I had been sitting on these pictures of this ’68 Galaxie 500 convertible since this past Memorial Day weekend, unsure of what exactly I wanted to say about it. It’s an impressive car and was in beautiful shape, but it wasn’t until a recent trip to the local thrift store that I found my inspiration. Browsing the two-for-a-dollar CD section at Green Element Resale, I stumbled across a handful of great finds, including The Best Of War…And More. Thankfully, there was also a selection of plastic CD racks for sale among the donated merchandise, the occasional purchase of which helps me keep things organized, 1990s-style. I’m old school.
I was never really into the band War before, even though I love lots of music from the ’70s, and across many genres. I was familiar with and liked some of their songs, a few of which have been included on some compilation albums I had picked up over the years. What appeals to me most about this band is their multi-ethnic, laid back, inclusive aura, which speaks to me, personally. Even with just some of their most familiar songs (“Cisco Kid”, “Low Rider”, “Why Can’t We Be Friends?” to name a few), I could understand their broad appeal across many audiences. It’s impossible to give their music one label. It’s not rock. It’s not R&B. It’s not just Latin-influenced. It’s all and none of those things, and all the more unique and special for it.
It wasn’t until I had purchased the second volume of the soundtrack to the movie 54 from ’98 (also from the same thrift store) that I come to appreciate War’s “Galaxy” from ’77. It’s an uptempo number that’s the closest thing to disco I’ve heard from this band. It was also their last song to make the top forty of the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, peaking at number 39. It was a bigger success on what was then called the Hot Soul Singles chart, rounding out the top five, and even on the UK singles chart, where it reached No. 14. This band ain’t cerebral, but that’s part of why I like them. It’s the lyrics of “Galaxy” for me:
Take me to your place in spaceI’m sick and tired of the rat raceOn rocket ship no time to waitI just want to gravitate
To see this ’68 Galaxie 500 rocket ship convertible parked at the curb with its top down and shiny, black paint, chrome trim, and custom wheels gleaming in the sun was a gasp-inducing moment. It may sound cliché to say that something took one’s breath away, but this car did exactly that to me. Any full-sized convertible would have presence (this car is 213.3 inches long on a 119″ wheelbase, and 78″ wide), but somehow in Raven Black, it seemed to have even more gravitas than if it was in some other, more cheery or subdued color.
What I like about full-size Fords from the ’60s is that they have space program imagery built right into their stylistic details, with taillamps that resembled afterburners whether they were perfectly round or oblong-shaped, and little dingbat and star motifs often sprinkled into the mix. The taillamps on this ’68, combined with the dual exhaust tips protruding under the rear bumper, do really make this car look like it’s hurtling through space toward another galaxy. The panel between the taillamps also resembles some sort of exhaust grille.
About its name, “Galaxie” had always seemed like one of those deliberate, gotta-be-different misspellings that were so popular for consumer products and chemical compounds from around that time period. I was today years old (that is, on the day if this writing) when I learned that there had been a Ford “La Galaxie” show car from ’58 that had preceded the introduction of the actual Galaxie by one year. The La Galaxie was not at all predictive of the ’59 production car, but I was satisfied to know that this was where the model name came from. “Galaxie” is, of course, the French spelling of the word. What was it with companies adding French articles to the names of their cars? The “Le” in “LeSabre” held on all the way through swan-song 2005. Let’s also not forget the Dodge “La Femme” from ’55 and ’56. I’m glad the article was left off the Galaxie.
Sixty-eight marked a return from stacked headlights, introduced for ’65, to a more traditional, horizontal placement. I do like the look of some cars with vertical headlamp placement, even if it’s not my favorite. The big Fords of the ’60s wore that fad reasonably well, even if it instantly dates this car as being a product of its time period. However, the front of the ’68 looks like a homework assignment that was completed at 11:30 PM the night before it was due.
The headlights on the ’68 remind me of those googly eyes that get glued onto the faces of puppets, with those little black dots inside that move about. There’s a little bit of scoopy sculpture to the grille, and the raised power dome of the hood adds some dimension, but aside from those elements, its just looks like generic “car” and as anodyne as can be. I find nothing wrong with its muscular, purposeful side sculpting, modest hips, and detailed rear panel.
Ford built over 1,753,000 cars for ’68, of which 867,300 (almost exactly half) were full-sized, between the entry-level Custom, Galaxie 500, LTD, and wagons which included the Ranch Wagon, Country Sedan, and Country Squire. About 395,400 of the full-sizers (46%) were Galaxie 500s, and of those, just 11,800 or so were non-XL convertibles, with the ultimate XL soft-top selling just under 6,100 units.
