1966 Ford Country Squire

http://boston.craigslist.org/nos/cto/4274632549.html

 

Looks good, but a strange set of pics to show when you're trying to sell a car. What about the interior, front seats? And engine? And what about telling the prospective buyers the engine size? Hmm? :confused:

 

I like this Squire a lot, but what's up with the red wheels? I'm sure they came black from the factory. The "3 on the tree" would be a real turn on to me. He says he's seen them bring $30000 at the auction. What auction does he go to?

 

I'll have to pay REAL CLOSE attention to the Barrett-Jackson Auction coverage. I don't recall any for anything close to 30K. This car would need lots of detail work to even think of bringing that kind of money.......look at the door jambs......
The red wheels need to be repainted........black.
Could Ford have built this as a 6 cyl/3spd wagon? I doubt it, but maybe that's why no engine mention?

 

Previous ads had some different pictures. I assume the newer pictures may be specific areas people may have asked for , or they show specific damage or defects. There are a couple clues in the pictures in the newer ad that may indicate that the car was red before it was black. Heres a link to the thread with pics from the earlier ad.
http://www.stationwagonforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=28629

 

Well, if it was red originally, that might explain the red wheels if it came with the little hubcaps instead of the full wheel covers. I'm thinking the full wheel covers were optional even on the Squire, though I can't remember seeing many with them. The fact that it has a three speed manual might indicate it was a real basic one, hence the hub caps. In my opinion, if it's a repaint and not in the original color, it's probably not worth as much as if it was the original.

 

The lack of engine badging on the fenders suggests 289 V8 or 240 L6. Being a Country Squire, it's unlikely to be a six, but possible since that was still the standard engine for the Squire. And the front sits kind of high. I don't know if different springs were used depending on engine size. The 3-sp was available on the six, 289 and 390.

Something else is strange about the red color showing up. Body color wheels were used with the small dog dish hub caps, not with full wheel covers (which were used with black wheels). Full wheel covers were not standard on the Country Squire (but usually ordered). Even my Ranch Wagon was ordered with full wheel covers.

Now have a look at the door jambs, and near the rear bumper. Looks like some red showing through in spots. I wonder if this car was resprayed black but was originally red, which would explain the red wheels if the car originally had the standard hub caps. The full wheel covers would have been added later.

The true story for most of this would be revealed on the warranty tag in the door jamb, but unfortunately no pics of that. It would be interesting (but not necessarily desirable) if this were a true low-option Country Squire with L6, 3-sp, and cheap hub caps, but ruined with a possible color change.

More info: http://66ford.fordregistries.com/

 

Oops, snooterbuckets beat me to the same conclusion. That's what I get for long-winded responses!

 

Maybe, but I think it's neat that both of our conclusions and responses were almost identical. Great minds think alike, they say.

 

Painting wheels red has long been a popular thing to do with car owners for decades. Hell, I had painted the wheels on my '67 Biscayne red (it was a green car) back in 1978, and it had full wheelcovers and blackwalls on it. I've done this to several cars over the years. Is it factory? Not on this car, but it doesn't look bad.

 

Thought it looked familiar. The infamous $11 Country Squire.

 

The Ford brochures I have have looked at are not clear on what would be the 'standard' engine and transmission. In checking the '65 brochure, the 289 V8 was standard on all the LTD's and 500XL models, with the 240 six standard on the others. It doesn't mention whether the Country Squire was considered an LTD model, and it doesn't mention anything else about 'standard' engines for the wagon models. The '66 was mostly a modestly restyled '65, with few mechanical changes, so I suspect the '66 was the same as far as the 6 / V8 engine availability.

 

According to Edmonds, the '66 Squire did come standard with the 240 6 cylinder and 3 speed manual
http://www.automobile-catalog.com/m...size_ford_7gen_wagon_country_squire/1966.html

 

The three 1966 brochures (full-line, full size, and wagon) all confirm the same thing. The Big Six was standard on all full size except LTD, 500XL and 7-Litre. I know the Country Squire was considered somewhat to be grouped with the LTD and XL with respect to trim. But the brochures seem to be pretty good about calling out each model individually throughout the text. In any case I think it would still be a slim chance that this car has a six. The manual transmission is already unusual enough for a Country Squire. Anyway, too bad there is no additional info and pics. With them singing the praises of the potential value, they are stingy with details.

 

Prior to '68, Country Squires had trim comparable to the Galaxie 500, although they weren't officially listed as part of that series in '66.

While it's possible this has a 240, it's much more likely a 289 car. If it had a 390, it should have an engine call-out on the lower fender.

I think everyone's right on the repaint. Note all the stone chips on the hood. Just possibly worth $9K (barely) if these are the only issues, but that's a stretch, not the great bargain the ad makes it out to be.

About 10 years ago I looked at a '67 with 289 and A/T, but I decided it would work too hard climbing even the very modest mountains in my area. With a M/T this might be a bit better, but I, personally, would want a larger engine. There doesn't seem to be any shortage of '66 Country Squires on ebay, and many, if not most, have the 390, so there are alternatives for the '66 lover.