This Ford Landau Coupe is Rarer Than Hen's Teeth

That being said, I've noticed the car world works a bit differently. Here we find that the older, the rarer, the better. So what do you have to say about a 1 in 1385, 1973 Ford Landau Coupe?

You may or may not have heard of this model. If you're a car guy or gal, you have, if not, join the fun with us. As mentioned earlier, it's called a Landau Coupe. This model may seem strange to U.S. citizens and other world citizens. That's because it was only produced for the Australian market.

In 1973, the first of 1385 rolled off the assembly line, and most recently, one rolled off the auction lot at 70,000 AUD, just a little over 50 grand U.S. I always hate it when I find out late about something like this. Nonetheless, it's good news to see that these bad boys still exist and even run.

What you're looking at is that sold Landau. What we know about it is that pound for pound it's about 92 percent original. Starting with the exterior, we have the original paint job. Yes folks, after 47 long wet and hot summers, this Ford still has its original paint job. It's as if someone held it in a jar with formaldehyde all these years and remembered they have one in the basement.

Even the vinyl roof is still original. That being said, it's in excellent condition and needs absolutely no attention except from your eyes. The only exterior modification you'll find are aftermarket alloy wheels, but the original wheels and hubcaps came with the vehicle at the time of auction. The chrome accents around the wheel wells and undercarriage give you a perfect visual of the possibilities of that era.

The only issues that the auction house found with the car was a little bit of rust at the rear window, and some bubbled up rubber here and there.

The interior of the vehicle, once again, is all original. The lining and trim all basically untouched. It's as if this Ford put in 82,000 miles (132,000 km) with owners that could float in their seats. Even the flooring is original and looks like it's only been driven bare foot. Honestly, it's what you'd expect from a car sold at this price. The interior does have a small issue, however. The driver door is missing the mirror control and handle frame but are offered with the car in case you need a Saturday morning project.

About the engine, what can I say? Most cars like these have their bits changed and tampered with. After so many years, parts just inevitably give out. HA! Not on this sucker. The Ford even has its original matching numbers engine, fully inclusive of the Cleveland 351ci V8.

But, one owner just couldn't resist messing with this thing. Pacemaker extractors, an FMX transmission and a stage 2 shift kit have been added to the original parts, with a differential jump from 2.8:1 to 3.5:1. But if the new owner wishes to return the car to original standings, that's possible, as the car still has the original parts and are included in the purchasing.

One thing to mention is that the car is driven from the right side. It is for the Australian market after all.

The way I see it, there's two ways that the new owner of this car can take things, either pull it all back into pristine original shape or just tune the $#!^ out of it. Either way, this is simply one of those cars that could possibly end up in some museum as a representation for the Landau model.