There were just two permutations of full-size Ford that year that sold fewer copies than our featured car: the XL convertible, and the Custom 500 two-door sedan, with 9,000 units. Of Ford’s full-sized soft-top competition, only about 24,700 ’68 Chevy Impalas and only 7,000 Plymouth Furys were sold, which reflects the general trend away from convertibles by the late ’60s.
Getting back to War and what is one of their best-known songs, “Low Rider” from ’75, I can’t recall ever having seen any ’68 Galaxie made into such a vehicle, though I know I’ve seen many ’68 Impalas with this treatment, even if I can’t tell you where or when. Even conducting a quick internet search for ’68 “low rider” editions of both cars, I could find only a handful of (and I mean a few) Galaxies versus a bucket-load of Impalas. Why is this? Aside from its slightly generic front end, I think the ’68 Galaxie gives up nothing in terms of style to the Impala and is every bit as worthy of mild customization.
As for this gleaming black example,
It’s out of sight, it’s out of sightIt’s out of sight, it’s out of sightGone, it’s gone
…And gone, it was, just like this summer.
Andersonville, Chicago, Illinois.
Sunday, May 28, 2023.
Memorial Day weekend.
“Galaxy” Songwriters: Charles Miller / Gerald Goldstein / Harold Brown / Howard Scott / Lee Levitin / Lonnie Jordan / Morris Dickerson / Thomas Allen
I was spoiled by owning a 67 Galaxie 500 convertible, and the 68 has always struck me as the same car with all of the personality sanded off. I don’t think there is a single detail on the 68 that is not inferior to the corresponding spot on the 67. That said, this car does look nice as a black convertible (with the wheel upgrade). This is probably about as good as a 68 Galaxie 500 gets.
The taillights – I guess I can kind of see the jet tubes. However, they have always reminded me of the light that has shined in my mouth at every dentist office I have ever been to.
This is how associations are formed.
Exactly. But the light I had in mind was more like this:
I can’t help but mourn the buckets-and-console 500/XL. I know you could still order the pieces separately, and most anyone who wanted a pseudo-sporty car in 1968 was buying pony cars or hot intermediates instead, but the earlier 500/XL had an appealing touch of pseudo-Thunderbird glitz. By comparison, this 500 is starting to seem a little too plain.
After reading both your comment and JP’s above, I had to look at pictures of earlier 500s (with their stacked headlamps, etc.), and I can sort of see a little bit of visual decontenting in the ’68. I like what you described as a bit of Thunderbird on the earlier cars.
Compare the interior of the photo car with the 500/XL convertible in the ’64 brochure:
https://www.oldcarbrochures.org/United%20States/Ford/1964_Ford/1964-Ford-Full-Size-brochure/slides/1964_Ford_Full_Size-08-09.html
The ’68 is probably more practical and a little safer (first FMVSS requirements took effect in 1968), but the sense of occasion is mostly gone.
That’s a handsome car. I wrote in comments to another article last week that Fords of this generation always remind me of fleet cars, but here I’ll note that a strong exception to that (for me) are the convertibles. I think they’re quite classy in their kind of flat angle way. The space-age accents and the space names only added to a kind of rocket scientist/science allure that these kind of convey. (NASA probably had many of the sedan versions in their agency motor pool)
I think that there’s probably a goodly amount of research and writing that can be (has been?) done as to why these didn’t hit it big among the low rider modification crowd; and much of that probably had to do with the relative popularity of Fords vs. GM (Chevrolets in particular) among different markets in different parts of the country. It would seem to me that those seeking to create low riders would work with what they had most commonly (and inexpensively) available…and were there more used full size Chevys than Fords available in Southern California in the post-war years when low rider culture started to emerge? And once something like that gets going, it has a life of its own I suppose. Anyhow, I’m sure that much has been written about that, I am just not familiar with the literature.
Neat find as always!
Jeff, the topic you write about in the second paragraph is something I’d be very interested to read. The world is a much different place now, and I’d also wonder if the reason for the popularity of Chevrolet as a low rider (versus Ford) had at least a few roots in something else. Very interesting food for thought that you’ve presented.
Your last photo of the departing Galaxie with the golden arches to port is all I need to see to be taken back to the real sweet spot of such a beautiful convertible, that is cruising to the local burger and shake place, all seats filled with friends, enjoying the unhealthy food (no worries when one is young), with the key in the “ACC” setting listening to the background AM sounds of summer.
