Prior to living in Milford, Dela., where Larry and Susan Sullivan now have room for an old pickup, they lived in Jersey City, N.J., which is across the Hudson River from New York City. Jersey City is congested, with buildings erected close together; even the houses that were built there during the 1930s and 1940s are so close together that there is no space for a driveway between them. So, if the houses have a front porch, residents often put their car’s hood or trunk under the deck and hope the other end of the vehicle does not go over the public sidewalk. In short, there was no room for a collector vehicle at the Sullivans’ home in Jersey City.

Since gaining more space in their move to Delaware, Larry and Susan purchased the featured 1950 International Harvester L110 pickup. The truck was found on the side of a Virginia road with a “for sale” sign in it.

“I was looking for a project like a Ford or Chevy, because they are the easiest to get parts,” Larry said. “But prices for them have shot through the stratosphere due to the auctions on TV. Everyone thought that their rust buckets were gold!” Susan encouraged him to buy the International.

IH was the last company to come out with an all-new postwar pickup design. At General Motors, the Chevrolet and GMC trucks had been totally restyled for 1947, as was the Willys pickup inspired by the World War II jeep. Ford and Dodge modernized their pickups in 1948, and Studebaker introduced a more contemporary pickup in 1949. By 1950, the postwar sellers’ market had faded, so it was a good thing that International featured all-new skin for that year. Ted Ornas is credited with the design.

The 1950 International featured fashionable, up-to-date lines that were squarer than before. The pickup, though, did not break from tradition and had separate fenders that bulged from the body, and continued to incorporate running boards. The front fender tops were level and without any valleys. The domed hood still towered over the fenders, but it was spread out wider and flatter. The wide, blunt grille had two horizontal bars at the lower end and 19 vertical slots above the double strips. The headlamps were firmly fixed into keyhole shapes with rectangular parking lenses below. There was a one-piece curved windshield and a divided backlite, both sealed in the cab with a rubberized molding. The pickup rode a 115-inch wheelbase, and the 6.5-foot-long box had a metal cargo floor.

There is a lot of exposed metal that is painted in the IH’s interior. The floor extends “Oklahoma flat” with clutch and brake floor pedals toward the toe board. The instrument panel is broad and flat with two round dials in front of the driver. The left circle contains four gauges: the voltmeter is at the 1 o’clock position, the temperature at the 4 o’clock, the oil pressure at the 7 o’clock, and the fuel is at 11. The circle on the right houses the odometer and the 80-mph speedometer. Gauges use white markings against black backgrounds. Aside from monitoring the mechanical health of the truck, there are no “infotainment” features.

At the center of the instrument panel is the ignition to start the pickup. On the left are two pull knobs. The top knob is for the wipers, and the bottom knob for the lights. To the right of the keyhole, on the top, is the throttle knob that adjusts the fuel and air mixture, and a lower knob works the choke to help start the engine.

The synchronized three-speed manual is column mounted, and the emergency brake has a claw-shaped handle. Larry’s pickup has a block-off plate where the optional radio would be mounted.

“The big, chrome ashtray sits prominently in the center, embossed with the name ‘International,’” Larry notes. There is a button horn in the center of the steering wheel with IH’s three diamond logo. The more familiar IH corn binder emblem that looks like a person on a tractor was designed by Raymond Loewy. The hubcaps have this IH emblem.

A 1950 print advertisement for the International pickup stated, “The Comfort-Vision Cab will put a smile on your face. The roomiest cab on the road.  You get full front visibility through the one-piece Sweptright windshield. You get more positive steering control from a more comfortable driving position.  You get new maneuverability, shortest practical turning circle.”

In addition to a new body, the 1950 International also had a new engine.  It was an overhead-valve six-cylinder that was called “Silver Diamond.” This 220.5-cid six produced 100 hp with 173.5 lb.-ft. of torque.

The components of Larry and Susan’s pickup were in various states of disrepair when they purchased it.

“The cloth-covered wires were brittle and causing electrical shorts,” Larry said. “The front end was all worn out, as was the leaf springs, shocks, exhaust system, cooling system, radiator and water pump.

“I replaced leaf springs and shocks at Glen’s Performance in Lincoln, Delaware, as well as repaired wipers, door window tracks and gaskets,” Larry continued. “Big work was done at William T. Wadkins Garage in Milford.  Bill is an IH aficionado and completely rewired top to bottom while converting from 6 to 12 volts. He acquired the parts to rebuild the front end and braking system, rebuilt the carburetor and cleaned out the gas tank. The radiator was sent out to get boiled out and braised, and the water pump was rebuilt.”

With the challenges came rewards. Larry and Susan now have their own personal time machine. Larry enjoys the old school feel from the front I-beam axle, making this presentable hobby hauler ride and sound like a truck from 75 years ago. The low-gear pickup is not for four-lane highways, but for two lane roads, and so Larry drives on scenic, low-traffic byways.

“No electric beeping or a voice telling you how to drive,” Larry says. “Just a fun ride. You’re driving it. It is not driving you.”

The pickup body is drenched in dark green paint while the four fenders have black plumage.

“The interior ceiling and floor are black, as well as the vinyl seat and door panels,” Larry added.

Larry says the easiest way to know his IH pickup is a 1950 model is by its internal door hinges (1950 IH trucks have internal hinges while the ’51 and ’52 have external hinges). He learned this fact from a woman at a car show. She was a little girl when her father bought a new 1950 International pickup and was delighted that Larry let her sit in his truck.

Larry noted that the cargo floor in his truck is metal while earlier IH cargo floors were made of wood. He constructed oak wood railings for the cargo box and also used oak to replace the very damaged metal running boards.

“It’s not perfect, but we’re not trying to make it perfect,” Larry says. “It doesn’t win many awards, but it always makes people smile.”

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If you’ve got an old car you love, we want to hear about it. Email us at oldcars@aimmedia.com

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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Barrett-Jackson announced its 2026 Scottsdale Select Preview is live and highlights the diverse mix of custom, Resto-Mod, supercars,  trucks and SUVs in the starting lineup for the Jan. 17-25 event at WestWorld of Scottsdale. Among the most anticipated collectible vehicles is a 2017 Ford GT with 937 actual miles that was formerly owned by actor and comedian Tim Allen. Customs set to take center stage include a 1967 Chevrolet Corvette convertible and a 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Split-Window Coupe, both recently completed by Jeff Hayes Customs.

“Our Select Preview is a peek into the outstanding collectible vehicles we’re getting ready for our biggest auction of the year in Scottsdale this January,” said Craig Jackson, chairman and CEO of Barrett-Jackson. “We’ll have over 2,000 highly coveted collector cars and trucks that appeal to the world’s most seasoned collectors, as well as attract the attention of first-time bidders. The diversity of our docket, which includes No Reserve and select Reserve consignments, is what sets Barrett-Jackson apart and has defined our growing success over the years. We have some very special vehicles and we’re looking forward to seeing everyone in Scottsdale to kick off the 2026 collector car auction season with us.”

Supercars will be among the superstars of the 2026 Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale Auction. A highly anticipated offering is a 2023 Brabus 900 Rocket R, the first of 25 produced worldwide and one of two legal for use in the U.S. Finished in Mexico Blue, it is powered by a Brabus-tuned twin-turbocharged flat-6 capable of 0 to 60 mph in under 2.5 seconds, 0 to 120 mph in 7.2 seconds and a top speed exceeding 211 mph. The 2017 Ford GT formerly owned by Tim Allen is powered by a twin-turbo 3.5-liter V6 with a 7-speed dual-clutch transaxle and features the Dark Energy interior. One of 541 produced in the limited-edition color, Tungsten Gray, a 2006 Ford GT features silver painted racing stripes, forged BBS lightweight wheels and red brake calipers. One of one by Genaddi Design Group and finished in Ebony Black with gold stripes, a 2005 Ford GTX1 , No. 24 of 30 produced, is autographed by Carroll Shelby, Roger Penske, Henry Ford III, Edsel Ford, Dan Gurney, Mario Andretti, Michael Andretti and Tony Kanaan.

“Our dockets are assembled with great care and attention to detail,” said Steve Davis, president of Barrett-Jackson. “We go to great lengths to ensure we have something for every type of bidder. From the ultra-rare 2023 Brabus 900 Rocket R built to dominate the racetracks, to an off-road-capable 1957 Chevrolet 3100 pickup, the chance to find the collectible vehicle of your dreams is within reach at our January auction in Scottsdale.”

Known as “The Rebel,” a 1950 Mercury is among the custom collectibles consigned for the January event. Professionally chopped by Joe Bailon, this custom Mercury retains an all-steel body and is powered by a mid-1980s Lincoln fuel-injected V8 engine paired with a 4-speed automatic overdrive transmission. Other anticipated customs include a pair of custom Chevrolet Corvettes built by Jeff Hayes: a 1967 convertible and 1963 Split-Window coupe, each powered by a LS3 Hot Cam engine producing 540 horsepower and paired with a 4L70E automatic overdrive transmission on an Art Morrison sport chassis.

Barrett-Jackson is also hauling in the adventure with collectible trucks and SUVs, including a custom 1976 Ford Bronco (preview) that is Legacy Speed & Body’s Widebody Edition Serial No. 001. The first in a limited series and a feature vehicle at the 2025 SEMA Show, it is finished in Highlander Green with a custom Bronze accent package stripe and is powered by a Coyote V8 paired with a 6-speed automatic transmission. A multi-award-winning custom, the 1957 Chevrolet 3100 pickup is built on a Roadster Shop RS4 chassis and features a LS3 engine producing 525 horsepower. Interior features include Dakota Digital RTX gauges, a Restomod Air climate-control system with lighted billet controls and vents, and a custom audio system with Bluetooth capability.

