Ford's 1935 Indy Pace Car - Old Cars Weekly Newsletter

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Car of the Week: 1935 Ford Indy Pace Car Top-notch restoration recreates original 1935 Ford Indy pace car. Ford Motor Co. provided its first Indianapolis 500 pace car in 1932. That year, the company provided a 1932 Lincoln KB powered by a 150-hp V-12 displacing 448 cubic inches. This powerful luxury car featured convertible coupe coachwork by the Walter M. Murphy Co., making it one of the most beautiful prewar Lincolns ever built. Invitations to drive the pace cars at the Indianapolis 500 race are extended to notable figures in the automobile industry and in auto racing, as well as former winners of the race. For 1932, Edsel Ford was given the honor of driving the 1932 Lincoln KB. Ford Motor Co. again provided a pace car in 1935 and provided a new Ford Model 48-740 convertible sedan—a new body style for Ford—with a 221-cid flathead V-8 rated at 85 hp. It had Ford's three-speed transmission with an optional Columbia two-speed rear axle. As a convertible sedan, the pace car represented the most expensive Ford passenger car body type available that year. Ford executive Harry Mack drove the 1935 Ford pace car, but honorary referee Amelia Earhart was also photographed while seated in the car and likely nabbed most of the headlines. Incidentally, the 1935 Ford convertible sedan paced four Miller-Ford V-8 Indy Specials entered in the 1935 race. See More Make your car our "Car of the Week"  If you've got an old car you really love, we want to hear about it! Click here to submit your ride! The original Durango No, we're not talking about Dodge's SUV; we're talking about the obscure Ford car-truck hybrid that was created in the early '80s. In addition to myself, the Futura's "basket handle" B-pillar caught the attention of Jim Stephenson. He thought the Futura would make a great downsized Ford Ranchero. The plus-size LTD-II based Ranchero was gone by the end of 1979, and Ford had no plan to replace it. At this time, Ford Motor Co. had to shrink all of its automobiles to the tune of billions of dollars to meet Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards, and tooling up to produce a new, low-volume Ranchero wasn't in the cards. Stephenson ran an auto body and paint shop with his partner, George Price, in Pacoima, Calif. He convinced Price that he could build a car-truck hybrid Futura. As a result, Price bought a new Z-7­ — the badge-engineered Mercury counterpart to the Futura — and Stephenson did sheet metal surgery. The end result was spectacular. The prototype's wide "wrap over roof pillar," as it was described in a Futura brochure, became a flying-buttress sail panel that extended beyond an upright rear window. A one-piece fiberglass pickup bed that would not rust or become scratched was installed where the trunk once was. The sloped tail section of the Futura became the tailgate for the pickup truck. Stephenson and Price showed photos of the prototype to Holmes-Tuttle Lincoln-Mercury in Van Nuys to generate interest in marketing this new Ranchero. The dealership was intrigued and showed the photos to Ford honchos in Detroit. Ford became involved and there was talk of Stephenson setting up a conversion facility near Kansas City, where the Futura was assembled. Ford even gave him engineering specifications of the Futura. Before it could go farther, Stephenson became seriously ill with a collapsed kidney and plans were halted. As Stephenson's health somewhat improved, he contacted Bill Feldhorn, president of National Coach Products in Gardena, to produce the pickup as the company was already converting vans. Since Ford would not let Stephenson use the Ranchero name, Feldhorn named his car-truck hybrid "Durango" long before Dodge used the name on its Dakota-based SUV. See More Local tech students to have a featured role at the Spring Carlisle Collector Car Auction with unique pedal cars going to auction/raise money Select students in the SUN Technical Institute (New Berlin, PA) Collision Repair Technology, had an opportunity to design, build, and ultimately raise money for their school and program through transforming pedal cars into works of art. The pedal cars are to be auctioned off at the Spring Carlisle Collector Car Auction, April 24–25. CARLISLE, PA – How do you engage the next generation of automotive enthusiasts in the car hobby? This question has been asked for decades. A simple answer: give them tools and let them create. For select students in the SUN Technical Institute (New Berlin, PA) Collision Repair Technology, this means an opportunity to design, build, and ultimately raise money for their school and program. See More Now You Can Look 'Em Up Online! How much is your vintage ride worth? 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