RARE Ford Durango Revival! Will it Drive 400 Miles After 9 YEARS? 

I recently inherited my uncle's 1965 Ranchero. It isn't the car I would have chosen, but I've enjoyed the teardown and parts acquisition. 289 4-speed manual car. I'm falling in love with the car. About 15 years ago Kit and I rode our motorcycles from Utah to Cali. Pulled the engine in an orange orchard, got her running, put my bike in the tray and made our way home. Kit didn't get to finish the car, but I'm going to do it for him.

POV: its 11 months later and there"s still no new Durango video.

I took my high school-era driving test in a '80 Fairmont 4dr sedan with that very drivetrain. I can confirm it to be a gutless wonder. Still, the Durango is a very interesting piece of automotive history and I look forward to see what you two do with this one.

There were no plans to produce this as a factory option, it was strictly an aftermarket idea. I think it sold for around $7000 (I had an '80 Futura coupe that I recall paying $6400 minus a $300 rebate at the time, and I still have the car). The conversion was advertised in Automotive News among a very few other places. I worked at Ford Engineering at the time and retired a few years ago. I had - as part of my job - all the future product plans back then, and read updates daily; Durango was never discussed in-house by management, even as an unofficial program, it was never shown on what we called the "cycle plan". We had far too much on the plate already with downsizing the line-up and meeting new emissions laws. Of course, we all knew about the aftermarket conversion, and a few of us talked about it around the lunch table once or twice.

Brave soul to use a pressure washer on a Maaco paint job.🤣

12:28 This is actually pretty common backup sound used by some larger chain delivery companies in Europe. Seems that it got to US too. There are two reasons for using this sound. It has wide spectrum which makes it harder to miss even if you don't hear some frequencies well. Much better than single frequency backup signal that some people may not hear or may be masked by surrounding noise. The other reason is that it is audible from close even if it's not as loud as single frequency ones. That makes it a bit less invasive in cities.

Oh Heck Yea! I've ALWAYS wanted to see a Ranchero on the channel, but the Durango is even better! I wish Ford made a Ranchero out of the panther platform. That and the 5.0 would've been amazing!

That thing is awesome I’m glad someone other than me appreciates these cars.

My first car was a '82 Ford Fairmont Futura --- I can attest to how slow they are with the one barrel carb , lol --- It got me back and forth for 3 years. Had all kinds of fun things to repair along the way. I never knew about the Durango before I saw your video. Doesn't look bad as a small pick up.

I just got a 1975 Rancho and I am so excited to finish what my grandfather started by making it the most powerful and quickest he could make it. His dream will not die with him and will carry on through out our family!!!

I've always personally thought that the LaTourneau Sno-Train tires were the coolest part of that build. Anybody that's a gear head, it is well worth your time to research the feat of engineering that LaTourneau achieved when they built those machines and to research them as a company in general.. Absolutely amazing.

I didn't realize they were so rare. I remember seeing a brand new one, burgundy and tan with a nice interior (despite the wood grain) It seemed highly optioned and looked pretty slick, even the tailgate.

What an absolutely sick find! I've always loved cars with truck beds. The perfect mix of utility and size/stature. Too bad they're practically extinct around here these days.

This may be one of my favorite revivals as I have a soft-spot for car / truck hybrids. I am working on reviving a 1964 Cutlass that was converted to a truck (1 of 2 that I know of), with a 403 from a trans-am. The thing was a mess when I got it, but my dad and I are slowly restoring it to its former glory.

I absolutely love your and Mook's videos. Your calm, motivated, and instructional videos are looked forward to with each episode. Thank you for sharing!

Kind of missed Mook haven't been watching enough lately good to see she still gets into the vid once in awhile

I'd forgotten all about this model, even after having 2 Ford Fairmonts back in the day. Thanks for the trip down memory lane guys. Awesome video as always ❤

That little squeak she made when she became a spark plug was AWESOME. Not that she got bit but just the squeak. I think anybody that has worked on an older car has been bit. Those coils put out enough energy to power several cuss words.

