Car Of The Day: December 27, 2010

Today's car of the day is Hot Wheels' 1972 Ford Ranchero.

The Ford Ranchero was a coupe utility produced between 1957 and 1979. Unlike a pickup truck, the Ranchero was adapted from a station wagon platform that integrated the cab and cargo bed into the body. A total of 508,355 units were produced during the model's production run. It was adapted from full-size, compact and intermediate automobiles by the Ford Motor Company for the North American market. Variations based on the original 1960 US Falcon for home markets in Argentina and South Africa were produced through the late 1980s. It sold well enough to spawn a competitor from General Motors in 1959, the Chevrolet El Camino.

For more information and pictures of the real car please visit: Ford Ranchero

General Motors keeps rumoring that the Holden Ute will make it to the United States- originally Pontiac was to get it as a version of the G8, but when GM went into bankruptcy that (and Pontiac itself) went out the window.  Now the rumors are coming out that GM is looking at bringing the Ute to the USA as a Chevrolet El Camino (which should have been the plan all along).  Ford has a perfectly good ute based on the Australian Falcon, that would make a dandy Ranchero for the rest of the world.  While GM keeps flip-flopping, the new "One Ford" strategy should be looking at bringing this vehicle to new markets.

1972 saw a radical change in the Torino and Ranchero lines. The sleek, pointy look of the previous year's model was replaced with a larger, heavier design. Most prominent was a wide, gaping 'fishmouth' grille and a new body-on-frame design. There were still three models available; the now-standard 500, the new Squire with simulated woodgrain "paneling" along the flanks and the sporty GT. Engine choices remained basically the same beginning with the 250 cubic inch six-cylinder and a selection of V8s that ranged from the standard 302 to Cleveland and Windsor series 351s, plus the new-for-1972 400. The 385-series V8 (the 429 for 1972-73; the 460 for 1974-76) was still available. However, all suffered from lower compression ratios to better meet new emissions standards. The 351 cu in (5.8 L) Cleveland could still be obtained in tuned 4-V Cobra Jet form through 1974. A four-speed manual transmission was available on Cobra Jet-powered GT models.

The 1973 Ranchero saw a redesigned front-end to meet new federal standards for front impact protection. Aside from slight cosmetic differences, the Ranchero would remain basically the same until the Torino's final year, 1976.