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72Chero
02-18-2007, 10:33 PM
1972 Ranchero 500 known as “RED”

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/434649/fullsize/100_5739.jpg

Well I will start this as a spin off from a post in the thread “Miracles Happen”. Although RED looks nice now it wasn’t always. My husband Klaus had bought me this Truck almost begrudgingly. He had been in the hospital four and a half months with his illness fighting for his life. He got out on our daughters 18th Birthday in January of 1999. He has told me over and over that I was his Angel throughout his whole ordeal in the Hospital. And he constantly tells me, even now, if I hadn’t been there with him he would not have survived. I know otherwise and that is covered in that Story. Well we celebrated our 20th Wedding Anniversary in July of 1999. So that spring he wanted to give me something extra special for our Anniversary. He had done research on an Anniversary Ring with 20 Rubies and he knew that it was something that I had wanted for years. Well I had also driven a 77 Chevy Malibu Station Wagon for 15 years so..I wanted something different to drive. When he had told me he was buying this ring and that it was going to cost 2700 dollars…I told him how extravagant that was and that if he really wanted to spend that kind of money I’d rather have a different car. Well upsettingly he said fine…if that’s what you want then go find something. He wasn’t too excited about my sudden change of gifts. He has never really ever put a lot of thought into the gifts he would buy it would be more like, “Hey babe, what do you want?” and he’d buy it. He had never spent time researching a gift before. So I was a little sad that I had messed up his surprise but I really did want something different. The girls had their own cars, and never wanted to go anywhere with mom, so I wanted something for me. So off I went in search of a ride. Klaus had suggested that I look for an 86 Monte Carlo SS…but I had seen this truck in the local Wheels and Deals advertisement. A rather small picture, but I just was totally enamoured over this vehicle. I look at several other cars but I kept going back to that one truck. So I finally was able to get hold of the owner. A week later I finally got to meet this ride in person. It was almost like that scene out of Christine where Andy meets that 58 Chrysler for the first time. I was so overtaken by this machine it was almost eerie. I got out of my wagon and just walked around this truck. Looking at every flaw, half the carpet was missing the seat was covered with a sheet, dusty, dirty and a low tire. Klaus was talking with Mike about this truck while I was just walking around it. The bumper looked like stainless steel it was so tarnished. It had never seen a coat of wax in its life…meanwhile they are cranking and cranking trying to start it up. Mike had told us he was selling it because he wanted to build the motor in his Mustang. So it didn’t get driven very much. When that truck started up…. OH MY… the rumble was so fantastic, for me it sealed the deal. But Klaus said lets go take this thing for a drive. He said of course, You drive it…its your car if we get it. So off down the road we went, I could hardly wait to get out of the neighborhood to open it up to see what it could do. Klaus kept looking around saying well it doesn’t sound to bad, I can’t believe it has a four speed. He said that is just not something you see in these cars. We finally got out of the neighborhood to an open road, a highway…and I opened it up, with a spit and a sputter we were off and flying. It was like falling in love for the first time, my heart beat so hard and so fast…Klaus said you couldn’t slap the smile off my face. Then I pulled to the side and we talked about the motor he said it’s a Cleveland but the guy said it’s a Cobra Jet. Funny thing is babe, I don’t ever remember Ford building a small Cobra Jet. At the time we didn’t know what it was. So I let him drive it, and then I had him convinced. He was in love too. Well we headed back and discussed the particulars and a week later I was the new owner, 3rd owner of this rusty, tire rotted, half carpeted, shrunken tonneau covered, faded old FORD. The first weekend I was determined to make this truck shine. I spent over eight hours buffing the front clip… to no avail, it still looked like primer. Well then I knew it needed paint. A few months later my brother had come up from Albuquerque for a visit and was looking at the Ranchero and he walked around it, kicking it and being mean…and then told me the words I wanted to hear. “Well, little sister if you come down stay a week I’ll paint this ugly Ford what ever color you want it to be.” So in March of 2000 we took a vacation and drove down to see my brother. He has his own paint-mixing machine and he was telling me how he had this ugly Ford color. My brother Jerry, I love him dearly but he is an avid Chevy guy like most of you here and he did not like that his little sister now owned a Ford. So he showed me this ugly Ford color, 1996 Ford Mustang Laser RED Pearl.

