Put your seatbelts on for this one. Or, maybe some of you will need sunglasses… This creation is a 1980 Ford Fairmont custom and it’s… interesting, to say the least. It’s here on craigslist in New Richmond, Wisconsin with an asking price of $2,000 and the seller says, “CALLS ONLY”.
From this angle this looks like a fairly normal Fairmont Futura, nice, crisp, clean. You can see the reverse hood scoop and the knockoff wheel covers, but other than that it looks great to me. The Fairmont was made for the 1978 to 1983 model years and by 1983 the lone model was the two-door Futura. Is that a red back seat and a white or tan passenger seat?
Unfortunately, there are no engine or interior photos, which is always a head-scratcher for me, but the seller says that it has the 200 cubic-inch Thriftmaster inline-six and it also has a fairly unique transmission: a 3-speed manual on the floor, with overdrive. Cool. There is no rust on this car, according to the seller. It really does looks like a nice car. Are you ready for the big reveal?
Annnnnnnd, here we go! I can see where they got the idea for the Continental kit on this car, the Futura was almost meant to have that option, wasn’t it? Well, maybe not, but in the 1950s, Fords had a similar “basket handle” look on the Crown Victoria and the Continental kit elongated the low, sleek look that was so popular then. If a person were looking for a really unique, inexpensive car with an equally unique transmission, this one is hard to beat. What are your thoughts on this Futura custom?
*absolutely speechless*
awesome, but he’s gonna have to give me more than 2 grand for it.
I think there may be a little cash left in this deal. Lose the continental kit, replace the wheel covers, lose the skirts and I wouldn’t be surprised if it brought $3000. I don’t know about the mismatched seats though.
Hi guys! I am the current owner of this beauty!!! I have removed the “clown kit” – continental kit and skirts. The seats are all matching – those were just sheepskin seat covers. This bad boy runs out well with the 200 ci 6 and the 4 spd manual! Gave it a tune up,fuel pump and new tires! She’s a head turner!
I agree. Without the continental kit, it’s not that bad. Even the stripe job works for me, in an 80’s sort of way.
Ugh, this whole series from Ford has all the excitement of a window air conditioner.
This “customization” actually decrease the value of this 1980 Ford Fairmont. Keep in mind that it is very difficult to decrease the value of something that is worth all but nothing to stat with…………….
Sunglasses? Blindfold!
It’s said in politics there are a number of people (no names named) that are a dumb person’s idea of what a smart person sounds like.
This is a _____ (no adjectives named) person’s idea of what a classy person’s car looks like.
Did I do it right? 😉
And for sheer outlandishness alone I kind of admire it. Almost.
nicely done!
Love the engine and the transmission as it is the exact same as what I had in my old reliable 1979 Mercury Zephyr station wagon. As for the above featured Futura Shock, this crate is just screaming to be sent to National Coach Works and converted into a Ford Durango pickup!
EXACTLY what i was thinking!
“What has been seen………..cannot be unseen”
We had a black Futura with a tan vinyl top. It had a 351 in it, my grandfather bought it new………that car hauled butt.
Great, a Wisconsin car,,,I’m surprised there aren’t any “how many suitcases( 30 paks) did it take to make THIS one” jokes,,,yet. Truth is, a 1980 ANYTHING is amazing in Wisconsin. Couple things would have to go, for me, but it’s a really nice car. For 1/10th of a “jellybean” you could have a neat 80’s styled car, and this is about as 80’s as you’re gonna get. Great find.
p.s., I don’t mean to continually pick on Wisconsin, but it still has one of the highest drunk driving rates in the country. I don’t drink, but drinking in Wisconsin is a way of life. Something one dances around. A guy was recently arrested for his TENTH DUI charge ( not all from Wis) It’s one of the few states, you can buy a bottle of Jack Daniels at 2am at the local Kwikymart. A friend visiting from NY was amazed by that.
On it’s own the styling of the ’80 Futura is hard to bear. In this dime store drag it is really awful. Nothing here to see folks. Never ceases to amaze me the time and effort (and $$) people put into some cars. Just wow.
New Richmond is about 35 min. from me, and I’m still not going…
Does not do a thing for me.
Hi 86, no surprise there. This is about as opposite from a Corvette as you can get. Still, for not much money, you can have a decent car to get TO the Corvette. :)
Could be a cheap car too have fun with !Get rid of the skirts and continentail kit and put a strong 302 our 351 and take out the 3 speed and put in a 4 our 5 speed
Some white stripe tires like the spare and I’d drive it. Cover the seats with mexi blankets to make them all match. Front seat looks like a sheepskin type cover. The wilder the better. Or zebra stripe covers all around… if you’re gonna go tacky, then go big or go home. And I’d go big. Of course, my wife keeps me in check. This would never come to our house.
