Explore the Bizarre World of Brazilian Ford Trucks (Photos)

By Brett Foote - June 1, 2017

South America’s F-1000 was a unique and popular truck, but it was Ford coachbuilder Sulamericana that really crushed the status quo.

To the average American Ford truck enthusiast, the photos in this post may look like something out of Bizarro World. It’s easy to notice the Blue Oval up front on these vehicles, but the rest simply doesn’t feel right.

Are these trucks some sort of weird, foreign, custom creation? Or are these powerful road beasts the result of a little brand differentiation? Turns out, the answer is both.

These are the Ford trucks of Brazil. You are probably already familiar with the F-1000, which is essentially Brazil’s version of the F-100/F-150. It was produced between 1979 and 1998, but it’s not exactly what we had here in America at that time.

Unlike our beloved F-100 and F-150 pickups, the F-1000 was offered with an optional diesel engine right out of the gate, with the very first turbo diesel version arriving in 1991. It was essentially a continuation of the American F-100, keeping the styling of the fifth-generation F-Series alive long after it died stateside. That vintage design soldiered on until 1990. Can you imagine buying a brand-new ’67-’72 F-Series pickup in the early ’90s?

Adding to the creative extreme was Sulamericana, which took zero-mile Ford pickups and transformed them into double-cabs, vans, police cars and other oddities.

The F-1000, however, isn’t where the uniqueness of Brazil’s Ford models ends. Adding to the creative extreme of the regional truck market was Sulamericana, an authorized Ford coachbuilder that launched in the early 1950s. The company took zero-mile Ford pickups with factory warranties and transformed them into double-cabs, ambulances, vans, police cars and other oddities. Sulamericana’s truck conversions experienced a tremendous surge in popularity in the early 1980s, when Brazilian customers clamored for customized vehicles.

Let’s take a step back in time and take a closer look at Sulamericana’s infinitely interesting and unique Ford trucks.

F-100 Conversions

In the beginning, the South American company was one of the few that worked on double-cab conversions of the Ford F-100. They created a couple of prototypes, including one that was essentially a large SUV.

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GB Fly

The GB Fly wasn’t exactly a double-cab because it only had two doors. We assume that it was made that way because “car guys” only drove vehicles with two doors.

GB Special

Then there was the GB Special. It was a similar concept but had huge conversion-van-like windows where the rear doors might have been. You know, so the rear passengers got a good look at the folks staring at them while rolling down the road.

GB Special Fly

Taking things a bit further was the GB Special Fly. Somehow Sulamericana took an F-1000 and a conversion van and mashed them together. It was the perfect vehicle for those needing both van-like space and a pickup bed, which apparently many people did.

GB Special Fuji

The Special Fuji was yet another truck-conversion-van mashup, but it looked more like a truck than a van.

GB Special Summer

The Special Summer was a little more conventional in appearance, looking like a proper SUV. We’d like to see one of these bad boys with a lift kit and Super Swampers! If anyone has one lying around, please let us know.

GB Monaco

The Monaco continued the unholy marriage of van and truck. However, this time it looked like they literally chopped an F-1000 in half and welded a van to it, only to add the bed again.

GB Caravelle

Check out the famous Caravelle, which actually looks like a proper van sans the F-1000 front grille.

GB Buffalo

The GB Buffalo took things a step further and utilized a full-size truck bed with a van’s front end. We can’t help but wonder, who kept coming up with these mashups?