This ultra-rare 1957 Ford Custom with factory supercharger will cross the block at the Mecum Auctions Indy sale on May 14-19.

For the 1957 model year, Ford briefly experimented with centrifugal superchargers from the Paxton Products division of the McCulloch Corporation, resulting in a small number of big-muscled Fords and Thunderbirds that enthusiasts remember today as the F-Code cars. But before that, FoMoCo built an even smaller number of supercharged ’57 models known as Phase 1 vehicles. This Custom 300 Tudor sedan, the experts say, is one of four such cars known to exist.

The Custom was the base model of the ’57 passenger car lineup, with abbreviated side trim that stopped at the door post. Naturally, it was the sparest and lightest model of the series, which also included the Custom 300, Fairlane, and Fairlane 500. All models rode on a newly designed cowbelly chassis and shared the same basic sheet metal, also brand-new for ’57.

Sold new at Dan Rohyans Ford in Columbus, Ohio, this example is remarkably well-documented and has been treated to a top-shelf restoration by Amos Minter, well-known ’55-57 Thunderbird restorer and authority. While we haven’t seen the car in person, the body finishing appears to be laser straight, allowing the expertly applied Flame Red paint to show its best. Only 46 miles have passed since the restoration was completed, according to the auction description.

Sparsely equipped, the Phase 1’s cabin features only two notable extras, a padded dash cover and an AM radio. Note the seat belts, a feature offered by Ford through the late ’50s as part of its Lifeguard Design safety campaign. The steering wheel includes only a simple horn button, no horn ring, and a standard column-mounted shifter operates the three-speed, heavy-duty manual transmission.

The ’57 Ford’s distinctive rear-opening hood allows an unencumbered view of the engine compartment, below. With a displacement of 312 cubic inches and boost capping out at around six psi, the supercharged Y-block V8 was nominally rated at 300 horsepower, the same as its Thunderbird counterpart. (Read about the novel Ford Y-Block V8 here.) However, the passenger-car installation differs considerably from the T-Bird’s, with the Paxton-McCulloch VR57 blower mounted on the opposite side of the engine.

The supercharged Fords enjoyed a brief run of success in the ’57 NASCAR season, but Ford’s withdrawal from racing in June and NASCAR’s technical ban on fuel injected and supercharged engines soon put a stop to all that. At next month’s Mecum Indy sale at the Indiana State Fairgrounds, enthusiasts can obtain their own rare piece of Ford performance history, but they will need to come prepared. The Mecum auction specialists expect this rare Phase 1 sedan to bring from $150,000 to $200,000.  Photos courtesy of Mecum Auctions.