No interest if the car is fast or not, corners well or not, gets good mileage or not, is safe or not, has cup holders or not, or has off road pretensions or not.
What is important is the time spent in the sun with the top down, with friends laughing at dumb jokes, eating tasty food, drinking overly sweet shakes, and hearing the soft V8 Ford burbling through the twin exhausts when departing this temporary paradise.
Some memories last longer than others; some remain forever.
This Galaxie is a perfectly maintained memory machine.
This was so evocative that I remember reading it twice over my lunch break today. This is the stuff I dream about. I also remember enjoy driving to Dairy Queen in my freshly detailed Mustang on weekends and what it felt like to (very carefully) enjoy good-tasting food in my most prized possession.
The death and passing of the full-size domestic convertible was sad. Chrysler and Ford ended their big convertibles by 1971 with GM hanging onto most of their cars through 1975. Yeah, there was still the FWD Eldorado/Riviera, then the Sebring, but they just weren’t the same.
I was really hoping that the 2002 Bel Air concept or, better still, the Marauder convertible, made production, but economic forces killed them both. The Bel Air lost out to the lame SSR quasi-convertible retro-pickup, while the Marauder was a casualty of the poor sales of the last, retro Thunderbird.
Interestingly, it was possible to get one of the last 2023 Challengers as a convertible via a Dodge dealer. But the cost was quite high (a stout $26k on top of the new donor car) and it was a special-order, only, type deal.
I have actually seen one of those Challenger convertibles on the road, and they are *Sharp*, even if way more expensive than I would consider, if I had the means. I also thought the original 2002 Marauder convertible concept was very, very cool.
The last full sized Ford convertible was the 1972 LTD. I know, because I so wanted one of those when I had my ‘73.
I don’t think the Thunderbird had anything to do with the fact that the Marauder convertible didn’t make it to production. The Marauder’s design was set well before they knew if the Thunderbird was a success or failure. I doubt there was any serious consideration given to put it into production since they would had to have been hand built and thus super expensive. I do wish it had made it into production, if it did there almost certainly would be one in my collection since I’m both a Panther and Convertible fan.
Joseph, always look forward to Tuesday mornings, featuring your articles. And latest CC finds.
Perhaps it is my personal biases, but from my childhood, I have regularly considered full-sized Fords some of the most serious full-sized domestic cars from the early ’60s through the ’80s. Both in their styling and image. I most closely associate them with law enforcement as well. So, I never really made any association to them being popular with youth, or young people with a working-class background. Even with shows like Starsky and Hutch.
War’s ability to adapt to various styles and eras of music, always impressed me. Could tell they were influenced by Kool and the Gang, Rick James, the Dazz Band (Let it Whip), and funk, by the early ’80s. Great band!
Thank you, Daniel! I’m not familiar with ’80s War, but this is definitely and unambiguously in the vein of R&B and funk of the day, versus their ’70s output, which was more a combination of styles. I like it all.
About Starsky & Hutch, I recently found season 2 on DVD and have been watching. It has given me a genuine “like” of the Gran Torino of that era, which, honestly, never did all that much for me. The car appears, and almost involuntarily, I have found myself saying, “GRAN TORINO!”
1982’s ‘Outlaw’ should have been bigger.
The WAR Low Rider intro to the 1978 film Up In Smoke always makes me smile.
Cheech’s pride and joy “Love Machine” and the way the credits are introduced on the C pillar and front/left fender are wonderful as the Chevy with a mismatched door gets a loving dust down with the proud owner’s hat.
Their sound always remained commercial, as they spanned over a decade, with their success. From soul, to R&B, and funk.
‘Galaxy’ could almost be described as a very early rap/hip hop sound. Predating early iconic rap tunes like, ‘Rapper’s Delight’, ‘The Breaks’, and ‘Genius of Love’.
Waay attractive ride. The wheels go with it well. Like the “wheelcovers look” of the one in the brochure ad more though.
I also thought the aftermarket wheels were an inspired choice. The overall presentation of the car was really appealing.
I’ve always hated the “Galaxie” (mis)spelling, but now that I know that it is French in origin, I hate it a little less.
I still hate it, though.
Tom, the name always nagged me, too. I was always like, Why? But now we know.
Two for a dollar?? That’s a good price. I regularly peruse the CD bins at thrift stores around here and they are either $1 or $2, depending on the store and day. I also need some more plastic CD organizers, being a devotee of 90’s style organization (though I also rip my new CDs onto my computer and phone, 21st century style).
