I still think that if you want a truck to last a long time get the lowest amount of tech possible so when the manufacturer stops "supporting" it you aren't left with an ill functioning hunk of yard art.
Good to see Kent here speaking the truth from experience. As an engineer in the industry, I think people tend to confuse “reliability” with “repairability.” Modern vehicles and power trains are much more reliable because we have the testing and analysis to make them that way. Most modern automotive engineering is about testing and analyzing to ensure robustness and consistency of performance over a long time period. The problem is that the complexity makes modern products less repairable, or more likely, so expensive to repair that it’s not worth it. If you see a 2000+ truck with 200k miles it probably hasn’t had a major rebuild once. Regular maintenance plus some things like alternator, injectors, suspension components, etc. Compare that to a 1970s truck with 200k miles and it’s probably had the engine and trans rebuilt at least 3 times. But the difference is that you actually could rebuild the engine and trans in the 70s truck over and over again fairly affordably, whereas rebuilding a modern truck is basically a write off - might as well just get a new one.
@@flight2k5 Correct. In fact, the complexity that we build into modern cars is what allows you to hop in every morning and have it start the first time regardless of the weather day after day, drive back and forth to work for years with decent fuel economy, and have the confidence that you’ll make it home alive. And you can listen to your streaming music and enjoy heated seats while you’re at it. The trend is only going to continue with the move to EVs. They’re even more reliable and require less maintenance, but the cost to replace batteries when they fail is going to be prohibitively expensive for a long time.
Last really good year for cheap shadetree mechanic's truck Last year of the 300 and first year of obd2 Mine has 285k and runs like new. Just replace a sensor now and then
I love listening to people who know their stuff talk about old vehicles, especially workhorses like this one (even though I haven't even ridden in a pickup). Loving this content, keep doing similar stuff.
Mr. Truck and TFL are like peanut butter and jelly. They are meant to be together. Kent dragging that steering wheel around the building had me DEAD... This is priceless commentary.
The vehicle I took my drivers license test in was a 1966 F-100, two wheel drive, power nothing, three on the tree, with a 352cid "Industrial" engine and VERY stiff suspension, no AC and an AM radio. This was the first pickup my Dad purchased (he traded in a 1951 Chevy sedan for that truck) and it was used with just 3,500 miles on the clock. The previous owner, an older gent and farmer, had purchased it new in late 1965 and had come to feel that it was "too much truck for him". Dad wanted a "do it all pickup" for use on our small family farm and for ten years it was very much a do it all truck hauling cattle in the bed while pulling a large, loaded cattle trailer behind it, hauling many tons (over the years) of "square" bails of hay, serving as a hunting and fishing truck, and as a daily driver by BOTH my Mother and Dad....Hell I dated in the damn thing! I have strong memories of pulling up to red lights on the main drag of my home town and having fellow teenage boys come up beside me in their "hot rodded" Chevys, Fords, and Dodges, spooling down their passenger side windows and asking me what size cam I had in the truck as I had a habit, back then, of throwing the shifter into neutral at red light, and the engine had so much torque that the whole truck would rock slightly from left to right. I got so tired of the questions that I started telling anyone who asked that a 3/4 cam had been installed....And they bought it as fact....City boys with more money than good sense can be so dumb about some things.
My '79 Dodge has wider frame rails than Ford and Chevy and it has a dual wall bed with a solid tailgate. It's a pleasure to drive, steering is so light and easy to turn and can haul a 50' trailer no problem. It's so simple to work on (no electronics to fail) and it's carbureted and it is so reliable and runs forever. Everybody has forgotten how reliable carburetors are. Old trucks may rust and rattle and are less refined but I promise you that none of these new trucks will be on the road 50 years later like that old Ford or my Dodge is. In fact I already see "newer" trucks in the bone yards. The new Dodge Hemi engines are failing and the Ford's and Chevy's also have issues. I will admit that today's trucks are more luxurious and safer but I'd rather have my old Dodge all day long.
Older vehicles may be less reliable, but they were made to be durable, infinitely fixable and easily fixable. Even if they break, it'll be cheap and quick to get them running again. Something modern vehicles lack.
actually there more reliable, it was usually other things that broke down before the engine. in order to keep your truck lasting, you had to do constant maintenance. you have to remember a truck was designed for one purpose, work, the engine was why you bought it. but the body was a steel frame, so it's not like it would just fall apart overnight, but the body does get old and wear down. if you take care of it, it's no different a modern car, the common misconception is that modern cars are built better, and that's not true. modern cars are built with efficiency in mind, even by the late 90's trucks were built primarily for work, that means the vehicle can take alot of abuse and last. a modern vehicle can never do that, it would fall apart. efficiency has drawbacks, but it also has it's strengths. that's why you buy a gas saving car for driving local distances, but for everything else efficiency takes a backseat.
@@JeymezAnother factor to consider is that older vehicles benefit massively from modern lubricants and consumables, which greatly improves their reliability.
Let’s see how many of these new trucks will be around and still useful after sixty years, I doubt it. All that plastic and wiring and computers nothing but problems
Working on a ‘92 F250 right now. He’s right in they seem to last forever but only because you keep replacing parts forever. New trucks will never be cool like the old ones but when you don’t have to do anything but gas and go to forget how reliable they are.
Real truck check list 1( most important) stick shift,2 locking manual hubs,3 rain gutters ( keeps door and window from freezing and keeps that instant snow from the roof off the seat when opening the door)4 floor mounted high beam switch...just preference 😀
Those old trucks have so much character. A classic pickup is one of my dream vehicles. I just love them. Beautiful! I’m driving a 2011 Ford Ranger with the 4.0 right now and I’m loving it. I wouldn’t mind driving her for years to come.
I remember a guy that had a 66 4x4 with a Detroit diesel in it in the early 70's well before the 12 valve conversions of today. It was an awesome sound to hear him leaving the local bar on a Friday night.
