chr0nic Posted June 13, 2012 Posted June 13, 2012 Hi all, Just thought I'd share the love... being an Aussie-heavy forum I figured many would appreciate this on a 'reminiscent' level- as well as enthusiasts \ restorers who just love to see a job done right. This is a 1974 Ford Landau Coupe that I began to restore roughly 7 years ago... then gave up 6.5 years ago I had some spare cash, spare time and a love of Aussie muscle cars... but then I met my wife-to-be and, well, lets just say the cash and money went elsewhere. The old man very thoughtfully bailed me out; but I should mention that it was always his dream to restore a Ford Coupe- all I managed to provide was a legitimate loophole to allow him past my mother A bit of history on the Landau- they are an odd coupe. Effectively they are a 2 door version of Ford's 'luxury' model the LTD. Power windows, leather seats and- my favourite feature- vacuum headlights that give it that 'Valiant Charger' type look... I love this model to bits. They made around 1300ish of them, they were never the pick of the bunch. XA's, XB's, Cobras and RPO's were always the top prize. However once they started to become slim pickings the sedan equivalents started to become more pricey, as well as the Landau. Now these things are worth a few bob themselves. Enough rambling. Here are some shots of the beast. I am not the most mechanically minded, so tech specs are something I'd need to ask if there is anyone that asks something, however I do know that it runs a stroked 351 Cleveland V8 (as pictured) and is pretty-much bog standard apart from audio-system, cruise control and- most importantly- the conversion from auto trans to stick. Enjoy Ryan
El Presidente Posted June 13, 2012 Posted June 13, 2012 Seriously Ryan...If I was a woman I would sleep with you :love:
Fuzz AI Posted June 13, 2012 Posted June 13, 2012 Sweet! Looks like a fair amount of work went into it. Love the colour! Whaddya call it? Eggplant purple? My dad had a '74 / '75 Ford Cortina XLE. Wished he had kept it so I could have done it up. I miss that old car.
chr0nic Posted June 13, 2012 Author Posted June 13, 2012 Seriously Ryan...If I was a woman I would sleep with you :love: Cheers Prez; though if you threatened sleeping with me I may just hand you the keys... or just get in and flatten the accelerator! I used to have an XC, loved it to bits (except I prefer Bikes), one of my old mates rebuilt an XB Coupe - a true beast. Man, you've done an amazing job on this, great finish colour. Mustn't be many of these classics still around! Thanks for posting the pics. Awesome effort. Cheers mate... almost all credit goes to my old man who is pretty-much the talent. He is more of a bike enthusiast, too. Just rebuilt a Honda that he sold on auction, an old Ducati Pantah and is about to start a Ducati '78 Darmah 900... he isn't happy unless he is pulling something apart and rebuilding it! lol.
chr0nic Posted June 13, 2012 Author Posted June 13, 2012 Sweet! Looks like a fair amount of work went into it. Love the colour! Whaddya call it? Eggplant purple? My dad had a '74 / '75 Ford Cortina XLE. Wished he had kept it so I could have done it up. I miss that old car. Ha, I forget the exact name, but (and this will ruin it for you) it's the colour of the late model Mazda's you see around. Like this one.
hdryder Posted June 13, 2012 Posted June 13, 2012 Wow nice job on restoring it. The color looks far better on yours then the mazda.
Fuzz AI Posted June 13, 2012 Posted June 13, 2012 Looks like it was Phantom Purple. Reminds me a bit of the Plymouth Prowler purple colour, but that was a bit more Ribena purple.
khomeinist Posted June 13, 2012 Posted June 13, 2012 Sick ride. Reminds me somehow of Ken's favorite film. Death Proof
marty922 Posted June 13, 2012 Posted June 13, 2012 G'day Ryan, Awesome result - love the colour. If I was being really picky, I reckon it needs to be dropped an inch or two at the rear - but I guess that might happen in a few months if the rear springs have been reset. Nice cruiser. Cheers, Marty
NJP Posted June 13, 2012 Posted June 13, 2012 Grouse Ryan. Dads rock. My old man is getting his XW done up. He will however not let me near it as I am too far gone to the Holden side. All classics should be shown the love as you've done.
Guest rob Posted June 13, 2012 Posted June 13, 2012 This thread got me reminiscing about my old cars.... Great work, mate. Enjoy it... They just don't design and build them like this anymore....
CaptainQuintero Posted June 13, 2012 Posted June 13, 2012 That's pretty much my idea of the perfect car! Well done!!
phidelt076 Posted June 13, 2012 Posted June 13, 2012 Y'all did an amazing job, it's a beautiful car! I've always dreamed of a father and son project like this. I'd like to rebuild a '78 Corvette Pace Car.
LGC Posted June 13, 2012 Posted June 13, 2012 Nice resto! I have a 1953 Chevy 5-window stepside to be restored... but I need the time and money first
Warren Posted June 13, 2012 Posted June 13, 2012 Beautiful job. I used to drule over the Landau when they first came out. My second car was an XA coupe in cobra colors.
cottierm Posted June 14, 2012 Posted June 14, 2012 I'm not at all into cars but this one looks mighty good. Any chance that we can have a look at the inside restoration? Best, Michel
Cohiba Stevie Posted June 14, 2012 Posted June 14, 2012 That wagon is a credit to the dedication and hard work youve had to get in that state. It looks fantastic mate.
chr0nic Posted June 15, 2012 Author Posted June 15, 2012 Thanks guys! I'll see if tonight I can find the photos of the interior... all leather and suede. There should also be a vid somewhere of the engine putt-ing away. I have one of it pre-resto, but I'm sure I took another one when it was finished. The whole house shakes when you start her up Appreciate the praise, guys. I'll make sure my old man knows how much attention it got online!
Habanos2000 Posted June 15, 2012 Posted June 15, 2012 The first word out of my mouth after seeing the pictures was "WOW"! Great job!
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