Ranchero! The Origin and Evolution of Ford’s Ranchero Car-Truck Mashup

The El Camino gets all the glory, but the utilitarian Ranchero embodied car comfort and pickup utility for more than two decades.

The first “hybrid” in the United States had nothing to do with electric motors. Marketed as “More than a car … more than a truck … the Ranchero is a new idea in motor vehicles.” Ironically, the Ranchero was not a new idea.

The Ranchero was instead Ford’s attempt to replicate its massive success in the Australian market with “coupe utility” vehicles—essentially two-seat cars with a small truck bed behind—in the U.S. It was a novel concept in the U.S., not seen since the prewar roadster pickups.

In seven generations spanning more than two decades, the Ford Ranchero had a variety of faces and personalities. Though it was not the groundbreaking success Ford had hoped for, the Ranchero was more than the sum of its sales numbers. With its half-truck/half-car dynamic duality, the Ford Ranchero helped forge a fascinating niche in the autoverse that won’t soon be forgotten.

Photo: MotorTrend Archives

Inspiration From Down Under

Ford Australia designer Lew Bandt created the concept of a car-based pickup known as a “ute” in direct response to a letter received by Hubert French, the managing director of Ford Motor Company of Australia in 1933. A farmer from Gippsland wrote, “My husband and I can’t afford a car and a truck but we need a car to go to church on Sunday and a truck to take the pigs to market on Monday. Can you help?”

Bandt took Ford’s famous V-8 five-window coupe, shortened the passenger compartment, and added a tray at the rear. By January 1934, Brandt’s vision went into production and became known as a Coupe-Utility. Behind this two-passenger cab sat a steel-plated bed, allowing for the civility of a car and the practicality of a pickup truck. The resulting ute sold more than 22,000 units between 1940 and 1954 to farmers across the continent of Australia. It isn’t hard to see why Ford decided to take its popular ute across the ocean to America.

Ford Ranchero History

In true hybrid fashion, Ford produced the Ranchero on a car assembly line then sold it via its truck division. The Ranchero’s carlike qualities and light-duty truck utility inspired Chevrolet to develop its own El Camino, and arguably could have been the direct inspiration for the later Subaru BRAT and Baja. Although it was never the most popular car in the Ford lineup, it may just have been a bit ahead of its time. The Ford Maverick, like the Ranchero before it, is a mix of carlike crossover qualities and comfort with the practicality of a small truck bed, and it’s a combination that has proved incredibly popular with modern buyers.

How Long Was the Ford Ranchero Produced?

The Ford Ranchero debuted on December 8, 1956, as a 1957 model and was in continuous production until its last model year, 1979. In those 22 years, the Ranchero had seven distinctly different generations, borrowing from various Ford models for their underpinnings. There were as follows:

Generation	Shared Platform	Years Shared
1	Ford Courier Sedan Delivery	1957–1959
2	Ford Falcon	1960–1965
3	Ford Falcon/Ford Fairlane	1966–1967
4	Ford Torino	1968–1969
5	Ford Torino	1970–1971
6	Ford Torino	1972–1976
7	Ford LTD II	1977–1979

Where Did the Name ‘Ranchero’ Come From?

Like Ford’s Australian ute, the Ranchero was designed specifically to help farmers bridge the gap between work and play, and so it was marketed to the same class of blue-collar workers. With men on horseback and sandy, open plains that looked a lot like the American Southwest in the 1957 Ford Ranchero sales brochure, the Spanish word for “rancher” seems perfecto.

What Years Was the Ranchero Produced? First Generation: 1957–1959

Based on the full-sized Ford platform, the new Ranchero “gives you what you want in a car; what you need in a truck.” According to planning documents retrieved from the Ford Archive, the Ranchero was to be a “passenger car-type pickup to be built utilizing the station wagon (Ranch Wagon) chassis, front end sheetmetal, and lower quarter-panels.” The design included an integrated cabin and cargo box, creating a seamless transition between the passenger area and the truck bed.

