Private Stock: Cars Under Cover could be the title of a new MotorTrend show, and the producers wouldn’t have to wander very far from Orange County, California, to find private car collections to feature.
I say this because at one time I could count ten private car collections that weren’t very far away from my Santa Ana office. The plan was to swing by “Boss” Bob’s Garage and write a story about his car collection, but as Bob and I got into a discussion about each car, he said he was going to thin the herd and sell off everything except the R-code 1963 Ford Galaxie 500 and the Shelby Mustang GT350H.
Bob considers the white Ferrari 488 and the Bentley to be daily drivers, so his 8,000-square-foot garage will only be housing four cars. Four cars, that is, until Bob finds the right Ferrari Daytona coupe that he’d like to own.
Among the cars Bob plans on shedding is a black and silver 1957 Ford Del Rio two-door station wagon powered by a McCulloch blown 1957 Ford T-Bird 312 engine with a Gearstar AOD four-speed automatic transmission. The Del Rio features a lot of subtle touches including a cleaner treatment of the rear side windows. “Boss” Bob got his name because of all the Fords in his collection that came factory equipped with a Boss engine, or like the Big-Window 1956 Ford F-100 with a Boss 429 engine.
In year’s past, Bob would invite friends to drive one of his cars to Fabulous Fords held at Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena Park, California. Typically, Bob would enter nine of his cars. I would drive the candy cobalt blue 1970 Ford Torino with the custom grille and single headlights. The only car Bob owns that doesn’t have a souped-up engine is his Grabber Blue 1970 Boss 429 Mustang. The ’70 Torino has a high-performance 351 Cleveland with a five-speed Tremec and Mustang II type IFS with rack and pinion steering.
The special ordered Goldenrod Yellow M-code 1962 Ford Galaxie 500 was prepped by Les Ritchey’s Performance Associates from 1962 to 1964 and has a Gearvendors Overdrive behind a Borg-Warner Super T-10 four-speed. The M-code Galaxie holds a warm spot in Bob’s heart because his first job in life was working for Les Ritchey.
If someone has an interest in one of “Boss” Bob’s cars, get in touch with me at [email protected], and I’ll contact Bob for you.
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Hertz 1966 Ford Shelby Mustang GT350H 271HP 289/Four-Speed
Hertz Rent-A-Racer Bob’s 1966 Ford Shelby Mustang GT350H is an early example with a four-speed manual transmission. The fastback Mustang came with an SCCA logbook documenting a lifetime of hours on the race track.
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1957 Ford Two-Door Sedan Tri-Power 428 Cobra Jet Five-Speed
A strong runner. As I remember the 428-inch Cobra Jet Fe engine in Bob’s 1957 Ford two-door sedan with 3×2-barrel carbs has all the heavy-duty internals of a LeMans Super Cobra Jet SCJ. The Raven Black paintjob is less than a year old. Boyd’s wheels.
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1956 Ford F-100 Big-Window Boss 429/C6 Cruise-O-Matic
Featured on the cover of Custom Classic Trucks magazine “Boss” Bob’s Big-Window 1956 Ford F-100 runs a high-rise Weiand dual-quad intake with custom Hemi-style valve covers. Fully polished Kugel rearend and Vintage Air air conditioning.
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Gasser-Style 1948 Anglia With Blown Pantera 351 Cleveland
I’ve driven this one, and it’s a wild ride. “Boss” Bob’s 1948 English Ford Anglia is powered by 351 Cleveland sourced from a De Tomaso Pantera and then blown using a one-off intake manifold. The build quality of Bob’s 1948 Anglia far exceeds the average Anglia gasser.
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1961 Ford Starliner with 500-hp Tri-Power 427/Five-Speed Tremec
“Boss” Bob’s Chesapeake Blue 1961 Ford Starliner with a new factory original style interior is a real sleeper. Originally powered by 352-inch FE engine, the Starliner now runs a 427-inch FE with 500 dyno proven horsepower.
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1956 Buick Century With Custom 1965 Buick Riviera Interior
“Boss” Bob’s 1956 Buick Century was featured in Rod & Custom magazine and features a one-off fuel injected 425-inch Nailhead engine from a 1965 Gran Sport Riviera with a TH400 automatic transmission. Air ride suspension and custom 1965 Buick Riviera Pleather interior.
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