Pretty Pickups

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It was inevitable. As the most popular American model range for the past three decades has comprised  Ford F150 series trucks, it's logical that pickups would take their place in the collector community. Nowhere was this more evident than at this year's Hershey Car Corral, where owners may display their cars in a sales area on the perimeter of the show grounds. There were pickups galore, in a fairly wide range of models. Since the 1960s, pickups have become common as second vehicles in a family, used mostly for passenger transportation and only occasionally for utility. Increasingly more highly trimmed, they also have gained comfort features such as power windows and air conditioning. This 1971 Chevrolet C10 is a good example, with wide side moldings, two-tone paint and rally wheels. Vying for honors in elegance was a successor Chevy, a C10 from 1973, the first of a 17-year generation of trucks. Much more striking in blue and white, it was offered at $16,500.

The sixties saw a surge in recreational trucks, and the beige-and-grey 1967 Ford Camper Special epitomizes the genre at $17,500. A heavy-duty model, it is a direct descendant of the dark blue 1952 Ford F2, a three-quarter ton pickup priced at $16,500. The other notable Ford, a black 1960 F100 with sidemounted spare, surely had a full restoration to justify its $34,900 price tag. Dodges were notable in their absence, but the underdog position was taken by a green 1961 International C-100, a presentable vehicle but one that could easily be put to work. Its condition was reflected in the price: just $9,000. The odd one out was custom-built Packard pickup, obviously fashioned from a four-door sedan. Why it had opening rear doors is anyone's guess. Certainly novel, it was stickered at $28,000. The choice is yours: pickups aplently, so take your pick.

(Text and pictures by Kit Foster)
        

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