The base Ranchero was essentially a low-to-the-ground, no-frills pickup truck, while the up-market Custom trim allowed for two-tone paint and more civility based on the Ford Fairlane’s options list. This combination made the Ranchero a versatile vehicle, customizable to individual tastes and budgets and perfect for both everyday use and transportation of larger items. Three engine options were available: 3.6-liter(223ci) I-6, 4.8-liter (292 ci) V-8, or 5.8-liter (352ci) V-8. The 1958 model is differentiated by a quad-headlight setup borrowed from the Ford Thunderbird. The 1959 model saw its wheelbase grow to 118 inches, allowing for a larger windshield and 7-foot bed.

Second Generation: 1960–1965

To become more fuel-efficient and better contend with increasing interest in smaller, thriftier cars, the second-generation Ranchero moved to the compact Falcon platform, with a reduced wheelbase of 109.5 inches. Ford’s Falcon Sedan Delivery, first introduced for 1960, lent its mechanical underpinnings and much of its sheetmetal to the Falcon Ranchero through its second generation. As with the other Falcon models in Ford’s stable, the final two years of the second-generation Ranchero (1964 and 1965) saw a distinct change in exterior styling, with flatter, coved side panels, a revised front end, and a generally squarer shape that gave the Falcon Ranchero a much more aggressive look.

With its base 2.4-liter (144ci) I-6, the Falcon Ranchero boasted fuel economy of up to 30 mpg. Larger 2.8-liter (170ci) and 3.3-liter (200ci) I-6 engines and 4.3-liter (260ci) and 4.7-liter (289ci) small-block V-8s were offered over the course of the second generation’s lifetime. A three-speed manual transmission was standard, with a two-speed “Ford-O-matic” automatic and three-speed “Cruise-O-matic” auto optionally available. A fully synchronized four-speed manual was optional beginning in 1963.

Third Generation: 1966–1967

Though they are grouped together as the Ranchero’s third generation, when viewed from the front, the ’66 and ’67 cars look as though they could be from separate generations.could almost qualify as two separate iterations of the American ‘Ute. This is because Ford based the second-generation Falcon on its a Fairlane platform beginning in 1966, which meant that the 1966 Ranchero was a blend of elements from two model lines, using the Falcon’s front sheetmetal, trim, and interior parts, but riding on a modified Fairlane station wagon chassis and wearing Fairlane sheetmetal from the firewall back. Despite being part Falcon and part Fairlane, the 1966 Ranchero stood alone as a distinct model, with its own name and without any prefixes.

In 1967, it was renamed as the Fairlane Ranchero, and used the Fairlane’s front clip, complete with its signature stacked headlight assembly. The ’67 also introduced the 500 and XL trims. Both upper levels offered wall-to-wall carpeting, an electric clock, and chrome trim along the window frames, side moldings, and wheel lip moldings. The XL had all the accoutrements of the 500 but also offered bucket seats and a center console.

The base engine in 1966 was a 170ci I-6, which was dropped for 1967. Above the base, a 200ci I-6, 289ci V-8, and a pair of 390ci V-8s (with either a two- or four-barrel carb) were available. A three-speed manual transmission remained standard issue, while a three-speed Cruise-O-Matic or four-speed manual was available as options.

Fourth Generation: 1968–1969

The fourth-generation Ranchero was now based on the Ford Torino, making it the largest Ranchero since 1959, and featured some fun new design features like quad headlights and a striking quad dashboard gauge cluster. In 1968, the base Ranchero came with a 3.3-liter (200ci) I-6 engine and a three-speed manual transmission. In 1969, the base powerplant was a 4.1-liter (250ci) I-6 engine. The midlevel Ranchero 500 was decked out with wall-to-wall carpeting, an electric clock, and stylish pleated vinyl upholstery in red, black, or blue. Rear side reflectors were added to comply with new safety standards, and a new seat belt warning light reminded the driver to buckle up.

The 1968 Ranchero GT marked the first muscle car version of Ford’s ute, which was powered Ford’s then-new 5.0-liter (302ci) V-8 making 210 hp as standard issue. A pair of 6.4-liter (390ci) V-8s were optional: the two-barrel, which made 265 hp and 390 lb-ft of torque, or the hotter four-barrel, which upped the ante to an impressive 335 hp and 427 lb-ft of torque.

