Join us for a journey back in time to an age when pickup trucks were still real trucks—simple, practical workhorses.
We know this look back at the 1973 Ford F-100 is going to generate a wave of nostalgia for much of our audience. This was an age, many will say, when pickup trucks were still trucks. The F-100s of 1953 through 1983 were practical workhorses of reasonable size, not the giant four-door luxury cruisers on the market today. We can’t say the Detroit manufacturers were wrong in growing their pickups to their current tremendous size. After all, sales (and profits) soared as a result. Still, many of us continue to long for these simple, utilitarian pickups of yesteryear.
That said, we can see that in 1973, the F-100’s march into gentrification was already well underway. Ford introduced a larger, more comfortable cab that year, and there were three trim levels, from plain to fancy: Custom, Ranger, and Ranger XLT. A chrome front bumper and bright metal grille were standard on all models, while the Ranger XLT offered a sedan-like interior with carpeting and color-coordinated fabrics. Mechanical features included standard front disc brakes and Ford’s aggressively marketed Twin I-Beam front suspension, engineeered for a more car-like ride (see our feature here). Indeed, the F-Series tagline for ’73 was “works like a truck, rides like a car.” Video below.
A friend has a 73 F-100 Ranger XLT short bed. In length, width or height it can hide behind my 2012 F-150 short bed crew cab. And mine with the 5.0 Coyote engine will stomp his 390 4bbl.
But damn if his ain’t a better looking truck, two tone copper and white and matching cloth seat interior.
“The gas tank’s here, not in the cab…”
Gas tank location either way was a matter of religious dogma for a hundred years. No provable best answer.
I bought a new ’67 ranger, camper special, 352, auto, 4:10 Detroit Locker.
I had ordered two gas tanks one under and one behind the seat with the valve on the floor by the seat. I needed that because loaded with my fathers 3,000 lb camper or running empty it got 10 mpg… high test was 37ยข.
Also a journey back in time to when advertisements were creative and funny.
Grew up with my dad’s 73 f100 short bed. We used to ride in back. Also the first vehicle I learned to drive in. The truck is still running after 200,000+miles. It had some rust that needed repair (the floorboards were literally rusting through, and that was back in my teenage years) and he’s had it recently repainted to the 70’s brown (I think it’s supposed to be rootbeer brown. I had a less flattering name for it).
To me, thar is a truck. Trucks are work vehicles, ment to be used, taken off road; not road queens.
I hope I inherit it.