Relisted vehicle, would-be buyer flaked. The guy never asked me anything about it during the auction. Our two messages after the close of the auction consisted of nine (9) words from him. He never paid. I don't know why people do this stuff; don't be that guy.
This listing is for a 1972 Ford Custom 500 Ranch Wagon. 9 passenger, with two extra seats under the decking in the back. Original owner, the US Air Force. It was built at the former Pico Rivera Assembly Plant in Los Angeles in July, 1972 and shipped to the 62nd Airlift Wing at McChord AFB, Wash. It was declared surplus circa 1984 and turned over the the General Services Administration for disposal. The GSA offered surplus vehicles to lesser government agencies, and this one was claimed by the Wash. state Dept. of Natural Resources. The DNR passed it along to a local county fire district, which used the car as a command vehicle until circa 1991 or 92. The DNR fire cache painted it emergency yellow for use during that time. In circa 1992, the DNR declared it surplus to state needs and returned it to the GSA and it was placed on public auction in 1993. I bought the car at auction in May, 1993. At that time, the odometer read 23K, which I took to be 123K, and was verified by USAF maintenance records. It now reads 175,900.
My description will be completely unvarnished and any questions will be answered with brutal candor. I had the car repainted in the original color Strata Blue not long after I got it. There was some rust damage in the body that I repaired at that time. Mostly in the left rear quarter panel where the gas filler pipe gasket had failed, and allowed mud to get slung into the compartment behind the quarter panel. The left outer wheel arch had some rust present, and several of the lower door corner pockets showed rust. The spare wheel well was partially rusted. These were all repaired before painting. That was in 1993. 33 years later, there are some rusted areas that need repair. There is some rust along the right rear roof drip rail. There is rust in the lower cowl where the right door opens, partially repaired to restore the dome light switch operation. There are some other rusted areas shown in the pictures. The floor is solid with no rust, and the foot well in the far rear seats looks good. I've replaced the right front fender which had some rust here and there, but while my replacement fender was quite solid, it is rather lumpy which I didn't detect until I had it painted. Oh well. I've still got the replaced fender if the buyer wants it. There are minor dings here and there around on the car body.
Re. the interior. The original vinyl seat covers were quite shot when I got the car, the driver's position was a butt cavern serially repaired with duct tape. I sent away for a set of J. C. Whitney seat covers, front and rear, and they are still in place and don't look too bad. I had to rebuild the padding and cushioning material on the front seat. The carpet is original and quite ratty. The headliner is original, and while it has suffered a few punctures, it's firmly in place and not hanging down anywhere. The original steering wheel was cracked and quite ratty so I replaced it with one out of a 1971 Mercury Marquis, green in color. But it's nice and smooth with no cracks.
Mechanically, the car is sound. The engine is a 351 Cleveland V-8, which I had professionally rebuilt in 1996 including having hardened exhaust valve seats installed. The transmission is an FMX 3 speed Cruise-O-Matic, D 2 1. It's been rebuilt circa 1999. The car left the factory with the less desirable WER differential and axle assy., which I replaced with a Ford 9 inch ring gear unit when I first got the car. Power brakes, disc in front, drum in back, have been worked on fairly recently. Power steering. The engine compartment has not been detailed.
The car drives straight down the road, but the front suspension could use some work. I replaced the lower ball joints several years ago. Then I set up a pair of upper suspension arms with new bushings and upper ball joints, but have never gotten around to changing them. They will go to the buyer with the car. I recommend replacement of all the tie rods as well. The idler arm is fairly new. There are air shocks in the back, need pumping up fairly often now as they've been on the car for 25 years. Tires are serviceable, old but not weather checked. The steel wheels are the correct wide size for station wagons.
Accessories on this car are quite scarce. No radio. No A/C. It does have a heater/defroster that works. The tail gate glass is electric power, and it works from the dash or by key lock.
I've got paperwork on this vehicle back to the factory invoice, USAF docs, etc. Since this is an historic vehicle, these go with the car. I also have a stash of mostly used spare parts that can go with the car as the buyer desires. Many are station wagon only parts.
I've gotten good use out of the car during my 33 years of ownership, mostly as a utility vehicle for hauling things. I'm 75 years old now and beginning to realize that I should let some of my stuff go. So now this car should go to a new home.
The US Government bought full-sized Fords for the US Army and US Air Force in 1971 and 1972. A few hundred to several hundred per year. Most were built as sedans, a much smaller number were built as station wagons. This is likely a rare vehicle, maybe the only station wagon version surviving. I've seen pictures of a ex-USAF 1972 sedan in Delaware, and I've heard a rumor of one in northern California.
Please be sure you are serious about buying this vehicle because the $500 security deposit is non-refundable. Please note other conditions of payment. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request and by arrangement.
