10k: Mid-Engine Madness: 1963 Ford Econoline Pickup with Chevy V8

The Ford Econoline was introduced in 1961 as a competitor to Chevy’s Corvair Greenbrier and Volkswagen’s Type 2 (Van).  Ford’s offering (based on the Falcon chassis) wasn’t some wacky air-cooled rear engined setup and instead was configured like a miniature cab-over truck.  Drive a stock example on even the slightest of twisty roads and you will instantly become nauseated from the high seating position and under-sprung/under-damped suspension.  You won’t need to bring along a barf bag with today’s modified Econoline, but you may need to change your pants on a regular basis.  Find this 1963 Ford Econoline with Chevy V8 for sale in Mesa, AZ currently on ebay for $12,250 buy-it-now.

The original Ford inline-6 located under the driver’s seat has been ditched for a custom rear mounted Chevy V8 attached to a Cadillac Seville transaxle.  The seller doesn’t include any specifics of the engine build that give an idea of the power, but we’d expect at least 350 horsepower from a 5.7 liter V8 with that much bling/chrome on the outside.

The Econoline pickup is a cool ride before you give it a mid mounted V8 and this one wears a nice coat of school bus yellow.  The inside has been refinished in the style of an 80s hod rod (grey carpet, custom gauges, painted dash, seats/console from who knows what) and looks decent. 

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