the 10th lap and claimed the car's 1st Overall victory in the Daytona-Permatex 300 of 1966. The following year, Turner returned to Daytona with Mason's car where he held 3rd place for most of the event before finishing 8th Overall. Sponsorship for this race was provided by Lester Castings, which produced the castings for all of Ford's automatic transmissions in this era.

Bobby Allison drove Mason's Galaxie in 1968, who, in the Sportsman division, achieved a podium finish with 3rd Overall. Donnie Allison finished 7th with the car the following year.

The Galaxie had competed in the Daytona Permatex 300 on four occasions, and each time it was driven by highly talented drivers of the era. After its fourth race, the Galaxie was put into Mason's garage, and that's where it would reside for many years. This retirement allowed it to remain untouched and it currently has its original paint and its original interior. The infamous batwing air cleaner is still on the 427 'side oiler' with its dual four-barrel racing carburetors. It has a NASCAR floating axle 9-inch rear end, a fuel cell, a set of racing tires from Donnie Allison's run, Stewart-Warner gauges, and asbestos flooring.

In 2001, the Galaxie was shown at the Ford Racing Centennial celebration. During that era, it appeared in a Ford Motorcraft television commercial in which it was driven by Ford's first NASCAR champion Ned Jarrett.

By Daniel Vaughan | Apr 2024