Talk about tastefully done, this 1960 Ford Ranch Wagon is one beautiful example of a seldom-seen station wagon! Full-size two-door wagons were on the way out by ’60, but Ford still offered one in Ranch Wagon trim for those who still saw value in such a body style. I like everything about this cool mid-century suburban staple, especially its green finish, so let’s dive in here and take a closer look. NW Iowa Kevin gets a two-thumbs-up for discovering this Ryan, Iowa, resident, and those with an interest can find it listed here on Facebook Marketplace for $22,000.
As the seller states, this wagon is one of 27,136 two-door Ranch Wagons assembled in ’60, a volume that would be cut in half for ’61 and then disappear in ’62. Being a Ranch Wagon, places this car at the bottom of the totem pole, where it was one-upped by the Country Sedan and two-upped by the Country Squire. Still, the entry-level Ranch Wagon was popular, with another 44K four-door versions being produced for ’60. The seller states, “Very straight sheet metal covered in factory Meadowvale Green. Good trim, bumpers, and well-detailed door jambs, etc.” Yup, it looks great, though there is some bubbling starting to rise in the passenger-side fender leg. The old-skool vibe flows right to the ground, where this Ford is upheld by 15″x 7″ chrome-reverse wheels. I remember when these were all the rage and must admit, I haven’t seen anything motoring around on them in a long time. Normally, I wouldn’t say that they’re my favorites, but they work perfectly on this mash-up.
Modern (more modern?) power in the form of a 351 CI “Windsor” V8 provides this wagon with plenty of go. The seller adds, “4-barrel crate engine warmed over with mild cam. Runs smooth, tight, and cool with great oil pressure. 3-on-the-tree shifter with fully synchronized transmission, headers, FlowMaster exhaust, Wilwood front disc brakes, manual steering, manual brakes, 9-inch traction lock with 3:00 ratio; cruises nicely at 70 plus mph. Cal Custom finned valve covers… electronic ignition…” The listing concludes with a simple statement that this car “drives and runs well.”
The interior’s condition matches the exterior; it’s restrained and reflects the Ranch Wagon’s place in Ford’s hierarchy. The vinyl upholstery looks to be correct, and it’s in like-new condition; reproduction material perhaps? The included seat belts are early sixties-style pieces, and the seller mentions an “unmolested dashboard” – even to the point of being radioless. The only deviation from stock noted is the underdash trio of engine monitoring gauges. Even the wayback area of this Ranch Wagon is clean, with no evidence of heavy “whatever” hauling – and the obvious result that comes from that common activity.
Final thoughts? I like this “shooting brake” Ranch Wagon, quite a bit actually. The only thing I might consider is the relocation of the gear shift from the steering column to the floor. I know some may consider that heresy, but I’m not much for that three-on-the-tree activity; I’ve had enough experience with such arrangements. But that’s a “maybe” for me, and that’s it. How about you- good to go as is?
If you are going to deviate from stock and put the shifter on the floor Jim, you may as well add another gear or three to the transmission!
That is a beaut. I have always liked the grille treatment on the 1960 full size Fords. And the color is spot on.
I very MUCH prefer the EDSEL front for 1960, and I would want a wagon with FOUR DOORS!!! Otherwise, the Edsel is essentially a Ford for 1960, and a 1960 Edsel wagon would be the JAZZ!! I like things all original; however, undercover improvements such as a crate engine with more modern power with fuel injection, and an upgrade to disc brakes — anything to make it more suited to modern roads BUT WITHOUT MUSCLE, and WITHOUT FLOOR-MOUNTED FIVE SPEED STANDARD SHIFT, and ORIGINAL STEEL-STAMPED WHEELS WITH ORIGINAL FACTORY HUB-CAPS, is fine with me. I would rather see factory power steering, power brakes, originally a V-8 with automatic shift, a CLOCK and a RADIO, and NO AFTERMARKET GAUGES! I don’t want a Ford wagon which began life as a very bottom base model with a 223 economy six and three-on-the-tree. I am not fond of Country Squires, either, because of those fading vinyl faux wood sides. Otherwise, nice wagon here for what it is. Not for me.
Very cool! T-Bird bucket seats, console/floor shifter, 4 wheel disc brakes and power steering.
Yes and NO!!!! If you plan on doing a lot of long distance cruising then yes up date it.. BUT personally I would keep it like it is and enjoy driving it locally to the many events, where it being an unusual 2 door wagon, this car would be a great conversation starter.
My folks traded in our 58 Beetle for a white 1960 2 door ranch wagon with a 6, 3 on the column, a heater and AM radio. We drove it from the space coast of Florida to So California one summer for vacation. It was vinyl seats and rubber floor coverings, perfect for 3 young kids. It served us well till dad traded it in on a 1963 olds Starfire. I guess rowing a shifter, no ac and no power finally wore him down. Still, even at the tender age of 5, I thought that wagon was cool but then I liked the 58 Edsel as well!
Looks to be in pretty good shape.
I’ve always liked the two door wagons.
Seems like a reasonable price, though not a highly sought after vehicle.