Funny...watching both of you guys reach for the shoulder belt. Can tell that Kent has driven his share of unassisted steering vehicles. That's how my grandpa handled them, with repetitive short hand movements at 3 and 9 o'clock to execute turns, and of course it was easier to turn the wheel when moving. Those were the very first driving directions I was given as a 10 yr old when I was put behind the wheel of the old farm truck that was used to offload oats from the combine for transport to the granary. Keeping both hands on the wheel like that also made it easier to prevent the steering from self centering. And just relaxing your grip on the wheel brought the steering back to center coming out of a turn. allowing the wheel to freely spin in your hands. Many of those unassisted steering vehicles had a spinner knob affixed to the wheel too, which required a whole different mindset regards hand placement. How about making a spinner knob part of your renovation TFL?
A lot of the complaints can be addressed cheaply and with a little know how and elbow grease. A stock truck I can see his point of view but generally speaking someone who is putting work into fixing and driving an old truck won't shy away from the extra work to make them comfortable and reliable. Personally I marriage old with new. And with plenty of junkyards youtube knowledge facebook marketplace and aftermarket ebay parts you can really bring back to life an old truck and get your money's worth of work and comfort out of it
Always awesome to see Mr. Truck. Like he said we hauled tons of feed in the old trucks, old International we had hauled 4 ton of ground feed in the stakebed, chevy pickup 3/4 ton normally hauled 2 ton of feed from the mill. 1980s truck could not haul as much and ended up using feedmill to deliver to the farm. Glad to see Tommy talking to Mr. Truck about the old trucks. The old ones are better because they have nostalgia and the new trucks are new junk.
@@wyattnyfeler7270 I was maybe 8 when it was sold so I don't remember model it was 2 wheel drive I think and I always got a 8 oz soda and kitkat to go along and drag feed sacks. When we got the GMC ( I said chevy originally) we had to go every week to the mill so I liked that it only hauled 40 sacks.
'96 was only year with OBD-II port and MAF and weird crank 'misfire' sensor on harmonic balancer (edit) and simplified hall sensor distributor. '96 for sure but might be other years too.
I’ve got a 1980 Bronco. I’ve gone through everything front to back and top to bottom. No more 302 smog motor. It’s a high compression 331 with double the power, strange 9” nodular rear LSD front and bank, new u joints, shocks, springs, bushings, body bushings, calipers, drums, axel bearings, seals, new axels, new ring and pinyons 3.73 front/rear, rebuilt transfer case, rebuilt the NP435. Got spares of everything, new steering gear, new power steering pump, borgeson u joint steering shaft, new carpet, seats, etc. I won’t trade this for a new anything.
Ken, absolutely wrong on having to heat the I beams to change camber and or caster. That’s what you were NOT supposed to do. I have a factory 1966 F100 4x4 it has solid Dana 44 front axle not a mono beam as mentioned. That test drive was great stuff!
Ken: "Old trucks are so loud you cant talk to your wife or girlfriend." Doug Demuro: "Lets look at all the features on this 1965 F100." Me "How much is the cant talk to women while driving option?"
Great seeing Mr. Truck back on TFL. But I have correct him a little. Ford came out with the factory 4wd system in 1959. That used divorced transfer case. The same 4wd system was used through 1966 in both F100 and F250. 1967 was the start of the integrated transfer case. Ford has used the integrated system since, except for the Highboy versions. That was of course the divorced transfer case and narrow frame.
Your right about newer trucks lasting longer. New technology is not without its problems. Electric steering anyone?. One of my best trucks was a 1969 F250 Camper special with a 390.
I have to disagree with the assessment that new trucks are better than old. My work trucks are a 2016 F250 and a 1973 F250 with a dump bed. Constantly taking the 16 in for service and replacing sensors that shouldn’t exist in the first place. Not to mention that it beeps constantly at me every time I attach or detach a trailer, or I back up, or do literally just about anything. The 73 on the other hand just gets regular maintenance by myself in my shop. End user serviceability is infinitely better with older vehicles
I enjoyed the history lesson from Ken! Also, cool thing about the Ford twin i-beams is that they were super popular for desert race trucks, since you could get a ton of travel out of them. The main disadvantage to an independent suspension on most vehicles is that the A-Arms are so short, on the Fords they extended past the center point of the vehicle on either side so you can get a ton of travel with them on the two-wheel drives.
Not only was this educational, it was great all around. Tommy did a great job on the interview/questions and Mr. T keeping it real! Some good laughs too! Great job!
I bought my 2WD '65 F100 Standard cab on 12/23/82. The original engine lasted two years. It was a 240 six. The next 240 lasted eight years. The last 240 went 169,000 miles, lasted 27 yrs. I replaced it with the 300 six. Other than the oil pump failing on the second 240...They were reliable. I replaced the tiny master cylinder with the brake booster. Running drums all the way. Using radial inner tubes and tires. I will keep my truck for as long as I can drive it. I had a 1959 Dodge Power Wagon. The W300 model. It had a flat head six. There was a 10,000# PTO winch on the front bumper. Bad to the bone. Great truck. The make of the truck does not matter. What matters is methodical maintenance. The oil & filter changes are a must. I never let the 3,000 mile oil life time go over. I change it or have it done...before ! the 3,000 miles comes. I keep a record of "events." The date & mileage of the "event." Then when I fix it, I record that. I grease the front end every other oil change. There's seven zerks up front. Had the original king pins replaced 20 years ago now. Then there are the three on the drive shaft to grease. There was mention of heating the I-beams to straighten them. I have had mine adjusted for caster/camber...at room temperature. The shop was for trucks, big ones. Mine is little compared to the big "boys." So cold pressing was easy. I make sure the rubbers stay in the slots on the bottom of the backing plates, (keeps water from rusting the brake parts). All the best, Pete 🙂
I have had trucks from 75 to 2010 the newer ones gave me the most problems and left me side of the road more than the old ones. You comparing computers and cameras to the electronics on a truck I'd bs. When was the last time a camera dragged you and a boat through miles of muddy roads to get to a bass pond? When did you last leave your computer outside during a hurricane?