We used that same 3.3 (or 200 cube) engine in Australia, along with it's bigger 250 cube / 4.1 litre brother. Falcon had been built here since 1960 with the 144 and 170 six. 200 super pursuit was added in 64. Engines were upgraded to the new bigger 188 and 221 in 68 and then to 200 and 250 in 1971. When the 250 was introduced we had a version called the "2v" which had a removable intake manifold with a 2 barrel carb (good for 170hp. Most still had the cast in manifold with 155 hp. Engines stayed pretty much the same until July 76, when they were upgraded to a crossflow head design to try and compensate for harder vehicle emissions introduced at that time (ADR27a). The engine was again upgraded with an alloy head in 1981 (cast by Honda) and then a 2 barrel weber carb in 82. Ford ceased production of V8s in Australia in 1982 (Clevelands, available in 302 and 351), so they were no longer offered in the XE Falcon after that time. In 83 they introduced an optional Bosch injected version of the 4.1. In 1988 the Falcon came in for a total redesign, the engine was upgraded with a single overhead cam and standard fuel injection across the range. The engine was also destroked to 3.2 and 3.9 litres. Single point injection was standard on 3.2 (90kw) and 3.9 (120kW), there was optional multipoint injection on 3.9 (139kw). The same year Holden introduced the VN Commodore which was fitted with the 3.8 litre Buick V6 that had (from memory) 128kW as standard and later a 165kW 5 litre V8 (Australian Holden engine, not a Chev). The base V6 was very lively and you had to option the multipoint 3.9 to have any chance of showing the Holden up... Ford had nothing to compete with the V8. In 1992 The 6 was upgraded to 4.0 and had standard multipoint injection it made a very healthy 148kw. Ford also re introduced a V8 to the Falcon, a 5.0 Windsor V8 with 165kw, this engine remained an option until late 2001. There was a mild upgrade in late 1994 which gave 153kW. The engine basically continued like that until the end of 2001, it was still based on the block / bore spacing of the old 200 / 250.. In 2002 it came in for a major upgrade, capacity remained at 4.0 but it was upgraded with double overhead cams and variable valve timing... also, a turbo version was added... This engine is known as the "Barra" and can still trace its beginning back to the humble 200 and 250.. though you would be hard pressed to find much that would fit from one to the other. V8s continued in the Falcon, after the retirement of the Windsor, they fitted an Australian version of the 5.4 modular, Two versions were available, a three valve, which was pretty much the US truck engine, and another fitted with 4 valve heads which was available for performance models.. That engine was replaced in about 2012 with a supercharged version of the 5.0 Coyote... The Turbo Barra 6 was still the better engine with a lot more performance potential. .. Ford Australia ceased all production on October 7, 2016.

Never heard of a FORD Durango. I almost bought a 1st Gen Dodge Durango but was surprised at how small the interior was. Great Video!! Loved it when the wheel was frozen!! Very empathetic to your travails getting it home. Better luck on the next one!!

That vans backup sound is supposed to make that noise. The fact that both of you took notice is exactly why they now use that sound. We have become so accustomed to the normal beep that we now ignore it, but this strange new sound catches our attention, and we look for the potential danger, you look towards the truck and instantly think it must be backing up.

As a monster truck fan, Thank you for being so very respectful to Bigfoot 4X4 !!!! Love you guys!!!!

What a cool ride NEVER let these older vehicles die!

I worked in 1978 and 79 at the Ford Hapeville plant building Fairmont's and LTD's, that sure brings back memories.

That is one beautiful automobile! With a new suspension and 5.0 with 5 speed and a good differential she’ll be something anyone would be happy to own, and a ton of fun to drive. Good find!

That volvo p1800 looks amazing

I lived in the st Louis area for a few years. Visiting the bigfoot shop was the most memorable thing I did there. They had the massive bigfoot (largest tires ever #5) out front along with trackfoot. Again a great time to behold. The durango needs white walls!

I love the old reject cars and the rare ones to boot. This one is very cool and surprisingly clean. Hope nothing got hurt getting it that hot. Look forward to more on this one. Take care.

Kevin, I have no clue how into these limited release "mostly official" models you are, but man, there is no one on RU-vid I'd want to see get and save a Pontiac Tojan more than you. Way too bad ass of a piece of American history for it to be talked so little about and for it to cost as little as it does. Fingers crossed 🤘

I’m a Lifelong Ford guy at 70 years. I’ve known of the Ford Durango for under a week. My first car was a ‘61 Falcon wagon. A straight six with a three on the tree. Looking forward to more vids on this sweet find. Congrats!

Really enjoying this, my mom had a Ford Futura growing up and a Ford LTD cop car, I feel if Sleeperdude sees this he'll freak and want it, not like it's a bad thing, gorgeous car Kevin and Mook

"We're doin' 50! That's the fastest we've gone yet!" While he passes at 25mph speed limit sign 😆

Love it! Years ago I obtained a '79 Fairmont with a factory 302. That sucker was light and quick. Miss it badly.