A 1970 Plymouth ’Cuda convertible is among the restored classic American muscle cars set to find a new owner in Scottsdale this January. This rotisserie-restored factory V-code convertible represents one of the most desirable combinations in the MoPar performance lineup and is one of only 17 4-speed 440 Six-Barrel convertibles built in 1970. The recipient of a fully documented, nut-and-bolt concours restoration a 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle SS LS6 retains its original matching-numbers LS6 V8 paired with a Chevrolet dealer-installed warranty replacement Muncie 4-speed manual transmission from 1972.

Click here to view the 2026 Scottsdale Auction Select Preview and browse hundreds of featured collectible vehicles.

Barrett-Jackson is now accepting consignments for the 2026 Scottsdale Auction. Those interested in being part of the auction may consign their collector vehicle here. Those interested in registering to bid may do so here. VIP Experiences hospitality packages are available here. Throughout the nine-day Scottsdale Auction, children age 12 and under enjoy complimentary admission with a paying adult. General admission tickets for students age 13 through college age are $10 and adult ticket prices start at $27 at the AXS online box office.   

On Friday, Jan. 16, country music superstar Cole Swindell will perform live for the 3rd annual “Rock The Block” concert in the Auction Arena at WestWorld of Scottsdale. In addition, the opening act will feature multi-platinum singer-songwriter Chase Rice.

Join Barrett-Jackson’s online conversation with #BarrettJackson and #BJAC on Facebook, X, Instagram and YouTube.

About The Barrett-Jackson Auction Company – Established in 1971 and headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, Barrett-Jackson is a leader in collector car auctions and automotive lifestyle events, which include authentic automobilia auctions and the sale of private collections. Welcoming hundreds of thousands of attendees per year, Barrett-Jackson hosts live collector car auctions in Scottsdale, Arizona; Palm Beach Florida; and Columbus, Ohio, where thousands of the most sought-after, unique and valuable vehicles cross the block in front of a global audience. With broadcast partner A+E Networks, Barrett-Jackson features live television coverage of their events on FYI and The HISTORY Channel, as well as all the cars, all the time via their produced livestream on Barrett-Jackson.com. Also based in Scottsdale, the Barrett-Jackson Collection Showroom offers a rotating selection of premium vehicles that meet the high standards for which the company is known. Barrett-Jackson also endorses a one-of-a-kind collector car insurance for collector vehicles and other valued belongings. For more information about Barrett-Jackson, visit www.barrett-jackson.com, or call 480-421-6694.

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I met “Bronco Jack” Niederkorn in 2010 at the Muscle Car and Corvette Nationals (MCACN) in Rosemont, Ill., where he was displaying his 1971 Stroppe Baja Bronco within the confines of the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center. During our introduction, he mentioned how his fascination for the Ford Bronco started back in 1980, and today he says he has “never been without one since.” Since 1980, he has owned 15 of Ford’s off-road ponies, with five currently in his collection.

According to Niederkorn, it all started with the purchase of an original 1972 Bronco that he upgraded with a suspension lift kit with the intent of doing some off-roading near his home in rural Illinois. The fun times navigating that Bronco through rough terrain and mud bogs quickly turned into a fondness for the little 4×4 vehicle. 

“There’s just something cool about the Bronco with its unique looks and off-road capabilities,” Niederkorn adds. “I started with a nice original one back on June 12th, 1980. Nearly 45 years and 15 trucks later, this is where I’m at. 

“They are a cool-looking truck. With their boxy shape and raised fenders, they have attitude, personality and one-of-a-kind styling, and I just love them. This little one, the first-generation trucks, are my favorites. I will continue to collect them.” 

Niederkorn’s collection really took off after he joined the thriving Bronco community. With each new Bronco that he purchased, his collecting evolved as he became more informed about the various Bronco models. In the end, his Bronco collecting didn’t just take him down rough back country paths, but also down smooth highways to acquire various unique and rare models. Niederkorn initially began hunting original and unrestored versions, but when the opportunity presented itself to restore a rare model back to like-new condition, that’s when Bronco Jack hit his stride.

Restoring a rare 1967 Bronco Sport

Old Cars readers might recall Niederkorn’s unrestored original 1974 Bronco Ranger on the publication’s cover back in May 2021. While photographing that Bronco survivor, I learned about Niederkorn’s 1967 Ford Bronco Sport Pickup featured here. Niederkorn had acquired the rare Raven Black Sport Pickup back in 2018, and it was still undergoing a concours restoration in 2021, with a significant amount of the work being done by Niederkorn himself. He reached out to Ross Gregory at Marquette Classics in Ionia, Mich., to do the body and paint work. Gregory and his team started with the original Bronco sheet metal and transformed it into a laser-straight body with a mirror-like paint finish that’s world class. 

Niederkorn’s featured Bronco is one of just 86 Sport Pickup “half cab” models produced for 1967, and one of only four originally painted Raven Black. (“Half cab” is the nickname given to Broncos with the short steel roof that turns the Bronco into the Pickup version.)

Niederkorn has traced the history of his 1967 Sport Pickup back to when it was new. Its original owner raced stock cars and was a master mechanic at Charles City Ford in Charles City, Iowa. After the original owner’s death, the second owner bought the Bronco at an estate sale in 2017, with the intent of giving it a complete body-off-frame restoration. For unknown reasons, he lost interest and Niederkorn bought the partially disassembled Bronco a year later, storing it at a friend’s farm before starting on the restoration a year later. Deterred for a time by the COVID-19 pandemic, Niederkorn completed the concours restoration in 2023.

The painstaking restoration involved a complete engine rebuild. In addition to doing the body and paint work, Marquette Classics crafted metal parts and reconstructed the cargo bed. Finishing Touch of Chicago replated all the chrome parts and polished the Bronco’s stainless-steel trim. Jeff’s Bronco Graveyard in Brighton, Mich., was the source for numerous Ford-authorized reproduction parts.

A close-up look of the Bronco reveals the smallest details within its amazing restoration carried out by Niederkorn, whose goal was to “take it to the highest level.” We’d say he did just that.

Bronco Sport: A prettier pony

According to the 1967 Ford sales catalog, “Should you prefer sizzling, total performance on any road with a Ford Bronco, then choose the optional, big 289cid V-8 that delivers 200 horsepower. Big Six or V-8, Bronco engines are equally bred to give you responsive, spirited power at work or play.” This Bronco’s original owner, who had an inkling for horsepower, opted for the 289-cid V-8.

Niederkorn is a hands-on owner and when it came time to put the finished product together, he meticulously went about the painstaking task of reassembling the Bronco. His assembly process was methodical, deliberate and done to the highest standards. 

When you step back and look at the finished product gracing these pages, it’s hard to believe we are not looking at a Bronco on the showroom floor of Charles City Ford in 1967. Broncos equipped with the V-8 used a black air cleaner until Ford changed the color to Ford Blue in 1970, and that’s how Niederkorn restored his Sport Pickup. His only modifications to the Bronco are a few tweaks on the chassis.

“It’s a factory-correct restoration, with the exception of the suspension and tires,” Niedekorn says. “I did not want the ride and handling it had back in 1967, so I added new springs, shocks and larger 31×15-inch tires.” He notes that optional suspension packages for 1967 would have created a height nearly identical to his example, despite his change in springs, shocks and tires.

Ford offered the Sport package for the Bronco Pickup and Wagon models in 1967. The Sport included the nameplate and insignia affixed to the fender, just behind the front wheel opening. The Sport package also provided an array of exterior and interior enhancements, as well as additional optional factory equipment, such as front tow hooks, a winch and power take-off.

Niederkorn indicates the Bronco Sport-specific vinyl-covered door trim panels with bright-metal moldings and armrests were unique for 1967, and they are back on his Sport Pickup. He adds that the door window frames can be detached, which most people don’t realize if they have never owned a Bronco. Removing the two chrome knobs located at the left and right sides, just below the dash padding, allows the windshield to fold down and lock into a U-shaped latch located on the top side of the hood.

A 1967 Bronco sales brochure included a nearly identical interior view of the attractive, upscale Sport interior. With the passenger side door open, the Parchment Rosette vinyl-upholstered bench seat and padded dash can be clearly seen to welcome passengers. Even with the upscale Sport option, Ford equipped the Bronco interior with the vinyl floor mat as an acknowledgement that the Bronco was designed for off-road use. In wet, dusty, muddy or snowy conditions, its design and engineering favored functionality. 

The Bronco Sport full-size wheel covers add an element of class and are identical to the covers on the Ford Galaxie. The rear wheel covers feature the complete design, while the front wheel covers provide an opening in the center for access to the mechanical 4×4 wheel hubs that require manual locking when switching to four-wheel-drive mode.

The transmission shift lever for the Bronco’s three-speed, fully synchronized transmission was mounted on the steering column. A single floor-mounted T-bar shift lever operates the Dana 20 transfer case. 

According to Motor Trend magazine’s 1966 coverage of the Bronco, “instrumentation is simple, direct, and complete. Bronco uses real live gauges. Padded dash is a useful option, especially for back roads.” 

