Is this a bad idea..

I've been thinking about getting my son a truck (for selfish reasons a truck would be nice to say - haul a couple dirtbikes w/o the need of me buying a trailer - but also because he has been doing really well.)

Regardless of that - I've found a nice 67 Ford F100 - 300 six - guys asking 2800 to start - I really like the age (no smog bs - easy to work on) - and I hear the Ford six - is a pretty well respected motor.

Looks pretty decent from this one shot - probably some major rust - anyhow - is this a bad idea?



I'll of course drive this sucker before making any serious choices.

Thanks,

I like it

probably really easy to work on compared to a newer one

Thanks - yeah - I like the pictures and from my days with a 69 mustang - gas, spark, oil, air, coolant - pretty simple stuff - would be great to pass onto my son.

My son got the same truck in the 1993 version, 300-6 with a five speed, when he started driving. I think driving with a clutch makes a better driver, and the 300 is a pretty durable motor. Don't expect any gas mileage.

Yeah- it is a 3 speed manual - should be pretty fun to drive - I did receive a motor shot - looks very clean

Of course it has some rust - but it has survived since 67...

The 300 is a tough ass motor. It will run for ever.

It depends. Is he 17 or 35? Does he drive like he's 17 or 35?
If he's 17, and drives like it, and drives often, you'll want airbags. Turning your back on 50 years of safety improvements will seem pretty short-sighted if something happens... his fault or not.

Nothing wrong with a truck. Just pick one that's more modern.

Chip
Owner of a '67 sports car, on which even seatbelts were a dealer option...

I like it...would be fun. They call that 'patina' now anyway. The rust up here is much worse. The only thing that strikes me is the different color white of the bed, at least it seems so in the pictures - and its not as rusty/patina'd as the bumper/tailgate. If it was repaired right, not a problem - just look for bondo though.

That is desert surface rust, sand, treat, paint.

The 300 is hands down fords best motor ever. prolly has a 3:1 (or worse) 9 inch rear end.

you can open those suckers up, my last restore was a 300 in an 81, I did all the legwork, the kid - literally - that bought it from me added the isky cam, offy intake, holley 390 4bbl and EFI manifolds for duals...I got 17-19 always in mine

Thanks Chip - very valuable advice - and I do consider that - as my friends in high school - back in 84 - wanted me to go to Reno with them - and my friend drove an old 68 GMC truck - I would have sat in the back under a camper shell - I turned it down - and on HW 80 they got into an accident and the truck rolled and basically came completely apart - engine came out - just a complete mess - they were lucky to walk away.

So I definitely worry about the safety aspect. My son is older - 22 - not as wild any longer - and definitely more appreciative than he was when he was younger. I think he would be very good to this truck.


The truck looks well kept - here is a nice interior shot:

2800 IMO is a little salty, but it might be the new market....everything up here in the north east has long since been turned into razor blades...gotta pay to play.

and its EASY to add PS and PB to that truck. (locating parts is the only hard part)

Its a body on frame truck with around 105hp - he aint gonna get going to fast too quickly...either he has the old truck gene, or he does not. if it was 1500 Id come and get it based on the pics you sent running or not....

Thanks again for all the great valuable info. All I need to do now is drive it and see how she feels - hopefully they come down a bit in price.

Aside from the safety factor compared to contemporary vehicles, that thing is going to be a real kidney puncher.

close friend of mine got a 68 mercury version of that truck for his first ride back in the late 80's...his dad bought it for him as well.that truck was just a beast of a thing,a 3/4 ton camper special with a 360/4 speed[1st so low that it was effectively a three speed],no power steering or brakes...even had a tubed AM radio slung under the dash...it was tough as nails and built to work,but it was not fast,comfortable or all that easy to drive...his dad's goal was met tho,he learned to drive a challenging vehicle well.pretty much anything was easy as pie after that

keep in mind that in addition to the lack of airbags and rudimentary safety gear....the gas tank is also inside the cab of those models,it's just behind the seat and can shower the occupants with raw fuel in a crash

Nice!!! we had one back in teh day w/360 engine.... that would be a light weight wood hauler for me now!!! they don't get real rusty in the dessert, do they!