AWESOME find! I'd love to run across one of those myself, just because they are so rare.

Kevin, you and Mook have to be the coolest most down to earth RU-vidrs I have seen in a long time. The awesome content and unbelievable cars are a plus!! Keep up the great work brother.

Hello, My first truck was a 1971 Ford F250 6cyl 3 speed. The rear brake cylinders were both shot, I put a screw in the master cylinder well for the rear brakes. I drove it for two years like that with no problems.

Kevin I really feel if you keep the videos like this coming, you’re going to be the next one being invited all over the place for special events and big races, I’ve watched since the beginning and I would love to see you up there with the rest of them ASAP! Love this channel, always have

Wow! My hobby is writing terrible automotive based fiction. Today, I was editing a project about a cable TV show that just completed putting a Ford 302 in a Volvo P-1800 before moving on to converting a rusty Fairmont Futura into an Aussie style Ute. To see both my fictional project cars crop up on this most excellent video is a real hoot. Thanks for the fabulous content; almost like it was custom made for me!

I am just hoping and praying that Kevin does go through and make sure to put a heavy rust treatment coating on it, I would hate to see it just rust away to nothing. :( While I wouldn't keep it stock, I would be keeping the motor and everything I took out of it to put the motor that should have been in it. Good luck Kevin! Glad to see you save something from my home state!

Now THAT is a piece of automotive history right there, wow. Great job getting that 'i got no balls' Ford Durango as far as you did. Honestly my first thought was water pump, they seem to go at the most inopportune time. Lookin forward to seeing what you do with it, peace.

Really nice find amazing 1 of 212. If this is nearly unaltered. Keeping it all original (numbers matching) would seem to be worth while. Seems it would be a great collector.

The technical information from this channel is immense. Thanks Kevin ! 😊

Hey Kevin & Mook. I really enjoyed your video. That is the first time that I had ever heard of a Ford Durango. My dad purchased a new Ranchero in 1974 that had a 351 Cleveland with a ice cold AC. My dad never liked the Ranchero because it was not really usable for farming like a pickup truck was and a severely bad gas hog back in the days of fuel embargoes and such. If you had the $$$ to put in the fuel tank, The Ranchero definitely would open up going down the interstate. Thanks again for your video and taking me back to my childhood memories.

Same engine as used in the late 60s to 1978 in australia,the venerable logger head falcon 6 cylinder,started out as a 170 cube and transitioned to a 250 cubic inch engine that was mass produced here in australia

I had a '79 Fairmont 4 door as my first car and loved it - except for lack of power. I never even knew the Ranchero existed but have always loved the El Camino Idea. This is my first time seeing your videos so I don't know your style but everyone sticks a big V8 and typical Mustang parts in a Fox body. I enjoyed seeing this one totally stock and think you should do something to honor that. :)

That belongs in a museum! Don't ruin it with a conversion! Especially, considering you have all vintage paperwork.

I'm in Des Moines and find myself in Ames every so often; I'll keep a look out for this rig on the road in the future! Love it!

That 200 6 cylinder was a tough engine. Back in 1972 I drove my 65 Fairlane 500 miles on a hot day at 85 mph the whole way with the A/C on full blast and it took it like a champ.

Actually I wondered about the water pump earlier and when you started having heating problems I immediately thought, "Rent a trailer and get t home!" Good call to do just that.

Been a ford guy my whole life--have never seen anything like this!!!!What a find---Sure needs a 5.0/5 speed swap.Way to go kev&mook!!!!

Awesome! I love that you didn't try and sugar coat this project. Shit happens and you to be pragmatic.

Keep it up guys, I absolutely love watching you, you know how to keep people coming back

Mook getting shocked had me dying

If you don't want that I'll take it. The interior looks the same as my old Mercury Zepher I had as a Squad car in the 80's . I actually liked it for scooting around town serving papers. I always wanted a Ranchero or El Camino.

What an absolutely amazing find and in such good shape for its age. I can’t wait to see what the both of you have in mind for this project.

This car is so rare! Worth a full restoration for sure! Hope you can hang on to it and restore it!