Have not seen the rubber floor mats in the back in a while. You could not fold the seat down and let the kids slide about when you took corners, like decades ago.
Those carefree days are long gone.
And a clamshell tailgate to boot! There’s a lot to like about this wagon, but I agree, a four on the floor is the way to go here. I could do without the buckets and console even.
Beautiful! Just beautiful!
Maybe it’s my age but I think buckets, a C-6 auto, console from a 62-64 Galaxie would make it a real pleasure to cruise. Just an old guy’s opinion. Love the color and wheels too.
Sweet ride! I would just leave it like it is and enjoy cruising around in it. š
Surfboards up top, canoes out the back, freezer full of cerveza. Muy bueno.
One of the things I love about these era Fords is how the clamshell dashboard shape emulates the taillight shape to a T. Very good and conscientious design in my book.
The chrome reverse wheels are perfect, they were the THE custom wheel before aluminum wheels became common. I’m not a Ford guy per se, but I really like this one!
No luggage rack, a manual gearbox, and pretty green paint. What’s not to love?
What is cooler than a wagon? Maybe a 2-door wagon. I like this a lot and the column shift is a party trick unless it hangs up. I agree that if you decide to move it then a couple extra splits with overdrive would make it right.
With that engine, you could start in 1st and drop it into 3rd once it got rolling. No need to shift the shifter around. Unless your favorite front seat passenger refuses to slide over anyway.
really cool wagon. great colors. personally, i would have went with a newer AOD unit. forget all that shifting. the 351 should make it scoot just fine.
Really Nice body Style , but this one has so much bondo on it , There is more waves on it than the ocean and by the looks of the rot hole on the front fender you can bet the rest of the car has the same treatment , Dreaming at 22K
Thank you for noticing and calling our attention to this, MOTOTRON! Despite the well-preserved interior and fresh crate motor, no patched-up rust-bucket is worth more than $4,000, because it ultimately will not last without constant re-building body-work. These 1960 Fords were noted for being wasted-out by the tin-worm long before they wore out from high-mileage. HARD PASS at THIS price!!!
Love the chrome steelies on this one too! Iād probably have to do a floor shifter too but the column shifter certainly limits who can drive it.
I do not see WHY, Todd: WHO can’t drive a column-shift? –especially those in THIS hobby?
Seems a couple of generations can not drive a 3 on the tree, never mind a four on the floor, with the shifting map on the console.
But I do have my grandson come link my phone and Blue teeth.
Harrison – many of us in this hobby can, but many can’t! I’m 57 now and my Bronco was a 3 speed column shift for the first 7-8 years that we owned it. Even then, I’m not sure many of my contemporaries could’ve shifted it. Now 35-40 years on….there are just fewer and fewer that can. I taught my oldest stepdaughter to drive the stick in my Mustang but I’m not sure she could still do it…and don’t get me started how I rarely loan our my Super Duty pickup to any friends because it has a stick too….
What’s wrong with you? 3 on the tree is easy too learn. Been driving sticks since I was 12 years old.
Re: driving a standard, nothing is wrong with me, my wife could give you another list.
Only 1 of my 3 daughters ever learned, but she came up with every excuse not to drive the 4 on the floor, we got her.
My 2 grandkids, old enough to drive, never learned either.
None of the 5 would ever buy something with a 3 on the tree.
Z spec T5, A/C, 3.73 gear. Done. Wish I had the room
To John M: I got my first four-tube portable radio in 1949. I still have it, and it still works fine; however, because tubes drain batteries very rapidly, I basically “retired” that 1949 portable radio in 1961, when I bought a transistor radio, which I still have and have used every day for 65 years.
But young people stop and ask me, “What is that DEVICE you have?” When I demonstrate that it is a radio by turning it on and playing it for them, they say, “Wow! — how WAY TOO COOL is THAT!!! — where can I get one?” They’ve never seen a transistor radio before?: so hard to believe! I don’t DARE to show them a 78 rpm record (of the which I have multiple hundreds, that I play and listen to all the time)! Wonder what our grandparents thought of our times? I remember when my great uncle bought one of the first transistor radios in 1954: he was so amazed by it and radiantly proud of it, as if he had the only one in existence, and he showed it off to everybody. He also had a television in 1946, when the very few stations on the air ran test-patterns for much of the day. But I was utterly FASCINATED by that television!
My mother was a technician at RCA in Needham, Ma. Worked on NASA program, helped send a Man to the Moon. Her only regret was it was not our Dad.
LOL
Seriously, I learned to test and swap out tubes in old TVs and radios. Trips to Radio Shack with 6 to 8 suspect tubes. Made a few friends and family very happy by repairing a TV with 12 bucks worth of tubes. Always started with the high voltage tube first.
John M: Depending upon when this was, that could have been a 1B3 or a 3A3 or 3DJ3, or like numbers. But your Horizontal Output and damper tubes were more likely to fail, than the high voltage rectifier. And if you wanted your Horizontal Output Tube plate to glow bright cherry-red and the tube itself to be ruined within minutes, then let your Horizontal Oscillator tube go bad. Memories-memories!
