I spoke with the owner of 0F91G565487 last week. It is the Special Paint Order Boss 302 Eliminator that was painted Light Gray Metallic (Mercury color code: L), with a black and white houndstooth interior.
Brian told me a bit about how his family came to own 0F91G565487… His Grandmother was a bit of a hot shoe and liked her fast cars. Granddad took her to the Ford dealer in Lakewood, CO, and they bought a brand new Mach 1. Driving it home from the dealership, a few miles down the road it died due to no coolant in it! So they returned the car and the dealership made amends, and the Grandparents kept shopping. They ended up at Kumpf in Denver, and on the showroom floor was this '70 Eliminator in silver paint. Grandma liked the color, and so they bought it. Now the story goes that it had been special ordered by a fellah who put money down on it, but when the car arrived he couldn’t pay for it. So the dealer put it on the floor to sell. Part of the story was that it had been on the showroom floor for a year and so they were able to get a good deal on the car, but I think the real story is that it was now “last year’s model” when the Grandparents bought it. Brian looked at the date on his paperwork and it showed October 7th, 1970 for the purchase date, and my data shows it would have been built in June 1970. His papers show that it stickered for $4576, and they received a sizable $1076 “cash discount”, paying $3500 for the car (a total of $3605 including tax)! Wow!
Two other special paint Eliminators were ordered at the same time from this dealership, making three sequentially-VIN’d special paint Eliminators ordered from Kumpf in Denver, CO. 1 is the Medium Lime Metallic Boss 302 Eliminator featured in Hemmings Muscle Machines years ago, 1 is this Light Gray Metallic Boss 302 Eliminator, and the third one is a White Boss 302 Eliminator.
Here is a picture of the door tag, with the blank Color code, and a picture of the window sticker that he has with the car. It is damaged, but you can see the last option is for “… Paint” $32.45, which would be for the “Special Paint” option. You can also see above it the “8012” order number, which was expected based on the two other known special paint Eliminators from this dealership, which were orders 8011 and 8013.
The owner has a spray can of matching touch up paint, and I’ve added a pic of the paint chip from the 1970 Dealer book.
In the grille you will notice two red lights. To the left of the steering column you can see some added toggle switches. The switches are to activate the “emergency vehicle” lights - one switch activates the high beam flasher and the other activates the flashing red lights! The original owner helped establish the local fire department that his Grandson, the current owner, works at now.
A quick tour around the engine compartment shows some missing components - smog has been removed, air cleaner is there but incorrectly installed (the owner has been informed and plans to correct it). The distributor is correct but missing the vaccuum advance, and the carburetor was replaced back in 1979 due to a “warped body”. It does have a FoMoCo radiator but no pics of the part number yet, and the fan shroud has the typical crack at the top.
Very cool. 3.91 gears.
Chrome mirror because of the special paint, for a $2.60 credit.
Still has the bracket bridging the shock tower braces at the cowl.
A few knowledgable folks have told me it should be priced in the $35k-45k range (or even less). But these are all folks who need to be able to make money on a restoration of the car. It does have some issues ~ the paint is pretty well shot and patchy from being spotted in over the years. Plenty of dings and a noticeable dent in the passenger quarter, as well as beat up valances, combined with some missing / damaged original parts.
Other Boss Cats in similar condition have changed hands in the $30-35k range in recent years, but none of them were silver.
Is it cool? Definitely! Possibly the only “Silver” Eliminator built (certainly the only one known). What would the value be when restored to factory-correct? $150k? Difficult to say.
Yes, sort of, but not really officially listed. Seller is trying to figure out a realistic value. I think he also wants to find the right buyer, to be sure his family’s car will be appreciated.
I’d love to be able to throw my hat in the ring, but not realistic for me. So I’ll daydream instead
This one has been on my mind a lot too. I want a Boss 302 Elim with houndstooth desperately and this one has a cool story. My problem is the color, even when imagining it re-painted it just doesn’t work for me personally.
If it were mine, I would be inclined to just enjoy it as-is. Drive it as much as possible.
I am of the age where wrinkles, scars, and grey hair are acceptable and worn with pride.
Let the next guy restore it if he likes. I like the ‘day 2’ survivor look of this one. And who among us that grew up in the 1960’s doesn’t remember the clear plastic covers on the new couch? Did you all see the back seat? LOL
I agree with you guys ~ enjoy it as is, with some sympathetic cleanup and possibly replacing a few original parts, but let the next guy worry about the restoration.