Niederkorn adds, “The instrument cluster did not change from the prior model year, but all dash knobs were changed for 1967 and included an aluminum insert.” 

Our featured Bronco includes the optional instrument panel-mounted manual AM radio with the single speaker located between the ashtray and glove box.

Niederkorn has added a period-correct front license plate that acknowledges the model year of his Bronco and pays homage to its original owner by displaying Iowa’s “34” license plate code for Floyd County, Iowa, which includes Charles City. The “U14” represents the code for the Pickup or “short roof” Bronco model. 

Bronco Jack isn’t done restoring his favorite trucks. He has started the process of restoring the latest addition to his collection, a 1967 Sport Pickup in Holly Green with Parchment Rosette Bucket Seats. It promises to be as stunning and eye-catching as this Raven Black gem.

Meet Bronco Jack and see his Raven Black ’67 Bronco Sport Pickup up close and personal at the 2025 Muscle Car and Corvette Nationals (MCACN) from Nov. 22-23. Learn more at www.mcacn.com.

SHOW US YOUR WHEELS!

If you’ve got an old car you love, we want to hear about it. Email us at oldcars@aimmedia.com

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Paul Bellile has grown used to the delayed reactions. When he rolls up in his vintage camper, he knows most people are probably thinking to themselves, “That’s a nice old camper, and a pretty nice Chevy pickup underneath it.”

Then a few moments later, it hits them: “Hey, that’s not a pickup! That’s a Blazer!”

Sure enough, somebody actually turned a Hugger Orange 1972 K5 Blazer convertible into an all-in-one family camper. And that somebody was Paul’s dad Len, who bought the Blazer new from a local Chevy dealer in Hortonville, Wis. From there, the family had the K5 immediately shipped to a long-since-defunct shop in Osseo, Minn., that fitted it with a nice camper big enough for Len and his family of four. 

Some 95,000 miles and 53 years later, the camper is still on the Blazer, and the rig is still in the family after Paul took the keys from his dad a while back. And both father and son always get a chuckle when confused onlookers check out the camper and act like they’ve just seen a unicorn. As far as Paul knows, that’s pretty much what the camper truck is. The camper top was supplied by a company called Ronco Coaches, and the Belliles have only come across one other similar unit, but it wasn’t on a Blazer.

“I keep in touch with a guy with a GMC from Grand Rapids, Minn. He’s got a 1970 GMC version of this with the exact same camper,” Paul notes. “I talk to him and keep in touch and we don’t know of any other ones… I’m hoping if any others are out there, somebody sees this. That would be awesome.

“They made pickup toppers, too, and I’ve never seen a pickup topper for a full-size truck, either. Supposedly they were in business for 10 years. I’ve talked to people who live in Osseo, Minn., who don’t even remember that the company existed.”

Len Bellile says the idea for a Blazer camper wasn’t even originally his. He remembers being in the market for a camper for his wife and two young boys back in the early 1970s when the local Chevy dealer, Griesbach Chevrolet, pitched the idea to him. “My wife really wanted a camper and we went out to Griesbachs and we were looking at Blazers and he said, ‘I know where they could put a camper on a Blazer,’” he recalled. “I said, ‘OK, order us one,’ so he ordered us a nice blue one. When it came in, he said, ‘Your blue Blazer turned into a red one!’ I said, ‘That’s fine,’ and, we had it shipped out to Minnesota to have the camper put on it…Everything was perfect. We flew up there and there was a guy there [at the airport] and we looked it over and it was nice, just the way we wanted. They had different deals on the inside. We wanted the bunks in there so the two boys could sleep on the bunks and we could sleep up above. After we got there, they had to finish it the way we wanted it. We stayed overnight one night and the next day we drove it back.”

Len says he paid $5,500 for the K5 Blazer — “the same amount that it weighs” — and the family soon took off on its first big adventure to South Dakota. “Mom died 23 years ago, and she’s the one that loved this,” Paul says. “When we first got it, we went out to Deadwood, S.D., and she bought a little beaded Indian, and she hung it from the rearview mirror, and it’s hung there all these years — 53 years, I guess. I’m trying to keep it exactly the way it was.”

Blazing A Trail

Ford and International Harvester had already launched new lines of utility trucks by the time General Motors mounted a response in the late 1960s. International had made a big first impression with its enduring Scout, and Ford followed up in 1966 with the similarly designed and equally capable Bronco. Both of them were heading down the same road as the Willys Jeep and Jeep CJ, which owed their beginnings to World War II-era military jeeps.

With a shortened pickup chassis, the new-for-1969 Chevrolet Blazer and GMC Jimmy were bigger machines than either the Scout or Bronco, which probably made them a little more appealing as a truck that could pull double-duty as a family hauler, but perhaps made it less nimble off-road. The body had an open top “convertible” design, and buyers could choose between a soft top and fiberglass hardtop.

The Blazer and GMC Jimmy were classified as half-ton trucks, but instead of riding on a 115-inch wheelbase — the shortest pickup chassis at the time — their wheelbase was shorted to just 104 inches. There was no divider between the cab and bed, and no window frames on the doors.

Shifting was done through a choice of either three- or four-speed automatics, or a three-speed manual transmission. When it debuted for 1969, the new Blazer and Jimmy were only offered as 4x4s. Two-wheel-drive versions were added a year later in 1970, but buyers overwhelmingly preferred the 4×4 models. Even fewer preferred the six-cylinder. The 350 was offered only with the SM465 or TH350. Manual locking front hubs were optional.

The four-wheel-drive version had a solid front axle and used leaf springs front and rear. The two-wheel-drive version came with independent front suspension and rear trailing arms, both with coil springs. Both versions used drum brakes on all four wheels until 1971, when the entire GM light truck line was fitted with front discs as standard equipment. A tachometer was optional. Two transfer cases were offered: the Dana 20, available only with the manual transmissions, or the NP-205.

Chevrolet built a modest 4,935 Blazers for the model’s 1969 rookie year, but production ramped up quickly, and for 1972 that total had grown to 44,266 4×4 Blazers.

‘It Ain’t For Sale’

Len Bellile opted for the 350 V-8 and full wheel covers on his new Blazer, but he left most of the other accessories to Ronco. “Dad wanted the big V-8 so we could pull the boat,” Paul remembers. “It’s the standard model, so it’s got the painted bumpers, not the chrome bumpers. That would have been the CST (Custom Sport Truck), but that came with the console in the middle and he and Mom wanted to be able to get in back in between. It had a soft top and they took it off at the dealership. That’s the original Hugger Orange, K22 — it’s called a red-orange. Those are the original hubcaps. The tire was mounted in back, where we have the bunk beds, so they had to build a bracket and mount the spare in front. That was part of the camper package.”

The family rolled up plenty of miles in the K5 camper every summer during the 1970s, but the odometer started to slow down a little after the boys got older. The camping trips were fewer and farther between, and eventually Paul decided to just buy it from his dad and keep it for posterity’s sake — and because he couldn’t bear to part with it.

“It actually wound up sitting for many years. I bet it was a dozen years. But I had it inside and covered. But I finally said to Dad, ‘I gotta get that Blazer out. I want to start showing that.’”

Paul had the body repainted below the beltline and did some carburetor and fuel pump work. Other than that, he says it was pretty much ready to go after a little cleanup and detailing. Aside from the partial repaint, he says the Blazer itself is unchanged from when he was a kid. 

Inside, he’s taken out the sink for now and unhooked some of the heating and plumbing. But otherwise, he’s keeping the camper intact. “I’ve got a few little things I want to do, but I don’t want to touch that camper, because I’m afraid with it being wood I’d be opening up a can of worms,” he laughs. “I really want to just leave it the way it is, from new. It’s the way I remember it.

“I’ve got some bodywork I want to do. I have a new bumper I want to put on it. The step in back was just something they thought up at Ronco with all the leftovers they had. I’m going to re-do that and make it different so it’s cleaner.”

Paul says he had a hunch the K5 camper would be a hit at car shows, and he was right. It drew a steady stream of onlookers at this year’s big Iola Car Show in Wisconsin, and he says the Blazer never lacks for attention, no matter where he takes it. “I was at a vintage camper show in June … It was just like bees around it!” he laughs.

“Nobody knew that these things existed. It’s quite a conversation piece. I have a hard time getting away from it once I park it. Part of that, of course, is the color. That color really makes it stand out.”

With Blazers and their brethren pickups from the era red hot on the collector market these days — the best examples have even topped $100,000 at auction and private sales in recent years — it’s no surprise Bellile has had other Bowtie fans trying hard to get him to sell it. He’s fended them off so far, and he insists his commitment to keeping the camper won’t waver.

“I’ve been offered a lot of money for it already, you bet I have… I had one guy say, ‘I’m going to buy this, how much do you want for it? Name your price and I’ll get the cash.’ I said, ‘It ain’t for sale.’ He said, ‘Everything is for sale.’ I said not this thing. It’s in the family.’ 

“There is really a cult following for these Blazers.”

SHOW US YOUR WHEELS!

If you’ve got an old car you love, we want to hear about it. Email us at oldcars@aimmedia.com

If you like stories like these and other classic car features, check out Old Cars magazine. CLICK HERE to subscribe.

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The post Car of the Week: 1972 Chevrolet K5 Blazer camper appeared first on Old Cars Weekly.

