When it comes to Ford Falcons, Bob Navratil says they hold a special place in his heart. His very first car was a four-door 1961 Ford Falcon featuring a 144-cubic-inch 6-cylinder engine with ‘three on the tree.’ That Falcon was his high school car and he was the only one in his group of friends who had a car. He says they went everywhere in that car—until the engine blew.

Bob says he found an engine from a Maverick, a larger 200-cubic-inch 6-cylinder with only 4,000 miles on it. The engine swap only took a day, and he and his Falcon was back on the road again. Bob had that car for ten years and has fond memories—until it broke in half, due to rust issues.

Over the years, life moves on: work, family, job, and everything life has to throw at you. About ten years ago, Bob decided that he wanted to rekindle his youth and give himself a retirement gift! He started looking for another Falcon, a “round body,” as Bob calls it, but he also wanted it to be a convertible.

Bob searched the internet for a couple of years. Either he was the second bidder, or they were too expensive. Bob says he’d noticed a particular car before. It was completely stock. The reserve was never met, so he kept looking. Someone had finally bought it and did a “restomod” job on it. The car was listed on eBay in Jacksonville, Florida, so Bob bought it in good faith and had it shipped to his home in Illinois.

While the 1963-1/2 Falcon Sprint had some issues, Bob says he did not see anything major at first. The first thing he found was that he couldn’t drive it a mile without it overheating. It was a quick fix; the thermostat was installed backwards. Another issue was that the turn signals didn’t work. Bob had to replace the switch and wiring in the steering column, eventually changing the column, too.

The 1963-1/2 Falcon Sprint was a sportier model than the standard Falcon. It had more chrome, bucket seats, a wood-grained steering wheel, console, and a tachometer on the dash, plus a 260-cubic-inch V8 engine. Being more performance-oriented, even the suspension was beefier than the stock model. It was also the first Falcon Convertible.

During the restoration done by the previous owner, the drivetrain was replaced with a high-performance, 302-cubic-inch engine, a Comp Cam, Edelbrock intake, and a Holley 670 CFM Street Avenger, 4-barrel Carburetor. The ignition has been upgraded to a Pertronix setup. It has Flowtech shorty headers and 2-inch pipes, with Magnaflow mufflers.

To keep it cool, the radiator has been replaced with an aluminum unit and an electric fan. The original 2-speed automatic transmission was replaced with a 4-speed automatic, with overdrive. The differential assembly is a Heidt’s, 4-link setup and an Eaton Truetrac Posi traction unit, with a 3.25:1 gear ratio.

The suspension is all upgraded with a Hiedt’s front end setup, with a Mustang II manual steering rack and pinion assembly. All four corners have coil-over shocks. The brakes are another upgrade, power disc brakes up front and 10-inch drums in the back. The wheels are 15-inch, “Mustang type,” polished aluminum with black painted spokes. The tires are 21560R/15’s up front, with 25560R/15, on the rear.

Bob enjoys driving his Falcon on the expressway on Sunday mornings, where he can cruise along without much traffic. He loves the way it handles and responds, “it drives great!” Bob goes to a few cruise nights throughout the week. He prefers them over car shows that can be too long and too hot!

Bob has won a few trophies, mainly at cruise nights. He feels that his car is very nice, but can’t compete with the cars with the big engines and fancier paint jobs. That’s okay, he’s happy with his Falcon. He explains that the Falcon was a people’s car, and people stop with stories of the past and about the Falcons that they’ve owned.

If you have a car you would like to see featured in Classic Wheels, contact Rudy Host, Jr. at Classic.Wheels.Rudy@gmail.com.