I just found this channel randomly while i woke up and my tv was still playing RU-vid. But this guy absolutely loves turning rotors and doing brakes you can here it in his voice

About 10 years ago, I saw one of these at a small neighborhood cruise. It was in really good shape and it had its original paint. A little odd looking compared to Ranchero and El Camino.

AWWWW HECK! Mooks back in this one! 🥳

Waiting for more episodes on this car…seems like a trend on this channel. I like multi episodes from purchase to envision completion. Hopefully we see this rig back on the channel showing us that engine/trans swap you mentioned. Cheers!

Hey Kevin and Mook 🙂 Great choice, will be following this build for sure! The first Bigfoot you saw has tyres from the LeTourneau Overland Train - a near-legendary monster that is well worth a Google 🙂

I can honestly say this video was probably my fav of all time on this channel. Maybe top 5 favorite. Regardless this editing and content ding’d all the bells and Mook is definitely a soul mate for you my friend. Great content. Safe Travels Amigos

I bought an 81 Durango (3rd owner & still have it) in 2000 and brought it home to Fremont CA from Lake Isabella CA. These have very small gas tanks. Mine had cruise control, just like the T-Bird steering wheel. I tried to bring an 86 Cougar with V-6 from Chicago to Sacramento a few years ago, and got stuck outside Denver for 4 nights because of a throttle position sensor. I keep a new one in the glove box now.

Really enjoyed your videos thanks for all you do to make it happen

Power tour car for next year? What a cool, unique car. Love watching you revive the oddball cars like this.

Being from Missouri originally, it makes sense that you found it there. The Ford Durango is one of my favorite little fun facts to tell people about

Congratulations on making it as far as you did. Looking forward to episode 2

My uncle had one. His was stolen. They never found it. Loved that thing lol. That will be super cool with a 5.0 in it. Really enjoying this one. Can’t wait to see what you do with it

I was a sports car kid. Even the beach bug was cool. Then I came to America and I flipped completely. Big Foot did it. Then my first vehicle was a 1979 K5 Blazer and all the shit hit the fan. Lift kits, big tires nice engines, custom paint jobs, etc. And now that I’m in my 60s, I replaced all the parts needed and I got an awesome paint job on my 1993 K1500 Silverado 5.7, and it’s the last truck I’ll ever have. It’s getting difficult to get in and out due to my health, and I’m already considering sell it after months of dumping almost $20,000.00 into it. Interior still looks new, all original. Not a spot a rust. I regret not adjusting the transmission when I got it, because it only has about 150,000 miles but shows 191,000. For every 4 miles I drive, registers 5. Thanks for sharing.

Definitely want an update when you do the swap🙌🏻cool little car!

Haha that awesome. I had no idea these even existed. Thanks for the great content

I love it when you kept pumping the brakes and hoping that they would start working. I've been there, lol.

Love it, love it, love it! Dodge is so jealous! This is going to be one of your best builds...I saw one at a car show back in the day and always kinda wanted one...I'll be watchin' ...y'all be safe, but if you're not, record it for our entertainment...peace...

I have always loved and always wanted a Ford Durango! That is an awesome score you have… And I hope you do it justice! Can’t wait to see more on it!!!

Catching up from a year or so ,, Kevin you are one sharp minded car guru..and a well spoken host..keep it all up, great videos well done. Mike

OH MY GOD KEVIN that is such a rare car you have found right there!!! That deserves to be in a motorama museum!!! Thats way to cool to keep and smash on, you definitely need to restore it 😀 that's Bigfoot #1. Omg so dam sick bro that's absolutely sick. He built that truck in his back yard!!

As much as I would love to see a 5.0 under the hood, part of me would like to see it restored to its original configuration. The only reason I even say this is because one of my non-car friends thought the Ford Model T came out with a small block V8 because that’s what was in them all at the car shows. 🤔 He could hardly believe how primitive the car originally was. Probably feel different if they made millions of these.

Came across this channel by accident but I have thoroughly enjoyed you and your crews adventures. This offsets the monotony of a corporate job any day. Thanks for takin me along for the sometimes smoky but always great ride.

I never knew National Coach Works tried to create a replacement for the Ranchero. Kevin and Mook are preserving automotive history.

this is probably the coolest and most valuable car you got. cant wait to see what happens with it aand pls keep it og as far as looks go (i know u will) and DONT sell the original engine, car s gonna be even more collectible in future!!!

I am with you, Kevin. This is a cool car. I had a Fairmont wagon and enjoyed it immensely. I often thought that a "pickup" that size would be nice. I am looking forward to your future work on this car. You are always full of info about the vehicles you work on and th history is amazing. Thanks for being so helpful.

