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1-of-300: 1965 Ford Falcon Sprint Convertible

When an owner makes a claim about the relative rarity of a particular vehicle, I have a tendency to treat such claims with a level of skepticism. However, the owner of this Falcon Sprint Convertible is correct when he claims that there were only 300 examples of this model built during the 1965 model year. This one is going to need some major restoration work, but this relative rarity should make it worth the effort. The Sprint is located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and is listed for sale here on eBay. Some pretty spirited bidding between two potential buyers has pushed the price to a dizzying $56 (really) and the reserve has not been met.

If this had been a Futura Convertible, the rarity factor would not have been present. After all, there were 6,191 of those produced in 1965. The launch of the Mustang hit sales of the similarly equipped Sprint Convertible a fatal blow, and production of the car ceased in June of 1965 after a mere 300 cars had rolled off the line. I’m not going to pretend for one moment that whipping this one back into shape is going to only require a quick buff and polish because there is plenty of rust to be addressed. Both of the quarter panels are pretty bad, as is the trunk floor and the area surrounding the rear spring hangers. The passenger side fender also has rust issues, but the owner does say that the rest of the panels are okay. The majority of the external trim is present, but some of it is damaged. The good news here is that even if the side moldings are damaged, a full replacement set can now be sourced for around $300. The owner doesn’t mention the state of the floors, so they might just be okay.

The interior of the Sprint is said to be complete, but it is hard to see a lot under the collection of parts that now reside inside the car. The dash hasn’t been cut to fit any aftermarket equipment, which is a bit of a surprise. The rear seat looks like it might be okay, as does the center console. The rest of it is an unknown quantity, but the good thing is that almost all of the interior trim parts that might be required to bring the car back up to scratch are readily available. The biggest sticking point here is going to be the wheel. This one looks like it is missing the horn ring, and reproduction Sprint-specific wheels are not currently available. That means that the next owner is going to have to undertake some hunting to find a good replacement.

For the 1965 model year, the only engine available in the Sprint Convertible was the 289ci V8. This one is missing a lot of parts, but the engine block, all of the internal components, and the 4-speed manual transmission are all still present. Being a normal 289, items such as cylinder heads and the intake are also easy to locate, so it would be possible to get the car up and running again. When the Sprint rolled off the production line, the engine bay glistened with the addition of chrome valve covers and a chrome air cleaner as standard. It looks like these are now both gone, but replacement items are readily available. Even the correct Sprint stickers for the valve covers can be bought new, and these cost less than $20 per set. The mechanical configuration was one of the factors that led to the demise of the Sprint. It was essentially mechanically identical to the Mustang, but it was the difference in the images of the two cars that saw so many people choose the Mustang over the Sprint. This was a shame because while the Mustang definitely had the image, the Sprint was the more practical car.

You would think that the relative rarity of the 1965 Sprint Convertible would equate to high market values, but the values for these are surprisingly modest. A pretty decent one can be found for around the $20,000 mark, while an immaculate example will sell for around the $32,000 mark. One of the positive factors that will help this car is the fact that the only piece of optional equipment specified on this one when new was the 4-speed manual transmission. This is the single most sought after option today, as the vast majority of Sprint Convertibles either featured the 3-speed manual or automatic transmission. With that in mind, it would seem to make this car a worthwhile candidate for restoration.

Comments

  1. RoughDiamond

    Cool ’65 Falcon and certainly worthy of a restoration. Apparently everything structurally is so badly rusted the gas tank and radiator must sit in the front seat where the radiator can scratch the virgin dash all to heck.

    Like 4
  2. HoA Rube Goldberg Member

    Too bad it’s a Wisconsin car, pretty fried, as sagging open doors reveal. These were nice cars, but parts only. Nobody going to restore this. Price is spot on.

    Like 3
  3. CliffS Member

    When I was much younger, I had several ’65 and ’66 Mustangs with lots of extra parts. On one steering wheel center cap, the Mustang emblem was loose, being curious, I pried it off and underneath it was embossed with Falcon Sprint and crossed chequered flags!

    Like 5
  4. TimM

    Really nice car!! I can’t understand why the front seat of good cars is considered a good storage area!! I realize everyone doesn’t have a garage but I built carbs at the kitchen table when I was still living with my mom in th 70’s!! She was never crazy about the idea but i cleaned up!! An attic or basement or shed in the back yard would be better than the punctured holes in the interior!!!

    Like 5
  5. Gaspumpchas

    Rube is right- this ruffian probably wont get fixed, With all the rust mentioned, they didn’t say anything about the inner rockers, which give the body its longitudal strength. Seems the drains for the top emptied into the inner rockers, and there were no drains. I searched for years to find a 65 convertible that the doors open and closed on; once the inner rockers failed the doors wouldn’t operate. The one I finally settled on needed them also.Three year resto; 1 year on a rotisserie for fix. All I see here is a parts car. The guy actually has a reserve on this roach! 4 speed and shifter maybe worth 500 if its decent. Good luck to the new owner.
    Cheers
    GPC

    Like 4
  6. Morley Brown Member

    If I had a milllion dollars, I’d be rich. And as much as I would want a car like this, I still could not afford to rebuild this car. Way too sad.

    Like 2
  7. Johnmloghry Johnmloghry

    I really wanted one of these when they were new. Our local Ford dealer ( Lou Gerard Ford ) had a red on red with white top V8 4 speed manual on their show room floor. Every chance I got to make the 12 mile trip to town, I went to look at it. I imagined myself driving through the country roads up the hills around the curves shifting the gears, top down winding the engine out through the gears, hearing the sound of the dual exhaust over the sound of the radio playing songs by The Beach Boys or Ricky Nelson or even Johnny Cash. Boy how I daydreamed. Never made a reality of it though, by the time was employed and able to buy my own brand new car it was a 69 Nova.
    God bless America

    Like 0
  8. Little_Cars

    60s compact tin can with tin worm. The competing nutcases must be wallpapering the walls of their homes with $100 bills.

    Like 1
  9. Del

    Structural problems ?

    Nothing that a crusher would not cure 😂

    Like 2

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