The transformation of a vehicle design on paper to reality on a production line is a long, arduous process. One step in the process is building a full-scale prototype, something that can be fully visualized before any final adjustments or refinements are made for the completed, finished product. In the automotive world, prototypes are regularly scrapped, or bits and pieces are used in the prototyping of other projects. Other times, forward-thinking individuals see the value of saving a prototype from a canceled project, which was the case for the International Harvester (IH) Scout SSV-100 coupe featured here. 

Developing a prototype IH

Let’s take a step back first. In 1975, IH was financially struggling. As a means to reduce overall spending, the Chicago-based IH headquarters began a move to concentrate on medium- and heavy-duty trucks for its lineup, i.e., vehicles rated at 1-1/2 tons and greater. This was done despite market-based research that saw the growth in sales and registrations of the sport/utility vehicle. The International Motor Truck Division, which built the “Light Line,” saw its line of 1/2-ton to 1-1/4-ton trucks discontinued when IH began to concentrate on its medium- and heavy-duty trucks. Only the Scout was left remaining. 

Also in 1975, IH authorized the continuation of a project aimed at designing and creating composite bodies for the Scout and commercial truck line. IH had been interested in the idea of using composite bodies as a means to both simplify the body design process and lower the overall production cost for new body designs. Following the re-structuring of the company, now was the time to begin developing and implementing the technology. The company hired Dr. Leo Windecker, who was an expert in composites and had previously utilized them to build an FAA-certified aircraft. While composite technology was still expensive at the time, IH set up a small research facility for Windecker in Midland, Texas, to develop a process for both profitability and mass production. 

Windecker and the styling team began development in early 1976 with designs ranging from sporty four-wheel-drive SUVs to large motorhomes and minivans. Designs from a June 9, 1978, market research report included named designs such as a 6-8 passenger Mini-Van on a 118-in. wheelbase; the Family Cruiser, aimed at the first-time four-wheel-drive buyer, and on a 100-in. wheelbase; and the Sports Enthusiast, a four-wheel-drive off-roader also on a 100-in. wheelbase. Special care was taken to use a minimal amount of tooling and as many interchangeable parts as possible to lower costs and increase production capability. Approval was given by HQ for a fabric two-door “hatchback” style with a T-top to be built onto a current Scout chassis shortened to a 95-in. wheelbase. It was about this time that the Supplementary Scout Vehicle, or SSV, name was dedicated to the project. The name was appropriate as HQ wanted the project to come to market alongside the current production of Scouts. Initial ideas suggested the hatchback be limited to a 4,000-vehicle run for 1981. The idea was to have a low-volume, more-exclusive Scout sold at a higher selling price, resulting in higher profit per unit, as IH’s profit margins were lower than its competitors. 

Building the SSV

It is important to note that the SSV is not to be considered as the Scout III. It is unclear if it would have kept the SSV name if it had made it to production, or if another name would have been used. There was a short-lived attempt around 1984 or 1985 for an unofficially named Scout III, but it never made it past the preliminary design stage. 

The Scout plant in Fort Wayne, Ind., received the first composite body in February 1977. The material consisted of a combination of long-strand glass fibers placed in an epoxy resin for durability. As composite crash-testing results were very scarce, the body needed to be tested to the current government safety standards. A standard Scout chassis was shortened by 5 in. to attach the SSV bodies. Most were built solely for crash and road testing, although a few were detailed and polished and used as demonstrators and for show. Further testing required changes in the body design, structural shaping, and in the composite itself, which they found needed to crush in a way to control energy dissipation upon impact. They settled on a laminated fiberglass skin with an aluminum honeycomb core and selectively reinforced with Kevlar fibers in areas of high stress concentrations. Crash testing occurred on the Fort Wayne, Ind., road track just north of the factory. (The road track no longer exists today.) It is unknown how many of the SSV bodies and chassis were crash tested, but some figures estimated as many as 19 composite bodies. 

As the testing and refinements went on, the body evolved to a two-door hatchback coupe with doors made from the same composite material, and a pop-up sunroof. The rear glass became hinged. As more results came back from the crash and road testing, the composite body itself went from a more simplistic seven-piece assembly to a more complicated 16-piece assembly. IH also moved to the standard Scout 100-in. wheelbase, likely to cut back on the cost of modifying or creating a new chassis for the line. Historians agree that a total of just three of these SSV coupes were fully completed as demonstrators and show cars. It is unclear if any of the SSV coupes on the 100-in. wheelbase were used for any type of crash testing. Overall, with both the 95- and 100-in. wheelbase SSVs, it is estimated that around 30 examples were built in total. I will refer to the 100-in. wheelbase SSVs as the SSV-100. 

IH fans and historians alike know that what followed in 1979 was a great shame. In an attempt by CEO Archie McCardell to negotiate more company-friendly union terms and higher profit margins for the company, the United Auto Workers union led a strike that lasted nearly six months, from Nov. 1, 1979, to April 20, 1980 — a total of 172 days. At that time, it was the longest strike in UAW history. Some 35,000 workers from 21 plants (about 36 percent of IH’s workforce) in eight states joined the strike. Unfortunately for the SSV project, the strike resulted in the work being either completely stopped or greatly slowed. The backlash from the negotiations and the long strike resulted in production lines idling and vehicle output being slashed. The backlog from unfilled orders resulted in quarterly financial losses of nearly $500 million and sales sliding 47 percent. 

In an attempt to help cover the losses, the Scout line was put up for sale in 1980, and IH began selling equipment. While a potential group of Texas buyers were courted nearly immediately, those talks quickly broke down and the group dissolved. As a result, the production of the Scout formally ended on Oct. 21, 1980. This, too, ended all work on the SSV project. As for the composite bodies that were built, IH chose to scrap them and part out those that were paired with a chassis. For those wanting to know the end of the IH story, in short, McCardell was fired in May 1982 after IH incurred $2.4 billion in losses from 1980-1982, despite refinancing more than $4 billion in debt to avoid bankruptcy. IH ended up restructuring by selling many of its divisions, such as the agricultural division to Tenneco, and re-branded the truck and engine divisions as Navistar International Corp. in 1986, which lasted until September 2024 when it rebranded as International Motors, LLC.

Maintaining & displaying IH history

Today, there are just three complete SSVs known to exist. Two of the completed SSVs are on the 95-in. chassis and the other coupe is on the 100-in. chassis, the latter pictured in these photos. In addition, there remains three partially completed SSV chassis and two separate bodies. The vehicle on the 100-in. chassis is owned by the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum in Auburn, Ind. I have seen one of the bodies at the 2020 Harvester Homecoming event in New Haven, Ind., and it is a fascinating look back at the mind set and experimentation taking place at IH during the time. 

The 1979 International Scout SSV-100 Coupe was donated to the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum on Nov. 20, 1983. It was driven from IH’s prototype shop to the museum on Oct. 26, 1983, for a special ceremony in celebration of the future donation. IH employees from the design team and engineering department chose to donate the SSV-100 to the museum, breaking the frequent pattern of corporations electing to destroy prototypes after obsolescence. At the time, the museum chose to display the SSV-100 as-is and opted to keep it inside its hallowed halls for preservation for future generations, and to keep a part of IH history alive. Even today, it is just as if it came out of the prototype shop. 

The SSV-100 is powered by a 345-cid (5.6L) V-8 engine called the V-345, which utilizes a four-barrel carburetor and catalytic converter. It produces 150 hp at 3,500 rpm. The torque is rated at 263 lb.-ft. at 2,000 rpm. The compression ratio is 8.05:1. It is mated with a TF-727 TorqueFlite three-speed automatic transmission. It also utilized several parts from the Dana Corp., including the TC-145 transfer case and Dana 44 front and rear axles. It weighs 3,850 lbs. and was built with cruise control, power steering and power brakes to add to ease of driving. The original, sometimes troublesome, smog pump remains with the SSV-100, as it was implemented because of the Clean Air Act of 1970. 

When you look at photos of the SSV-100 or see it in person at the museum, perhaps the most interesting part of the car is the body itself. It is very clearly a prototype body, but the more you look at the details, the more you can see that IH was close to moving to a finished product for production. It was placed on the 100-in. chassis from a 1979 Scout II Traveltop that came off of the line on March 20, 1978. The prototype shop removed the Traveltop body and placed the composite body on the chassis, which only required a few extra body mount bolts to fit. Just like the Scout II, the hood is forward-hinged, but is held down with two hood pins instead of a latch, which likely would have been replaced with a latching mechanism, perhaps the same as on the Scout II. The composite doors are very light and are held with nylon hinges and door strikers. The windows are fixed as there are no internal components in the door, but the bottom half was covered with the same vinyl as the rear compartment, so a window-rolling mechanism could have later been installed. The front grille is unique to the SSV-100 and shows an evolution in design beyond that seen on the Scout II.

As for the interior, it overall feels bare, as befitting a prototype. The same composite material on the outside is also used on the inside, and in the same color. The durable two-tone brown and tan vinyl seats have held up well to time and fold forward to access the rear. Due to the slanted rear window, there are no rear seats. The same brown vinyl is used for the door interiors and the flooring. The dashboard is unique to the SSV-100, but most of the gauges come from the Scout II. In the middle, a cassette player and air conditioning controls are present and unexpected for most prototyping. As someone who has driven the SSV-100, the sunroof is a godsend, even in cooler days, and even with the rear quarter windows opened the few inches they move.

