i am in the market for a '78 -'79 model ford pickup 4X4. so i have been searching my local craigslist and found one about 3 hours away. it is listed as a '79 F250 4X4 with a 460 motor. i asked for the VIN plate info just so i could decode it and figure a few things out about the truck. when i decode the door VIN plate that he sent me, it is for a F100 2WD with a 302 motor. he promises that it is a F250 4X4 with the 460. he also sent a picture of the title showing the VIN, and it matches the door plate. so, is it possible that the door was swapped some time ago and the owner(s) before him had to get it re-titled? or, did someone just do one hell of a swap out on this thing? i can see from the pictures that it has 8 lug hubs. i asked for the frame VIN and i am waiting to hear back from the seller. i also asked for the axle info/codes. hopefully the frame VIN will be correct for a F250 and my worries will be laid to rest. any thoughts or concerns? has anyone else experienced this? this is my first 70's model buy, so i am trying to learn all i can. thanks,

jason

 

First, welcome to FTE.
I'm going to say the seller is going to come back saying he couldn't find the frame VIN. This could be true, or not.
I'm also going to say the the driver's door and title are from an F100, everything else is from an F250. The serial number for an F250 4WD should start with F26. A 460 would be indicated by a "J" as the 4th VIN character but that would also be impossible because Ford didn't offer the 460 w/ 4WD untill '83.
In most states the legal VIN is the one stamped on the frame. The door is too easy to change. In fact Ford doesn't call it a VIN plate, Ford calls it a warranty plate.
I would stay away from the truck, just too many questions about it.
Hate to see you have a bad experience because of a dishonest or unknowing seller.
Good luck in your search.

EDIT: With the main part of the truck not matching the VIN, who knows, it could actually be anything from a 73-79. If you do get the frame VIN, post what it is and I'll tell you the model year.

 

It could be any number of things. The truck may have had some sort of restoration and a PO may have swapped cabs in the processes and converted to a 460. Getting the VIN off the frame should provide some insight as to what may have happened during the trucks lifespan. I don't know how you plan on using the truck, but if the the work was well done, it might be a good truck still. Just make sure you can legally title it.

 

I recently bought a '83 F250 and from what I can see from even the repair manual the F150 and F250 are radically different, especially the suspension. The front suspension converts from springs to leaf springs that fasten to the frame just underneath the front bumper on a F250 for example. It would be pretty hard to pass an F150 off as a F250, but I'm no expert.

 

My buddy rescued a Bronco partially for the doors for his brothers bronco he was restoring. They wanted the VIN plate so he could get a title. I think that happens alot, especially because these trucks are getting older and harder to find. I would have to guess thats wat happened here as well. For someone to do a complete swap of everything on the truck just to make it a 3/4ton is far fetched....it would be smarter and cheaper to just go buy another F250. But i hope you get it! I have the same type of truck good luck.

 

I would say go look at it. If it looks fine, and the price is right, It might be a awesome truck. The cabs are interchangeable, f100 cab would fit right on f250 frame, but if it ever gets inspected you will have peoblems. I swapped cabs on my 78 and I checked with local sheriff for inspection, he said that there was going to be an investigation on both cabs, the frame, all titles and VINs involved, multiple retitle fees, I was going to have to get the title to both trucks in my hands and then do a vehicle reconstruction, and destroy 2 titles then wait for the state of CO to issue a new title for the "homemade" vehicle, then there was a safety inspection involved.

Needless to say, I improvised, all VINs match, and it is now red instead of white. I used the title I had in hand, Sometimes it is nearly impossible to do what you want, no matter how simple it starts out to be.

Look at the floor over the transmission, of the "Tunnel" on the 2wds I have worked on this is part of the cab and shallower than the 4x4 tunnel, lower profile. On 4x4s this piece comes off with screws and is taller to accomodate the transfer case and linkage. If someone has cut that tunnel out and bolted the 4x4 one to it, it was a 2wd truck. If it has the factory tunnel, then it was factory 4x4. Maybe it got wrecked and needed a new door that had a clean title or something.

 

i have a buddy who said that he and a friend took his 2wd chevy and put it on a 4x4 frame and retained the body's VIN info. so i guess it is not too far fetched that it was converted from a f100 to a f250. i will have him check on the tunnel to see if it is bolted down, or not. look at my album to see pictures. it looks like you can see the leaf springs in the front in the side view.

Ford Truck Enthusiasts Forums - Quacka's Albums

or just go under albums. it was posted today.

 

Simply swapping cabs isnt really "converting" something into a 4x4 thats just like adding a different door. Either the door or the whole cab could have been swapped. I bought an F100 for a parts truck just last yr and a guy bought the cab off the F100 for his F250 identical to mine except his was yellow.

 

by "converting" i meant that they took the f100 body and put it on a f250 frame with f250 suspension. i think the truck came from Michigan and now it is in Central NC. What should i look for under the truck for problem rust areas?

 

Okay gotcha. Well thats pretty good news that the trucks in the south they stay way nicer down there with no winter weather. The spots on my truck that i have seen the most rust on are the front spring hangers for the rear springs, make sure you check the cab mounts you don't want those rusting through, a good bed is hard to find so check that well (a good bed is worth about $800 alone), front inner fender wells including the rad support, and the cab floors. Pretty much anything that sees the most road dirt and gets the most use on the vehicle.