Amazing find Kevin! I am excited to see you do the V-8 swap and put some suspension under it. It will be a very rare very cool car that will be fun to drive. A hard combo to beat!

That classic Volvo was gorgeous - and it has very similar lines to the much newer Volvo C30 (particularly the rear hatch) - pretty cool

I believe Bigfoot 8 was in my hometown of Liberty, Texas about 10 years ago. My 12yo self went nuts when I saw it parked in front of the Discount Tire on Main St. 🔥

Very interesting discovery. Looking forward to seeing what you do with this one.

Really like that color combination ,add a V8 and a good strong transmission, and rear end and it will be unique and fast.

glad you guys were ok have faith that you will get it back to life first video

I always thought these were an interesting version of the Fairmont. I believe if they would have used the fairmont wagon with the Futura slope back body, theses could have given the elCamino a run for its money. In my viewpoint, the one big downfall of the fairmont was its city bus sized turning circle. Never understood why American manufactures build mid size and compact sedans with 40+ foot turning circles when 35 foot turning circles would have been more suitable for tight parking lot maneuvering.

Can't wait to see that with some upgrades! Great stuff as always!

I know this is an old video, but I’m still enjoying it. MOOK! ❤❤❤

Wow I was so sure the Ford Durango was going to make it too until it didn't lol I really hope you keep and restomod it! Its a rare cool ride and deserves a fresh 5.0/5 speed in the near future!

My dad had a '78 Ford Fairmont Futura like that, the styling was much nicer than the basic Fairmont. It was a decent car for its time. About the same time I owned a '71 Mustang, nothing fancy, 302 V8 2-barrel. Not a fastback, it was the coupe with the near vertical back window and sweeping flares from the roofline back along the top of the back fenders. It's similar to what they did on the Ranchero and Durango, and I'd wondered what it'd be like to convert it to a pickup bed in back. Best of luck with the Durango, enjoy the rebuild and afterwards!

I had a really clean Fairmont wagon when I was a kid, always got me home, drove it with the peddle mashed for 35 miles once and she never skipped a beat, had the 200 in it. At the time my family had 5 Fairmonts and my grand mom wanted a wagon, she loved the car but my grand dad was 3 sheets in the wind when I showed it to him, they never said anything after that so I sold it to a friend, my gram was upset as my grand dad didn't even remember me showing him the car. Wow, Bigfoot 1 was my all time favorite truck, still have the model kit and a new one in the box. I saw it in person when I was a young teen but now I would love to see it again, bought a 79 F250 4x4 back in the day, but all I did was put Dana 60's front and back with lockers, rebuilt the whole drivetrain and when she was ready for paint I sold it to a friend who painted it then sold it again to a guy who went nuts with it, blown 460, lifted with 44's on it'

I wonder if Dodge had to buy the rights to that Durango name from Ford it's kind of weird I never knew Ford had a Durango. But it's an absolutely sick vehicle would love to have one myself.

Never knew that car existed. Really cool. Definitely a candidate for a 5.0 and auto trans. Be looking good if you also use the 5.0 Mustang wheels give it that wide look. Put on a set of Flowmaster mufflers and shell be a highway bandit!

Love Eric the Car Guy, he's been making repair videos and how to videos on car repair since about 2009. Nobody ever taught me how to work on cars so a lot of his videos really helped me have the courage to do my own automotive work... but regardless he got a Fairmont and dropped a big engine in it and made a sleeper out of it. Cracks me up too because that thing has so much body flex lol, putting down 400 horsepower or whatever it is to the wheels a lot of these Fox bodies (stock anyways) twist like soda cans crush, it's crazy.

Notification Squad 🔥🔥. This will be an interesting one because I didn't even know these existed and I was very confused when I seen this on Instagram

There is actually a slight chassis difference by year, depending on your donor Fox body. In 1982, the struts changed versus the earlier cars, at least in the Mustang. I believe there may have been some other subtle differences too if you are sourcing suspension parts.

I’m a Ford guy from way back I was raised around fords never knew this yeah coexist until a few months ago when I seen it in RU-vid showing this car to see one that’s actually on the road working good luck with this vehicle it’s a part of history the most important history Ford👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

Sweet Durango! Can't wait to see what's in store for it... Thanks as always for the awesome content and inspiration 🤘🤘🤘