When the SSV-100 was donated to the museum, it remained on static display as an integral part of the “Cars of Indiana” gallery, where it remains today. As per museum standards, and in keeping with best practices with auto maintenance of the museum collection, the engine is rotated yearly and movable components kept free. It remained in the gallery for nearly four decades until 2020, when it was decided to bring the SSV-100 back to running order. With the assistance of Scout expert Jim Allen, and with some general mechanical maintenance and cleaning of the brakes and carburetor, the SSV-100 roared back to life. A quick run through the automatic transmission shifter showed that everything was functioning properly, and a few test drives took place on the museum plaza. It has since been displayed at the Harvester Homecoming for a few years and has been to the Miami Motorcar Cavalcade where it won an award. The museum continues to run the vehicle yearly and will endeavor to keep it running for years to come. 

Behind the wheel of the SSV-100, it feels both durable and rugged. The view from the driver’s seat makes you feel in control of the vehicle and road. Riding on the original Goodyear Tracker A-T tires makes the ride feel a bit rough, and so I’ve kept its speeds to 30 mph. Those tires are just as much a part of the SSV-100’s history and will remain with it for as long as possible. 

Special thanks

I would like to thank Jim Allen for his work on researching the SSV-100, which allows the museum to tell a more complete and more detailed story, as evidenced throughout this article. I would also like to thank Jim and our all-volunteer museum group that we call the “Pit Crew” for getting the vehicle back to drivable condition. Finally, but not lastly, I would like to thank Al Rogers for his help in getting the SSV-100 into publication, and for the fantastic and detailed professional photography of the vehicle that accompanies the article. The museum remains grateful for the donation as it has ensured the survival of the SSV-100 and its story by placing it in the permanent collection of the museum. 

Sam Grate serves as curator of the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum. The museum is open from 9-5 daily. As the museum participates in several shows and concours d’elegance events, please call ahead to make sure the SSV-100 is on display before visiting. For more information on International Harvester and the Scout, “The International Scout Encyclopedia,” 2nd Edition, by Jim Allen and John Glancy, is a great source. 

MORE INFO

Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum
1600 Wayne St.
Auburn, IN 46706
260-925-1444 ext. 29
www.automobilemuseum.org
samg@automobilemuseum.org
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Until his passing in January 2025, Joe Floyd really liked Flathead V-8-powered Fords built from 1932-1953. However, he really loved the 1936 Ford V-8 in all shapes and guises so much so that he built a collection of 18 concours-quality examples.

Despite his affinity for stock 1936 Fords, Joe bought the featured half-ton 1936 Ford truck believing it had a 1937 Ford engine. Although a stickler for originality, he really liked the truck and planned to restore it anyway. 

The design and mechanical parts of the Ford truck were essentially identical from 1935 to 1937. Most of the differences between model years could be found in the interior trim and upholstery, with the leather upholstery later offered in brown and dark gray. There were also a few minor body and mechanical updates to the Ford V-8 through the 1935-’37 generation — one of them leading to Joe’s assumption the truck had the wrong engine. 

This Washington Blue 1936 Ford pickup was found by Joe during an Early Ford V-8 Club of America regional event at Albuquerque, N.M., in early 2000. A member offered the truck there after acquiring it from his father. Upon inspecting the truck, Joe noticed the water pumps were moved from the front of the engine to the sides, and the fluid flow was reversed for better cooling, a feature associated with 1937-and-later Ford Flathead V-8s. Years later, Joe eventually discovered that Ford had started putting engines designed with the improved cooling feature in its 1936 trucks late in the model year, prior to the start of the 1937 Ford truck production run. As was the case with Joe’s truck, late-1936 models received the early upgrade prior to the introduction of the new ’37s.

Nuances of 1935-1937 Ford trucks

The featured ’36 Ford is a light-duty half-ton Model 67-830 pickup built on the standard 185-inch wheelbase. It’s powered by the 221-cid Flathead V-8 that produced 85 hp. 

By 1936, Ford had produced 3 million trucks and was way ahead of the competition in sales.

The 1935 redesign for the Ford truck line brought a more curvaceous grille, skirted fenders and a laid-back windshield, making trucks closer in appearance to contemporary Ford passenger cars.

The 1935 Ford pickup cab was taller and more defined than in previous generations. The cabs were no longer bolted together using wood for a sub-structure. They were a one-piece cab more structurally built from steel. The visor on the cab disappeared for 1935, as would the overall squareness of the cab design. The half-ton pickup’s bed increased to 69 inches of load length for 1935, and the wheelbase was stretched to 112 inches. In 1935, the spare tire was mounted on the side of the bed for the first time, a tradition that Ford would continue for 14 years. 

For those who think that a sliding back glass window on a truck cab was a product of the ’70s or ’80s, think again. It was introduced as an option in 1935, although very few farmers saw the value, so in 1947 the idea was dropped.

1936 was the first year for the wide five-lug-wheel pattern. This was used through 1939, when juice brakes hit the scene.

The front fenders on the 1935 pickup had a hole cut in them for the bumper arms to protrude through. Body shops and dealerships of the day started to complain to Henry Ford that the bumper arms had to be removed just to make a simple fender change. This issue would be remedied in 1936, with the lower part of the fender being removed to allow easier fender removal. The fender openings on the half-ton pickup were designed to accommodate the 600×16 tire that came on the truck. These fenders are interchangeable between the 1935-1937 half-ton Ford pickups. The bigger trucks share the same style fender, but the opening is for a 20-inch wheel and tire. Also, the inner fender braces will not interchange between big trucks and half-ton pickups. 

The most noticeable exterior difference from 1935-’37 is in the hood sides. From 1935 to 1936, the large V-8 emblem was moved from the center of the cooling louvers in ’35 to ahead of the louvers in ’36, then back to the center for ’37.

The cabs, although interchangeable, do have some slight differences. The most obvious is the A pillar configuration. In 1935, the cab has a more pronounced body line right below the windshield. Another subtle difference is a small indentation in front of the door, on the cowl. The 1936 body line almost looks like the door was opened too far, but it was actually designed that way. 

Inside the cab, one of the more noticeable differences is the removable garnish moldings on the 1935 model. In 1936, the garnish moldings and the door pulls became part of the inner door structure. On the 1935, there are screws to remove the moldings.

The beds, tailgates and running boards are interchangeable from 1935-1937. However, the Ford logo stamped in the tailgate changed for the ’37, and the bed is approximately 10 inches longer that model year. The latter difference all takes place behind the rear axle.

Not your average Joe

Joe Floyd walked a few interesting paths during his lifetime and eventually found himself in the automobile restoration stage. 

He began working as an usher at a movie theater and helped in his father’s Hudson dealership, then he worked part-time at a local Cadillac/
Pontiac dealership where he installed radios in new Pontiacs.

Life soon became serious and Joe headed off to college and engineering school. After earning his engineering degree, his first career move was developing control systems for the Titan missile system. Later, he worked at an electric power company in Colorado where early cable television systems were being constructed. Finally, he ended up running a telecommunications company that served four Midwestern states. 

Then, one day, another life stage crept up on him when his wife asked, “What are you going to do when you retire?”

That was something that Joe hadn’t really given much thought. After thinking about it for a while, he recalled being in high school, a period in which he and his friends were always working on their Fords to make them go faster — and they did! 

Joe originally had a 1946 Ford Tudor, but always had a fondness for the 1936 Ford and its great styling. The following week he told his wife, Elaine, “Well, this is what we’re going to do. I would really like to find and restore a 1936 Ford.” It was the start of a decades-long journey that evolved from buying and restoring Ford V-8s to becoming an active part of the Early Ford V-8 Foundation Museum in Auburn, Ind. Today, many of Joe’s cars are displayed in the Floyd Motors Showroom, including the featured 1936 Ford Model 67-830 pickup truck.

Within three years of buying the 1936 Ford truck in 2000, its stunning body-off-frame restoration was completed by Straightlines Custom Restoration in Tea, S.D. The truck was originally produced with a steel floor in its pickup box, but Joe decided to have Horkey’s in Windom, Minn., make a new box with a wood floor. Joe thought it would look great and catch people’s eyes at car shows, and he was right. 

The truck remained at home, in Joe’s collection, until 2019, when the Early Ford V-8 Foundation Museum in Auburn, Ind., opened Floyd Motors, which features Joe’s 1936 Ford collection of 18 vehicles. The layout resembles a period-correct dealership and includes a turnstile. Many other automobiles that were restored by Joe and his family have also found their way into Floyd Motors. Even after Joe’s passing in January of this year, the Fords have remained there as part of his legacy, just as his family wishes.

“My siblings and I encouraged dad to do something with the collection and find a permanent home for his collection of 1936 Fords,” recently recalled Joe’s son, Craig. “The Early Ford V-8 Foundation Museum was near and dear to his heart, and it wasn’t a hard sell.” 

Sage Ford Advice

Joe’s interest in 1936 Fords is so strong, he wrote the book “Floyd Collection” featuring his ’36 Fords, which was published in 2018 by the Early Ford V-8 Foundation Museum. In the book, Joe included an interesting section on collecting Fords titled, “Some Things I Learned Along the Way.” The following excerpt offers insight into his interest in 1936 Fords, and what he learned about them in his years of studying them: 

You cannot start a project to locate and restore all the models of the 1936 Ford automobile without taking the time to understand what the Ford Motor Car Company was like in the 1930s. At that time, it was still privately owned. Even though Edsel Ford was president, it was still Henry’s company. Henry Ford was the last industrialist who, with a stroke of a pen, could stop every production line in his whole company. Production that year was 791,812 cars and trucks.

