1958 Ford Ranchero

The Ford Ranchero is a coupe utility that was produced by Ford between 1957 and 1979. Unlike a standard pickup truck, the Ranchero was adapted from a two-door station wagon platform that integrated the cab and cargo bed into the body. A total of 508,355 units were produced during the model’s production run. Over its lifespan it was variously derived from full-sized, compact, and intermediate automobiles sold by Ford for the North American market.

This 1958 Ford Ranchero is one of 8,479 Custom pickups produced for the model year. The rebuild of the truck included installation of a 302cid V8 that was bored and balanced, MSD ignition, Edelbrock intake manifold, Holly 4-barrel carburetor, and Ford Cobra valve covers. (Original standard equipment was a 223cid 6 good for 145 horsepower.)

The cabin features a bench seat trimmed in black and white upholstery with matching door panels, black carpets, and a two-tone dashboard. The interior was done with Flaming River tilt steering column, So Cal speedo and gauges, Pioneer audio and Vintage air. The  black three-spoke steering wheel with a chrome horn ring frames a 120-mph speedometer along with fuel level and coolant temperature gauges.

Unless it was added during the rebuild, the gold trim along the truck’s flanks indicate it was the upscale Custom 300 version, which was available with two-tone paint. Red-painted steel wheels feature Ford-branded hubcaps and wide whitewall tires.

Though popular in Australia, where Ford was first with the vehicle the Aussie’s loved as the “ute,” it wasn’t until 1957 that Ford produced a car-based pickup truck for its American customers. The Ranchero was basically a Ranch Wagon station wagon with a pickup bed instead of a back seat, cargo floor and long roof.