Back in the late 1970s early 1980s I bought a beat to death 1965 F250 long bed 2WD with I believe a 352 V8 and 3 speed stick for $125. It was towed home due to variety of issues. The truck was red and the cab looked just like this truck, the bed was different. The floor was rotten in many spots and your passengers could watch the ground go by and your feet got hot. The bed was rotted and it had a homemade wooden tailgate. I believe that it was a Custom Cab which was a little more deluxe, the grill was flat silver and it had the remains of the cardboard headliner mentioned by Kent. We used it to drag and haul logs and every crappy hauling job needed. Every trip was an adventure and we got stuck for a few minutes more often than not. The video was cool and I got a kick out of it, thanks for all of the videos on this truck. Now I have a 2017 F-150 XLT which is certainly everything that Kent summarized at the end.
Ive spent summers sitting on the back of a farm truck and helping with feeding, picking up stuff, picking up hay bales, and jumping off the back to hook chains up and yank tractors or trailers out, sometimes other farm trucks lol
My first modern truck was a 72 Chevrolet and it was pretty comfortable and cheap to repair but the best truck I have owned was a 1998 Ford it had modern comfort and still very simple to repair
Long time no see Kent anyways we had a 1995 F150 Eddie Bauer that we bought new that had the 4.9 straight 6 in and it was like they were trying to get rid of all the straight sixes cuz they were going to the V6 in ninety six. So they had a special Eddie Bauer fully loaded truck with the six-cylinder and 5-speed and it was only eleven thousand bucks it was a beautiful color called Electric Red and it had the gold accent beautiful truck it was a 2 wheel drive short bed full size it was really nice looking truck.
@@dcformee123 What I mean is there were lots of Explorer Eddie Bauer's, so my opinion is the F150 Eddie Bauer is kind of rare, I saw very few Eddie Bauer's F150's. It would be a keeper
wow love how he knew the random model years when they added or dropped those different options . I've been looking for an older truck myself. Great video
@@MrTruckTV Interesting story on your 77' C30 454...fixed a few cab corners on some 77's in hi school.. 77'must been good year.. anybody bought a beater in the 90s it was always a 77' Something..love to hear more about your 77' Chevy maybe in a video
My friend in highschool (20 years ago) bought a 71 Chevy C10 and it rode and drove better than my 2005 Silverado. I remember him going over the worst train tracks doing almost 100mph cause he wasn't good with the metric conversion. Lol. I hear they weren't good for heavy loads because they had coil springs but I agree that gm trucks drove good back then.
FYI the base Ford Ranger XL and XLT in Europe still comes without the rear bumper. It looks rather ugly (as if the truck was in an accident and nobody bothered replacing the bumper), but the tailgate opens ful 168° which might me actually useful in certain situations.
My 2001 Ford truck (wtih Windsor 4.2l engine) still produces 190-200 psi compression in all six cylinders. 177k miles. Recently replaced clutch system, wasn't too hard, but I have to pull everything out again because the new rear main seal has a small oil leak.
I love Kent! I agree with all that he says. The only question I have of tech is who gets to fix it. As long as I can hook my computer up and fix it myself I'm OK. When the manufacturer continues to own the rights to fix it we're all as consumers had.
Still my favorite veh on your channel. Yes basic same cab on my 1965 F600. Talking about CrewCabs I just found and bought a 1966 N700 CrewCab so rare few people have ever heard about one much less seen one! Ford built in Louisville KY not a aftermarket company. Still following to see what you do with this one. Hope it’s a keeper on channel.
@@MrTruckTV yes, tons of good Ford history there. Best I understand it is the current plant started building trucks there in 1969 Where N was just built the 1 year. Other plant in Louisville where my truck was built opened around 1955. Do enjoy your insight and commentary.
I got a buddy that did that a half ton body short bed and put a 1 ton cut back frame to make the body fit on the one ton frame and a short bed and was such a cool looking truck but he had to put custom built leaf springs that were just 1/2 springd and it rode great and would stop. The one ton springs were so stiff it would not stop good being a short bed and after the leaf springs rode great and stopped !!
I started noticing way back in the 80’s, that those series of Ford trucks made in the mid sixties, never rust!! I’ve still never seen one with any rust to this day! Also, I was shown that a 1965 F-100, had a Chrysler badge at the bottom of the passenger side front fender! Chrysler stamped them out for Ford, for what ever reason. Nice truck!
Electronics have whats called a bathtub curve failure rate. It's true that if it doesnt fail right away it'll generally last a while, until it gets to the other end of the curve and the rate of failure spikes up. Those components dont fail en mass until they reach a certain age so OEMs dont make many spares and when they break you cant find replacements. The air bag control module for my 2007 Chevy was in the clock at the top of the dash, after 10 years of high heat and cold cycles traces in the circuit board cracked, could not find a replacement and needed a hardware tech I work with to repair the traces with a microscope and soldering iron. Having infotainment systems in your car essentially shortens it's useful life to that of a smart phone. I maintain a large data center and see hardware electronics failures on a daily basis.
I had a 69 Ford body on a 82 frame with 390 lots of power and 3/4 ton 4x4 a great truck but on a quite night you could hear the front end rust and I had a rubber mat covering the holes and to ride in the rain and run threw a big puddle of water if nobody sitting on passenger seat that water would blow that mat and drown me. When I scraped that truck my farmer buddy put that 390 in his Gleaner combine with the headers put on backwards so the pipes pointed up with flappers on to keep water out of the motor and no mufflers and man that thing sounded good but could you imagine ridding 10-11 hours a day.
The transfer cases in trucks 1984 and older are much better. Many such as NP 205 are gear drive units which dont break. NP 203 is a good chain drive unit also. Only draw back is they are much heavier . Have cast iron cases.
All 4wd's of the era had divorced transfer cases from the factory up to 65 then the F100's went married. I'm sure that truck came from the factory divorced and the 8 lug axles where just swapped in.