Henry Ford was known as the inventor of the Model T Ford that put Americans on wheels. His real genius was the development of the assembly line process…. This process allowed his company to produce more quantity and better quality automobiles at a lower cost. This mass-production method allowed us to win World War II by out-producing the Germans and Japanese 10 to 1 in tanks and airplanes.

In that era, Henry Ford was like Warren Buffet today. When he talked, everybody listened. In 1936, Henry Ford was the first to declare the Great Depression to be over.

The very thing that made the production line possible also made it easier for us to restore so many cars. Starting in 1932, virtually every engine and drive line was identical even though the body was different. When making 800,000 cars, they only had to cast one steering arm for all those cars.

When we started locating parts, it was a real challenge. The internet and eBay-licensed reproduction vendors were just starting to come onto the scene, so junk yards and swap meets were our primary source.

One day, we drove to northern Minnesota to purchase a parts car. We had to cut a 4-foot tree growing out of the middle of the car before we could load it on our trailer. Parts from the first parts car were used all over in our collection. It was Henry’s genius that made it possible for us to bring back to life so many models of the 1936 Ford. 

Ford relied on three auto body builders for his cars: Briggs, Budd and Murray. The design of the 1936 car was designed by Bob Kota, a designer for Briggs Manufacturing Company. In many respects, it was a facelift from the 1935 model. Some of the fenders on the open cars do not fit the closed cars even though they look the same.

Did you ever look at the grille on the ’36 Ford and wonder what the hole near the bottom was for? If you think it looks like a hole for a hand crank, you are correct, but everyone knows you cannot hand crank a V-8 engine, because of the location of the distributor. Even so, the hole was there in 1932 through the 1937 model Fords. 

In 1928, when Ford came out with his Model A, it had a very reliable L-head 201 cu.-in. engine developing 40 hp. This was Ford’s standard power plant until 1932, when the V-8 was introduced. The four-banger, as it was called, developed a very loyal following, especially in the rural areas in North America. Some customers were not about to switch to some newfangled engine when the four-bangers were so reliable. Thus, you could order any Ford car or truck though 1937 with the four-cylinder engine. There are no production records showing how many four-bangers were sold during that time.

By 1936, Ford was using very little wood in its cars. Most of the other car makers were still used to reinforcing the doors and side body panels. However, if you look closely under the cars, you can see some wood reinforcement under the front and rear floor panels. The four wood pieces were a little over 1 inch square and about 14 inches long. These wood reinforcement pieces were exposed to all the road grime and grit as were the underside of the metal floors on the car.

When we would start to dismantle the body and remove the floor panels that were usually rotted, the wood pieces on the floors were still intact. I got to wonder: How could wood outlast the metal floor? Later I found out that it was ironwood, from the upper peninsula of Michigan, where Ford had its forests.

More than a decade ago, I traveled to the town of Ironwood, Michigan, and asked about the wood. I was told, “If you find one of the ironwood trees, do not try and cut it down. It is the densest wood grown in North America.” Leave it to Henry to find the right wood for the cars.

Sometimes I wondered why the 1935 and 1936 Ford cars looked almost the same, and the 1937 was such a radical change. We do know that Ford was relying on the designers at Briggs Manufacturing Company to come up with the body designs for those and prior years. It made me wonder even more when I looked at the pictures of other cars of that era. They had flowing fenders, enclosed headlamps, trunks and a trim rear view.

In my opinion, Ford did not want to scare off its loyal customers, so it gave them a slow transition from the classic Model A designs carried over into the ’32 to ’34 models. My other theory is that Edsel Ford was way more conscious of body design than Henry and we were beginning to see his influence in the company. No matter which theory you believe, I think the 1936 Ford automobile is the neatest looking prewar automobile Ford has ever made.

Early Ford V-8 Foundation Museum
2181 Rotunda Drive
PO Box 284 (Mailing)
Auburn, IN 46706
260-927-8022
fordv8foundation.org

Love truck stories? Here are a few more articles for your reading enjoyment.

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https://www.oldcarsweekly.com/the-rarely-seen-factory-1948-nash-pickup

https://www.oldcarsweekly.com/features/car-of-the-week-1947-international-kb-2-pickup

The post Car of the Week: 1936 Ford pickup appeared first on Old Cars Weekly.

For more than a half century, America’s most popular truck has been the Ford F-150, and many people probably assume it was also the first truck. However, the first truck was built several years before the Ford Motor Co. was even incorporated. 

In 1896, Daimler built what is recognized as the first truck, and six years later — more than a century before today’s Rivian R1T and Tesla Cybertruck — Studebaker laid claim in 1902 to building America’s first electric truck.

Since neither the 1896 Daimler nor the 1902 Studebaker truck are common sights, few would know what either vehicle looked like unless shown photos. However, William Eggers has built replicas of both trucks that are stylistically faithful to the originals and bring their history to life. 

The wiz behind the trucks

Known as “Wild Bill” because of his love for motorcycles, William Eggers began tinkering around at age six, well before attending vocational grammar and high school. When he was 12 years old, he made a wooden go-cart with his family’s old lawn mower. Eggers was buzzing along Sunrise Highway in Queens, New York, until the police caught up with him and brought him home. After they left, his mother said, “I’m so proud of what you made.” 

Eggers then took construction technology in college “until they said I know more than the professors and I’m wasting my time,” he recalls.

For 55 years, Eggers was a carpenter contractor in Manhattan until the Sept. 11 tragedy. Now retired to Goshen, Conn., his projects take about a year to complete.

Eggers is currently reproducing the first aircraft that was made by Gottlieb Daimler and not the Wright Brothers.

“I’m having too much fun in my shop seven days a week.” 

Eggers has expanded his skill set beyond carpenter to engineer, sculptor and welder, all without a computer. In addition to recreating early vehicles, Eggers refurbishes old motorcycles. The vehicles that Eggers has recreated are often sold to museums and private collectors. Besides the 1896 Daimler and 1902 Studebaker trucks, he has duplicated the 1867 Roper, the first coal-fire-steam motorcycle; an 1865 Wells Fargo stagecoach; and the chariots used by Charlton Heston and Stephen Boyd in the movie “Ben Hur.” 

Recreating the earliest trucks

Inventor Gottlieb Daimler was determined to find applications for his engine, and he applied it to a motorcycle, trolley car and the first truck. His truck was basically a carriage with an engine.

The engine was called a Phoenix, a two-cylinder unit that produced 4 hp and could propel the Daimler truck to a top speed of 6 mph. It could run on gasoline, coal gas or lamp fuel.   

The Daimler’s engine was located in the back of the truck. Two helical springs were used to protect the engine, which was sensitive to road vibrations.  The engine was behind the rear axle and drove that axle with a chain. A bench seat was in front. There was a steering wheel which directed chains to move the leaf-sprung front axle right or left. The hauler had a payload of 3,307 lbs., and its wooden sides could drop down to make a flatbed. This first truck was used to deliver beer kegs to taverns in London.

Eggers also made a replica of an 1898 Daimler commercial vehicle. “This was the first truck with the engine in the front,” Eggers says.

The 1902 Studebaker electric commercial vehicle was powered by a single Westinghouse standard vehicle motor.  It was rated at 40 volts (pressure to make electrons move) and 24 amperes (amount of current). This resulted in 1.5 hp. The top speed was 13 mph with a driving range of 40 miles per charge.  The motor was under the bench seat and moved the rear wheels with a chain.

The Studebaker had a tiller for steering, and there were two brake systems with one working on the rear axle drums and the other working on the countershaft of the motor. Both brakes were foot operated. There were four speeds forward as well as four speeds for backward motion. The electric speed control was at the seat to the driver’s left. There were semi-elliptical front springs and full-elliptical rear springs.

Eggers obtained measurements of the early trucks by going on the internet at his local library. 

“I made my own scale ruler to measure any part,” he said.

With any project, he starts construction by building the frame and wheels and then moves onto the body and fittings. For the Daimler, Eggers was able to determine the body was built from mahogany. 

“All the steel brass fittings I made myself,” he says. “The springs came from the Amish off their carriages. The chain is stock and fits factory gears.”

He notes the original Daimler truck rolled on hard iron wheels.

“I have a steel band around the wheels for strength and a rubber inset, because when I sold it, the new owners did not want steel ruining the floors.” 

One is hard-pressed to tell the difference between the original Daimler truck and Eggers’ reproduction. One divergence is the powerplants. Instead of the original Phoenix engine, Eggers installed a Kohler. “It has about two times the original power in one cylinder.”  

Eggers’ 1902 Studebaker truck recreation is likewise faithful to the original. Again, he went to the library to find pictures of the original.  

Again, Eggers created the brass fittings and built the body.

“Dark wood is mahogany, and painted wood is popular,” he says, adding that the “lamp oil lights are from the Amish…. all springs from the Amish. Axles are also from the Amish, adjusted for my needs.” 

Since obtaining an electric Studebaker engine would be impossible, Eggers used a Leeson Motor Speedmaster 24-volt system with two deep-cycle 12-volt batteries. Unlike the original, which had four forward and four reverse gears, Eggers’ model has one gear forward and one reverse.

Although Eggers does not own a computer, he has a website. All of his projects can be seen at www.williameggersmotorcycles.com. 

