(First Posted August 31, 2013) This morning as I was pulling into the local Wal-Mart parking lot in search of some items for the household, I was greeted by this sight! I immediately parked with a complete disregard for the painted lines and hopped out of the car with my phone in hand towards two people who were securing this to their trailer…Initially they looked at me sort of warily but when I explained to them what I was hoping to do they were very friendly and explained that they had just purchased this 1957 Jeep on eBay and the seller had met them here to complete the transfer. Sam and his wife were almost done and ready to go but graciously allowed me to take a few quick pictures.
The truck was originally red and had obviously been painted in this not-unattractive sand color at some point as Sam was showing his wife where there was a scratch that let the red show through. He mentioned that he was planning to repaint it red again. His wife added “Someday…” Apparently it hailed from Texas, but who knows where it lived before that.
They live right here in town so hopefully I will get to see this great little trucklet again someday. It looked very complete and in good condition, except for rust underneath which is not surprising.
I like the old toggle switches on the dash, and compared to other utility vehicles of this vintage does not even look that spartan.
I didn’t ask how much he paid for it but it looked very nice and restorable (or leave it with the patina), hopefully it was exactly what was expected…
Conveniently the engine cover was in the passenger seat enabling me to get a half-decent shot of the engine. I imagine being under there your right arm might get a bit toasty but probably not much need for a heater. All told, this is probably the most interesting thing I have ever seen at a Walmart…
For some reason I always liked the Ford a little better. Probably just because of having been around so many more. I know safety is a factor but I like this type vehicle very much. This and the old VW van are vans I like but don’t expect to make any move to ever own. Buckboard ride and toasty right arms are reason enough for this one.
Excellent find! I’ve been hoping to find an FC since starting CC, but no luck yet. These are very fascinating trucklets, built in two versions: the short wb FC-150, and the long-wheelbase FC-170. Brooks Stevens also designed a passenger van version; three prototypes were built by Reutter in Germany.
I did a post a while back on those and the FCs:https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/news-flash-1958-jeep-fc-150-mini-van-color-photos-discovered/
When I was way up in the Rockies one summer, 1973 or so, I met a guy who had an FC 150 that he lengthened the frame on (FC-160?), and installed a Chevy 265 V8 in it. It was a gnarly little machine, and I went on a couple of highly memorable rides on some very rough Jeep trails with him. Cresting a rise sitting way up there is a unique experience…
Here’s a picture of the long wheelbase (103″) FC-170, which used the 226 inch flathead six. The FC-150 used the Hurricane F-Head four, which is just visible in the engine shot Jim took. The 150 had a 81″ wb, essentially it sat on the Jeep CJ’s frame and running gear.
$ 6,900
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Jeep-Other-BASE-/130968387719?hash=item1e7e530087&vxp=mtr#ht_500wt_1182
That is a great find and in incredibly good condition.
God help me, I have an unnatural, overwhelming desire to own one of these little bastards…And I have no earthly idea why except for the pure absurdity and oddball factor. I’ve never seen one in person that wasn’t totally wrecked or in “project” status, which leads me to believe they are more trouble than they are worth. But I find myself imagining running out to the local lumber yard or gravel quarry in one of these and grinning like a fool.
I have the same irrational urge to find and purchase a Checker station wagon…Not the big, six-door, airport service monstrosity, but a four-door version.
Parts for either one would be damn near impossible to source (I tell myself).
*sigh*
Body parts would be a problem however the mechanical items should be easy to get. The FC uses mostly the same mechanical parts as the CJ while the Checker uses mostly GM parts.
They used to advertise these on my all time favorite TV show, Maverick.
Back in the 80’s, Sun Valley Idaho had a couple of these with a Zamboni like contraption on them to resurface the outdoor ice rink. I’ve never seen any other place with something like that!
The oddball appeal is a strong one. But despite the seeming practicality, the narrow track (same as the CJ in its first years; it IS the CJ chassis) and short wheelbase make them tippy in all directions. And without much more protection than an early open-cab Jeep. I can dream; but I’d never pull the trigger.
Great find. For you and for the buyer.
These have been known to flip over forwards under certain conditions.
Jeep’s version of the tilt cab.
Early Econolines were also known to tip forward as well, until Ford added ballast to the rear bumper.
CC Effect in reverse: an FC-170 was sold here on trademe on 12 August this year, and was about the last thing I expected to see. It was a RHD flatdeck powered by a 4.1L Ford straight-6. There was some doubt about its provenance, as the vendor and government records said it was American-built and came here via Australia to be sold new in 1984. Given that Jeep had stopped making them 20 years earlier means either the records are wrong or it was one of the Indian-built Mahindra versions (which were apparently produced until the late ’90s). Either way, it sold for only NZ$2,000, no doubt kept low by the questionable background. Still pretty cool though!
The Mahindra versions were stamped such, IIRC…where Willys had “JEEP” stamped, on the front grille opening. I believe they modded the grille, too…of course, there’s no reason someone couldn’t patch a Willys grille in a Mahindra.
Government auto bureaucrats are notoriously sloppy in handling auto paperwork. Typically the clerk/registrar is someone with ZERO knowledge of automobiles. I’ve had titles issued incorrectly by young girls at the Title Bureau window…and woe unto you when you try to get it corrected!
