Ah, the Ford Courier. It was Ford’s knee-jerk reaction to the popularity of Datsun’s small pickup, raided from Mazda and sold as a mini-me to the Ford F-150 line. As a basic truck, it wasn’t bad. Four cylinders, five speeds (you really didn’t want the automatic) and a useful payload rating for most everyday work appealed to people who were still reeling from the OPEC crisis. But after the mid-to-late 1980s, you didn’t see them as much around, and today they are officially endangered species nearly everywhere. Oddly enough, I grew up with these little cracker box trucks…a neighbor had one that she fawned over, several came and went over the years, and my stepfather had a lifted one for a while. I’ve driven them, but honestly, I don’t see the appeal of them.
Fred Williams, on the other hand, seems genuinely excited about finding a lifted Courier. Sure, the swapped-in 302 and Bronco parts are going a long way in making the truck appealing, but in order to actually romp on the truck, he’s got to change out some shoddy mods. And he’s competing with a friend, who is also in a Courier. But this doesn’t seem like a fair fight…
Fred’s wee Courier is an awesome little truck, with some work it could be a serious Rubicon killer on the rocks.
I also love that he’s playing with one of the most underdog of all underdog compact trucks.
I think a Courier with a Cummins B3.3 and a T19 would be a great trail truck.