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In 1917, the City of Old Town, Maine, purchased its first motorized piece of fire apparatus. It consisted of a Garford chassis and a body built by the Northern Fire Apparatus Co. of Minneapolis. Much of the historical information about the truck has been lost over the decades, but stories have been passed down from fireman to fireman over the years about the competition between the new gasoline-powered truck and the traditional horse-drawn carts pulled by “Fred and Ted,” who were housed in stables at the rear of the original Central Fire Station. Reportedly, the Garford was often first out the door on an alarm, but was often passed by the horses, especially in snowy weather where the solid rubber tires of the new truck provided little traction. In fact, it wasn’t until two years later that pneumatic tires became available for purchase.

The Garford Co. was started by Arthur Lovett Garford in 1892 as a bicycle seat manufacturing company in Elyria, Ohio. It soon entered into a joint venture with Studebaker in which it would assemble automobile chassis and send them to South Bend for completion. This arrangement lasted until 1908 when Studebaker began its association with the Everitt-Metzger-Flanders Co., and Garford began producing cars under its own name.

However, the lack of a distribution network made the company unprofitable. It was purchased by John North Willys in 1913 and merged into Willys-Overland. Garford-branded chassis were produced for several more years under the Garford Motor Truck Co. name and were often made into purpose-built vehicles such as fire trucks, postal delivery vehicles and even armored cars used by the Russian military.

In Old Town’s case, a Garford chassis was sent to the Northern Fire Apparatus Co. where it was fitted with a Type H combination chemical and hose equipment body. It consisted of such features as an automatic hose reel, copper chemical tank, a Northern Rotary Pumps-branded fire pump, hardwood ladders and other assorted fire-fighting tools. The truck did not have a large-capacity water tank, but was capable of utilizing water from fire hydrants and drafting from static water sources.

Some interesting features of the truck include wood-spoked wheels, right-hand-drive steering, a revolution counter in the front hubs and manually lit torches above the hose bed that were used as supplemental lighting for nighttime calls. Missing are the original Dietz Fire King lanterns and the chemical tank and hose reel.

The original motor was destroyed during a large structure fire in Old Town in which the aging Garford was used for water supply. It was reportedly nosed down a ramp into the Penobscot River and hard suction hoses were deployed in an effort to draft water into the pump to supply other fire engines that were closer to the actual fire. Unfortunately, the oil sump was unable to lubricate the motor due to its prolonged angled position on the ramp. The fire truck was taken out of service until a replacement 1956 GMC engine could be installed by the local Public Works Facility. This engine still powers the fire truck today.

After a long career, the Garford was officially retired. It was purchased by a private individual and was thought to be lost forever. However, during an investigation in the woods of Bridgton, Maine, in 1987, it was uncovered by State Fire Marshal Stu Jacobs, who just so happened to be a former member of the Old Town Fire Department. He immediately knew what he had stumbled upon, because of the “OTFD” lettering on the hood and the Garford name on the truck’s front bumper. The owner agreed to donate the truck to the newly formed “1917 Garford Association” for restoration. Over the next several years, it was painstakingly restored by Bruce Johnson and several other members. All money was raised by the association through donations, benefit dances and other fund raising activities.

The truck was stored for more than 20 years at the Hose Five Fire Museum in Bangor, Maine, until current members of the Old Town Fire Department reformed the Garford Association and began efforts to return the truck to its original home. They, in conjunction with the City of Old Town, are currently working on constructing a replica of the original fire station in front of the current facility to permanently house this piece of fire-fighting history.

The truck is believed to be one of only three 1917 Garford fire engines in existence today, one of which is located in Australia.

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Greg Pellegrom always had it in the back of his mind. Maybe… possibly … if the right one came along … and the timing seemed just right… sure, he’d like to buy an old pickup truck.

“I guess it was just a matter of opportunity,” says Pellegrom, a retired resident of Stevens Point, Wis.

That opportunity came out of the blue back in 2000. Pellegrom was traveling for business and found himself in Tupelo, Miss. He was a long way from home, but he was enjoying himself, in part, because of the number of nice, old pickup trucks he noticed driving around.

“I was talking to a guy saying, ‘Man, it’s sure been fun being here and looking at all your old pickup trucks,” Pellegrom recalled with a chuckle. “He said, ‘Y’all looking for one?’ I said, ‘Well, all Yankees are, aren’t they?.’ He said, ‘My cousin has one for sale!’”

That 1954 Chevrolet 3100 half-ton had apparently belonged to a chicken farmer in Tupelo. It was in pretty decent shape — good enough that it needed somebody to either get running good enough to enjoy in “as is” condition with a little TLC, or somebody with bigger plans to finish restoring it back to original.

Pellegrom wasn’t sure which direction he was going to go with it, but he simply couldn’t pass up the chance to buy an old Chevy pickup that had lived on a chicken farm in Tupelo.

“He had the thing in primer, and it had been sitting in his garage,” Pellegrom said. “His uncle bought the truck originally…. It ran, yes. The brakes were not good. I drove it up and down the road a few times. But the bed was gone. The tailgate and front of the box were both beat up… The guy kept track of some of his oil changes, and it looks like it went years and years — maybe 10 years at a time, between oil changes. I think it spent a lot of time sitting in a barn.”

An old farm truck that needed some love was just fine with Pellegrom. It was exactly that kind of truck that he remembered from his childhood.

“It was an impulse, but I always kind of had it in my mind that I wanted an old Chevy pickup truck, because in my youth, my dad’s cousin used to go up and down the street in our hometown of Grand Haven, Michigan, and he had produce on the back of his old Chevy pickup,” Pellegrom recalled. “I’ll always remember seeing that truck coming down the street, heading for the market or wherever….”

Pellegrom jokes about having to OK the acquisition with his wife Jackie. That conversation took an interesting twist when he got home. Turns out Jackie had scoped out an old pickup at an antique shop while Greg had been on the road. She gave some serious thought to buying it as a surprise.

“She said, ‘Wouldn’t it have been fun if I had bought it for you?’” Pellegrom laughs. “I said, ‘Well, funny you should say that, because I have something to tell you about.”

1954: A Better ‘Advance-Design’

Chevy’s Advance-Design line of trucks were introduced following World War II in 1947, and by 1954, they were due for a fairly substantial refresh.

There was a new and more open grille. The opening was filled with a massive cross-bar arrangement. The main horizontal bar extended the full-width of the body. Below it were rectangular parking lamps. The outer radiator grille bars were done in body color, and the inner bars were Thistle Gray (except trucks painted Commercial Red had Argent Silver inner bars, and trucks painted Pure White had Pure White inner bars). “Chevrolet” was stamped into the grille header bar and lettered in Waldorf White. Bumpers were finished in Anvil Gray.

There was a new instrument panel with defroster openings that extended the full width of the windshield. The instruments, grouped in two clusters, were now recessed into the panel to minimize reflections. There was also a redesigned “dispatch booth” (glove compartment) and a restyled ash tray. A revised steering wheel provided a better view of the instruments and incorporated finger grips on the horizontal spokes. A new load box featured a 2-inch lower loading height, flat side panel tops, deeper sides and a tailgate the same height as the sides. The 1954 taillamps were round. When the optional rear bumper was ordered, the license plate was mounted in the center of the box, under the tailgate.

Some of the numerous technical changes included a more rugged three-speed manual transmission; a new optional Hydra-Matic transmission; and a more durable clutch for automatics. Frame rigidity was increased by a heavier cross-member at the rear of the engine. Chrome fender bars were available as Deluxe equipment on panel trucks only. A switch to a gray-and-maroon interior was made for Suburbans. A Juniper Green body finish with cream medium striping and black wheels was standard finish for all models.

Eleven other colors were optional at no extra cost. They included: Commercial Red with Argent Silver; Jet Black with Argent Silver; Mariner Blue with Cream Medium; Cream Medium with Jet Black; Yukon Yellow with Jet Black; Ocean Green with Jet Black; Transport Blue with Cream Medium; Copper Tone with Shell White; Omaha Orange with Jet Black; Autumn Brown with Shell White; and Pure White with Juniper Green. Standard wheels were black; on Deluxe monotone and two-tone trucks, the wheels were the color of the lower body; on two-tone trucks, Shell White was used exclusively as the upper body color and the belt line was usually striped with the lower body color. Exceptions included trucks with the lower body done in Pure White, Cream Medium or Omaha Orange, in which cases the striping was Jet Black or Onyx Black.

Early in 1954, Chevrolet introduced a new Deluxe Cab option for all 3000 Series trucks. It included two-tone interior trim that harmonized with the exterior color; stainless-steel windshield and side window reveals; chrome-plated Ventipane frames; right-hand sunshade; left-hand armrest; cigar lighter; twin-tone horns; and curved rear corner windows. The two-tone interior colors with Light Green and Juniper Green; Light Blue and Dark Blue; Birch White and Brown; and Pear Beige and Maroon. The interior included a color-coordinated cloth seat; a color-coordinated rubber floor mat; color-coordinated wind lacing; and special colored plastic armrests.

The 235.5-cid six was improved with output now up to 105 hp, thanks to new insert bearings and high-pressure lubrication. The same engine had been introduced on passenger cars with the two-speed Powerglide in 1953. Torque-tube drive returned, and Hydra-Matic was optional.

The base price of the 1/2-ton 3100 pickup was $1,419 for the 1954 model year. The 3100 Series also included a cab and chassis; chassis and cowl; panel delivery; canopy; and Suburbans with either doors or tailgates in back.

