You know what you don’t see a lot of at car shows? A 1962 Ford Galaxie Country Squire wagon. Do you know what you’ll see even less of at car shows? A Country Squire wagon that’s diesel powered by a 6.0-liter Ford Power Stroke cranking out 900 horsepower. Well, if you wanted to see one you’re in luck because Kodie Paxton and her husband BJ Boden built one and it’s freaking amazing.
The story behind Kodie’s wicked wagon is an example of how to turn a tragic event into something positive.
“We were pregnant with our twins and I wanted a 1959 Nomad wagon, but they were hard to find and very expensive. BJ asked me a couple of times if I was interested in this car, and he eventually had it shipped from Washington to our home so we could start the project. Unfortunately, our twins passed away shortly after being born premature, and I didn’t want to even look at the car anymore. BJ wouldn’t let me sell the car in my super emotional state. So, we kept the car and ultimately turned it into a tribute to our twins Maverick and Shelby,” Kodi says.
Kodie and BJ worked with the team at Kill Devil Diesel to build the wagon’s Power Stroke mill. The beastly engine is packed with great parts from Jesel, CP-Carrillo rods, de-lipped pistons, and a massive set of fuel injectors. Warren provided the standalone harness that’s connected to an OEM ECU that controls the engine. BJ built the wild turbo kit that features compound 364 and 480 BorgWarner turbos. The turbos wear the name of Kodie’s twins. The Country Squire hits a whole new level of cool thanks to the bulletproof Dodge NV4500 transmission that was built by SuperStick. That’s right, the diesel-powered wagon is a stick-shift car.
A Ford Galaxie Country Squire wagon wasn’t designed to drag frame. However, BJ built a custom chassis for the car that works with the Air Lift air bags and 3H air management system. A set of Viair compressors provide the air to the Air Lift system. QA1 shocks were selected to be partnered with the custom IRS rear suspension. The wagon has a custom floor pan that allows BJ to add the wood flooring you see inside the wagon. Kodie watches the Power Stroke’s vitals thanks to a set of Dakota Digital gauges. For rolling stock, Kodi went with custom Detroit Steel Ambassador wheels to give the wagon a perfect appearance.
Kodie wanted to keep the natural patina of the wagon in place. So, it was clear coated, wet sanded, and then shot with a matte clear to finish the look. If you can’t tell, Kodie’s favorite color is purple, so BJ created a custom shade of purple for the wagon with plenty of metal flake. Mike Kluczynski, James Rivers, and Detroit Chris “The Mad Professor” jumped in to help with the paint and bodywork. Shannon Best took care of the custom airbrush work that included some woodgrain graphics. Todd Hansen knocked out the pinstriping you see on the car.
You’d think a car of this caliber would be a show queen and not be driven much, but you’d be very wrong. Kodie treats the wagon like a family taxi so it hauls her, BJ, and their kids everywhere. The wagon brings a lot of joy to Kodie and BJ, they enjoy seeing people’s reactions to the car.
“I like to people watch when they are looking at the car and realizing all the different things that were included in the build. For instance, the wood grain when they first see it, or that it is natural patina, or the other details we’ve put into the car. Sometimes, I walk out in the garage just to make sure she’s still there that’s how much it means to me,” Kodie says.
Kodie Paxton’s diesel-powered wagon is just a cool car. It’s not often you see such a seamless fusion of classic cars with diesel power.