I can guarantee it’s not a 1984. The FC was done on the CJ frame; and the CJ itself was lengthened and with an entirely different, wider frame from 1976. The CJ5 was killed in 1983 and the CJ7 had nothing dimensionally in common with these.
Mahindra kept making them until 1999 and for most of their run they still had Jeep in the front end stamping. They did put a Mahindra above the Jeep one though. Eventually they started putting the Mahindra badge where the Jeep stamping had been so I guess they finally modified the die. I’d bet it was some time after Chrysler bought the Jeep name and started to sue anyone that they could for copyright infringement. I do wonder how they were able to keep making the 7 slot grille though. Note on the pickup version they have the Jeep name stamped into the metal and the Mahindra badge above it.
So that one certainly could be a 1984 just not one made in the US.
Hi, I picked this up of trademe. I checked with LTSA and the 1984 is the first year that it was rego in NZ. only has original 16000Miles on the clock.
Will be back on the road in 2 weeks with a WOF. this was an ex Aussie Air Force tanker truck.
Good on you Phil, awesome that you’re WOFing it and putting it on road again – it’s fantastic when rare classics like this get saved! Carjam reckoned it was new here in ’84, so it’s good to know that was just its first year of NZ rego. Great to hear where it came from too. I’ll keep an eye out for it next time I’m in Christchurch – very, very cool vehicle! Cheers, Scott.
FC170 now with Warrant and Rego and some fat tyres, runs very sweet
Awesome! Good on you Phil.
CC-effect: by reading more about the FC I discovered the Spanish SV, completely based on Jeep chassis. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Spain-JeepSV.jpg
Cool. Those look like Tonkas come to life.
They.re was one on gumtree Tasmania a few weeks back (3000 miles away o;( )
they did,nt know what it was but they only wanted a carton of beer for it.
I see one of these here in TX fairly often (www.flickr.com/photos/51631277@N00/8322668218), though I don’t think I’d ever seen one in the flesh since we moved back last year. I can’t help but see the Soviet-built UAZ-3303.
This is the UAZ that’s so similar.
Remember Hank that outside North America “Forward Control” became pretty much the norm for light and heavy trucks. Like the Volkswagen, Citroën and Fiat pick-up trucks. Also the Land Rover Forward Control comes to mind.
If the Jeep owners had more money they could have had a Unimog or Pinzgauer competitor.
Yep. The UAZ always comes to mind for me because I lived there a while in the 90’s and have ridden in my fair share. But of the others, it and the Jeep are quite similar, where the Unimog makes them both seem like amateurs.
Exactly, the Unimog has no competition, it never had. (as a factory vehicle I mean). King of the Mountain off-road capabilities and a sheer endless versatility. Basically it’s a huge PTO where you can sit in.
When I was a little kid back in the ’70s, I had some toy cars that were made out of rubber or some similar substance; my recollection is that the body was a solid color (everything was the same color — grille, trim, lights, windows, etc.) and they had silver-colored metal axles with black wheels. One of them was a dark blue Jeep FC. As a result, I’ve always known that these existed, even though I’m not sure if I’ve ever actually seen one in person.
Does anyone else recall the toys I’m talking about? The only other one I can remember off the top of my head was a 1960 El Camino, which I think was dark green.
From a web search, these were apparently “Tomte Laerdal Rubber Toys”, or some sub-licensed variant. The company that originally produced them was Norwegian. There were at least 33 different models produced. Most were of European vehicles, but there were also a few American and Japanese vehicles available.
http://tomtelaerdalrubbertoys.webs.com/apps/photos/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laerdal
I remembered my Jeep and El Camino as a darker shade of color, but they were otherwise identical to the ones shown in the photos at the first link. I recognize a few others; I also had the SWB Land Rover (I don’t remember the color) and the “Squarebird” era Thunderbird convertible (I think mine was yellow).
Like many of you, I have never seen one of these in person. In fact, I keep forgetting that they ever existed, occasionally being reminded by a comment or a picture of an ad right here on CC. Fabulous find!
This looks like another model that should have put Jeep on the path of world domination, as these forward control trucks seemed to be popular almost everywhere (except North America).
I’d never seen one of these until I went to the Half Century of Progress Show down in IL two weekends ago (it was an FC-170 with a grain box)…and thanks to Curbside Classic, I knew exactly what I was looking at before I even snapped a picture!
I haven’t seen one of these in the metal in decades. They are a fascinating truck. They kind of remind me of Pug dog–so ugly and awkward to the point of being endearing and lovable.
Back in 2013, I mentioned that I didn’t think I had ever seen one of these in the metal. In an example of the reverse CC effect, I recently did, just a couple of weeks ago. I was driving down the street, waiting in traffic at a red light, and a FC pickup in really nice (restored?) shape drove by headed in the other direction, presumably on its way to or from a late summer car show
CC effect, once again – this morning, I was driving home from work – along the way home, lives someone with a nice three-car garage that is close to the road. I have been watching the action in its center bay, where the owner has an early Corvair convertible down to bare metal, but today, another door was open, and out peeked the twin to the one in Jim’s great piece. similar color, as well . . .
Reminds me of the forward control Land Rover that was primarily used as a military vehicle.