Rodzilla said:

close friend of mine got a 68 mercury version of that truck for his first ride back in the late 80's...his dad bought it for him as well.that truck was just a beast of a thing,a 3/4 ton camper special with a 360/4 speed[1st so low that it was effectively a three speed],no power steering or brakes...even had a tubed AM radio slung under the dash...it was tough as nails and built to work,but it was not fast,comfortable or all that easy to drive...his dad's goal was met tho,he learned to drive a challenging vehicle well.pretty much anything was easy as pie after that

keep in mind that in addition to the lack of airbags and rudimentary safety gear....the gas tank is also inside the cab of those models,it's just behind the seat and can shower the occupants with raw fuel in a crash

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That's a sobering thought...

Yeah - definitely not the safest vehicle - he can use my LandCruiser for long trips.

From one of the pictures - I see locking front hubs - so this one appears to be four wheel drive - not mentioned in the add - the add is pretty slim as far as features. That at least justifies the price a bit.

Definitely be a good workout for him.

Thanks,

Chris

Chip Chester said:

It depends. Is he 17 or 35? Does he drive like he's 17 or 35?
If he's 17, and drives like it, and drives often, you'll want airbags. Turning your back on 50 years of safety improvements will seem pretty short-sighted if something happens... his fault or not.

Nothing wrong with a truck. Just pick one that's more modern.

Chip
Owner of a '67 sports car, on which even seatbelts were a dealer option...

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47 years is a long time for things to go wrong. You see surface rust in the photo, but is there hidden rust/damage in the rest of the body and, even more importantly in the frame? A real important consideration on a vehicle this old. And I second the call to look at all the major safety improvements since then. Lap and shoulder belts, anti lock brakes, disk brakes, air bags, traction control, the list is very long and each one makes the vehicle safer. Unless you want to treat it as a project for restoral to show car status I would look for something newer.

Yeah, I think it's a bad idea to give your kid a vehicle so comparatively unsafe. When my youngest daughter started at the University of Illinois and wanted a car to make trips between Champaign and Chicago I bought her a new base model 2002 Focus; I wanted her in something safe and reliable. Now 13 years later she lives in Chicago and still drives the Focus--good car. I see used 2002 Focii selling around $3000, I'd put the money into one of those (or a comparable Toyota or whatever) rather than the truck in question.

Tom Brennan said:

Yeah, I think it's a bad idea to give your kid a vehicle so comparatively unsafe. The OP might examine his motives; does he want the vehicle for his kid or actually for himself?

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I agree - it is a serious safety concern - and sure - I think it would be a cool truck to have for myself.

He is a man at age 22 - sure still kid like - but lots of kids drive hot rods - 60's cars - (lucky bastards!) - I drove a 69 ford when I was his age.

But sure - these days there are many shitty drivers on the road with much safer cars - so perhaps your odds of being in an accident are higher.

He definitely likes the truck - and showed me another one that was a 96 model - but my concern there - is - that the new models are a bitch to work on - even the under the hood shot - the motor was covered in dirt and the engine compartment packed components that will likely fail - no room to work. I miss the simplicity of the older motors - adjust the points - set the dwell - etc - no complex fuel injection.

Anyhow - I'm going to consider this valuable advice.

My other older son but a Taurus (200x) model w/o consulting me - and the car was a total POS - for Christmas, when he came down with it, I took it to a respected auto repair place here - to go over - and tune up - replace the brakes, tires - etc - they told me to take the car to the dumps and try to get some $$ - as it was beyond repair. Tranny shot, oil leaks from the pan, vacuum leaks - just a mess - over 3K to fix a car bought for 1K.

Thanks,