Antique Cream is the color of this 1978 Ford LTD Country Squire, and it looks great in the overall photos. Unfortunately, once you dig into the incredible number of photos the seller has included, you’ll see that there are a lot of issues with the dreaded nightmare called rust. The seller has it listed here on eBay in Elyria, Ohio, and they’re asking $15,950, or you can make an offer.
I was excited to see this car as I grew up in this era and started to drive, even though I wasn’t 16 yet. Hey, if there aren’t any rules or laws being enforced now, just think of how nice we had it back then! It helped to grow up seven miles from the city and live on a gravel road (well, not literally, we had a house). That being said, it was northern Minnesota, so we also knew what happened to vehicles after a few years of driving them in the winter months.
This car looks so good in the photos showing the whole car from a distance, and I was surprised to start digging into the many detailed photos the seller has included. I really like this seller; they aren’t trying to hide anything here. They show dozens of great photos, inside and outside, and they don’t seem to hide any of the bad spots. AAA+++ on this listing, seller!
Our own Todd Fitch showed us a ’78 Country Squire a couple of years ago here on Barn Finds, in a very similar color scheme inside and out. The seventh-generation Country Squire was made for model years 1969 through 1978, and they made a significant change to the design for the 1973 model year. This was the last year for this generation, and the next version would be based on Ford’s Panther platform, which was arguably a better car and about a foot shorter. The brown vinyl interior here looks great in the front, the back, and the way-way-way back. This is a very big car, and as such, the rear cargo area is huge.
The dusty Ford 400-cu.in. V8 is oily underneath, but despite that, it had 160 horsepower and 320 lb-ft of torque when new. Sent through a three-speed automatic to the rear wheels, this one is said to have 98,000 miles and runs and drives well. Are any of you fans of the last of the giant Country Squire wagons?
Good write-up Scotty. We didn’t have wagons as a kid so my point of reference isn’t the same as some of you. But looking back from today, wagons such as this Country Squire (not “Country Square” as in the ad) did their job quite well…. until the minivans arrived and re-defined the segment. This example isn’t perfect but isn’t bad.
Very well-equipped; $8352 equates to about $42,000 today. It’s fun to look at the window sticker to see everything that was an option even on a top-end model (left-hand remote mirror, $16),
Please keep bringing us the “regular” cars from back when.
“Antique Cream”- typically found in my refrigerator.
“Antique Cream” in the fridge!!!! That was a good one Godzilla!!!
You know, its funny how when you’re young, you don’t give full size wagons a second thought. But now, we do. They’re few and far between I’m with Bob_in_Tn said above, I truly enjoy the “Everyday ” cars we get to see here. We didn’t have a wagon either, but knew so many who did and had so many rides in wagons too. I enjoyed it Scotty thank you.
This one is clean and I like that it has the 400 engine. Just add dual exhaust to let that engine breath. Looks to have had some exhaust work doe to it . I would just added the other pipes.
Glad to see it has a 400, I had a 78 LTD 4 door with a 302 and it was a dog. I wanted to put my left foot out the door so I could try and help it along. This wagon is beautiful!
These beasts deserve to be preserved now.
They are easy to work on and many maintenance related parts are still available to keep them going. Didn’t care for the big Fords back in the day although I had a used Custom 500 for just over a year. The wagon would certainly get my attention at a car show.
This is a duplicate of ours in ’78, and Dad had ordered it with the 460/4v and trailer tow pkg which added dual exhaust and positraction . Wonderful, B
big roar from the powerbarn on full throttle. Our prior year ’77 woody Squire wagon had the 400 and it was underpowered and a gas hog.
Fond memory of that big ’78.
Good Luck!
The actual, correct term for the area behind the rear seats in a station wagon is the “back-b-back”, pronounced like “barbeque”.
If you look closely at the lower left of the instrument panel, you will see a gray box with buttons. Looking under the hood, is the giveaway: either dealer-installed (doubtful) or aftermarket Cal Custom-type cruise control. Radio is probably a later upgrade by the owner.
Love every inch of her. Cream and wood tone is perfect. Great features except no cruise. If you mod the exhaust prepare for it to be loud inside :)
Love the era of Country Squires!! That was the car to have with a family in the 60’s and 70’s! We had several wagons in those two decades but the last one was a ’72 before the massive bumpers were required. Ours was forest green with the “wood” siding and a black interior. Our had a 351 2 barrel but it had plenty of get up and go! We bought it one year old from friends who leased a new one for their vending machine business every year. They were as fastidious as my father with their cars and there was not a mark or scratch on it when we got it. Took my driving test in it and drove it often to my part time job at Vons!! Great car and great memories!!
MAYBE if it had the 460 in it because all you have to do is change the timing chain & gears zeroing out the crank and cam (adds another 40-50 horsepower and around 45 lbs of torque and 4 mpg hwy) to wake it up I might be interested. I never liked modifieds, they didn’t have enough power in a tank that size, or anything else for that mater. It’s a beautiful car that rides better than a Lincoln and would be a great “car of choice” for extremely long road trips since you can pack a house in it and go, or put a mattress in the back and live in it lol.
When I was a kid (oldest of 4 boys) we had all Ford wagons (57, 61, 64, 67, 69 then Navy for me) I distinctly remember riding in “the way back” with brother #2 (only 14 months younger) and I beating the crap outta each other on any ride more than about 30 minutes because we were bored. And I think my parents just tuned it out because they were like 7 feet (and 2 other boys) away from the chaos. And God bless the designers that kept the passengers locked inside on a six-hour drive to the beach with only two stops for gas and food. :-) If we could have escaped we probably would have jumped.
If you buy this, I’ll volunteer to drive you and your brother around so that you both could climb into the way back and beat the crap outta each other to relive old times. 😉
Beautiful wagon. I really like Country Squires! Instead of a station wagons, that makes all kind of sense over an SUV’s, Ford continues to assemble huge trucks and SUV’s for the American market. The Trump administration needs to look into this and find out why they no longer manufacture automobiles for the American public. Is it greed?
We had this in the lime green with dark green interior. I think it was a 76. I liked it but really wanted a GM clamshell wagon like all my friends’ moms drove. Those were cool! We only kept it for years but it was a fun wagon!
I guess I’m the crazy one who says put a Ford expedition or excursion front and rear suspension and transfer case under it and you have a nice SUV to haul your rug rats and pull your travel trailer up into the hills
Reminds me so much of Dads 76 Crown Brougham sedan. Traded it in 1in 1980. We enjoyed it. Good “trip” car. I was ten at the time he traded it in , so not too sure what was under the hood. He just referred to it as a big block. So could have been several. Triple dark red. Air so cold I swear you could see it coming outta the vents
Never cared much for the 1971-1978 Ford cars. They had huge engines that didn’t kick-out that many horses, and were thirsty to boot. There was just that bloated 1970s look (if you know what I mean). This one is priced way too high for an old car with RUST-issues. Repairs will run into money, and new rust-places will continue to appear as this is employed as a daily driver (I presume). Though this one LOOKS nice for what it is, the rust puts it a step above being a “beater” and not a vehicle to preserve and maintain as a decent driver. Sell it for 1/3 the price; run it until the “rot” completely takes over; then stick a fork in it: it’s done. There’s a REASON why this generation of Fords rusted right off from the frame — you won’t be able to save this one, without spending far more than a rust-free California example would cost you.