1965 Ford Ranchero - Road Race Ranchero

1965 Ford Ranchero - Road Race Ranchero
http://images.hotrod.com/featuredveh..._ranchero+.jpgGuys who eschew the norm are cool, but the ones who tap-dance all over it and bring a sense of style and nastiness to uncommon cars are our Dare to Be Different heros. Just about everything has been drag raced at some point, but the elite club of cars that have been prepped for severe road racing is much more selective. All the more reason to break out of the routine of expected platforms and create something new, we say. But there is a delicate balance to strike when treading into that territory. A phantom car is cool and is a great way to let your imagination run wild, but it has to give off the right hard-core vibe or it's just another poser.
When we first happened upon this little Ranchero at a SoCal car show, it caught our eye with its striking two-tone paint, but we nearly passed it by as just another nice surfboard hauler. Then we noticed the re-arched and flared wheelwells covering what appeared to be really wide PS Engineering wheels wrapped in Hoosier slicks. And is that an airscoop below the front bumper? A glance inside at the Spartan NASCAR-esque interior with a full rollcage passing through the back glass and through an aluminum bedcover definitely piqued our attention. Right about that time, owner Larry Miller walked over and popped the hood, revealing a full-race Ford small-block. Larry smiled wryly and explained that he'd always been a fan of NASCAR and vintage Trans-Am, and he'd always wondered why no one road races the NASCAR Craftsman Trucks. One day it dawned on him that he could mash up the two and create a vintage Trans-Am truck, something that never was raced but conceivably could have been.
That immediately threw out regular pickups, but Larry didn't have to look any farther than his own garage to find the right platform-a '65 Ford Falcon Ranchero. Falcons have been road raced since the '60s and share a great number of components with Mustangs, but he'd never seen a Ranchero decked out in full Trans-Am battle trim.
But Larry didn't want the Ranchero to just look like some phantom road race truck; he wanted the real deal. To make it happen, he took it to Mike Eisenberg and his crew at Maeco Motorsport of Northridge, California (www.maeco motorsport.com). Maeco is well versed in vintage road racing and campaigns a host of very successful Trans-Am Mustangs, Cobras, and Camaros. Mike was intrigued by the project and had no doubt that he could make the truck handle.
Since there is no sanctioned vintage truck racing series, and the Ranchero could only be driven at open-road track events anyway, Larry and Mike agreed that they wouldn't attempt to adhere to any weight, tire, or horsepower restrictions. The plan was to keep the original lines of the Ranchero and to keep it streetable with wipers, horn, lights, and so on, but the goodies to make it go, stop, and turn would be the best modern race parts Mike could round up.
Larry's dream was to get a legitimate NASCAR engine between the shock towers, but that was thought to be financially unfeasible. Then, one morning early in the build, Mike called Larry and told him that he had inside information on a Busch NASCAR team that was defecting from Ford to Dodge and was liquidating its leftover engines. A new Cosworth-built Ford small-block was available for a mere fraction of its worth. Larry says, "Mike told me I did not even have enough time to go ask my wife; I had to decide then. So I went for it." Larry was giddy over the deal because he figured that since the engine is based on a Windsor design, it would drop right in. Wrong! With a 9.2-inch deck height and Yates heads, major cutting, welding, and adjustments were required to make it all fit. The rest of the truck received Maeco's standard full-race, vintage Trans-Am prep front to rear.
After several months of work, Larry took the Ranchero to Willow Springs Raceway for its first real shakedown run to see if it could handle a road course. When he arrived, a Ferrari race team was just finishing up its practice session but was fascinated enough by the noisy little truck to stick around and watch. One of the Ferrari team members offered to time the Ranchero, and after a couple of warmup laps Larry was clocking lap times in the 1-minute, 30-second range-which were the same times the Ferrari race team was turning that day. Not bad for a former lawn truck.
On his next outing Larry went out to run with the Shelby American Automobile Club at its national meet at California Speedway in Fontana, California. This time Larry expected to surprise a few drivers, and as an added poke in the ribs he had attached a lawnmower handle (complete with ripcord) to the rear downbars on the rollcage. "My favorite comment of the day," Larry tells us, "came from a guy in a blown 427 Cobra. He said he was annoyed enough that there was a Ranchero chasing him down, but that when I passed him and he saw the pushmower handle, well, that was just plain embarrassing."
The little Ranchero did a verified 170 mph down the front straight that day and handled the infield in perfect fashion, pissing off more than a few Cobra, Mustang, and GT owners along the way. Larry couldn't wipe the grin off his face.
But interest is capricious, and for reasons known only to him, Larry recently decided to move on to things that are propelled by the wind rather than combustion, so the keys to this little Ranchero have been passed into the eager hands of Rick Hamilton. Rick doesn't care for vehicles that aren't exciting to drive, as evidenced by a collection of toys that includes a low-production-number T-Bolt. Even he admits it's a bit of a learning curve to drive this Ranchero anywhere near its potential-but he assures us he's willing to put in the seat time to get it right.
Quick Inspection:'65 Ford Ranchero
Rick Hamilton . Tulare, CA

