1967 Ford Galaxie “Astelle / "Papa Smurf"”

The story

Brakes
-Rebuilt Stock front/rear drums

Exhaust
-Patriot Tri-Y ceramic headers(modified to fit)
-2.5" mandrel bent head pipes
-Flowmaster 40 Series Mufflers
-2.5" mandrel bent tail pipes

Interior
Original bits
-headliner
-rear bench upholstery
-front bench seat back
-seat belts
-steering wheel
-horn ring
-dash
Newer bits
-front bench seat vinyl
-carpet

Exterior
-Original body painted 15" steel wheels
-"Dog Dish" hubcaps
-Most of the chrome trim

Bits the previous owner "Fixed"
-Dash cut up to fit in-dash cd player
-Speakers placed in the foot well vents and under the bench seat
-Body repainted (original color can be seen in door jambs, under hood/trunk, etc.; clear coat is badly peeling from roof)

Factory options that I DO NOT HAVE
-Power anything
-Clock
-Power brakes
-Power steering
-Air Conditioning

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How I got my Gal

This all started as a graduation gift from my father. I had always loved classic cars and I decided that I wanted classic metal for my high school graduation instead of some new plasti-car. He lives in Chicago where the classic scene is alive and well, so we drove to a place 8 hours away in Southern Illinois called country classic cars (http://www.countryclassiccars.com).
After walking around for an hour or so to see what style ride I liked, we discovered that I liked every single car made in 1967. Originally, we were shooting for a 1964-1967 Impala.

Dad found the Galaxie on ebay, but the seller's reserve had not been met. Since the seller lived a few hours away in Michigan, he gave him a call and worked out a price (I believe around $2,200). The seller was the second owner, and he claims he bought it in the early 1990's as a project car for him and his son. He said the original owner stored it since the mid 1970's. The body was in decent shape, except for a 2" diameter rust hole in the right rear rocker panel. The mechanical was a different story. Dad almost made it back to Chicago before the swiss-cheese radiator finally gave up the ghost.

Nine months and $22,000 of complete brand new mechanicals later, Dad drove down to San Antonio in the Galaxie for my graduation, and I had my first car.

This is my daily driver. I'm averaging 11 mpg, and I drive it about 100 miles a week. No a/c in South Texas is a killer, but I sweat it out. I get looks everywhere, and I would not trade her for anything else on the road out there — homeslice60148