My daughter was a very early talker (a trait she inherited from her mother). At age eight months you could hold a cogent conversation with her (TRUST me on this: your baby knows and is fully aware of far more than you realise! They might not be able to articulate it to you in words, but they already have “connected the dots” on so many things, even complexities!). And interestingly, your talking infant fully understands and even can translate for you the unintelligible babble of a non-talking infant! And you know what they are telling you is true, because of the reaction of the non-talking child. Your non-talking baby can understand every common word you say; they just can’t (yet) translate what they know into speech you can understand. My daughter, who COULD do that at an early age (including saying “hi” or even “hello” to you when she was five-months-old), bridged that gap with ease, and that made her so easy to deal with! You could talk to her, and she would talk in return! Amy LOVED to be READ to. And at 15 months of age, she allowed as how she wanted to read for her own self. I explained to her that when she got a little older, she’d go to school; SHE’d learn how. She looked me dead in the eye and said: “You KNOW how: TEACH me… NOW.” And she MEANT that! I found out how quickly a year-old child can LEARN! within less than three months, Amy could read anything you handed to her. And she took joy in reading to other children, even some who were five or more years older than she.
Amy absolutely LOVED to go on service-calls with me, and I made her manager of my tube-caddy. This process stunned customers. “Amy, I need a 6GH8.”
“you ALWAYS need 6GH8s!” — and she would pull one out of the caddy and hand it to me. When that corrected the problem and restored the colour out of rainbow bands, I would put the worn-out tube back into the new tube’s box and hand it to Amy. She would put it back in the caddy upside-down, so I would know that I had to replace that one. She enjoyed being “useful”. One customer, seeing us for the second time, asked Amy, “Are you going to fix my T.V. to-day?”
“DADDY will do that — but I’m gonna HELP him.” Now my baby girl is nearing age sixty, and her mother is no longer with us (diabetes); where did all the years go?
Such detail in your response to me. Sounds like your daughter inherited some if your traits.
My foray into TV repairs were in early 70s, long since forgotten.
The other day, while in my youngest daughter’s garage, I saw my Moms little electonics tool box. With soldering iron, tester, some nut runners, etc.
When my Mom sold here house in 2002, she pulled from her closet, a commendation from LBJ. It was for contributions to the Apollo Space Program. She kept it hidden away for 30 years.
Typical of The Greatest Generation.
Our Dad piloted landing craft at D Day. He never talked about it. Once while watching a documentary, he commented……..
By second wave, were were bringing back as many injured as dropping off.
When my daughter was about 3 months old. She was on my lap looking right at me. And she was really tuned into me. I would turn my head side to side and she would do the same. I would nod my head up and down and she would do the same. I said mama and she said mama! She didn’t say mama again for several months. He first word was actually book. When about 3.5 years old she was really into whales and dolphins. When at the book store she picked up a $40 book (this was about 1991) and asked Mom to buy it for her. Being $40 she said ” when you can read that I will buy it for you. She promptly started reading the book. An astonished Mom bought the book. Katie called her bluff! She graduated college in three years while holding down a 30 hour a week job. (Running the office at a body shop.) Her college education cost Dad $0. She actually made money on grants and scholarships! YES, VERY PROUD! Her 10 year old daughter, besides pitching for her baseball team and competing in figure skating. Programs robots.
The thing that many younger people today miss out on is the conversations they could have with those older than them. We all could stand to learn from our elders. You have seen a lot and your parents and grandparents saw even more. The past 150 years have been remarkable and revolutionary. My stepmother’s father was born in 1891 and lived to be 103. To imagine all that he witnessed as a boy and young man.
From Kitty Hawk
Radio
The Depression
D Day
Television
To the Moon
Cell Phones and LapTops
What a life Lived !
One of my grandmothers was similar. She was born in 1897 and died in 2003. The only person I know who lived in 3 centuries!
Nice
To John M and Wayne: Our children were brilliant, but they did that on their own: we just watched and wondered. When Amy was about 19 months old, there was a boy about six who was getting frustrated because he could not back up a toy trailor-truck without jack-knifing it. So Amy showed him how to overcome that problem. She never had toy trucks and we had not taught her how, so to this day I have no idea how she figured that out on the spot. I do know that, when she believes she can do something, she does it successfully.My daughter initially wanted to be a lawyer, and she skipped grades, then completed college in three years at age 17 1/2. It didn’t hurt that she was home-schooled so that we could establish her values. But in the end, she decided that an attorney too often has to distort the truth in order to help a client: she became a psychologist.
John M: It is not hard to get them to learn. Just ask them if they want a drivers license. When the answer yes. Answer “you have to learn to drive a standard”!! At that age they still have to get you to sign for them to get their permit…. Once they learn it is like riding a bicycle and you never forget.
Both my kids KNEW they had to learn manual transmission because that’s all we had except the crew cab dually. (which they could never afford to feed)
The oldest (daughter) learned on my FJ40 doing vehicular landscaping (she was nine at the time. My son learned on my turbo Mustang doing burnouts! (14 at the time) And my wife wanted to know why my daughter knew about the red line cutout.
I like the way the rear bumper mirrors the taillights