Ford Galaxie (thing)

The Ford Galaxie was a clone of the Ford Fairlane, born in an awkward time. It was first built in 1959, at the end of the "classic" car era (think of a '57 Chevy Bel Air), and just as the white trash muscle cars like the Chevrolet Impala (itself a Bel Air variant) were coming on the scene. Then, more so than today, improvements between years were drastic: each year or two, you'd see the lines of your favorite model change suddenly, or the engine would be all-new, or parts that had been steel would be changed to aluminum. It looked like a drive-in, malt shop, poodle skirt car, but it had a real engine under the hood.

Is this the place that I want to be? Is it you who I want to see?
Holding on, hold it high, show me everything...
And you're leaving me, yeah you're leaving me,
you're leaving me with a hated identity!

By 1960, it was already clear what some of the mistakes in the original Galaxie had been: it was trying to be too much to too many people. Now that they were beyond the classic car era, Ford re-styled it to fit the new "muscle car" fad. It was longer, wider, heavier, and was available with a big badass 352 Super V-8 engine. It was, in fact, an inch and a half wider (81.5") than the Federal Highway Standards allowed. 1961 and 1962 Galaxies added and modified the fins on earlier models, and offered still larger engines--up to a 406 V-8 called the "Thunderbird" (despite its inavailability in any of Ford's T-birds). More power, new lines, and a focus on luxury characterized the early 60's Galaxies.

But I keep on a comin' here and standing in this state,
And I'm never really sure if you'll take what I'm saying the right way.
But I'm not appalled or afraid: verbal pocket play
Is as discreet as I can muster up to be...

1963's Galaxie was a classic when it rolled off the line, and "1963-and-a-half" Galaxies are even more cherished. The modular design allowed the buyer to get almost any of Ford's many engines installed, and the narrower body let the engines do their stuff with relatively little impedance. Torque and horsepower junkies snapped up the optional 427 dual 4-barrel carb with 425 HP with good reason: it won 23 Grand National NASCAR races, and all 5 top places at Daytona-- and this was back before NASCAR was the WWF on wheels. 50 Galaxies from this year-group were built with special lightweight features for competition and street racing, making the 4,000-lb. Galaxie a slightly leaner and meaner competitor outside the long oval track. 1964's models were lighter, more powerful, and considered by many to be the sexiest Galaxies ever made. As much as they gush, and despite Shannon Hoon's protests, I really don't see a giant difference between it and the 1963 Cadillac El Dorado. But then, it could be me.

...because the Cadillac that's sittin' in the back,
it isn't me -- Oh, no, no, no it isn't me,
I'm more at home in my Galaxie!

1964 and 1965 saw the transition from side-by-side headlights to stacked headlights, and although the car kept getting lighter, the engine was still big, powerful, and heavy as hell. The lines went from somewhat curved and elongated to an angular shark-like shape, and 1965's model was much wider than 1964. In 1966, the Galaxie reached a shape that I consider to be the most attractive: a slender back reminiscent of the Mustangs I love from the same era, swept-back windshield, and the long flat body I'd expect from a car that I wanted to take across the country. It was the last of the 427 "muscle" Fords, as performance and (gasp!) mileage began to concern American car buyers.

Can I do the things I wanna do
that I don't do because of you?
And I'll take a left
and I'll second guess
into total mess...

Unfortunately, the end of the muscle car era was the beginning of the end for the Galaxie. In 1967, the Galaxie tried to change its stripes. It was a muscle car, but it tried to be a Ford Fairlane again with new luxury options and more conservative stylings. It sold well, but not as well as it had. In 1967, Shannon Hoon, lead singer of Blind Melon, was born. In 1968, Ford stopped offering the 427 V-8 in the Galaxie... and nobody cared. In 1969, man landed on the moon, and the Galaxie got even heavier as it tried to combine hot rod feel with luxury-car appeal; the passenger room was unsurpassed. The Apollo 11 lunar module weighed as much as seven Galaxies from the same year, and only seated two.

...and you're leaving me,
and you're leaving me,
you're leaving me with a hated identity.

Like Elvis Presley, the sleek and powerful Galaxie was getting overweight and rhinestone-studded in the early 70s. Maybe it was the cocaine, the focus on luxury over performance, the sudden popularity of land yachts... as the Galaxie got bigger and was marketed towards the family guy instead of the rip-roaring bachelor, it became less of a car and more of a tank. The focus was on safety, on a quiet ride (and therefore a smaller engine), and on comfort for the many passengers. By 1972, the Galaxie had mutated from a racecar into a Ford that was as big as a whale. No Ford Galaxies were produced in 1972. Shannon Hoon turned 4, and rock and roll was being re-written by Led Zeppelin, the Rolling Stones, and bands that gave up that luxury car feeling for muscle-car sound.

No no no no it isn't me!
No no no no it isn't me!
No it isn't me,
in my Galaxie!

In 1995, Blind Melon released "Soup." The opening track, "Galaxie," became the album's second hit single, travelling to #8 on the Billboard charts. Two years later, Shannon Hoon died of a concaine overdose while on tour. In 1995, a Galaxie would have sold for between $5,000 and $10,000, assuming it was in good condition; in 1995, that would have bought between 20 and 50 weeks' worth of cocaine for the average user.