Rancheros and El Caminos

[Razors Edge ★]

...are all over out here!  If you want to buy (and restore) one, California is the place to find one.  I see them all the time but they are more a rarity elsewhere.

How's you Ranchero and El Camino population?  And ever owned one?  These (both El Caminos, I think) were on my Tues ride, but I've seen plenty in varying degrees of shape:

[Parsnip Totin Jack ★]

Growing up in LA in remember them being everywhere. A lot were used by pool service companies, one was the Pool Cowboy, the back held the jugs of chlorine and the skimmers and vacuums needed for work. They also made it easy to haul surfboards to the beach. They were more gnarly than pickup trucks. 

[jsharr ★]

I miss mine.

[Razors Edge ★]

12 minutes ago, jsharr said:

I miss mine.

???

Pics??? Details?

[jsharr ★]

11 minutes ago, Razors Edge said:

???

Pics??? Details?

1980 El Camino Royal Knight.  Will dig up some pics

 

 

[Kzoo]

I was never a fan of either.  The only one of the 2 I have ever ridden in was a El Camino.  It was my sisters boyfriend's daily driver.  It was when I was visiting them in where?.......... LA about 1989

[maddmaxx ★]

I used to lust after a Brat, but at the time I was more oriented toward performance.  Now, every time I see a nice one I think it would be nice to have.

[Razors Edge ★]

Just now, maddmaxx said:

I used to lust after a Brat, but at the time I was more oriented toward performance.  Now, every time I see a nice one I think it would be nice to have.

Brats were cool, and I used to see them decades ago, but fewer and fewer these days.  Even the Baja from not too long ago is rare, so I imagine Brats are considered collectible nowadays. 

The seats in the back, to a kid, were SO AWESOME!

[Parr8hed]

[jsharr ★]

1 hour ago, jsharr said:

1980 El Camino Royal Knight.  Will dig up some pics

 

 

Those are the only two pics I have.  Lost all my real photographs in a move after college, and owned it pre post everything on the internet.

[groupw]

There are still some around but not like back in their time. My coworker at the record store had a 69 El Camino. I will have to find out if he still does. 
when we move to a place with less yard, I will not need the Dakota. But a smaller Baja or El Camino like vehicle would still be nice. 
When my daughter was taking photos for the Mazda CX30 release, she was visiting with a Mazda exec. She commented on our family’s’ brand loyalty and said I would probably have a Mazda pickup if they were still making one. The exec almost said something. Stopped and told her to hold that thought. 

[UglyBob]

My brother has a 1966 Ranchero, the original that was based off the Falcon. It's all original and in very nice condition. Sweet little ride.

[jsharr ★]

My youngest son would love to buy an old Nova or El Camino, to fix up and use as a daily drive.  Sadly, they are out of our collective price range.  

I loved that truck.  Would stand my bike up in the back and use straps to the four corners of the bed to hold it upright.  Grooves in the bed floor kept the tires from shifting side to side.  It took me to college and to some fun road trips.  Only room for two people, three if you like the person next to you, as the arm rests folded up to make a bench seat.

And it was a movie star, as my current boss had a modeling and talent agency and when RoboCop was filmed in Dallas, they put out a call for "futuristic' looking cars.  I was on vacation in Mexico, so a buddy of mine drove it to the "casting call" and it was selected to be on the street in a couple of scenes.

That was the original jsharr Wagon Queen Family Truckster.  Most of my friends just called it the Truckster.  Sold it to buy a Jeep Wrangler in 1988.  The Jeep is my second most missed car, either that or the 1976 Chevy Nova.

[Razors Edge ★]

4 minutes ago, groupw said:

There are still some around but not like back in their time. My coworker at the record store had a 69 El Camino. I will have to find out if he still does. 
when we move to a place with less yard, I will not need the Dakota. But a smaller Baja or El Camino like vehicle would still be nice. 
When my daughter was taking photos for the Mazda CX30 release, she was visiting with a Mazda exec. She commented on our family’s’ brand loyalty and said I would probably have a Mazda pickup if they were still making one. The exec almost said something. Stopped and told her to hold that thought. 

Mazda's trucks seem to have a curious history where some were just rebadged Fords, sometimes the other way around, and now, rebadged Isuzu (an old GM partner) coming into the mix?  With the Mazda/Fiat partnering, Mazda seems like a willing partner to all sort of bigger producers!  Saw a Fiat 124 the other day and was scratching my head why someone would buy that over the Miata.

[donkpow]

I had huevos ranchero once. It was good. I liked it a lot. I would buy more when the occasion presents itself.

[jsharr ★]

I wonder if I could get @donkpow to "find" my son a 1980 El Camino or a 1976 Nova coupe? 

The Nova looked a lot like this

and the El Camino looked a lot like this.

[groupw]

22 minutes ago, Razors Edge said:

Mazda's trucks seem to have a curious history where some were just rebadged Fords, sometimes the other way around, and now, rebadged Isuzu (an old GM partner) coming into the mix?  With the Mazda/Fiat partnering, Mazda seems like a willing partner to all sort of bigger producers!  Saw a Fiat 124 the other day and was scratching my head why someone would buy that over the Miata.

The little Ford Courier in the 70's was actually a Mazda pickup. It was a way to get around the Chicken Tax. They then sold re-badged Ford Rangers as Mazda pickups when the public wanted bigger. Mazda needed a financial partner to develop the ND Miata. Fiat jumped on board. Unfortunately for Fiat, there are many who still will not buy a cheap Italian sports car after being burned too many times in the past. 