Any big American 60s convertible is way cool these days, so the 68 Galaxie deserves its day in the sun here and would make a great companion on a summer day. I will say the cloudy thought that the 68 Ford is one of my least favorite. In my view, that was the year Ford went all in on the LTD approach and styled the full size cars to look good as an LTD and just look cheap and boring as anything else. Perhaps to influence as many people as possible to choose the LTD?
Chevys have always been the most popular cars with lowriders, no idea why. Especially the 63-64, though just about any 60s big Chevy 2 door hardtop or convertible will do. Never Mopar, never sedan, never midsize, rarely Ford.
The secondhand CD prices both at Green Element and also at the Brown Elephant across the street in some of these photos are ridiculously great. I’m buying $0.50 CDs in good condition that might have cost me $15 five or ten years ago.
And poor Mopars never seem to get any lowrider love. I’m sure that makes some purists happy, but I’m an equal opportunity auto enthusiast.
I know! I have a hard time even paying “full” used price these days. I’m spoiled by $1 CDs!
The most ridiculous American use of the french
pronoun ‘La’ or ‘Le’ for a car goes to AMC for LeCar with regard to the Renault 5 . A ( ‘une’ voiture , pas ‘un’ voiture ) car in French is féminine. Here in QC fortunately it has retained its name La Cinq (‘5’). as well in the ( simply Renault 5 ) ROC…rest of canada . Even the French, to do the same , who was fueled by the American trend produced this , below : LeCar Van (inspired by 1977 Ford Pinto Cruising Wagon)
with the wrong personal pronoun.
And so many U.S. citizens probably could never pronounce “Renault” correctly. I had a college friend who once corrected me: “It’s ‘Re-NAWLT’, Joe.”
A spectacular sunny day find! While this example is resplendent in its black on black color scheme, I think back to the hot, sweaty and sticky vinyl seats of my 1960s and 70s youth, I am led to wonder whether that black vinyl upholstery would be comfortable on a warm summer day. As I recall, that was a prime reason so many convertibles of the era had white upholstery even if the exterior was painted a dark color.
I do agree with the above comments expressing preferences for the 1965-67 versions, and I would never turn down a 1970 XL convertible. I also agree that the 1968-69 models were transitions to full-blown the LTD Brougham style and just don’t find them as attractive as the more pure forms that existed before and after.
As for CDs, a recent major house cleaning unearthed most of my CD collection and I must say I am enjoying the rediscovery of many not-so-old favorites. Thanks for bringing War to my attention…I’ve listened to a compilation of their greatest hits this morning. I had forgotten how eclectic and innovative their music was. Your thrift shop expedition sounds like a perfect way to spend a leisurely Saturday morning, pun intended!
“I am led to wonder whether that black vinyl upholstery would be comfortable on a warm summer day.”
It is absolutely not. I speak from experience, and always kept a couple of old beach towels to lay on the seat for summer top-down weather. Short pants and skillet-temperature black vinyl seats were a really bad combination on a hot, sunny day.
Thank you, William! Even the burgundy vinyl in my family’s ’77 Plymouth Volaré got super hot. Now that I think about it, the ’71 Duster my dad drove had black vinyl and regularly scorched the legs.
I recently read an article about how many are collecting CDs again. I am so very happy I have kept mine, and will continue to collect. Of course, they’re all ripped to my computer and backed up, in addition to loaded into an MP3 player so I can keep my phone free.
Music brings me so much joy, and the fact that I can pick up new-to-me music for next-to-nothing makes me smile just thinking about it.
Back in the ’70’s I had friends who were in a Low Rider club. Almost everyone in that club had GM cars, mostly Chevys; Impalas, Caprices, and Monte Carlos, but a few Buicks, usually Rivieras,and a few Pontiacs, like Grand Prixs. I went to many Low Rider events and an occasional big Ford would show up. Low Riders were a continuation of the Kustom Kar culture of the 50’s that was embraced primarily by Mexican Americans, who kept the culture alive after it fell from mainstream popularity. We Chicanos certainly favored Chevrolets over any other make at the time.
It’s the acceptance of the Lincoln Mark and Town Cars that brought Ford into the Low Rider fold. Town Cars and Cadillac Broughams are the most commonly available big cars that are still around.
Thank you for this. I’m trying to think of whether I’ve seen any Lincoln Marks or Town Cars with the low-rider treatment. And now, thanks to your comment, I understand that Kustom Kulture was actually a thing and now I have to learn more.