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/206592/fullsize/scan0001_0001.jpg

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/206593/fullsize/scan0002_0002.jpg

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/206600/fullsize/scan0003_0003.jpg

I then knew it was fate that my new Ruby ring would be in the form of a 72 Ford Ranchero. Instead of creating a wrist problem showing off this little ring I was able to rev up a motor to show of my new jewelry.

72Chero
02-18-2007, 11:47 PM
Jerry had to replace part of the lower rear quarter panel where it had rusted through, and we removed all the outer trim pieces. It has three base coats, three Raspberry Pearl coats and six coats of clear. We painted the bed, door jams and engine compartment black.

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/206611/fullsize/scan0005_0005.jpg

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/206702/fullsize/scan0016_0016.jpg

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/206617/fullsize/scan0007_0007.jpg

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/206709/fullsize/scan0018_0018.jpg

72Chero
02-19-2007, 12:44 AM
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/206713/fullsize/scan0019_0019.jpg

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/206775/fullsize/scan0020_0020.jpg

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/206776/fullsize/scan0021_0021.jpg

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/206780/fullsize/scan0022_0022.jpg

We ordered a Marti Report on RED and it shows you when the truck was built, where, how many that color combination and the vital statistics on the truck. We found out that we had indeed bought a truck with a Cobra Jet motor and that the Q code cars were special ordered rides with the 351 Cobra Jet motor in some and the Factory four speed toploader. We found that RED was one of 283, Ranchero 500’s built in 1972 with this engine and tranny. Most of the 72 GT Ranchero’s came equipped with this engine and the C6 combination but few were built with the four speed.

72Chero
02-19-2007, 01:01 AM
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/276780/fullsize/ranchero-info-and-advertisements-004.jpg

here is an advertisment of what RED looked like brand new....

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/223318/fullsize/goldfinal.jpg

Klaus and I have been working on this beast for 8 years.

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/205643/fullsize/016_13a.jpg

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/205677/fullsize/019_16.jpg

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/205657/fullsize/015_12a.jpg

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/205706/fullsize/027_24.jpg

72Chero
02-19-2007, 01:06 AM
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/205653/fullsize/022_19a.jpg

We had rebuilt the Cobra Jet motor in the spring of 2005. It has been bored 40 over, the crank over 10, Speed Pro flat top pistons, Lunati Solid lift Race Cam with 541/559 lift, Edelbrock Performer Manifold, Holley 750 cfm 4 bbl carburetor, Hooker Competition Plus headers, FlowMaster 50 series mufflers, Race Ready cut outs and Mallory ignition system.

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/205660/fullsize/021_18a.jpg

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/205568/fullsize/023_20a.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i258/19RED72/100_3784.jpg

72Chero
02-19-2007, 01:27 AM
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i258/19RED72/100_3824.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i258/19RED72/100_3826-1.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i258/19RED72/100_3825-2.jpg

The transmission is the factory 4-speed toploader rebuilt in 2004 with everything on the inside replaced 100%. The rearend is a 9-inch posi with .389 Richmond Gears. I run Goodyear TA radials, 235x60xR15’s on the front and 285x75xR15’s on the rear. The rims are American Racing’s Tailgunner series. We have done several shows in the past 6 years, most of the Car shows we do are Benefit shows. We do it for the benefits not the trophies. We have done Poker Runs for Cancer, benefits for cancer patients, benefits for the local Birthing Center, and various other causes.

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i258/19RED72/Hugo%20Show/100_3432.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i258/19RED72/Santas%20helpers%20show/100_6100.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i258/19RED72/Santas%20helpers%20show/100_6095.jpg

72Chero
02-19-2007, 01:38 AM
. Just recently I finished the interior on RED. It has 3Racing bucket seats, four point safety harness’, Chrome fire extinguisher, custom red/black door panels and back panel, factory sport steering wheel with custom horn cap one of two, emblems from 66 Ranchero on the dash and a 64/65 emblem on the back panel, a new headliner and its looking sharp.

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i258/19RED72/INTERIOR/100_6886.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i258/19RED72/INTERIOR/100_6885.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i258/19RED72/INTERIOR/100_6826.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i258/19RED72/INTERIOR/100_6835.jpg

This shot was before I put the interior back together...its just a great photo of the steering wheel and drivers area...

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i258/19RED72/INTERIOR/100_6801.jpg


http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/205686/fullsize/025_22a.jpg

. We will see if RED can pull off some more fans this year. We did 20 shows last year and they are already lining up for this year. So here is the March’s Spotlight. This is the 1972 Ford Ranchero 500 we call RED.