NEW PRICE! 40,371 original miles, original Y8-coded Super Duty engine, TH400 automatic, A/C, power windows, 8-track. Same owner since 1975. Fully documented, manuals, receipts. Incredible Super Duty survivor!
Code C Cameo White is this car’s original color, so when the time came for a respray in 2002, there was no question what color they’d use. Given the car’s care, mileage, and overall condition, the freshening didn’t require any major surgery save for repairs to the bottom of one of the doors and one or two patches in the quarters, but no wholesale panel replacement. It had been used, not abused. The bare-metal respray was done with an eye towards authenticity, so single stage paint was selected as it would most closely mirror the original General Motors enamel. It was sanded and buffed, but not to perfection, leaving enough texture in the finish to convince onlookers that they were looking at vintage 1974 paint. The illusion is extremely convincing and if I had instead told you that this was original paint, even the experts would probably believe me. There are no tape lines, no botched bodywork, no evidence of repairs, although I might suggest that the gaps are probably better than they were back in 1974. Either way, the car looks exactly right.
The blue bucket seat interior is 100% original, including the carpets, and shows you what nearly five decades of care can do. Sure, there might be some light fading on the carpets and dash pad, but it’s quite minor, there’s a scuff on the driver’s door, and the driver’s seat might have some comfort marks, but there are really very few nits to pick inside this car. You’ll quickly spot the long list of options that came with this car, including factory A/C, power windows, an 8-track player, and a center console. The gauges are all fully operational save for the oil pressure gauge, which seems to be pinned at the high end of the scale. I don’t know if you have any 8-track tapes laying around, but that’s another neat ‘70s feature that makes this car special. I’m guessing that nobody’s ever been in the back seat, as the upholstery looks brand new and the trunk is still outfitted with its original mat, jack assembly, and unused original spare with inflator bottle!
But the real reason this car is special is under the hood, where you’ll find the original Y8 coded 455 cubic inch Super Duty V8. The stories you’ve heard about these engines are largely true—they were virtually hand-assembled from the best parts. This engine has never been apart, but it was detailed while the car was being painted and like the bodywork, special care was taken to preserve originality and keep it looking as authentic as possible. There’s Pontiac Turquoise engine enamel on the block and heads, the giant air cleaner is fitted with new rubber (you’ll note the block-off plate on the scoop has been removed which makes a tangible improvement in performance), and there are new soft parts throughout which all use correct clamps to hold them in place. Turn the key and it fires quickly and idles nicely, even when cold, a good indication of careful tuning at work. On the street, there’s a big swell of torque available at virtually any speed and even with an automatic and highway-friendly gears, this sucker feels like it wants to run.
Automatic cars received the same engine as 4-speed machines, but they differed in the rear gears, where automatics with A/C got 3.08 cogs to minimize wear and tear on the A/C compressor. The TH400 is virtually bulletproof and this is the car’s original transmission. This car was fully undercoated when it was new, which did great things for preserving the floors, but it was messy, so during the repaint the bottom of the car was painstakingly cleaned, removing all the sticky black tar and leaving the original finishes and sheetmetal intact. That’s original red oxide primer, although it has been clear-coated to keep it looking fresh virtually indefinitely. A new exhaust system with a proper transverse muffler was installed, there are new shocks at all four corners, all the lines and hoses are fresh, and pretty much anything you need to service was serviced to put this Super Duty in top condition. There’s a limited slip in the heavy-duty 10-bolt rear end and it’s still correctly tagged. Factory Rally II wheels with polished trim rings were standard equipment, with this one wearing 225/70/15 Firestone radials.
Very nicely documented with PHS paperwork, window sticker, original manuals, and a stack of receipts for maintenance and restoration work, this is a Super Duty with a bulletproof pedigree and an awesome history.
If you like cars with a story to tell, the Super Duty is a great choice. The fact that it even exists is somewhat of a miracle, and you’ll own one of the very nastiest of all the muscle cars—just one that happened to be built a little bit after the day of the muscle car had ended. How cool is that?