I disagree on some things he said because I had a 1966 F100 that my nephew rolled over 3 times, it bounced off of the right front cab corner three times in a row and he walked away with one tiny scratch on his head. I started and drove that same truck a couple of days later. It broke my front cab mounts but it would still drive and burn rubber. My dad was a well driller and he owned many many trucks, none of the new trucks would have withstood the abuse he put on his trucks daily. The older trucks were built way more sturdy.
I don’t know too much about cars but I try my best to learn as much as possible. And I was wondering what would be a good truck to buy as a first car. I’m willing to learn how to work on it but just don’t know what would be a good first truck wether it be new or old. I just need some suggestions on a good reliable and repairable truck. Thanks in advance :)
Hahaha I smoked in my 65 and I'm still here. Mine had a light blue diamond tuck interior, also I had a 14.5" grant steering wheel and NO power steering but it drove great fun truck and fast.
Ford began producing their own 4X4 trucks in 59, before that, they were mostly Marmon Harrington conversions, with a few by American Coleman, and even fewer by NAPCO.
The two biggest mistakes in my vehicle history: selling my 1979 F 100(300 six)and my 1967 Bronco (170 six),,,,,both bought new,,,,,,,, the roads less traveled .....tears
New trucks are definitely more reliable and last longer but they completely lost that mechanical feel that I love! That’s why I’ve got a 2018 f150 for winter and classics for the summer
An older truck isn't good for a business and not the best for a daily commuter, but they can be adequate. You can also upgrade older trucks. I agree with what he said about the Ford 300, which was built through the 1995 model year.
It is called the Wrong Bed. It came that way from the factory. The Unibody had problems and this was the fix until they could get new beds in production to match the cab. That bed is leftovers from 58-61 but this truck came out of the factory this way.
You don't heat axles !! You chain them to beams and use a hydraulic Jack to bend them. Ask any good alignment professional with experience back in that day !!
One day id love to have a 50s or 60s truck and also a car of the same decades. Probably would make one of them my daily driver in the summer when its not too hot out. His truck is gorgeous.
Let that old truck not start and in 10 minutes you can KNOW what's wrong with it and KNOW what it's going to take to fix it. These new trucks, without a scan tool, you're dead in the water. Sensors everywhere, a computer and a ton of other things to go wrong and they do constantly go wrong with a little age. Give me old school any day with perhaps an updated ignition system.
Kent’s back! Nice to see him on TFL again. Great review guys
Thanks
Wealth of knowledge
I find that trucks of the 1990s generally were the best compromise between comfort, simplicity and purchase price.
My 99 f250 7.3l agrees
Fuel injection is nice in the northern states for sure
Fr
My 96 Chevy 5.7 got 309,000 miles
Agree. And they still had enough metal in the sheet metal & bumpers to actually be used like a truck.
I still think that if you want a truck to last a long time get the lowest amount of tech possible so when the manufacturer stops "supporting" it you aren't left with an ill functioning hunk of yard art.
Wise man hit the nail on the head
Good to see Kent here speaking the truth from experience. As an engineer in the industry, I think people tend to confuse “reliability” with “repairability.” Modern vehicles and power trains are much more reliable because we have the testing and analysis to make them that way. Most modern automotive engineering is about testing and analyzing to ensure robustness and consistency of performance over a long time period. The problem is that the complexity makes modern products less repairable, or more likely, so expensive to repair that it’s not worth it.
If you see a 2000+ truck with 200k miles it probably hasn’t had a major rebuild once. Regular maintenance plus some things like alternator, injectors, suspension components, etc. Compare that to a 1970s truck with 200k miles and it’s probably had the engine and trans rebuilt at least 3 times. But the difference is that you actually could rebuild the engine and trans in the 70s truck over and over again fairly affordably, whereas rebuilding a modern truck is basically a write off - might as well just get a new one.
True that!
Exactly
I agree
I’ve been saying this forever. It goes along with simplicity. Simplicity doesn’t equal reliability.
@@flight2k5 Correct. In fact, the complexity that we build into modern cars is what allows you to hop in every morning and have it start the first time regardless of the weather day after day, drive back and forth to work for years with decent fuel economy, and have the confidence that you’ll make it home alive. And you can listen to your streaming music and enjoy heated seats while you’re at it.
The trend is only going to continue with the move to EVs. They’re even more reliable and require less maintenance, but the cost to replace batteries when they fail is going to be prohibitively expensive for a long time.
My 96 F150 was still sporting a 300 (4.9) inline 6. One of the best engines ever built!
Slow as molasses but it will get you where you’re going!!!
Truly, had a 94 Dodge with a 318, wish I still had it!!! Similar in longevity.
Last really good year for cheap shadetree mechanic's truck
Last year of the 300 and first year of obd2
Mine has 285k and runs like new.
Just replace a sensor now and then
I love listening to people who know their stuff talk about old vehicles, especially workhorses like this one (even though I haven't even ridden in a pickup). Loving this content, keep doing similar stuff.
Mr. Truck and TFL are like peanut butter and jelly. They are meant to be together. Kent dragging that steering wheel around the building had me DEAD... This is priceless commentary.
Thanks
I agree, I always watch tfl videos if Mr Truck is in them.
@@ATVDUDEZ Thanks
So happy to see Mr. Truck back in action on TFL! Keep staying safe, Kent, we missed you.
