Many classic car stories begin with the same opening line—”I saw one when I was a kid”.
This 1964 Plymouth Fury owner’s story followed that same plot line with one exception—it was the same car he saw when he was a kid.
Jerry Sutherland
Terry Romanchuk explained how he saw this ’64 Fury two-door hardtop on the showroom floor at a dealer where he pumped gas. He was 12 years old, and he admitted he liked the car at the time, but it didn’t register with him until a few years later. Then he became obsessed with the Fury.
The guy who bought it was a very careful buyer, so he sat in the car several times for two weeks before he bought it. He was a local guy who worked at the grocery store, so Terry saw the car many times, because it was a small town. He saw many classic (brand new at the time) muscle cars tearing up the streets back then, but the red and white ‘64 Fury was the car that left the biggest impression.
The first owner didn’t drive it much—he could occasionally be spotted driving his mom to church, but he really kept the numbers down on the Fury. The car had just over 50,000 documented miles on it when Terry bought it in 2000.
Terry approached the original owner many times before he bought it. The guy didn’t want to sell it—he wanted to keep it in the family and his plan was to give it to a nephew. The problem was he had four nephews and all of them wanted the car, so he ignited a family civil war. He was living in a senior’s home when he called Terry and offered to sell the car.
Terry’s patience paid off because he now owned what may be the nicest survivor ’64 Plymouth Fury two-door hardtop in the world. The car had spent every day of its life in a garage with no windows.
The car never saw bad weather because if the sun wasn’t out—the car wasn’t out. It never saw winter or rain in any form, so the paint is still the same factory paint the Fury had when it was sitting in the showroom 37 years ago.
The floors are mint—so is the carpet above it. The door panels and seats look like reproduction pieces because they are simply that nice. The engine compartment and trunk are a lesson in how a factory-correct 1964 Fury should look.
Terry runs the car regularly, so the Fury now has 58,000 miles—but they are good miles because he believes in exercising his vehicles. He said the car is really quiet too–for a 60s car. The car is Canadian, so it has a 313 cubic inch V-8, instead of the American 318.
He’s made a few modifications on the Fury like the dual exhaust system because he wanted it to breathe better. The other change came out of necessity—he wanted radial tires because the bias tires made the car a little too vague in lane choices on the highway.
He opted for 15” mag wheels because 14” radial tires were really hard to find—but he did keep the factory 14” wheels and wheel covers.
In the end, the real story is how a 12-year-old’s dream came true—37 years later.
Jerry Sutherland
By: Jerry Sutherland
Jerry Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer with a primary focus on the collector car hobby. His work has been published in many outlets and publications, including the National Post, Calgary Herald, Edmonton Journal, Ottawa Citizen, Montreal Gazette, Saskatoon StarPhoenix, Regina Leader-Post, Vancouver Sun and The Truth About Cars. He is also a regular contributor to Auto Roundup Publications.
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