I am looking at a 61 ranch wagon. It is super straight and I can get it for nothing. It is a two-door. How rare is this? Looking for pics, links, comments, ideas, etc. If you have anything at all, even a little knowledge, PLEASE post. I wanto to do a lot of research before I will commit to the project. Thanks!

 

hey 65, i can tell ya that there are several places that sell nos and reproduction falcon parts, so sourceing that stuff should be easy. make sure that the grill work is spotless! finding those things in good shape is tough, to put it mildly! if youre not looking for 100% original, look at what the early mustang guys are doing, it may give you ideas on suspension updates. i lagged on a 65, and i still(somewhat) regret it! i'll just content myself with the old truck. good luck, and post back with the details!

 

All of the grillwork is in excellent shape, I mean it has very minor dings and it needs shined up but that's it. The whole car is awesome, but it is buried in the ground to the bottom of the body line right now. You may think this is crazy, but we want to set it on a 3/4 ton 4x4 frame and running gear. Would you believe a tree fell on top of this car and didn't even hurt it? If a guy spent one day washing, sanding and priming, I don't think he'd believe how it would look at the end. I noticed a lot of stuff on-line but not many pics. Too bad-it's got really nice lines. I need pics and links. I need dimensions- Where would I find the original wheelbase. Does the fact that it's a two-door make it worth more? How rare? Thanks- looking forward to more input, and I'll post some pics as soon as I figure out how. I've got some of all of my stuff, but when it comes to computers, I'm just stupid.

 

Here's a breakdown of the series:

2-door Ranch Wagon, 6 passenger - 12,042
4-door Ranch Wagon, 6 passenger - 30,292
4-door Country Sedan, 6 passenger - 46,311
4-door Country Sedan, 9 passenger - 16,356
4-door Country Squire, 6 passenger - 16,961
4-door Country Squire, 9 passenger - 14,657

Looks like it's the lowest of the production numbers, don't have a breakdown between sixes and V8s. If it were me, I'd keep it for it's rarity and modify something else, JMO.

Barry

 

are buried axle deep in mud right now, as opposed to being reincarnated as tuna cans at walmart? APRIL FOOLS!- anyways, i'm pretty sure the v8 didnt happen in these until @ '63 or so- anybody now for sure?-dave

 

Sure they had V8s, we're talking full-size Ford station wagons, right? The Ranch Wagon was the base trim level, then came Country Sedan and Country Squire. I remember my Dad coming home in a brand-new '61 Country Sedan with the stainless steel stone shields behind the rear wheels, cool!

Oh, are we talking Falcons? They had a Ranch Wagon for one year only, see: http://www.falconregistry.com/cgi-bin/gen_key.cgi?63
'63 is when the Falcon got a V8, the Fairlane 260 now called the Challenger 260. I have a sweet '63 1/2 Sprint convertible.

Barry

 

i ***-U-ME-D it was a falcon wagon, due to the fact that this was labeled a ranchero forum- now i know how this car body would fit on a 3/4 ton chassis, as 65toy had mentioned! oh, well- i had no idea the old full size wagons were 2 doors. what a bitchin sedan delivery that would make! so, no fool like an april fool! you got me! take care- dave

 

Hi dave, I assumed it was a full-size when he said '61. Then I realized we are in the Ranchero forum so maybe the year is off, heck I don't know what's going on.

Barry

 

allright there 65toy, lets hear it- fullsize or falcon? the anticipation is officially hanging thick in the air, like an open bottle of 'hi karate'! post back!-dave

 

Well- as BBB said-falcon style for one year, but I think I heard someone say at one time that there were two of the smaller styled wagons, but I just took it with a grain of salt. Anyway- I believe it to be the big one as we got a guesstimate measurement of 120" center of wheelwell to center of wheelwell. It still looks kinda small, but not nearly as small as a falcon. It has a big V8 in it-we think it's a 352, and from what I've found on the web, I'm pretty sure it is. I do not know how to provide a link, but I'll type in an address below that SHOULD take you right to a beautifully restored 61 ranch wagon. I urge everyone to check out this car. I pretty much made up my mind to do this when I saw this pic. I'd give almost anything to see this car up close and check it out. On second thought, as many people are putting Chevr@#%*&^ power plants in classics/antiques these days, I'd probably cry for weeks. Anyway, check it out.




http://www.carflix.com/uploadpix/61_Ford_wgn.jpg
If this doesn't work, post, we'll try to straighten it out.

 

Wel, I guess you learn something new everyday. I didn't know that just typing in a website makes it a link. Handy information to know. I hope the moderators don't edit it for any reason, it's just a picture of a car. Hope this pic satisfies those of you waiting for my reply with baited breath. Ha Ha Ha!

 

pardon the mistake, boys! but like i said earlier, man! that would make one sweet little toy- the proof is in the picture! hey 65toy, the hot rod guys are looking for that type of wagon these days-a lot of intrinsic value-like BBB said, 12,000 on that body style- i would seriously reconsider the monster truck treatment on that one! on a good note, the early galaxies have a good following, so parts will be easier to source- for instance, look into ltd's and marquis for suspension parts- ton of room in the engine bay, too, so the odd 460 with some lincoln mk III mounts might just find its way in there! what say there, gurus? and dont go tossing that old powertrain stuff- that should be the old cast iron auto trans in there- unless its a 3/4 speed stick, and all that v8 drivetrain stuff was built nascar tough! take care boys!-dave

 

It is an automatic, but seeing the tranny right now is a pipe dream to say the least. As far as the motor goes, I think I can rebuild my 6.9 diesel with a spun bearing cheaper, and those things are very expensive. The only reason I want to put it on the truck frame is because I have one. Anything under the body has got to be junk, I didn't even think it had a rear axle under it. Hell, after we clean all the crap out of it from having the animals in and out for 30 some odd years, we may find that it has no floor at all. Like I say, I have everything to do it all, I could even make it a half ton. I think it would take a lot of cash (that I don't have) to restore it to look like the one in the pic. If I were given the choice, I'd sure take the one in the picture. That car is beautiful. However, my wife wants rid of our exploder, and that's what I use to pull my quad trailer with. I want to build this not as a monster truck, just something with 4-wheel drive that is nice that I can take the whole family in. I plan on trying to keep it as low as possible. But I hear you guys, after I saw the picture and saw the numbers above, I really just want to restore it. But the money just isn't there, only the ingenuity, time, tools, and truck running gear. Did anyone else check out the pic? It is enough to drool over for sure.

 

here's a thought- just keeping one of these oldies alive is reward enough! if you can do a clean 4x4 frame swap on the old wagon, go for it! old mother rust can have the wagon later!-good luck!-dave

 

Hey it really is a '61! I love the look of that year, especially the grille! Hey if the frame is really gone you could swap it onto another station wagon frame. I think the '60 - '64 frames are the same (will look it up if you want). If you can't find one I'd go for the 4x4 swap, it beats letting the thing rot into the ground for sure.

About the smaller Ranch Wagons, if I remember right the '63 Fairlane had a 4-door RW and the '64 had a 2-door RW.

Whatever you do, don't forget to post some pics!

Barry