5k: Meh-Be: 1961 Ford Econoline Pickup with 5.3 V8
Update 7/11/2014 –– This car is back up for sale from ebay seller classiccarliquidators, who according to ebay records purchased it for $4,500 and is now offering it back up for sale. Currently the bidding is at $3,759 reserve-not-met and it is located in Sherman, TX — find it here
. Assume the new reserve is at least $5000 to account for the cost of shipping…possibly more if the seller thinks he has hit gold.
Originally posted June 4th, 2014:
The Ford Econoline was introduced in 1961 as a competitor to Chevy’s
Corvair Greenbrier and Volkswagen’s Type 2 (Van), but was also available as a pickup. 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. Power from the available inline-6 engines isn’t very impressive, so owners tend to swap V8s into the under-elbow engine compartment. Find this 1961 Ford Econoline Pickup with 5.3 V8 currently bidding for$1,825 reserve-not-met with $6,500 buy-it-now with 3 days to go, located in Kansas City, MO.
This Ford is now powered by a Chevy 5.3 liter Vortec V8, but it is a pretty rusty truck offered for cheap, so you can’t really complain about the choice of engines for the swap. The 5.3 Vortec probably makes around 295 horsepower stock, maybe a few more with some tuning and exhaust/intake work. We’ve “heard tell” that stock 5.3s tend to dyno around 300 hp at the wheels once uncorked with decent headers. Regardless, it should make the Econoline into a serious burnout machine with all that negative weight in the back…
See a faster way to haul? tips@dailyturismo.com
I love how cab-over pickups look. I also love the idea of a high-powered, modern engine which I can reach over and touch while driving. The condition of the body is a little unsettling, though. The seller could probably have doubled his asking price if he had gone through the sheet metal.
My buddy David Toth in San Diego runs a one man, mobile restoration shop and uses his recently acquired Econoline Truck with 351 Cleveland and automatic as his new shop truck. He's just added some very retro graphics that blend right in with his overall motif and has also just completed a rewire to replace the rat's nest of butt-spliced connections which he inherited from the previous owners'.
Blood on the handgrip from previuos headon