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21/06/2023 1:59 pm Â
a quarter mile at a time. This Wimbledon White 1966 Ford Fairlane 427 was one of 57 factory built for 1966 (They needed 50 for NHRA homologation to run A/S. While GM had ended factory participation in racing, Ford was going all out in virtually every venue. Unlike its Thunderbolt predecessor in A/FX trim, this was a mildly tricked-out stocker that could handle a milder version of their much in demand 427. The MSRP for the base hardtop coupe was $2378.40. The "427-8V CID Engine Race Car Pkg", at $1725.20 bumped the price by 80%. Unlike the Thunderbolt, you got front AND back bench seats, real window glass and carpeting (minus the under insulation. The was no power boost to steering and braking although this was the first Ford mid-size to have front discs. Radio and clock were deleted. A slow ratio steering box and an extra cooling package were added. The original owner, a Ford service engineer from New Jersey took a stab and added to the order form: "427 CID SOHC 8V High Performance Engine Only! (465 HP)". He still got the same dual quad solid lifter 427 and the other 56 buyers. You can't blame him for trying. This car was found in Fort Wayne in 1988 with 2100 mi on it but with a replacement engine. It was bought and restored (almost zero rust) with a prope date coded side oiler 427 by a BMW engineer and exists today.
Model by GMP.
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21/06/2023 2:29 pm Â
What a beautiful 1/18 model from GMP and excellent subject matter with the powerful Fairlane. I recall a bit of controversy when this replica was first released but that seemed to be just a side issue and this one is such a superb diecast from them. I believe it also came out in red and also as a convertible with included up-top ?
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21/06/2023 6:41 pm Â
One that I really wanted ONLY because of those wheels; the rest of the car is pretty cool too. Nice history lesson Rich, thanks. 😎 😎Â
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22/06/2023 9:00 am Â
Thanks Rich. I really like your detailed writeups and pictures.
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22/06/2023 12:13 pm Â
Thanks Rich. I really like your detailed writeups and pictures.
I completely agree. Considerable time & effort goes into ALL of Rich's posts, and it's NOT lost on any of us. THANKS again Rich. 😎 😎
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Topic starter
22/06/2023 12:31 pm Â
@mikedetorrice The controversy was about the first issue of the Fairlane, the red GT 390. A bunch of us started yelling that because it was a GT, it had to have bucket seats. As it turned out, much later, it could have had bench seats. But GMP took it off the market and went on to produce a slew of other variants. It turned out that that red GT 390 was the only issue that had pneumatic tires with a slight give at rest that really gave it a 1:1 look. With the working suspension and pneumatic tires, model bounced just like the real thing. (Yeah, I had fun bouncing the model by dropping it from 1" off the ground... I'm not sure why.)
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Steve Jacobs and Christopher Moroni reacted
22/06/2023 3:18 pm Â
What interesting features on it from GMP ! I also think some complained early on that the back sloped down too much and there was some controversy. But it most certainly is tremendous diecast automobile from them and not only good-looking, but great subject matter, too. Having both coupe and convertible types released from them is pretty cool.
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Steve Jacobs reacted