In mid-1968, the 428ci Ram-Air Cobraa Jet V-8 made its debut for the 1969 Ranchero, with 335 advertised gross horsepower. Between the top 7.0-liter 428 and the base 250, the 1969 Ranchero offered a 302 V-8, a pair of 351 V-8s, and a 390ci V-8, providing something for everyone. Transmission choices remained either a three- or four-speed manual or a Cruise-O-Matic three-speed automatic.

Fifth Generation: 1970–1971

The 1970 Ranchero marked the fifth generation of this charismatic car/truck with the arrival of the new Squire trim. Sitting atop an options list that still included the Base, 500, and GT trims, the Squire was marketed as the “new ultimate in personal pickup luxury.” Based on Ford’s Country Squire station wagon, the Ranchero version of the Squire featured full woodgrain paneling along the sides and tailgate as well as along the dashboard and even had a wooden inlay for its steering wheel. Hideaway headlights were another telltale sign of this generation, but the segmented front grille was a 1971-only style change.

Engine options peaked with the fifth generation, just before the stranglehold of emissions regulations and changeover to SAE net horsepower would cause a collective wave of depression for enthusiasts throughout the autoverse. The 4.1-liter (250ci) I-6 remained the base engine, while the 5.0-liter (302ci) was the first (of many) V-8 options. A two- or four-barrel 5.8-liter (351ci) V-8 could be had, and at the top of the line was the incredible 7.0-liter (429ci) V-8. Available in either Thunder Jet or Cobra Jet configuration, the Cobra Jet could also be had with Ford’s Ram-Air induction, creating the Super Cobra Jet, the most powerful engine installed in a production Ranchero, which allowed it to strut off the assembly line with a vastly underrated 375 horsepower.

Sixth Generation: 1972–1976

Along with the new generation of Ford Torino came the new sixth-generation Ranchero. Gone was the unibody construction of its predecessors, with the reintroduction of body-on-frame architecture that allowed for up to 6,000 pounds of towing power (when properly equipped) and a larger 118-inch wheelbase. To meet increasing safety standards, a 5-mph bumpers were added, first in front and then in the rear, of the sixth-gen. At the same time, the front end also received a redesigned front clip for 1972, highlighted by an oval grille affectionately known as the “fish mouth” in the Ranchero community. 1973 saw another change to the front end to comply with new front impact collision standards.

With the onset of both increasing emissions standards and the changeover to SAE net horsepower figures, the Ranchero, like all cars and trucks, suffered massive power losses (though mostly on paper) beginning around 1972. The 250 I-6 remained the base engine until 1975, while the 302 and pair of 351s were still optional. In 1972, Ford also added a 6.5-liter (400ci) V-8 to the mix, while the 429 remained at top of the food chain until it was dropped for the 1974 model year and replaced by an even larger, but less powerful, 7.5-liter (460ci) V-8.

Beginning in 1975, Ford significantly scaled back engine choices. The base engine was a two-barrel 351ci V-8, the mid-tier engine was a 400ci V-8, and the top engine on the option list was the massive 460ci four-barrel V-8. Not surprisingly, Ford did not advertise the new SAE horsepower numbers, but only the displacement of the available engines.

Seventh Generation: 1977–1979

With the end of the Torino coming in 1976, the Ranchero was given the Ford LTD II as a foundation. With its newly redesigned front end, the same 500, GT, and Squire trims were available in the last generation of Ranchero. The 302ci V-8 served as the base engine, while the 351 and 400ci V-8 were optional. Despite the country’s broader transition to smaller and more fuel-efficient cars, Ford saw its F-150 pickup truck sales take a massive leap between 1976 (222,218) and 1978 (422,264), while the Ranchero managed to sell just 22,519 units in 1978, making it the slowest seller of any Ford truck in the lineup.

With the Ranchero managing to sell only 5 percent of the now-ubiquitous F-150’s numbers, and with the increasing popularity of its Chevrolet El Camino rival, Ford decided to end the production of the Ranchero in 1979.

Photo: Chevrolet

Ford Ranchero Engine Options by Generation

The following is a table of each engine available during each generation of the Ford Ranchero, along with its respective configuration and horsepower level.