Hi all newish to the forums and have posted in the 1961-1966 forum. I have been looking at both those years and the 73-79 years. I have a couple of 66s I am going to look at, but I have had a lot of time to research the first jobs I had planned to do on the 66 , namely power brakes and steering, and am having some second thoughts about it. I can do the job, but the kit prices are insanely expensive and the other option is to either 1) hunt down and by a 73+ with pb and ps, buy it and get everything I need, part it out and sell/scrap the rest or 2) hunt around in junk yards looking for the righ ts trustful, pull it, etc. my wife will never allow two trucks out front and I'm concerned hunting for the parts in local yards will absorb too much time away from family....

So, to my point, I was already looking at two 1978s and was hoping to get some feedback from you guys about the price on them.

This on is about 3.5 hours from me.

Dream Cars of the Carolinas

Guy has it for $4k, he agreed to $3k over the phone buti have to get down and see it. It was one of his mechanic's trucks. Good body with the exception of some rust in then driver cab corner area and one of the bed panels.

1978 Ford F100 for sale | Hemmings Motor News

This one is very far away but is about as pristine as can be found in this price range. One owner truck, stored it every winter save 3. He sent me pics over the undercarriage, bed, etc. Underneath looked fantastic for 40 plus on the road. He agreed to $6200 but I would have to fly to Vermont and derive ~13 hours or pay an arm and a leg to have it shipped.

To be honest, I love the red one as I am an NC State Wolfpack fan and the truck calls to me. and obviously, I want a stepside/flareside which makes finding one in good shape that much more of a challenge.

My short term plans would be to clean up the I6 that is in either truck, maybe do time easy mods for performance to get it up in tend 200-250hp range and then take my time working on a V8 build to drop in one day.

While I am not a stranger to cars, my dad ran a NAPA store and machine shop for 30 years (RIP ), this will be my first project. Still looking at the 66s and can do the the projects but the kits were my plan to make life simple with two little ones at home but they will cost almost as much as the trucks I dam looking at!

Anyway, thanks for any advice guys. Feel free to tell me I should stick the 66 as well if you think that is a better plan. May be able to find one local with those conversions done anyway.

 

Hiya PapaMatt,

If your first love is a 66, then I'd say go for it. With any old vehicle you (short of a full frame off resto), you will be spending a lot of time and money fixing little things. I think the body lines of the 66 are really sweet and you certainly see less of those around. Given time, you can add the power disc brakes, power steering, A/C, updated electrical etc.

The red '78 looks like it has fresh paint and I personally would stay away from that unless you had some detailed photos of what it looked like before the paint. What looks nice and shiny now might be a disaster later. There just seems to be hints of over spray and that tells me it was probably a budget job. The glass was not removed (looks like the old window rubber) and there could be bad things hiding. The underside of the hood was not painted either. A small detail but important thing to consider.

The underside looks like it has had years of leaks. The blue one does not look too bad but there are not interior or engine shots so who knows. Check the floor pans because I think unless its a California or Arizona truck, they will need replacement. The factor insulation seems to have been the main factor in causing rust.

If you ultimately want the power of a V8, then don't spend your money on tinkering with power mods to the I6 unless you have some speed parts laying around. Focus on the end product.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

Thanks for the advice Kikkup. The blue one has the added advantage of being $3k+ less and much closer...however as you said not a lot of pics of it.

I do like the lines of the '66 better, but not a ton better. I actually started looking for a 73-79 first and then ended up looking more at the 61-66. My wife likes the latter better also, but we both still like the 73-79. Trucks seem kinda like most guy toys like guns, golf clubs etc. Hard to pick just one.

I had previously thrown the red one out of consideration and brought it back for this post, but think I will toss it again and keep the blue one in mind as my alternative as I am looking at 66s.

Thanks again!