[American Classics] Is it a car or a truck? Part 2 of 3

Sorry for the very few articles in the last months... school is demanding! I'll try to post more, as i bought a lot of interesting castings in the recent weeks. For now, i should at least finish what i began about those strange car-trucks....

The original one

Original one.

As mentioned in the El Camino's post, the Ranchero was the first coupe-utility vehicle, introduced in late 1956. The first Ranchero was a beast of car, based on the Ranch SW of those years. It lasted only three years, from 1956 to 1959. What we could call as the "real" first Ranchero was introduced in the same time as the much known Falcon, in 1960. It was much smaller and practical than the first one. Engines offered varied from a pityful 90hp L6 to a powerful 4.7L Windsor V8. It was way more basic than the El Camino, and therefore suffered from the competition. Ranchero's been based on the Falcon until 1967, following style designs of the Falcon. Since 1960, this coupe utility was officially named "Ford Falcon Ranchero", but abandoned the Falcon name in 1966.

Johnny Lightning, as usual, made a nice replica of a cool american classic car. We're talking of the 1965 Ranchero this time, last edition of the first Falcon Ranchero. This diecast appeared in the JL serie Working Class Truck and SUVs, in the fourth release to be more precise. It's obviously a more luxuous version, with some chrome touches and a nice bicolor exterior. Just as almost every JL diecast, it is perfectly detailed, with some awesome small chrome wheels, and nice paint accent. Even more, the opening hood reveals a nice little engine. Altough i would prefer to have the red one issued in the first release, it is still an awesome diecast. But, (there's ALWAYS a but), where are the mirrors?

Evaluation : Johnny Lightning '65 Ford Ranchero

• Accuracy (looking like the real car?) : 9/10
• Details (mirrors, wheels, other stuff)  : 8/10
• Color : 7/10
• Quality of the fabrication :  9/10
• Personal factor (is it a must for my collection?): 8/10
• Total : 41/50

Falcon switch

In 1968, the old Fairlane/Falcon was replaced by the new Ford Torino, with a much more angular and bigger shape. The new Ranchero followed this and became the biggest one since the original model. This 1969 model is also known as the most powerful one, even offering a 351 Windsor V8 (same as the '69 Mustang). The Ranchero also been redesigned in 1970, with a more agressive look, and a "Ram-Air" hood. It also offered a version called "Ranchero Squire" offering some wood trims on the side. In 1972, the Torino and the Ranchero went under a major redesign (again!), with a larger, heavier design. It also offered a large variety of powerful V8 engines. After all those changes, the Ranchero remained the same until Torino's disparition in 1976.

About diecast now, i own a fabulous version of Hot Wheels '72 Ranchero (you'll rarely see me use the word "fabulous" about a HW diecast). First offered in 2009 in the HW Classics serie, it was intended to be a high-end diecast. My orange-black 2010 Delievery Serie Ranchero is really well-done. The color is instantly appealing, and the quality of fabrication is stunning. Real rubber tires are just awesome, and the tuning of the car is quite awesome. A few tampos could have been added though, especially at the back of the car. And how about some mirrors? But i must say the car looks "slick", and is a nice add to any collection. I hope we'll also see the stock version in the future.

Evaluation : Hot Wheels '72 Ford Ranchero

• Accuracy (looking like the real car?) : 7/10
• Details (mirrors, wheels, other stuff)  : 8/10
• Color : 10/10
• Quality of the fabrication :  10/10
• Personal factor (is it a must for my collection?): 8/10
• Total : 42/50

End of the Ranchero

With the disparition of the Torino, the 77 Ranchero needed a new base, and therefore switched on the Ford LTD II. It resulted in an even bigger car, and with the petrol crisis, it was clear that the market direction wasn't the same. Ford decided that small pick-up trucks would lead the way, and replaced the Ranchero with the now well-known Ranger in 1979.