On October 15, 1066, the Normany Invasion occurred. Since then, our English has been peppered with French. You see, the French ruled, so anything French was given the royal treatment. Even today, we use French to give anything a sheen of elegance. So our cars are DeLux, we drive Sedans, and Coupes, we had Royale, Elegance, deVille, Monaco, Parisienne, Biscayne, HECK, we call the Automobiles – for crying out loud! You think that’s English? LOL! Since 10/15/1066, it kind of is. 1/3rd of our English is Latin-derived, thanks to our loss to the Normans.
This actually brought a lot back from high school history class, and the France’s general impact on English-speaking countries, including this one. Well observed and stated.
I believe the reason we don’t see many of these Fords is because they rusted fast and thoroughly. You can’t have too many low riders without floor pans.
Another nice old Ford .
I like the subdued looks .
The front bumper ends kinda look like mini Dagmars .
Old Fords always came with severely restricted exhausts to make them quieter, re plumbing this one and adding a crossover would make it breathe easier and sound nice .
-Nate
Good looking Ford find there Joseph. Like the War reference, I was 15 in 1975 when the song “Low Rider” was out. Ironically, in a sort of internal CC Effect, there was a post of some cool pictures later on this day that featured a whole bunch of 1964 Impalas, which to me was always the quintessential “Low Rider”. Of course the picture was from ‘64, so these cars had not yet been converted. Someone commented that they were lined up like rental cars at that airport. I doubt it, as rentals tend to be lower trimmed models like a BelAir. Or this Galaxie, if it wasn’t a convertible… segue…
While this is a really nice car, for that year I prefer the LTD/XL trim level and its hidden headlights. But even that one looked plain. The ‘69 and ‘70 were big improvements over the ‘68, IMHO.
The hidden headlight treatment on the upscale models was a definite aesthetic upgrade. I’m sure the ultra-plain front of the basic ’68 was a deliberate attempt at the upsell. And yes, I also think of early- to mid-’60s Chevys as prototypical low-riders.
There was a World’s Fair in Belgium in 1958, Expo 58. Ford advertised their product with the fair in the backdrop particularly with the Atomium. The French awarded Ford a medal. That’s probably how the name Galaxie came about.
Thank you for linking this. I have also recently watched a retro commercial for a ’59 Ford, where an “award” for its styling came from Rome. I mean, before the internet, I’m sure people just said, “Okay!”. I love old car videos / productions like this.
I suspect one of the reasons for Chevrolet’s dominance of the low rider world is just engineering.
If you just want to lower the car, that is fairly simply in most cases, but if you want adjustability with hydraulics or air bags, a coil spring set up is the easiest to convert. Chevy went to rear coils in the ’50s (1958?) while Ford stuck with rear leafs until ’65 and Chrysler all the way into the ’80s. The Mopar torsion bar front suspensions are particularly complicated to convert, so are quite rare as low riders.
Dan, thank you for providing the mechanical insight I never would have even begun to think of. This all sounds like it makes total sense. Another mystery solved!
I agree with Dan, much easier to cut down a coil spring than to drop a leaf spring setup with lowering blocks, or removing leafs, of reversing the spring eyes. I lowered a couple of cars in the past just using a good hacksaw! Back when the flathead Ford V8 ruled in the 1940’s, the Classic Kustom tail draggers were Fords or Mercurys, which had leaf springs. These were “static drop” cars, that sat low, but not did not have any adjustabilty. In the 70’s hydraulic lifts gained popularity, and they could be more easily be adapted to a coil spring suspension. Now custom builders use air bags that allow them to raise and lower their cars.
My 68 Ford XL convertible is one of less than 20 known to exist
A nice looking car till the rear end shot. I really detest straight out exhaust tips on a car. Cheap and tacky looking.
Here in So. Cal. there are many Ford based Low Riders, mostly older Hispanic men .
-Nate
Wow, what a memory blast. I was 15 when these came out, and while not as attractive as the .67s, I still thought they were a good looking car. Fast forward 10 years, and I picked up a used one for $250 in the summer of ’78. Green XL with black top and black interior. Not too bad condition for a 10 year old Ford in Northern Illinois. Found a good front seat, and a factory AM/FM for it. Cleaned up nice, and with a set of slotted aluminum mags, was a good looking beast. Used to take it out on hot summer nights, cruising empty country back roads. My girlfriend at the time liked to sit on the back of the front seat, leaning on the top of the windshield while we drove around with no particular destination. She and the car both topless, definitely brings back good memories.
As Chuck Berry said : “no particular place to go”………
-Nate