Thanks a bunch
The vehicle I took my drivers license test in was a 1966 F-100, two wheel drive, power nothing, three on the tree, with a 352cid "Industrial" engine and VERY stiff suspension, no AC and an AM radio. This was the first pickup my Dad purchased (he traded in a 1951 Chevy sedan for that truck) and it was used with just 3,500 miles on the clock. The previous owner, an older gent and farmer, had purchased it new in late 1965 and had come to feel that it was "too much truck for him". Dad wanted a "do it all pickup" for use on our small family farm and for ten years it was very much a do it all truck hauling cattle in the bed while pulling a large, loaded cattle trailer behind it, hauling many tons (over the years) of "square" bails of hay, serving as a hunting and fishing truck, and as a daily driver by BOTH my Mother and Dad....Hell I dated in the damn thing! I have strong memories of pulling up to red lights on the main drag of my home town and having fellow teenage boys come up beside me in their "hot rodded" Chevys, Fords, and Dodges, spooling down their passenger side windows and asking me what size cam I had in the truck as I had a habit, back then, of throwing the shifter into neutral at red light, and the engine had so much torque that the whole truck would rock slightly from left to right. I got so tired of the questions that I started telling anyone who asked that a 3/4 cam had been installed....And they bought it as fact....City boys with more money than good sense can be so dumb about some things.
My '79 Dodge has wider frame rails than Ford and Chevy and it has a dual wall bed with a solid tailgate. It's a pleasure to drive, steering is so light and easy to turn and can haul a 50' trailer no problem. It's so simple to work on (no electronics to fail) and it's carbureted and it is so reliable and runs forever. Everybody has forgotten how reliable carburetors are. Old trucks may rust and rattle and are less refined but I promise you that none of these new trucks will be on the road 50 years later like that old Ford or my Dodge is. In fact I already see "newer" trucks in the bone yards. The new Dodge Hemi engines are failing and the Ford's and Chevy's also have issues. I will admit that today's trucks are more luxurious and safer but I'd rather have my old Dodge all day long.
Me too
I agree
Older vehicles may be less reliable, but they were made to be durable, infinitely fixable and easily fixable. Even if they break, it'll be cheap and quick to get them running again.
Something modern vehicles lack.
Old vehicles are way more reliable.
actually there more reliable, it was usually other things that broke down before the engine. in order to keep your truck lasting, you had to do constant maintenance.
you have to remember a truck was designed for one purpose, work, the engine was why you bought it. but the body was a steel frame, so it's not like it would just fall apart overnight, but the body does get old and wear down. if you take care of it, it's no different a modern car, the common misconception is that modern cars are built better, and that's not true. modern cars are built with efficiency in mind,
even by the late 90's trucks were built primarily for work, that means the vehicle can take alot of abuse and last. a modern vehicle can never do that, it would fall apart. efficiency has drawbacks, but it also has it's strengths. that's why you buy
a gas saving car for driving local distances, but for everything else efficiency takes a backseat.
@@JeymezAnother factor to consider is that older vehicles benefit massively from modern lubricants and consumables, which greatly improves their reliability.
Let’s see how many of these new trucks will be around and still useful after sixty years, I doubt it. All that plastic and wiring and computers nothing but problems
Working on a ‘92 F250 right now. He’s right in they seem to last forever but only because you keep replacing parts forever. New trucks will never be cool like the old ones but when you don’t have to do anything but gas and go to forget how reliable they are.
Great to see Mr truck is doing well! Good to see you again Kent!
Hey Thanks, good to be seen
Real truck check list 1( most important) stick shift,2 locking manual hubs,3 rain gutters ( keeps door and window from freezing and keeps that instant snow from the roof off the seat when opening the door)4 floor mounted high beam switch...just preference 😀
Those old trucks have so much character. A classic pickup is one of my dream vehicles. I just love them. Beautiful! I’m driving a 2011 Ford Ranger with the 4.0 right now and I’m loving it. I wouldn’t mind driving her for years to come.
I remember a guy that had a 66 4x4 with a Detroit diesel in it in the early 70's well before the 12 valve conversions of today. It was an awesome sound to hear him leaving the local bar on a Friday night.
Funny...watching both of you guys reach for the shoulder belt. Can tell that Kent has driven his share of unassisted steering vehicles. That's how my grandpa handled them, with repetitive short hand movements at 3 and 9 o'clock to execute turns, and of course it was easier to turn the wheel when moving. Those were the very first driving directions I was given as a 10 yr old when I was put behind the wheel of the old farm truck that was used to offload oats from the combine for transport to the granary. Keeping both hands on the wheel like that also made it easier to prevent the steering from self centering. And just relaxing your grip on the wheel brought the steering back to center coming out of a turn. allowing the wheel to freely spin in your hands. Many of those unassisted steering vehicles had a spinner knob affixed to the wheel too, which required a whole different mindset regards hand placement. How about making a spinner knob part of your renovation TFL?
A lot of the complaints can be addressed cheaply and with a little know how and elbow grease. A stock truck I can see his point of view but generally speaking someone who is putting work into fixing and driving an old truck won't shy away from the extra work to make them comfortable and reliable. Personally I marriage old with new. And with plenty of junkyards youtube knowledge facebook marketplace and aftermarket ebay parts you can really bring back to life an old truck and get your money's worth of work and comfort out of it
Always awesome to see Mr. Truck. Like he said we hauled tons of feed in the old trucks, old International we had hauled 4 ton of ground feed in the stakebed, chevy pickup 3/4 ton normally hauled 2 ton of feed from the mill. 1980s truck could not haul as much and ended up using feedmill to deliver to the farm. Glad to see Tommy talking to Mr. Truck about the old trucks. The old ones are better because they have nostalgia and the new trucks are new junk.
What year and model of international I just bought a 1967 1200c 4x4 a couple months ago
Thanks, hauled tons of corn, hay, pig pellets and firewood, way over loaded
@@wyattnyfeler7270 I was maybe 8 when it was sold so I don't remember model it was 2 wheel drive I think and I always got a 8 oz soda and kitkat to go along and drag feed sacks. When we got the GMC ( I said chevy originally) we had to go every week to the mill so I liked that it only hauled 40 sacks.
@@badgerpa9 cool memory
My son has my old Ford 1994 F 150 standard cab Eddy Bower pickup ...its has the 300 / six engine . It has port fuel injection also. Bullet Proof !
Kent makes me smile but when he starts driving, laughing hard. Steering wheel compressing his intestines.
The 300 CID 4.9L inline 6 cyl was in F-150 through the 1996 model year.
