Minneapolis Street Sighting: Ford Econline

I just now realized; despite claiming that the Econline is a "rare beast" in my parts, I've featured my fair share of them over the years. Not surprisingly, a majority of the ones I've featured have been either rustbuckets, or aging daily drivers that need to be restored. I have never featured a custom Econoline until now.

During the 1970s, long before minitrucks, and pavement-queen hillbilly trucks roamed the streets, a different  kind of custom truck scene was in full-swing" the custom van era.  Vanners would buy the latest and greatest from America's top-three brands (Chevrolet, Dodge, and Ford) either fully customized from the dealer, or they could buy a stock van and do it themselves? But what about the beginner vanning enthusiast? That's where vehicles like this one come into play.  I'm no expert on paint styles and decal styles, but the Ansen wheels and raised white-letter tires suggest that this Econoline has worn this scheme for at least forty years--if not more.

So, will these custom vans be looked at like hot rods are today? Only time will tell, but I can already see a jump in custom vans on the streets. Presence? Yes. Common?  Not quite.

Sporting what I assume is a factory color, and period-correct tape stripes, this seems like it'd be more at home in a California home video than parked on a deserted sidestreet in the middle of the snowiest city in America. But rest assured this one doesn't get driven in the winter.

As I explained up top, these tapestripes could've been applied sometime in the early 1970s; same thing with the choice of rolling stock.  While I don't really approve of the painted-over chrome, it kind of suits the 1970s feel this owner was going for (or has kept); believe it or not, I can see this van parked next to a 1967 Cougar or 1964.5 Mustang done up the same way.

I am glad I shot this one when I did, though, because I haven't seen it in quite awhile. Here's hoping that a) its still on the road and b) that it still looks like this, patina-be-damned.