Summary

Very rare, very few produced with 312/300hp V8 engine, fitted with a 4-barrel Holley carburetor, a McCulloch/Paxton VR57 centrifugal supercharger and automatic transmission.

Details

This very rare supercharged F-code 1957 Ford Fairlane 500 Skyliner has a retractable hardtop. It's equipped with a 312/300hp overhead-valve V8 engine, 4-barrel Holley carburetor, McCulloch/Paxton VR57 centrifugal supercharger, automatic transmission, power windows, power steering, power brakes and power seats. Spearheaded by Chief of Styling George W. Walker, the 1957 Fords successfully challenged the norm and won. In short, it was the impact of the company's 'equaflair' styling expressed in its most appealing Fairlane series that boosted Ford's reputation as a leader in car manufacturing. All of the refinements set forth in the new Fairlane helped to reassure buyers that they needn't look elsewhere. In 1957, the Dearborn assembly plant made a limited number of F-code 312ci Thunderbird V8 engines fitted with a 4-barrel carburetor and a McCulloch/Paxton centrifugal supercharger, and a special cylinder head was fitted to these engines to keep the compression ratio 8:5:1 so they could drive on regular pump gas. The F-code engine was available on the Skyliner as a factory option with either a manual or automatic transmission. In total, only seven Fairlane 500s were fitted with both F-code engine and retractable hardtop, making the example here exceptionally rare. The original owner campaigned the Skyliner at top-level drag races winning the National Championship for his class in 1957 and 1958. The Skyliner was treated to a full concours-quality restoration and shortly after began competing at International Ford Retractable Club and AACA National events, where it developed an unblemished show career, never achieving less than a first place finish. Today this Ford Fairlane 500 Skyliner is in exceptional condition. The extensive list of factory options and accessories found on the Skyliner includes front bumper guards, dual spotlights, windshield washers, Town & Country radio, factory clock, tissue dispenser, fender skirt shields, Continental kit, exhaust deflectors and back-up lights.