I have a 1996 F 150 extended cab, short box and it has the word Fontana on the tailgate, rear passenger windows and overhead interior cab lighting.
Has anyone seen one marked this way, or is this just something that someone put on the truck?



Thanks, JB.

 

never seen or heard of anything like that before.

 

As soon as I figure out how to post pics I will get a few posted. Maybe that will help. I would say they are just something that was added, but the overhead light is what is confusing me. It is much larger , Plastic but wood grain, has 3 or 4 compartments and several different lights.

 

save the pic to your computer.
in the quick reply or advanced reply box look for this icon in the header bar:
this is the insert image box. click on it and then follow the instructions.

 

Fontana is the name of the conversion package. the coversion was done in Lake Geneva, WI. If you see an Econoline conversion van chances are it will have the Fontana stickers on it. The company has since gone out of business. They did conversions for GM and Dodge also that carried the Delavan or Geneva badging.

 

What did the conversion consist of?

 

I think was just like the vans, interior upgrade and exterior trim and graphics. You might be able to google it and find more information. The original name of the conversion company was LRP inc. then sometime in the late 80s to early 90s they changed name to Geneva Vans inc. I grew up in that part of WI and it seemed like eveyone had one of their vans or trucks.

 

Like most conversion companies of the 80's and 90's, they went out of business. It's also a ghetto city in Southern California

 

Thanks for the info. I guess that makes sense that it came out of Wisconsin since I live a stones throw away from Wisconsin.
The "conversion" , from what I can see is a larger interior roof light, a LARGE wooden console, wooden trim that runs across the doors and dash and a few stickers on the outside.
Also, the grill looks to be different than the standard grills that I have seen.

 

Maybe "Fontana" is just the name of the dealer where truck was originally purchased.

 

She is far from a beauty queen but is a great work truck. It has spent most of its life working construction and is bent, twisted, dinged scratched and rusty, but it only has 111000 miles on the 5.8 and rolls down the road smooth.

 

Yep. Thats a Fontana conversion package.

 

Hello, my name is Sam Combs and I currently own one of these anomaly trucks. Mine is a 1995 ford xlt, extended cab short bed, 5.8L Fontana conversion. Like you said It has interior rope lights, with that, it also has a wood console with a full "leather" interior. Mine has fog lights on the front and rear bumper. The graphics on the outside is a metallic silver fading into a red truck (the red is the base color). I am currently in the process of fixing misc. parts on it. I would love to send photos and take suggestions at my email samcombs777@gmail.com

 

Its neat to see these old conversion package trucks.

 

Geneva/Fontana produced GM and Ford Conversion Vans, Pick ups, and SUVs out of Lake Geneva WI. For a short time they did full-size Dodge Van conversions under Delavan brand. All versions were branded to a nearby WI town that corresponded to the specific MFR.
Geneva was known for GM std & hi-top Suburbans and custom Tahoes/Yukons, std & hi-top mini and full-size vans & full-size & pickups & SUVs. A standout feature were soft, glove leather custom seats. In the vans the seats swiveled and mid section seats were removable. The rear benches were power folding units. Real, thick wood accents and overhead compartments were installed and a super hi-gloss wood package was available. Also, distinctive fade paint schemes or striping packages and flared fender/rocker extensions gave the vehicles a sporty custom appearance.
As these were a bailment “ship through” process, bare vans with no interiors excluding dash and door panels (no seats were incl) were shipped directly from the MFR to Lake Geneva WI where the interior and exterior custom packages were added. SUVs and pickups came with interiors that could be heavily modified depending on package selected.
During the 1990’s no engine or drive train modifications were made. Not around to verify if they did any to later models. Some electronic upgrades, TVs VHS then DVD players could be added-this was long before the MFRs starting including them on they own.
The company worked with their exclusive selling dealers and MFRs so as not to void the original MFR warranty. Geneva had a separate warranty on the custom parts they added.
A range of color brochures, quarterly newsletter, full parts department for dealer/customer support and a published conversion operator’s manual for each vehicle.
These conversions were not a dealer assembled package.