Now Toyota has been trying to make their cars more desirable to drivers and trying to get away from the rolling appliance reputaion they have had for decades. They are contracting with Mazda to help them with suspension and driving dynamics. The current Toyota Yaris sedan is a Mazda 2 except for the grille. I keep wondering if Mazda might take advantage of Toyota's US manufacturing capabilities to have a pickup smaller than what Toyota would care to sell. 

[jsharr ★]

Heck, I would even let @donkpow "find" me a Jeep like my old Wrangler

[donkpow]

1 hour ago, jsharr said:

I wonder if I could get @donkpow to "find" my son a 1980 El Camino or a 1976 Nova coupe? 

The Nova looked a lot like this

and the El Camino looked a lot like this.

 

57 minutes ago, jsharr said:

Heck, I would even let @donkpow "find" me a Jeep like my old Wrangler

I could do that for you. You'll have to trade me your women, though.

[jsharr ★]

9 minutes ago, donkpow said:

 

I could do that for you. You'll have to trade me your women, though.

If I could control my woman, do you think I would have to be asking you to "find" a car for my son?

[2Far]

Fo2 had a ~'68, tail end looked like the first pic. 396 engine, no weight over the drive wheels, lotsa burnouts. It was rusty when he got it in ~76, so it's prolly a pile of ferric oxide now.

[12string]

My El Camino looked a lot like this, but with more dents and rust and diesel smoke:

I never saw the sense in those sedan "pickups"

[ChrisL]

On my Sunday ride we rode by a shopping center that must have been a meet up point for a classic car cruise.  I should have taken some shots but there were at least fifty, 1950-80’s era vintage cars, mostly Chevy’s pulling out of the parking lot in a looong line.  Most were done up really nicely but some were still in the process of being restored. 

[Razors Edge ★]

4 minutes ago, 12string said:

I never saw the sense in those sedan "pickups"

Of 2021 pickup truck sales, I'd say many/most "trucks" are used like "sedans".

[jsharr ★]

1 hour ago, 12string said:

My El Camino looked a lot like this, but with more dents and rust and diesel smoke:

I never saw the sense in those sedan "pickups"

Love the old square bodies!  Can't afford one of those either.

[12string]

49 minutes ago, Razors Edge said:

Of 2021 pickup truck sales, I'd say many/most "trucks" are used like "sedans".

Mine is often used that way,  a FAR cry from all those old beat up trucks I had for many years.  I actually wash and wax this one.

But an El Camino stinks for hauling mulch or towing campers or a whole lot of other stuff I still use my truck for.  

[jsharr ★]

2 minutes ago, 12string said:

Mine is often used that way,  a FAR cry from all those old beat up trucks I had for many years.  I actually wash and wax this one.

But an El Camino stinks for hauling mulch or towing campers or a whole lot of other stuff I still use my truck for.  

Yeah but they were fun to drive, did great burnouts and could haul a bike and a keg and some big ass speakers on Spring Break.

[Razors Edge ★]

Just now, jsharr said:

Yeah but they were fun to drive, did great burnouts and could haul a bike and a keg and some big ass speakers on Spring Break.

Exactly. And that's pretty much what most pickup owners are currently doing with their trucks - super-light duty stuff that a car could do just as well, but without the cool truck vibe.

[bikeman564™]

4 hours ago, jsharr said:

The Nova looked a lot like this

 

 

I always liked the Nova.

[Razors Edge ★]

1 hour ago, bikeman564™ said:

I always liked the Nova.

I'm not saying you need to modify your comment, but you might want to reconsider it knowing how "wide" the Nova range has been over the years.  This was the Nova that was sold when I started driving

[bikeman564™]

1 hour ago, Razors Edge said:

I'm not saying you need to modify your comment, but you might want to reconsider it knowing how "wide" the Nova range has been over the years.  This was the Nova that was sold when I started driving

LOL, I figured someone would pull this one oot I meant the original

[az_cyclist]

My Dad had 2Rancheros, a 1960, and a 1966. The ‘66 was what I drove in high school, when I got the chance. It had a 289 small block V8 with a 3speed on the column. I loved it. 

[team scooter]

On 5/27/2021 at 9:33 AM, groupw said:

There are still some around but not like back in their time. My coworker at the record store had a 69 El Camino. I will have to find out if he still does. 
when we move to a place with less yard, I will not need the Dakota. But a smaller Baja or El Camino like vehicle would still be nice. 
When my daughter was taking photos for the Mazda CX30 release, she was visiting with a Mazda exec. She commented on our family’s’ brand loyalty and said I would probably have a Mazda pickup if they were still making one. The exec almost said something. Stopped and told her to hold that thought. 

My fingers are crossed that Mazda sends a truck over before we buy our next vehicle, but not the rebadged Isuzu. I've mentioned this before, I'd prefer they do something like a Ridgeline, Sport Trak or Avalanche, using the CX 9 platform instead. Otherwise I'm going to just commandeer our CX 9 for myself, buy a utility trailer to move mulch, soil, motorbikes around, and buy a CX 30 or CX 5 for the Mrs.

I really, really, like that CX 9.     Enough to even give up my beloved Dakota that I intended to keep forever.

[Rattlecan ★]

I owned a Ranchero for a couple of years in the mid 80s. It was an early 70s model, don't remember the exact year.

 It was pretty much on it's last legs when I bought it. Just squeaked through the safety to get it registered. I got more use out of it than I thought I would before it finally died. 

[Ralphie ★]

I have seen a couple of homemade El Camrinos around here.   Here, owl save some wear and tear on your googles.  This random internet one is from NJ too!

 

 

[maddmaxx ★]

I like the old school look of the Ranchero.  I'm even contemplating using that look on a Falcon/Futura race car body for the early 60's muscle car style.