Cruising Through Retirement

Like anybody who picks up an old vehicle to restore — or at least finish — Pellegrom had a fundamental decision to make regarding his 1954 1/2-ton: Try to return it to authentic factory condition, or make a few modifications to make it a reliable driver. The decision for him wasn’t a difficult one; he wanted to drive the truck as much as possible.

“I wanted to paint it and restore whatever I had to,” he says. “I didn’t want to get inside the engine if I didn’t have to. I just wanted a truck to have some fun in, go to a few parades, a few car shows, and talk smart with the fellas.

“If you go by the book, you could pick apart just about everything. It’s not a blue ribbon concours vehicle, and I’m not a blue ribbon concours guy.”

Pellegrom had a friend help him tackle all the bodywork, and paint. They went with stainless divider strips and oak planks for the bed — a combination that looks great, but is a little flashier than what came from the factory.

One of the biggest decisions he faced was what paint color to go with. The truck was in primer when he got it, so it was a blank canvas. Pellegrom said he was leaning toward red, but his wife wanted yellow. “Then I was on another business trip out to Kansas and I saw a guy that had about a ’53 Chevy pickup on a K5 Chevy chassis and it had a real nice mellow green on it.”

That sighting changed his mind. 

“I just really liked the green. It’s easy on the eyes, and just kind of low-key. This shade is actually closer probably to a Ford color. The same buddy painter who went to get the truck with me and help me with the bodywork painted the truck in his garage with a 20-inch box fan for ventilation. We probably broke every OSHA rule there was!”

The new grilles on the ’54s were originally available in chrome, but that was more expensive and not common. On painted grilles, body color was used on the outer bars, while the inner bars were White, Thistle Gray or Argent Silver on red trucks. Pellegrom decided to break with authenticity and go with cream for the grille, which was used on other trucks of the era, but wasn’t a Chevy option in ’54. 

“The White was so stark, it was really bright. I just didn’t think that it looked good with this color. I liked [the cream] because it doesn’t jump out at you … And the front and rear bumpers are about $10 worth of Rustoleum! Same thing with the running boards. About $10 worth of Rustoleum paint, painted in my friend’s garage.”

The previous owner had already painted the interior of the steel cab a tan color. Pellegrom tackled the vinyl seat upholstery himself in his basement, and added seat belts for himself and passengers.

“I was a safety guy for Sentry Insurance for 37 years!” he jokes. “I gotta do the safety stuff.”

Pellegrom also added outside mirrors, stainless taillamps, a heater-defroster and a few other goodies. A local garage just a couple blocks from his home did some brake work on the pickup and replaced the starter. The electrics on the truck have also been swapped from 6 to 12 volts with a generator now in place.

“I also went to 15-inch wheels and rubber,” he points out. “The narrow whitewalls are not authentic, but I wanted to go with the radials.”

Pellegrom said it took him nearly three years from the time he got it home to get the truck “done.” He was still working full-time back then, and he said he looked forward to coming home from work every night and on the weekends and having the resto project to keep him busy. The truck eventually led to another vehicle, too. He now has a sweet 1931 Ford Model A in his garage.

“The whole project was a lot of fun for me. I always knew I was doing the right thing,” he says. “Just the process was something I really enjoyed, and it was something to look forward to and something different from my day job. The project itself kept me going.”

He says a spin on a country road in the old Chevy takes him back to simpler times and reminds him its OK to sometimes take life at a slower pace. When you are bouncing along in a 70-year-old truck, well, you don’t really have much choice but to slow down.

“Yeah, it doesn’t go very fast. The rear end has farmer’s market gears in it — 45, 50 mph. You know, what’s the rush?” Pellegrom concludes. “It’s all just recreation. It’s all just about having fun.”

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Cars and trucks often depict points in time and symbolize the world in which they were created. Some even become “segment busters” that establish a new vehicle category. One such segment buster was the compact truck offered in the United States by multiple Japanese manufacturers during the 1970s.

Japanese pickups became the ideal type of hauler in the United States during the fuel-starved 1970s when the norm was odd-even days of gasoline rationing, long gas lines and high prices for whatever gas might be available. Overnight, these compact pickups became money-saving alternatives to those who needed to haul, but didn’t need much carry capacity or power to do it. Adding to their appeal, many found that the compact Japanese pickups could be cosmetically and mechanically customized, attracting many young men to them during the 1970s.

Datsun and Toyota were among those Japanese manufacturers that offered compact trucks for 1970, and in 1972, Mazda’s entry joined them. Meanwhile, Detroit’s Big Three offered no mini pickups and had none on the drawing boards. To quickly get into the compact truck game, General Motors and Ford Motor Co. entered into joint ventures with Japanese brands that already offered compact trucks. Chevrolet brought out the badge-engineered Isuzu Faster as the Chevy LUV (light utility vehicle) while Ford offered the Courier based upon a Mazda B-series pickup. Both began to be sold in the United States for 1972.

These compact pickups all had overhead-cam, inline four-cylinder engines in front, a rear axle, a four-speed manual transmission and an independent front suspension paired with a leaf-spring rear suspension. For 1974, Toyota’s little pickup had 106 hp, Datsun’s pickup touted 100 hp, Mazda’s version had 85 hp, the Chevy LUV put out 75 hp and the Ford Courier was good for 74 hp. Then Mazda stirred things up, and between 1974 and 1977, it offered the Rotary Power pickup, now referred to by enthusiasts as the REPU (pronounced rhee-poo, an acronym for Rotary Engine Pick-Up).

The Mazda REPU was the first and only rotary engine-powered pickup. Mazda’s Wankel (pronounced van-kel) engine is a combustion engine that makes crank power by rotation motion rather than reciprocating motion, as on a regular internal-combustion engine. The Wankel uses a triangular rotor that revolves in a chamber. In contrast, a piston moves up and down in an internal-combustion engine’s cylinder. There are fewer moving parts in a Wankel, and it is also smaller and lighter for a given horsepower than a conventional internal-combustion engine. Compared to the competition, the Mazda REPU made 110 hp, besting all other compact pickups of the day.

To match its unique power plant, Mazda’s rotary pickup had a distinct design with rectilinear styling. Like other pickups of the time, the cab was short and the bed was long. Pronounced lip flares around the wheels were stamped into the front and rear fenders that suggested muscular haunches. Track width, both front and rear, was greater than the competition, and the REPU was shod with larger tires. Low-beam headlamps were outside of the grille and within the grille were the high-beam headlamps in an arrangement reminiscent of the 1962 Dodge Dart. A large “Rotary Power” call out was on the tailgate.

These charming details and promise of more power caught the eye and swayed original owners to buy the REPU. The sporty steering wheel with two U-shaped spokes, the floor shifter, the pleated door panels and seat upholstery and the deep-pile-cut carpet gave the interior plenty of flair for the day. Woodgrain inserts on the instrument panel further provided the Mazda with a touch of refinement. Also on the instrument panel was a row of three round, deeply hooded gauges with white lettering on black faces. The three instruments included a 110-mph speedometer plus odometer; an 8,000-rpm tachometer; and the third dial housed the coolant level, ammeter and fuel capacity. The only seating option was a bench seat with a low backrest.

In printed advertisements of the day, Mazda said the rotary-engine truck came with power-assisted front disc brakes and a stabilizer bar and a warranty unmatched by any other light truck. Specifically, a 50,000-mile or three-year engine warranty. Rod Serling, of “Twilight Zone” fame, did television ads and hawked the 1974 Mazda REPU as “The pickup with pick up.”

Colton Broderick is the proud owner of the featured 1974 REPU. The Arroyo Grande, Calif., resident said, “I had been working for a shop called Lucky7Racing for a few years as a mechanic fixing rotary engines and the toys they are sold in. I was drawn in immediately to the classic body lines of the Mazda Rotary Power pickups. They were simple but spoke to me.” Broderick knew these trucks were innovative, ahead of the curve and a trend setter, and he eventually found one of his own.

“I personally like the aggressive fender flares, the unique and tasteful rotor-shaped hood emblem in the middle of the grille, the optional ‘Rotary Power’ on the tailgate, and the passenger-side battery box cover just in front of the rear tire,” Broderick says of the REPU.

When Broderick bought his REPU, it needed some refreshening and attention. As a caretaker of history, Broderick’s truck is more than a possession to him. It is a passion. As someone fanatically devoted to the rotary engine, Broderick did a body-up restoration.

“A full overhaul was done, and this includes anything and everything,” Broderick says. “Every nut, bolt and pre-existing thread was tapped or replaced. The frame was blasted, and the chassis savored. The bed was lined and protected. The dings and dents on the 22-gauge sheet metal were troublesome. On top of my 40-hour work week, I was determined to make this REPU beautiful.”

The body panels are smooth and accented with show-quality chrome. The blue paint is well applied, and the glass is exceptionally clear. The interior looks showroom-fresh again. Broderick is grateful to Fielding Steen-Larson for providing space to work and helping with the labor-intensive work.

Lucky7Racing specializes in upgrading Wankel engines. Motor-vation for Broderick’s pickup came from a more “vitamin enriched” engine using aftermarket parts.

“The truck has a factory 13B [engine] with the old-school vintage air (carburetor), correct rotor housings, and a mild street port,” Broderick says. “I would suspect upgrades of 180 to 200 hp, if not more.”

Mazda only sold 15,000 units in the United and Canada before it discontinued the truck. Today, the Mazda Rotary Pickup has a sainted standing as a cult classic.

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