Yeah, they existed. I remember hearing about them, so I went on a "dig"
through the archives and found an interesting reference in the Nov 1963 Car
And Driver. Ford ran two Monte Carlo Falcon Sprints at a 12-hr road race and
one of them took 3rd. They mentioned it had a 260 V8 and front disks.
Drivers of note were Walt Hansgen, Curtis Turner and Bob Tullius. Hansgen
ran a lot of big-bore sports racers, Curtis Turner was a top NASCAR driver
and Bob Tullius went on to fame with Triumphs in SCCA racing (later ran the
Jaguar effort in IMSA).
I thought I was going to find some mention of the Falcon Sprint in my Hot
Rod magazine collection, but I didn't. I suspect the Sprint was closely
related to the Mercury Comet Cyclone which also had a V8. Ford built a few
Super Cyclones with 271 hp 289's for the East Africa Safari Rally. Vic
Edelbrock currently has one of these cars and runs it at the vintage races.
Gordon Glasgow
Renton, WA
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-datsun-roadsters@autox.team.net
[mailto:owner-datsun-roadsters@autox.team.net]On Behalf Of Tony Genovese
Sent: Saturday, January 27, 2001 10:21 AM
To: datsun-roadsters@autox.team.net
Subject: <OT> 1963 1/2 Ford Falcon "Sprint"
Hey I know this is off-topic,
but my Dad owned this car as a young man before he started a family and this
is one of the only ways I can connect with him because he appears to show no
interest in my Datsuns.
I mentioned to him that I saw a bona-fide 63 1/2 Sprint parked out in front
of a local restaurant the other day and his eyes lit up and he said that
since he traded his in to a car dealer in Colombus back in 1969 (of all
things for a '69 Toyota Corona), he has seen no more than two here in CA in
the last thirty years!
Are they that rare?
He said that they were a limited production car, like the 67 1/2 Roadster,
only a thousand or so were produced; can anyone verify this for me?
I'm not in the know on Fords. But I will say this: the Falcon that I saw was
either fully restored or in mint condition and it was GORGEOUS--my Dad
wasn't lying!
Old Ford Falcons aren't very inspiring, but the Sprint is a beautiful old
car. I guess it was the predecessor to the Mustang. It has a sleek roof
line, 2 doors, a factory dash-mounted tach, 3 on the floor, and a 260 V8. My
Dad said it was the fastest car he ever drove. If I had seen the owner as I
was passing by it, I would have offered him my 240Z in a straight across
trade, and then given it to my Dad!
Tony Genovese
San Diego
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