Love At First Sight

“Let's Make A Deal”

Story by John Aschenberg
Photos by – Julia Aschenberg and owner
Samantha Rawson's 1965 Ford Falcon Front 3/4

 

Samantha Rawson grinding on the front end

Have you ever gone somewhere and saw that one thing that just knocks your socks off, and deep down inside you know you just have to own it. This is what happened to this young lady, Samantha Rawson also known as "Sam", from Coloma, Michigan who is the proud owner of this way cool '65 Ford Falcon. Samantha's father-in-law Victor Rawson had originally acquired the car, and after Sam saw it for the first time, it was "Love At First Sight" and knew she just had to have it. It was time for "let's make a deal" and after begging her husband Kevin, they ended up trading Kevin's '2000 Mustang for the little Ford "Blue Oval".

Front end parts for the 65 Ford Falcon

Thinking the car was in pretty good condition, the Rawson's had a different opinion after getting it home and tearing into it. They soon realized it needed more work than originally planned. Sam along with her husband Kevin, recruited a handful of close friends to come up with a plan of attack for the ole Falcon. First, they knew the car needed to have a Pro Street theme, so they back halved the car using 2" x 3" steel rectangular tubing to get the job done. A Chrysler 8.75" Posi rearend was narrowed down to the perfect width and then filled with the right gear ratio. It was positioned into place with a set of leaf springs. An Allstar Performance brake kit with 11" rotors were installed in the rear, along with a front disc brake conversion kit to help slow the "ole bird" down after Sam decides to take her heavy foot off the "Go Pedal". An early '90s Geo Metro master cylinder with booster was used in place of the stock unit to help distribute the right amount of brake fluid. The front suspension was basically left pretty much stock, with the exception of Monroe shocks, front and rear along with a custom shock tower brace assembly. Sam decided a set of Weld "Race Star" wheels would help dress out her ride, 15 "x 5" in front and 15"x 15" in the rear, all wrapped in Mickey Thompson tires respectively.

Samantha holding her wheel & tire for the 65 Falcon