From 1955 to 1970, the Ford Fairlane offered an attractive automotive option to anyone looking for a car with some heft. Though initially classified as full-size cars, in 1962 the Fairlane was downsized as an intermediate to make room for the massive Galaxie. It was Ford’s main “muscle car,” an intermediate with a large engine.

In this case, the engine is a K-Code high performance 289 V8. But what makes today’s eBay Find of the Day is a dealer-installed Tri-Power setup of three two-barrel carburetors. There aren’t many clean Fairlanes left out there, and the Tri-Power 289 setup makes this a special car indeed.

The K-code 289 V8 engine made more horsepower than the standard two-barrel 289 V8, cranking out an impressive-for-the-time 271 horsepower. The K-code 289s actually went into the Fairlane, and its cousin the Mercury Comet, before going into the ‘64 Mustang. These engines can add big bucks to the price of a Mustang.

In a car like the Fairlane, it is more like…that’s nice. It’s even nicer that this Fairlane has a 4-speed manual transmission to back it up. But where this Fairlane pulls apart from the pack is the dealer-installed Tri-Power setup. The bow on top are the 4:11 gears in the Ford 9-inch posi-traction rear end. This, friends, is the definition of an American muscle car. For the asking price of $48,800, count us in.