Did Mercury Make a Pickup Truck in the 60s?
Mercury was a brand of automobiles that was produced by the Ford Motor Company from 1938 to 2011. The brand was created to bridge the gap between Ford’s entry-level vehicles and its luxury Lincoln models. While Mercury never made a pickup truck, the company did have some light-duty trucks in its lineup during the 1960s.
The Mercury line of vehicles in the 1960s included cars, station wagons, and light-duty trucks. The trucks were known as “Rancheros” and were essentially car-based models with a pickup bed mounted on the back. Rancheros were produced from 1957 to 1979 and came in both two-door and four-door configurations.
The Ranchero had a unique design that featured a car body mounted on a pickup chassis. This allowed for more interior space than traditional pickups, while still providing utility for light cargo hauling or farm work. The Ranchero also had longitudinally mounted engines like most cars of the era, giving it better acceleration than regular pickups with their transverse mounted engines.
In terms of styling, the Ranchero had cues similar to other Mercury vehicles such as chrome door handles, wraparound windshields, and side trim panels. It also had several engine options including V8s ranging from 200 to 428 cubic inches in displacement.
The Ranchero was not as successful as some of its competitors such as Chevrolet’s El Camino or Ford’s own Falcon based pickup truck, but it did remain in production until 1979 when it was replaced by an all-new model called the Cougar XR7-G series.
Ultimately, Mercury did not make a full size pickup truck in the 1960s but they did have some light duty trucks in their lineup known as “Rancheros” which provided some utility without sacrificing comfort or styling. These vehicles are now sought after by collectors due to their unique design and styling elements that make them stand out from other pickups of the era.
Conclusion: In conclusion, Mercury did not make a full size pickup truck during the 60s but they did produce light duty trucks known as “Rancheros” which proved popular with collectors due to their unique styling elements which made them stand out from other pickups of that era.