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Ok, to make a short story long...
I saw this truck on craigslist August of 2017. I screenshot the pictures with the guys phone number on it. The ad eventually expired and I went along with my day. Here in **** Republic of California, anything 1976 and newer needs to be smogged. It can not have aftermarket mods, deletes or changes. This really makes buying and selling of 76-79 trucks a bitter taste. Anything 73-75 starts around $8000 here and obviously higher for 4x4. The prices on these are way overpriced in my opinion. Anyway,
So I have been looking at getting an offroad vehicle for camping and whatnot. I found a Jeep that is ‘74 and have been chatting with the guy. The hard part, I won’t be happy with the Jeep. I was looking through my old pictures and found this truck again. I texted the guy and he still has it, and it is still for sale. He is asking $2500 for it, which I think is fair, so either I will buy it for that amount or won’t.
October 19 is my birthday, so I am planning to drive to see it by then.
I am not one that names his truck, but a name popped into my head as I read through the forum yesterday. I read post after post of the challenges that we go through for these, when you think it is bad, it gets worse. If I get it, I may call it Annie Wilkes because I already know she will put me through misery.
Living in the Smog-**** state of Kalifornia I feel your pain, I have a 78 Bronco that I've been putting off getting going on just because I hate dealing with the smog crap!
Just had my 77 smogged, luckily he's a NON-Catalyst, so no smog pump, no cat, just EGR. Looks like a decent rig, don't like the mirrors, looks like a 74ish bed, 79 front, just make sure VIN is good and maybe you'll get lucky it will be a NON-Catalyst Happy Birthday, mine's the 15th
The guy says it is a ‘76, and he swapped in the 400. I am familiar with the 400 and the smog equipment is easier to work out. He already took it to a referee and has documentation for the swap, so I am confident it will pass smog.
I am interested in what the ref ended up saying, allowing, etc.
Living in the Smog-**** state of Kalifornia I feel your pain, I have a 78 Bronco that I've been putting off getting going on just because I hate dealing with the smog crap!
Just had my 77 smogged, luckily he's a NON-Catalyst, so no smog pump, no cat, just EGR.
Looks like a decent rig, don't like the mirrors, looks like a 74ish bed, 79 front, just make sure VIN is good and maybe you'll get lucky it will be a NON-Catalyst Happy Birthday, mine's the 15th
Bed is 1973/76, as it has exposed fuel caps. 1977/79's have fuel doors.
Mirrors are aftermarket, grille w/rectangular headlamps is 1978/79.
And it looks to have a body lift on it, just saying.
And the F150 on the passenger side fender makes it a 73-77? And the outer grill shell is a 78/79. What year is he saying it is? And what does the paper title VI, the dvrs side door warrenty plate (that has the VI), the B pillar safety cert white sticker (that has the VI) and the frame VI look like? Same, different, not there?
And X2 on the bed gas fill neck the bed is not a 78/79.
And it looks to have a body lift on it, just saying.
And the F150 on the passenger side fender makes it a 73-77? And the outer grill shell is a 78/79. What year is he saying it is? And what does the paper title VI, the dvrs side door warrenty plate (that has the VI), the B pillar safety cert white sticker (that has the VI) and the frame VI look like? Same, different, not there?
And X2 on the bed gas fill neck the bed is not a 78/79.
A body lift? The frame seems to be in the right place to me. ‘76 seems to be legit, can see the shadow for cab gas tank. No one in California would say 1976 if it were a 73-75 because they can get more for 73-75. I am guessing the bed is from a different truck, would be cool to have 3 tanks at some point. I will crawl under it and check the motor mounts and see if it looks done correctly or hacked. He has a bronco and several other trucks, so I am sure this is parts and pieces. I like the f150 instead of f250, wheels and tires and all that bs, plus the f150 rides better I hear.
California residence have to do an initial smog test on anything they buy from out of state, so that is a hassle, what if it doesn’t pass?
Also, I don’t want to deal with the rust issues that you see on nonCali cars.
The main reason, is it is $2500 for a 4x4. I will redo all of the mechanical on anything I buy, so why not start cheap and redo as you go instead of buy high and redo as you go?
Would be nice if I could get the nicer mirrors, but if not, I won’t sweat it. At minimum, I will try to heat the arm and bend it level, that is bugging me.
A body lift? The frame seems to be in the right place to me. ‘76 seems to be legit, can see the shadow for cab gas tank. No one in California would say 1976 if it were a 73-75 because they can get more for 73-75. I am guessing the bed is from a different truck, would be cool to have 3 tanks at some point. I will crawl under it and check the motor mounts and see if it looks done correctly or hacked. He has a bronco and several other trucks, so I am sure this is parts and pieces. I like the f150 instead of f250, wheels and tires and all that bs, plus the f150 rides better I hear.
I always welcome your thoughts.
you can see the 2-3" body lift puck under the front cab mount. Also note where bumpers land in relation to the grill. From 2nd pic, the rear bumper appears to hang low in comparison to the bodylines. I'm not a fan of body lifts, only dealt with them on Jeeps, and always remove them.
Ahh, I see now. I have never had a body lift so this will be as good a time as any to try it out. Then I can speak up in these “body lift yes or no” threads.
Like you said, if I see a concern I could remove it.
Mirrors are definitely 73-86 Chevy mirrors. Don't heat them, replace them with Ford mirrors. Aftermarket chevy mirrors are crap and the rust fast, so if they are OEM you can sale them for an easy $50. As long as they aren't heated and bent. I got OEM type 9 mirrors for my truck at a jy for $10.
First thing is to verify everything. I am curious about the swap and certification from a state referee. It is my under standing that the only swap you can do is with an engine that was a factory option for that year/make/model. But maybe this guy knows a guy. Once a ref signs off on it, it is legal.
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Happy Birthday, mine's the 15th
