There is a reason Bodie has built a career out of his ability to restore iconic pieces of American history and infuse them with updated technology. In 1963 Ford’s Galaxie 500XL fastback rocked both NASCAR and NHRA fields with unbeatable performance. We took on another monster of a build when Dave showed up with a 1963.5 Galaxie 500XL R-code and wanted us yo install an ultra-rare SOHC 7.0L Ford V8 engine that was so powerful it was banned from competition.

From the outside this Galaxie may look fairly ordinary, but its whats going under the hood that will enable this car to leave all others in the dust. The Ford 427 SOHC motor has a very interesting history and has come to be known as the “90 Day Wonder.” Ford built this powerful engine in a mere 90 days in the mid ’60s with the original intention of using the engine in NASCAR racing. Head of NASCAR Bill France ended up vetoing the engine as the rare and powerful “Cammer” motor outputs around 800 horsepower, so Ford used the motor for its drag racing efforts instead.

The changes we made may seem subtle, but they certainly impacted the overall appearance and ride. Bodie made a custom steel Thunderbolt hood scoop, it was smaller then the ones on the hood back in 63. We also added modern Brembo brakes, MagnaFlow mufflers, and a BSI custom rear suspension with a BSI four-link system. We upgrade to modern Nitto Tires for the best grip and traction, but kept a more classic look for the wheels with oversized stock wheels from Wheel Vintiques. The exterior was finished in a bold Matrix color called Viper Red. In keeping with the appearance of the exterior, we kept the interior classic, but flourish the cab with modern touches.

“The Galaxie project was fun because I was trying to strike a real balance between classic and modern,” Bodie explained when the car made its appearance at SEMA 2015. “I was able to keep the best of the classic look of the iconic Ford Galaxie that raced around NASCAR tracks in the ‘60s, drop one of Ford’s most powerful and legendary engines in it and add modern technology to create something for my customer that no one else has.”