Back in the mid-late 70’s when the vanning craze was popular, I was driving my ‘68 Chevy Suburban, dreaming of buying a van of my own to build to my liking. After looking around at the various vans and manufacturers, plus after saving up enough money, I decided on a choice. I knew I wanted a new van, since I planned on keeping it for a long time. First: I decided on a short wheelbase, since I wanted to keep it garaged and my garage just wasn’t long enough for a standard size van. Second: I really liked the Ford vans…. I thought the 300 cu.in. 6 cylinder was an engine would last and had good low end torque, plus it got decent mileage. The Twin-I-Beam suspension appeared to be pretty bullet-proof and again, I planned on keeping it for a long time.
So after pricing out a few different dealers and packages I decided on my 1983 E-100 Shorty. I also liked side barn doors instead of the sliding doors that started to be popular at the time, just to make it look a bit more retro. Instead of trying to build a van that I could just use at van events or shows I wanted a daily driver that looked a bit different and would be fun to drive. I planned on doing some camping occasionally and was going to tow my boat, a 1963 SeaCoaster, so it had to be practical.
After thirty three years I still have my van and still use it for those purposes. It still runs very well, in some ways better than it was new. I’ve kept it up and maintained it over the years, replacing or upgraded parts whenever needed. It still serves my purposes and when people ask me why don’t you sell it I explain that all the “new” technology would be lost on me. I’m happiest when I’m driving down the road listening to the stereo…. hearing the engine and its different sounds…. and just having fun driving it. There’s also the fact that there’s really nothing out there that I really love. The new vans, (and other vehicles) they’re producing doesn’t appeal to my sense of design, I might as well keep something I love. I’d rather put money into something I find worthwhile, than into something that doesn’t do anything for me.