I just picked up my "new" 1976 F100 XLT Ranger, with the 300 six and granny-low 4 speed. You can see some pictures in my gallery. I've driven it about 30 miles today. It's rough, but it runs. I love the little features- the quarter windows, the ignition on the dashboard instead of the steering column. It took me a little bit to get used to the shifter; it's so far away! Idles well, runs well on the highway, runs poorly everywhere between. Starts real quick. Went over 60mph without trouble bringing it home. There's no axle code listed on the door jamb; I'll have to check the axle housing itself.

Features:
Black, with black interior.
A/C, power steering.
Manual brakes.
Sliding rear window.
Intermittent wipers.
84K on the clock.

The good:
Not much rust.
Not too many dents.
Never smoked in.
Runs & drives.
Runs well on the highway.
Recent tires.
No smog equiptment.
No radio.

The bad:
Power steering broken.
Headlights misaligned.
A/C broken.
Carb needs replacing.
Loud- has a glasspack and a turndown in front of the rear axle, plus a leaky exhaust manifold.
It looks, sounds and drives like a beat up old pickup truck.
No radio.

The future:
Offenhauser intake.
Edelbrock 500CFM carb.
Crane 248/260 cam.
Hedman headers & Dynomax exhaust.
Probably a CatCo converter, which will keep the yuppies happy.
Ignition checkup, new plugs.
Prothane suspension bushings.
Rebuild driver's door hinges.
Clean, insulate & recarpet the interior.
Shocks.
Alignment.
Tachometer.
CD player, amp, speakers, sub.
Maybe two-tone black/silver repaint.

Whew!

 

Nice ride. Can't wait to see it with the mods.

 

Thanks. I can't wait to drive it with the mods. So nice to have a fullsize pickup again.

 

Aint it though Sounds like a solid truck, I just sold the '87 yesterday and I already miss it. . .Hows the cab and sheet metal on that bad-boy?

And have you checked around in the I6 forum yet? You need to see the few turbo 6's they have over there

EDIT: Just saw the pictures. . .Dam thats a nice lookin' truck!!

 

Thanks!

Took it for a shakedown cruise today. So far I've put about 100 miles on about 1/4 tank, but the gauge is probably inaccurate. I can tell 'yall more about the beast:

Put my foot through the floorboard, and can see daylight at the firewall seam. :-) I've got some nice this sheetmetal at work that's otherwise goin in the dumpster...maybe it'll weld real nice. Wire wheel for my drill, a lot of Rustoleum, maybe some fiberglass matting and I'll be good to go.

The truck seems to stop, but I have no clue what the pads/shoes look like. I may decide the manual brakes have to go, too.

Tires need balancing.
Needs shocks.
Needs an alignment.
Needs exhaust.
Needs new clutch.
Needs the hot air pipe from the exhaust to the airfilter housing to help run in cold weather.
Needs weatherstripping.

Before it will pass inspection, I need to fix the following items:
Floorboard.
Headlight alignment- maybe the right one is just dying?
Exhaust (1976 had catalysts under 5000GVW, and a straight pipe isn't legal).

 

Thats right, NoVA has a sniffer test. . .

Sounds like a bit of work is ahead for you, but as good as it looks now it can only get better

Just a tiny bit of "Been there, done that". . .invest in a decent angle grinder and a good cup brush if your trying to knock off rust. A cup brush spinning at 11,000 RPM knocks rust down QUICK I have a Northern Tools "Kit". . .comes with grinder, cuppla cutting disks, sanding stuff and a wire wheel for like $40 anda good cup brush for $10. . .well worth it

 

No sniffer on a '76. Cuts off at 25 years. Just safety inspection, which includes visual inspection of all pollution controls. I was going to put a cat on it anyway, to keep it from smelling horrible, and use a 2-into 1 cat as the header y-pipe. But thinking about it, I'm going to keep the stock log manifold for now, since it provides intake manifold heat that will be critical for running the beast in the winter.

I'll keep that cup brush in mind.

 

Nice ride. Looks like you've got a good project to start.
by the way, why are you worried about the yuppies? If they don't like the exhaust then **** em'

 

I should restate that. The cops around here will hassle you if you look, sound or smell like you should be hassled. My truck had cats from the factory, and removing them around here is a big no-no.

I have to sit in Beltway traffic with a bunch of yuppies, and the less I irritate them, the less they drive stupid around me.

Squirrels should fall dead out of trees because my index finger moved, not because I drove by.