POWERTRAIN
Engine: The 358ci Ford Cosworth NASCAR engine uses a Ford SVO siamese-cylinder block, a Sonny Bryant crank, and Carrillo rods with CP pistons to create a 12.0:1 compression ratio. Ford Yates-style aluminum heads feature Jesel roller rockers pushing titanium 2.130 intake and 1.900 exhaust valves, titanium retainers, and locks. ARP head studs and hardware hold it all together. The Ford Motorsport valve covers have internal oil sprayers for valvespring longevity. The dry-sump pump and pan are Cosworth parts, and the pulleys, brackets, and fuel pump are all from CV Products (www.cvproducts.com). Up top is a Holley 4150 with drilled butterflies.
Power: The engine is capable of 825 hp at 8,800 rpm but is detuned to 710 hp in road course form.
Transmission: A Tremec T56 six-speed uses a McLeod Mag IV road racing clutch. Rearend:</strong> The Ford 9-inch is stuffed with 4.10:1 gears and Speedway floater axles.
CHASSIS
Frame: The original Ranchero unibody was braced and strengthened in key areas by Maeco Motorsport.
Suspension: Up front the Ranchero uses standard Shelby and Boss Mustang Trans-Am tricks including relocated and boxed control arms. Springs are Boss 302 race spec, and Koni adjustable shocks are on all four corners. A Global West steering box increases responsiveness. The rear is just as simple with heavy-duty leaf springs paired with a Panhard rod.
Brakes: Wilwood six-piston calipers are up front with four- pistons in the rear. Full-race brake pads put the squeeze on Coleman Engineering 12.125- and 11.75-inch curved-vane, stress-relieved, and gas-vented rotors.
Wheels: Custom 16x10 kidney-bean racing wheels are built by PS Engineering in Torrance, California (www.psewheels.com).
Tires: The Ranchero uses 25.0x12.0x16 Hoosier road race tires for the track and Hoosier P275/45ZR16s on the street.
STYLE
Body: Other than the obvious re-arching and flaring of the font and rear wheelwells, the Ranchero's body remains stock. The bumpers and 6-inch cowl hood are fiberglass pieces from Unlimited Products of Corona, California (www.up22.com). The aluminum bed sheeting and spoiler were done by Rick "The Tin Man" Nelson in Sylmar, California (818/367-5853).
Paint: Scott Guildner of Custom Painting (818/709-2139) sprayed the Dodge Viper blue and silver.
Interior: The dash fitted with Auto Meter carbon-fiber gauges is a custom piece by Scott Gregory of Maeco. The rollcage was bent up by Ross Murray from Exoticraft of Marina del Rey, California (310/821-7289). Black powdercoated aluminum Kirkey race seats and Simpson harnesses keep driver and passenger planted. A Safecraft Halon 1301 extinguishing system was installed with nozzles in the engine compartment, passenger compartment, and bed. A collapsible steering shaft with a removable steering wheel adds an extra measure of safety. The trans tunnel can be removed for access.

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