Maybe some 50’s flipper wheel covers? I don’t know, it’s such an odd piece. The graphics look like a conversion setup, with the conti kit and skirts. hard to imagine this one being backyard engineered.
Take the goofy garbage off and you’ve got a light car that could be a lot of fun with the right engine/transmission combo. Bob Glidden terrorized many a drag strip with a Futura.
A hood scoop and a continental kit? Might as well put a Superbird wing on it too.
I don’t know how they missed that! A glaring oversight in an otherwise smashing vehicle.
i just threw up in my mouth a little
Just a little? I had to call my office’s environmental services.
like 2000 in dollars?
I had an 80 Futura with a 200ci and 3 spd/wod. I wish back then I had this kind of imagination.
Just needs a Rolls Royce grill and you’d have a budget pimpmobile!
FUGLY! But, depending on the generation the owner grew up in, this could be one person’s idea of a cruising custom ala 55 Ford Crown Victoria. Heck, my father put a Packard flying lady hood ornament on the hood of a Corvair. Totally unfitting but he thought it was proper “accessorizing.”
Always wanted one of these. Add a Fox era Mustang GT drivetrain and front clip, add a roof and tailgate from a Fairmont wagon, and voila, a MusMad or NoTang! (Mustang Nomad)
Take the continental kit and the fender skirts off, put some wheels on it and I’d drive it.
People can hate on the continental kit all they want but it probably saved the tail lights from being damaged all these years and those lenses are almost impossible to get these days.
I am sure somebody will buy it and send it to Mecum or Barret-Jackson. I mean I have seen 1990 Ford trucks going through there reaching 5 digits.
A friend of mine almost bought a new one in 1980 and thank goodness he came to his senses.
I had the same reaction as AMXSteve, but then I saw that this thing was in Wisconsin, and the guy don’t do teknolagee (rotary phone on his workbench next to the kitchen stove) and it all made sense. Dang packer fans…..
HI gregg, sadly, you’re not too far off. I have neighbors that can’t use a cell phone ( not that there’s any towers anyway) much less computers. Where a good working chainsaw is almost more important than a good woman( or any woman for that matter) They seem to embrace that, as kind of a “holdout” to modern society. It’s very frustrating dealing with them, but they are happy that way, so who am I to say. They miss out on a lot, but don’t seem to care. For example, a neighbor friend came over, needs a new water heater ( no computer) so he says, “looks like I’ll have to drive around, or make some long distance calls”, I said, “here, we’ll look on the computer for the best price”. He said, “you can do that”? Some areas don’t even have high-speed internet yet. Obviously I do, but it’s thru the local phone co.
This reminds me of the newer Charger I saw in Gatlinberg,Tenn.,
that had a homemade Daytona wing on it.
Hey, maybe I should put a continental kit on my Durango! NOT!
The comment on the tail lights is right on. I Think that I have the last tail lamp on the planet that it not broken. (and not currently installed on a non-driving vehicle) And it is from the Mercury version!
Yeah, about a year ago I found a mint complete taillight assembly in a local Pick and Pull – the cashier charged me for a single taillight $28.00
but it’s a Ford version. I much prefer the looks of the Zephyr taillights and hopefully I can find one someday. I have one of the corner lenses for a Zeph but that’s it.
I sell reproduction turn signals and other lights for the Fairmonts and people are asking me all the time about the Futura lights. I just don’t know anybody that are reproducing them.
Yeah Miguel, I got excited when I found the Fairmont taillights were being reproduced but bummed when I found out nothing for the Futura coupe. Makes sense now that I know they weren’t sold in Mexico.
But I think there would be a market for them in the US – whether it would be big enough, I dont know.
You can park it in the hood, unlocked with the keys in the ignition, and
it will be there when you come back.
Sadly, they seem to have forgotten to add lake pipes. Bummer.
good solid car owned one of them back in the 1990’s. Better than that tub called the tempo. Not spectacular but my futura gave a good five years service before dying.
No. Oh hell no
I’m surprised that the guy hasn’t put dual antennas with coon tails on the back fenders, half a dozen chrome stars along the bottom of those fender skirts, and dual front fender rearview mirrors on this! Oh yeah — can’t forget those louvered rear window covers either —— and of course, chrome-plated headlight visors.
My Dad used to say, “jack up the radiator cap and run a new car under it, then all it’ll need is a new radiator cap.” Very applicable here. Although, SOMEBODY has to say that as a fox platform car, anything made for the same era Mustang will likely fit.
FROM the custom car capital of America… Wisconsin!…..
One of the few worse than this I’ve seen was a Mustang in Vermont that was labeled with peel-off stick-on mailbox letters.
Silly, but kinda cute in a weird way. Something an old guy like me might drive thinkin’ it was pretty dang cool while others looked at me and thought–you must be crazy. Like the Lincoln platform rig, I would buy it and park it a friend’s driveway while they were away, and upon their return would wonder ” What the hell?”