No idea what even started it! Just looking at the pictures makes my stomach churn. My grandfather built this '62 Unibody nearly 30 years ago, and within 5 minutes it was toast. Thankfully, it didn't catch fire inside the garage, and the fire was mostly contained to the engine bay.

Me and my grandpa had just gotten back from a show, he got out to raise the garage door and help me pull my '54 Panel in, which he also built, when all of a sudden the neighbors started yelling, "Fire! Fire!" We walked out and the paint on the hood was already bubbling. It burned for about 10 minutes despite our best efforts to put it out.

I know it could've been a lot worse, but it still feels pretty bad. I am just thankful that no one got severely hurt and nothing else was damaged. We are going to see what the insurance says, we assume that they will total it, but we aren't gonna let it go. The only really damaged body panel appears to be the hood. Of course the engine, suspension, breaks, ect. are torched, but maybe we can use it as an excuse for some upgrades.

 

Sad, but it could have been a lot worse. I would be focused on the cause of the fire.

 

Sorry for your hard luck

 

I don't see anything there that's not repairable. You're right, it could have been way worse. I know it's depressing looking at it, but if you take the time to clean it up, it won't look so bad and give you some motivation to dive in with the repair.

Engine fires 99 times out of 100 stem from a fuel leak that makes it to hot exhaust or an ignition spark. While you're cleaning, look for possible sources of ignition, loose fuel lines, etc.

Here's a look at a before and after I did for inspiration. I bought it burned and resurrected it. It's not as cool as your uni, but it did become a really nice driver with a little elbow grease. It only has 48,000 original miles.

Try not to be too discouraged. Good luck with your project.

 

Insurance finally totaled it. My father and I bought it back from the insurance company for what I think was a pretty great price. Had it towed to our shop so we can start work on it. I live away from home for college, but when I get home for Christmas break I'm gonna get to work. Probably just gonna pull the engine first and start cleaning up. I'd like to get the engine to the performance shop before the end of the year, if it is salvageable that is.


(Sorry, I didn't take many images, this is the best one with the whole truck in view.)

I'm hoping to document the process of everything, but it will be a few weeks before I am able to do anything. In the meantime, I'd like to share a couple of pieces of media related to the truck:
(A clip of the truck on My Classic Car)
https://www.motortrend.com/reviews/0...-f100-unibody/ (An article from Sport Truck Magazine)

Definitely! I am thinking that the fire started at the distributor. We noticed molten plastic dripping on the ground when the fire began. Not sure what really started it, maybe fuel leaked onto it from the fuel rail that terminates right near it or maybe there was an alternator fault that overcharged the distributor, I'm not entirely sure. Whatever it was it was fuel definitely got involved.

**** happens! Best thing to do is push forward.

Thanks for showing me! I think the engine can be rebuilt and reused. Sure we could slap in a Coyote in there like everyone puts in everything, but I want to keep it as close to how my grandfather built it plus those things are expensive! The biggest loss in my opinion is the hood. Haven't been able to find a good hood around me, without having to buy a whole truck along with it, and I don't want to put a fiberglass hood on it. I think that is the only body panel that will need replacement, the rest seem fine.

 

Maybe search for a yard that has big trucks or even search for a complete big truck. Sometimes an old F600 farm truck that hasn’t run in 30 years will sell for scrap value.

 

Sorry for the lack of updates, been a busy time. It's almost completely done! It's come a long way, and I'm glad it's finally almost done.


Of course, still needs some adjustments to get the panel gaps set right and the front lights aren't wired up yet, also needs some interior work, but it drives! A lot better than the state it was in. We are still running the same engine, only replaced the intake, added a carburetor, cleaned everything, and replaced all plastic parts. Can't wait to get it out to some shows!

 

Upgrade. Always replace a loss with something better!