Unveiling the Classic: The 1964 Ford Galaxie 500's Timeless Allure

The CLASSIC Gem of Restoration Dreams

(Photo by Hiromi Kobayashi/Getty)The 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 is the gold standard in the classic car world. Its retro lines, beefy engine options, and potential to be turned into a lowrider make it a dream restoration. Yet why is it so prized by collectors, and what is its current market value?

The Heart of the CLASSIC: Its Powertrain Options

It’s the engine line-up at the heart of the appeal of the 1964 Ford Galaxie 500: you could get the car any way you liked. The base model came with a 289-cubic-inch V8 engine with 195 brake horsepower (BHP). Most collectors prefer the 427-cubic-inch V8 installed later in the model run but made famous in racing well before the Galaxie went into production. With each engine option, the mystique of the classic is added to.

Exploring the CLASSIC Engines Further

Digging deeper, options from the 223-cubic-inch inline-six known as the Mileage Maker to the 427 with up to 425 BHP for the R-code version served as a continuum of performance-tuned transport. And there was an engine – chrome-laden and full of technological charm – for every personal aspiration… From the era’s engineering aesthetic.

The CLASSIC's Current Worth: A Financial Perspective

Like the 1964 Ford Galaxie 500, a car with a wide range of values (depending upon condition, originality, and especially engine configuration) whose median sales price is $9,300 if in ‘Fair’ condition and pristine/restored examples often cost far more. Classics have been on a general trend upwards in recent years, the Galaxie’s average having recently topped $48,555, suggesting a rising tide of interest in the 1964 Galaxie.

The Investment in a CLASSIC Dream

But for many of us, the cost of refurbishing a 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 is not a financial equation. It’s more about passion, more about nostalgia, more about enjoying the fruit of our labour as we return a classic to its original condition. For those with eyes on a return, the market is favouring vintage restorations, especially for collector-grade or well-sewn-up models.

A CLASSIC Restoration Journey

Restoring a classic, such as an example of the 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 [below], takes dedication, resources and, above all, a deep love of automotive heritage. It takes plenty of time and patience, not to mention money. But the final product – a restored classic – can be hugely rewarding, both creatively and, let’s face it, financially. 1964 Ford Galaxie 500.

The Enduring Appeal of the CLASSIC

And that the Galaxie 500 – both in its sleek, sporty 1964 incarnation and in its slow 1975 retirement – inspires not just a love of beauty to be admired for its own sake, nor for the power to be ‘felt, heard, orchestraed by’ (as one writer put it), but for the stories it may be about to tell, the years it may be about to release, the roads it may be about to recall, the past it may be about to induct, yoked behind it, as it lumbers along, into an ongoing line of shimmering horsepower, lights flashing and sirens waiting. What W so often means by ‘restoring’ the car is actually to save the past.

About CLASSIC

Classic is often used not just to describe age, but also quality, durability and cross-generational appeal, as in classic movie or classic car. Of course, many people view classic cars as showpieces to be admired and, possibly, driven rarely, if at all. The fabulous 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 can symbolise not just a particular year – or a time capsule of design and technology – but a person’s life. It is no surprise that classic cars are among the most tangible and inspiring ways to explore and celebrate the human connection with technology. A car’s life cycle, from its birth to the road for the very first time, through periods of private and public ownership, and on to its rebirth in the hands of that classic enthusiast, is a story of drama, skill and the quest for four-wyled elegance.