Also it came as standard equipment. If you wanted a 302 or 351 you paid
extra for it
'96 was only year with OBD-II port and MAF and weird crank 'misfire' sensor on harmonic balancer (edit) and simplified hall sensor distributor. '96 for sure but might be other years too.
@@mark98070 Except on broncos, in 94 they nixed the 300 and made the 302 the base motor because nobody bought the straight sixes in the broncos
I miss vent windows and rain gutters also, those are the only things that I miss from the old trucks!
I’ve got a 1980 Bronco. I’ve gone through everything front to back and top to bottom. No more 302 smog motor. It’s a high compression 331 with double the power, strange 9” nodular rear LSD front and bank, new u joints, shocks, springs, bushings, body bushings, calipers, drums, axel bearings, seals, new axels, new ring and pinyons 3.73 front/rear, rebuilt transfer case, rebuilt the NP435. Got spares of everything, new steering gear, new power steering pump, borgeson u joint steering shaft, new carpet, seats, etc. I won’t trade this for a new anything.
Ken, absolutely wrong on having to heat the I beams to change camber and or caster. That’s what you were NOT supposed to do. I have a factory 1966 F100 4x4 it has solid Dana 44 front axle not a mono beam as mentioned.
That test drive was great stuff!
My 63 had a headliner. It was a perforated cardboard / particle board. perforations were to keep humidity from getting trapped.
Good to see Mr. Truck in the channel
Thanks
I love these interviews that dip back into the past. Great job to both of you, but Tommy you asked probing questions. I was very impressed.
Thanks, Tommy knows how to do research
@@MrTruckTV I’ve been a journalist all my life. He did a great job. It was great to see you back in the saddle in the channel!
@@Queensizemusic Thanks
Ken: "Old trucks are so loud you cant talk to your wife or girlfriend." Doug Demuro: "Lets look at all the features on this 1965 F100." Me "How much is the cant talk to women while driving option?"
About tree fiddy
Gold!
Tommy: “Where can the folks in the audience find you?”
Mr. truck: “well I’m not in jail” 😂
I wish I had my dads 79 F-150. I loved that truck.
Great seeing Mr. Truck back on TFL. But I have correct him a little. Ford came out with the factory 4wd system in 1959. That used divorced transfer case. The same 4wd system was used through 1966 in both F100 and F250. 1967 was the start of the integrated transfer case. Ford has used the integrated system since, except for the Highboy versions. That was of course the divorced transfer case and narrow frame.
So nice to see Mr Truck again. Love the old simple trucks.
Thanks
Your right about newer trucks lasting longer. New technology is not without its problems. Electric steering anyone?. One of my best trucks was a 1969 F250 Camper special with a 390.
I have to disagree with the assessment that new trucks are better than old. My work trucks are a 2016 F250 and a 1973 F250 with a dump bed. Constantly taking the 16 in for service and replacing sensors that shouldn’t exist in the first place. Not to mention that it beeps constantly at me every time I attach or detach a trailer, or I back up, or do literally just about anything. The 73 on the other hand just gets regular maintenance by myself in my shop. End user serviceability is infinitely better with older vehicles
300's were discontinued in 1996. Excellent engine, I have one from a 1965 Econoline Supervan and one from a 1968 F100 RWD.
Finally Mr. Truck to the rescue! Great to see you!
Thanks a bunch
I enjoyed the history lesson from Ken! Also, cool thing about the Ford twin i-beams is that they were super popular for desert race trucks, since you could get a ton of travel out of them. The main disadvantage to an independent suspension on most vehicles is that the A-Arms are so short, on the Fords they extended past the center point of the vehicle on either side so you can get a ton of travel with them on the two-wheel drives.
Not only was this educational, it was great all around. Tommy did a great job on the interview/questions and Mr. T keeping it real! Some good laughs too! Great job!
Thanks
I bought my 2WD '65 F100 Standard cab on 12/23/82. The original engine lasted two years. It was a 240 six. The next 240 lasted eight years. The last 240 went 169,000 miles, lasted 27 yrs. I replaced it with the 300 six. Other than the oil pump failing on the second 240...They were reliable. I replaced the tiny master cylinder with the brake booster. Running drums all the way. Using radial inner tubes and tires.
I will keep my truck for as long as I can drive it.
I had a 1959 Dodge Power Wagon. The W300 model. It had a flat head six. There was a 10,000# PTO winch on the front bumper. Bad to the bone. Great truck.
The make of the truck does not matter. What matters is methodical maintenance. The oil & filter changes are a must. I never let the 3,000 mile oil life time go over. I change it or have it done...before ! the 3,000 miles comes. I keep a record of "events." The date & mileage of the "event." Then when I fix it, I record that. I grease the front end every other oil change. There's seven zerks up front. Had the original king pins replaced 20 years ago now. Then there are the three on the drive shaft to grease. There was mention of heating the I-beams to straighten them. I have had mine adjusted for caster/camber...at room temperature. The shop was for trucks, big ones. Mine is little compared to the big "boys." So cold pressing was easy.
I make sure the rubbers stay in the slots on the bottom of the backing plates, (keeps water from rusting the brake parts).
All the best, Pete 🙂
This is a great episode and conversation!
Really nice to see Mr. Truck back on TFL.
Thanks Pedro
I have had trucks from 75 to 2010 the newer ones gave me the most problems and left me side of the road more than the old ones.
You comparing computers and cameras to the electronics on a truck I'd bs.
When was the last time a camera dragged you and a boat through miles of muddy roads to get to a bass pond?
When did you last leave your computer outside during a hurricane?
My neighbor had a 1975 Ford F 150 with over 350,000 miles on it before he bought a new one. It was still in great shape.
