Junkyard Find: 1970 Ford Econoline Van

by Murilee Martin

February 3rd, 2016 7:54 AM

The Ford Econoline went from having a forward-control/mid-engine layout to sporting a stubby hood with the engine moved a bit forward for the 1968 through 1974 model years. Every time I see one of these vans in a wrecking yard, it has been so thoroughly used up that I feel compelled to break out my camera; so far in this series we have seen this ’70 cargo van, this ’70 passenger van, this STD-laden ’71 custom, and this extraordinarily biohazardous-looking ’72 camper (plus there’s this grainy black-and-white Econoline photo I shot in 1991, this full-on Southern California custom found in northern Sweden, and this time-capsule Denver customized ’74).

Today, we have this beat-to-hell-and-beyond California passenger-van-turned-work-truck.

You could get versions of this sticker for your car, motorcycle, bicycle, or surfboard back in the 1970s and 1980s.

At some point, someone with sheet metal, a riveting tool, body filler, and spray paint covered up the left-side glass, creating the very rare Half-and-Half Molester Van option package.

Shelves and toolboxes were installed on that side, or perhaps we are seeing a very un-luxurious camper conversion here.

Rather than go to the hassle of covering up the rear windows, the owner who did the side-glass-covering job just found junkyard cargo-van doors to replace the window-equipped passenger-van doors that were on this Econoline when it rolled off the showroom floor.

These “splatter” stickers were popular J.C. Whitney items, circa 1982.

#1970 #1970FordEconoline #1970s #California #DownOnTheJunkyard #Econoline #FordEconoline #Junkyard #JunkyardFind #MolesterVan #Truck #Van

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7 of 28 comments

Carlson Fan on Feb 03, 2016

My dad purchased a brand new '75 Ford van. That was the first year for the little nose and it had the "Chateau" package with some really nice captains chairs up front. Behind the seats was completely unfinished. He wanted fuel economy so he ordered it with a 351 Windsor, 3 on the tree and no PS or AC. It was so much nicer on the inside and outside than this generation. The assembly quality was crap and he took it back the day after he picked it up with a list of 12-15 things he wanted fixed. It ended up being a really good truck as far as reliability/durability.

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- Drzhivago138 on Feb 03, 2016
  
  >wanted fuel economy >got the 351W instead of the 300 or the 240 Okay.
  
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- CobraJet on Feb 03, 2016
  
  @Drzhivago138 True, back in the day a heavy vehicle with a 6 could get the same or even worse gas milage than a V8. In this case, probably neither one would top 12 mpg.
  
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- Mikeg216 on Feb 03, 2016
  
  @CobraJet It's true, in reality it didn't matter if you got the 300,351 or 460 they all got 12 mpg. It was just a matter of how much torque and at what rpm you wanted it at. Or how fast you wanted to be able to merge onto the freeway. Drove a one ton shorty 350 conversion van with a 460 big block once. Truly an ass hauling ass cash or grass machine
  
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- Carlson Fan on Feb 03, 2016
  
  @mikeg216 "It’s true, in reality it didn’t matter if you got the 300,351 or 460 they all got 12 mpg." We took a trip out to Colorado from MN when it was 2 weeks old and he averaged 17.1 miles to the gallon. I remember him calculating that at the kitchen table when we got home and he was happy as ship about that because his '68 Ford XL with that pooch 390 he still owned wouldn't have gotten anywhere near that. Yep he was Ford man as his dad owned a Ford dealership when he was a kid. Mind you that was when the speed limit was 55 and he drove 57-58 MPH on the interstate all the way out and back. I think it also had fairly tall rear end gears in it.
  
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- Gearhead77 on Feb 04, 2016
  
  @mikeg216 My folks had an 84 Econoline conversion with a 351 and the three spd auto. My Dad said it got 11mpg no matter city or highway. I used to think it was due to his heavy right foot, but then I looked it up when the EPA website went back that far: 11 city/12 highway. I remember as a kid going from Pittsburgh to Myrtle Beach and by the time we reached the NC/VA border, both tanks needed filled ( 18 and 22 gallon?). With 2 adults, 3 kids and the roof box ( which we called the Big Mac box), I'm sure 8 mpg was probably close.
  
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MrMag on Feb 04, 2016

I love vans from the 60's, they have a great style. One of the first cars I found was a 60's Corvair Van (click my name). But I haven't seen one with the panels on the side

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