1961 Ford Starliner for sale $54,900

The fellow who built this car was a talented body man, a guy who insisted on painting all his cars black. As a result, you know how nice the bodywork really is, because thereandrsquo;s nowhere for half-hearted workmanship to hide on a black car. Those giant quarter panels are mirror-smooth, the black paint is so deep that you can almost go swimming in it, and panel gaps are at least as good as they were when it was new. There are plenty of modifications under the skin, all designed to make it go fast, but the exterior is restored to a very high standard and still wears all its beautiful original brightwork. And on the Starliner, thereandrsquo;s plenty of it, all beautifully refinished. Thereandrsquo;s that highly ornate grillework up front, beautiful little ornaments on top of the fenders that are miniature works of jet-age art, and crisply rendered andlsquo;Starlinerandrsquo; script on the front fenders. And, of course, you get a pair of lovely Ford taillights that look like afterburners, and theyandrsquo;ve never looked better.

When you think of Pro-Street, you think of roll cages, sheetmetal interiors, and racing harnesses, but when you open the door on this Starliner, you think, well, Starliner. Itandrsquo;s beautifully restored but thereandrsquo;s absolutely no trace of the modifications within beyond a set of updated instruments. The factory bench seats are beautifully reupholstered in black vinyl thatandrsquo;s luxurious-looking and correctly stitched into narrow pleats. The original dashboard is intact, but thereandrsquo;s a custom gauge insert full of white-faced Auto Meter dials that monitor all the engineandrsquo;s vitals, plus a big tachometer up high where it belongs. A fat Grant steering wheel looks right in the black and chrome interior, and thereandrsquo;s a Hurst cue ball shifter for the 4-speed manual gearbox. Note that the original knobs and levers control the secondary systems and they all work properly. An OEM Ford AM/FM/cassette/CD stereo system was neatly installed in the center of the dash and looks like it was born there. Thereandrsquo;s still a sizeable trunk, too, although it has obviously been modified with wheel tubs and a new floor designed to clear the fuel cell living underneath, although the neatly tailored carpets make those modifications all but disappear.

The thunder comes from a built 514 cubic inch Ford big block that fits neatly in the Galaxieandrsquo;s massive engine bay. Itandrsquo;s a 460 block thatandrsquo;s been bored and stroked and puts out an estimated 600 horsepower on pump gas, and youandrsquo;d better believe itandrsquo;s nasty. Thereandrsquo;s a lumpy cam in there, so itandrsquo;s got that race car idle, but it smooths right out at speed and thereandrsquo;s thrust available at any engine speed. Thereandrsquo;s a massive Holley 4-barrel carburetor up on top of a Weiand high-rise aluminum intake and an MSD ignition system lights the fires. Itandrsquo;s nicely dressed with Ford Blue on the block, a set of polished Ford Motorsports valve covers, and a bunch of braided stainless just to keep with the race-ready look. A thick Griffin aluminum radiator with two electric fans helps keep the big guy cool and a serpentine belt drive for the accessories is a nice upgrade. Prod the accelerator a few times and it springs to life easily with a bark from the custom exhaust system, which includes long-tube headers and a custom stainless steel exhaust system ending in Supertrapp mufflers (which can be tuned for sound level). Itandrsquo;s got that big engine lopey idle and wicking the throttle is sure to draw attention two blocks away. But itandrsquo;s actually quite streetable for such a beast and happily drinks high-octane pump gas, so no worries about special fuel