Back in the late 1970s early 1980s I bought a beat to death 1965 F250 long bed 2WD with I believe a 352 V8 and 3 speed stick for $125. It was towed home due to variety of issues. The truck was red and the cab looked just like this truck, the bed was different. The floor was rotten in many spots and your passengers could watch the ground go by and your feet got hot. The bed was rotted and it had a homemade wooden tailgate. I believe that it was a Custom Cab which was a little more deluxe, the grill was flat silver and it had the remains of the cardboard headliner mentioned by Kent. We used it to drag and haul logs and every crappy hauling job needed. Every trip was an adventure and we got stuck for a few minutes more often than not. The video was cool and I got a kick out of it, thanks for all of the videos on this truck. Now I have a 2017 F-150 XLT which is certainly everything that Kent summarized at the end.
Rusted floor pans are the biggest pain in the but for restoring old trucks
Love wind wings too.....GR8 idea, use all the time.
I miss them
Ive spent summers sitting on the back of a farm truck and helping with feeding, picking up stuff, picking up hay bales, and jumping off the back to hook chains up and yank tractors or trailers out, sometimes other farm trucks lol
That’s a cool old truck. That’s right bumpers and spare tires were optional on my ‘77 F250.
My first modern truck was a 72 Chevrolet and it was pretty comfortable and cheap to repair but the best truck I have owned was a 1998 Ford it had modern comfort and still very simple to repair
Long time no see Kent anyways we had a 1995 F150 Eddie Bauer that we bought new that had the 4.9 straight 6 in and it was like they were trying to get rid of all the straight sixes cuz they were going to the V6 in ninety six. So they had a special Eddie Bauer fully loaded truck with the six-cylinder and 5-speed and it was only eleven thousand bucks it was a beautiful color called Electric Red and it had the gold accent beautiful truck it was a 2 wheel drive short bed full size it was really nice looking truck.
I sold lots of Eddie Bauer Explorer's
@@MrTruckTV it was an F-150 Mr track it wasn't an Explorer short bed F-150
@@dcformee123 What I mean is there were lots of Explorer Eddie Bauer's, so my opinion is the F150 Eddie Bauer is kind of rare, I saw very few Eddie Bauer's F150's. It would be a keeper
wow love how he knew the random model years when they added or dropped those different options . I've been looking for an older truck myself. Great video
Finally, Mr. Truck back doing videos with TFL!!!!
It's great
Awesome seeing Kent on here!!😎Hey Tommy and Kent!!..I give this truck A+..love that 6cyl motor!!!!Thanks again for bringing out the truck!!
I appreciate that Ron
@@MrTruckTV No problem my friend.. That was a super video.!!!😎 I watched it 5×..your knowledge of trucks is Right on the Money.. Thanks Kent!!😃
@@R.Nelson Thanks for watching, I just saw the title: (60 years) maybe 50 years
@@MrTruckTV Interesting story on your 77' C30 454...fixed a few cab corners on some 77's in hi school.. 77'must been good year.. anybody bought a beater in the 90s it was always a 77' Something..love to hear more about your 77' Chevy maybe in a video
@@R.Nelson I think 77 chevy's had bigger drain holes on the bottom of the doors, so they didn't rust as bad as 76
My friend in highschool (20 years ago) bought a 71 Chevy C10 and it rode and drove better than my 2005 Silverado. I remember him going over the worst train tracks doing almost 100mph cause he wasn't good with the metric conversion. Lol. I hear they weren't good for heavy loads because they had coil springs but I agree that gm trucks drove good back then.
Happy to see Mr.Truck make an appearance again. Keep on truckin'!
Thanks, the home lets me escape occasionally
FYI the base Ford Ranger XL and XLT in Europe still comes without the rear bumper. It looks rather ugly (as if the truck was in an accident and nobody bothered replacing the bumper), but the tailgate opens ful 168° which might me actually useful in certain situations.
That fully opening tailget would be useful for grabbing things out of the bed so you don’t have to worry about the tailgate in the way
@@aidanmorgan6291 Yes, Ram has the barn door tailgate
My 2001 Ford truck (wtih Windsor 4.2l engine) still produces 190-200 psi compression in all six cylinders. 177k miles. Recently replaced clutch system, wasn't too hard, but I have to pull everything out again because the new rear main seal has a small oil leak.
Love Mr.Trucks reviews! Kent is not only a wealth of information but he’s funny as heck!
✌🏽
I love Kent! I agree with all that he says. The only question I have of tech is who gets to fix it. As long as I can hook my computer up and fix it myself I'm OK. When the manufacturer continues to own the rights to fix it we're all as consumers had.
Thanks
I used to like vent windows, until I saw how quickly someone can get into a locked cab using them.
Still my favorite veh on your channel. Yes basic same cab on my 1965 F600. Talking about CrewCabs I just found and bought a 1966 N700 CrewCab so rare few people have ever heard about one much less seen one! Ford built in Louisville KY not a aftermarket company.
Still following to see what you do with this one. Hope it’s a keeper on channel.
Louisville has lots of truck history. That's were the Louisville LN 9000 came from and later became a Sterling
@@MrTruckTV yes, tons of good Ford history there. Best I understand it is the current plant started building trucks there in 1969 Where N was just built the 1 year. Other plant in Louisville where my truck was built opened around 1955. Do enjoy your insight and commentary.
@@randysrestoration Thanks
@@randysrestoration Thanks
I got a buddy that did that a half ton body short bed and put a 1 ton cut back frame to make the body fit on the one ton frame and a short bed and was such a cool looking truck but he had to put custom built leaf springs that were just 1/2 springd and it rode great and would stop. The one ton springs were so stiff it would not stop good being a short bed and after the leaf springs rode great and stopped !!
I started noticing way back in the 80’s, that those series of Ford trucks made in the mid sixties, never rust!! I’ve still never seen one with any rust to this day!
Also, I was shown that a 1965 F-100, had a Chrysler badge at the bottom of the passenger side front fender! Chrysler stamped them out for Ford, for what ever reason. Nice truck!
Been wondering where Mr Truck has been. Glad he is back.
Thanks, I was in my bunker last year
When I was a carpenter back in the early 70’s my boss had a 68 dodge crew cab. And yeah they were rare.
We owned a bunch of these 4X4s after 1970. They were very useful for farming and ranching, but not much fun to drive.
Navy, Marines and USAF had the first crew cabs (six packs) in the early 1970's.
Electronics have whats called a bathtub curve failure rate. It's true that if it doesnt fail right away it'll generally last a while, until it gets to the other end of the curve and the rate of failure spikes up. Those components dont fail en mass until they reach a certain age so OEMs dont make many spares and when they break you cant find replacements. The air bag control module for my 2007 Chevy was in the clock at the top of the dash, after 10 years of high heat and cold cycles traces in the circuit board cracked, could not find a replacement and needed a hardware tech I work with to repair the traces with a microscope and soldering iron. Having infotainment systems in your car essentially shortens it's useful life to that of a smart phone. I maintain a large data center and see hardware electronics failures on a daily basis.
Yep! Complexity begets fragility
Fisher Engineering first invented the step and tow bumper in Rockland Maine, it quickly caught on and went nation wide.
I had a 69 Ford body on a 82 frame with 390 lots of power and 3/4 ton 4x4 a great truck but on a quite night you could hear the front end rust and I had a rubber mat covering the holes and to ride in the rain and run threw a big puddle of water if nobody sitting on passenger seat that water would blow that mat and drown me. When I scraped that truck my farmer buddy put that 390 in his Gleaner combine with the headers put on backwards so the pipes pointed up with flappers on to keep water out of the motor and no mufflers and man that thing sounded good but could you imagine ridding 10-11 hours a day.
Reaching for the seatbelt up and behind was the best part of this video.
I liked those vent windows. I have a fake vent window on my Crosstrek.
That steel dash helped a ton to make them cabs so strong !
Great pickup! What was the price range to purchase and how much is it valued today? I am trying to evaluate my 1971 Ford F100.
Gone from a 350 to a 454 in my 69c10. Now I fancy another one with an inline. Bulletproof and practical!!
Glad Kent is back!
Thanks
8:29 it was only shown briefly but theres an Eagle Scout sticker there under the break light. (Scout salute) to the man that owns that truck.
The transfer cases in trucks 1984 and older are much better. Many such as NP 205 are gear drive units which dont break. NP 203 is a good chain drive unit also. Only draw back is they are much heavier . Have cast iron cases.
Beautiful sound of KNOWLEDGE, spot on Kent..
Thanks
I enjoyed it. I also find the 90s and early 2000s are very decent 😎
All 4wd's of the era had divorced transfer cases from the factory up to 65 then the F100's went married. I'm sure that truck came from the factory divorced and the 8 lug axles where just swapped in.
I disagree on some things he said because I had a 1966 F100 that my nephew rolled over 3 times, it bounced off of the right front cab corner three times in a row and he walked away with one tiny scratch on his head. I started and drove that same truck a couple of days later. It broke my front cab mounts but it would still drive and burn rubber. My dad was a well driller and he owned many many trucks, none of the new trucks would have withstood the abuse he put on his trucks daily. The older trucks were built way more sturdy.
I don’t know too much about cars but I try my best to learn as much as possible. And I was wondering what would be a good truck to buy as a first car. I’m willing to learn how to work on it but just don’t know what would be a good first truck wether it be new or old. I just need some suggestions on a good reliable and repairable truck. Thanks in advance :)
Hahaha I smoked in my 65 and I'm still here. Mine had a light blue diamond tuck interior, also I had a 14.5" grant steering wheel and NO power steering but it drove great fun truck and fast.
This was a fantastic video . Just wonderful knowledge. Loved hearing / learning about these trucks . Keep up the great work!
I have a 1961 F-100 4x4. I believe it was the first year of the the post NAPCO trucks.
Ford began producing their own 4X4 trucks in 59, before that, they were mostly Marmon Harrington conversions, with a few by American Coleman, and even fewer by NAPCO.
Great to see Mr. Truck again! Great video, thanks!
Thanks, good to be seen
The two biggest mistakes in my vehicle history: selling my 1979 F 100(300 six)and my 1967 Bronco (170 six),,,,,both bought new,,,,,,,, the roads less traveled .....tears
Thanks for this.
Technical historical data on vehicles is rare these days.
IT's getting harder to find
@@MrTruckTV
You are a fountain of knowledge.
Again,
Thank you for sharing.
@@b.t.2795 Thanks for watching
I’ve been working on my 1991 Cummins lt10 and the quality of the parts bearings etc is awesome compared to newer trucks
New trucks are definitely more reliable and last longer but they completely lost that mechanical feel that I love! That’s why I’ve got a 2018 f150 for winter and classics for the summer
Let's talk 60 years from now with your 2018..
The old trucks were awesome if you consider their time.
An older truck isn't good for a business and not the best for a daily commuter, but they can be adequate. You can also upgrade older trucks. I agree with what he said about the Ford 300, which was built through the 1995 model year.
Why is the bed not aligned with the body? Is that a symptom of a bent chassis?
It is called the Wrong Bed. It came that way from the factory. The Unibody had problems and this was the fix until they could get new beds in production to match the cab. That bed is leftovers from 58-61 but this truck came out of the factory this way.
Overall on body looks is the Dodge W/D200 my favorite. But those 50's Fords and Chevy's look nice aswell! Especially the Apache!
You don't heat axles !! You chain them to beams and use a hydraulic Jack to bend them. Ask any good alignment professional with experience back in that day !!
One day id love to have a 50s or 60s truck and also a car of the same decades. Probably would make one of them my daily driver in the summer when its not too hot out. His truck is gorgeous.
Let that old truck not start and in 10 minutes you can KNOW what's wrong with it and KNOW what it's going to take to fix it. These new trucks, without a scan tool, you're dead in the water. Sensors everywhere, a computer and a ton of other things to go wrong and they do constantly go wrong with a little age. Give me old school any day with perhaps an updated ignition system.
I got 1995 f150 and has 300 4.9. Its great motor 👍
Hard to wear them out
I had a 1968 Ford with the 240 inline 6 the 300 had some problems back then